Love
Is Coming to Town
A Small Town Christmas Romance
Anthology
with stories
by Rebecca
Barton, Dawn
Luedecke, Danielle
Pays, Alexa Rivers, Kaci
Rose, Megan Ryder,
Bell Splendor, Kate
Stacy, Claire Wilder
What’s
a small town Christmas without a little romance?
Fake
relationships, second chances, friends to lovers, and sexy brother’s
best friends.
Mix
in some small town gossip, meddling matchmakers, and Christmas magic
and you have a perfect holiday escape.
Finding
His Cheer by Claire Wilder
He
loved and lost. She’s just lost. This Christmas, will love be the
thing that finds them both?
Operation:
Christmas Seduction by Megan Ryder
A
sexy bartender seduces his crush of Christmas trees, gifts, and
cookies. But when the season ends, will their romance too?
Second
Chance Christmas by Alexa Rivers
Breaking
down outside her ex’s bar wasn’t part of the plan. Could a
Christmas reunion reignite their old spark?
Love
At Frost Sight by Bell Splendor
When
two enemies come together, will it be steamy heat, or a melting
iceberg of disaster?
Captivated
by Danielle Pays
Needed:
One fake boyfriend for the holidays. She never expected her brother’s
best friend, aka her crush, to volunteer.
Twelve
Days by Kate Stacy
She’s
missing her usual holiday spirit, until a secret admirer gives her
twelve days of Christmas she’ll never forget.
Christmas
at La Villa Rosa by Rebecca Barton
Two
creatives clashing on a joint project…surely it’s too cold to
shut each other out, especially on Christmas Eve?
Her
Second Chance Christmas by Kaci Rose
Her
best friend’s Christmas wedding. A family reunion and the man she
never thought she’d see again.
Kiss
Me Under the Mistletoe by Dawn Luedecke
The
only person who can put Sexy Santa in his place is a pain in the
butt, and the perfect Mrs. Claus.
**Only .99 cents!!**
Operation: Christmas Seduction
Author: Megan Ryder
Short Blurb: A sexy bartender seduces his crush over Christmas trees, gifts, and cookies. But when the season ends, will their romance too?
Full Blurb:
True to his name, Ryan Holliday loves Christmas, as proclaimed by the tinsel and lights adorning his bar, Bangers and Mash. Sadly, the town Grinch, Paige Taylor--a woman who’s locked him in the friend zone—missed the memo. When he notices her mood unaffected by the trimmings, he makes it his mission to help her find her holiday spirit. Who knows? His good deed might even coax St. Nick into granting Ryan’s long-held Christmas wish to win her affection.
Any joy Paige Taylor might’ve known during the holidays had been killed by years of tense family affairs. For her, this year’s “Season of Stress” would be even worse thanks to her parents’ efforts to reunite Paige with her cheating ex-fiancé. In their eyes, his money and influence made up for his flaws. In fact, they blamed her for boring him with her dedication to her career as a history professor. At this point, even Henry VIII appealed more than modern men, which meant she shouldn’t flirt with the sexy bar owner insisting she party with the ghost of Christmas present.
Ryan seduces her over Christmas trees, cookies and shopping but will the Christmas magic they find together last beyond the New Year?
Excerpt:
"What are you drinking?"
She glanced at the glass, blinking owlishly behind her sexy, black-rimmed glasses, as if only now realizing it was empty. "Vodka and cranberry."
He whipped the glass away in one deft motion. "Not tonight. Let me make you one of my patented holiday drink specials."
He grabbed the blender, eggnog, amaretto, brandy, and ice cream. She leaned over the counter, trying to see around him, but he turned his back from her, hiding what he was doing. Finally, he sugared the rim of the martini glass and poured the mixture into it, garnishing it with a miniature candy cane.
He presented it to her with a flourish. "As if it came off Santa's sleigh just for you." He held it back for a second, just out of reach. "Have you been a good girl this year?"
She grinned. "I'm always good."
He leaned forward until the fuzzy white ball at the end of his Santa hat brushed her forehead. "Where's the fun in that?" He winked and handed her the drink. "Enjoy."
She took a sip and nodded, but he saw the slight grimace. "It's good."
"Good?" He pretended outrage. "It's Christmas in a glass! The most wonderful time of the year. And you say it's good?"
She laughed, finally letting down her guard a little. "Okay, fine. It's Christmas in a glass. Wonderful. Fabulous. Like drinking snowflakes. Are you happy now?"
He frowned. She was definitely a tough nut to crack. Fortunately, he’d had experience cracking tough cases. He’d figure her out too. "You hate it, don't you?"
She set the glass down. "Not a fan of peppermint or candy canes."
He took a step back and narrowed his gaze at her. Maybe he was figuring out the issue. No holiday garb, and a distinctly uncomfortable feeling around the holiday cheer. Yup, she was not in the holiday spirit. How could she have missed it? His whole bar was decked to the rafters for the season, the best time of year. His whole family came in over Thanksgiving and helped decorate the bar. Yet Paige was sitting here as if it were any other night of the year. "You do know it's Christmas, right?"
She wrinkled her nose. "How could I have missed it? What happened in here anyway? Drunken elves trash your bar? Lose a bet?"
He followed her gaze around the bar. "What do you mean? We're just getting started here." Suspicion dawned. “Do you hate Christmas or something?"
She shrugged, sipping the drink again. "Or something. It's a kids' holiday, not for adults. In my family, Christmas is really more of a social obligation than a fun time. I guess I just don't see the point."
He fell back dramatically against the bar, hand against his heart, feigning shock. "You really mean that? Oh, Paige, darling. Christmas is a season for miracles, a time for family, a time for fun." He shoved himself off the bar. "There's nothing for it. You need the Christmas spirit. And I'm just the Santa to bring it to you."
She stared at him, her green eyes a little wide, her full lips parted. She considered him, tentative, nervous, kind of like that rescue cat, not sure what he'd do next. She pushed her glasses up and shook her head.
"No, thanks. I'm good. I just never really saw the point. You rush around fighting crowds of people to buy stuff for people who already have stuff. Everyone is irritable and cranky, spending more money than they have. Why?"
He leaned forward on the bar, his upper body close to hers. "It's all about perspective. Think about finding that perfect gift for someone, then watching them open it on Christmas morning and seeing their joy and excitement. You don't have to spend a lot. It's the thought that counts."
She blew a raspberry at him. "Oh pooh. You really believe that? I think the advertising people would beg to disagree with you. And let's face it. All evidence is against you. It's all commercial now. All Christmas spirit is gone, lost in a flurry of money, gifts and greed."
He listened to her words but heard something else under it all. He had hoped she'd be a little more receptive to Christmas, not shutting it down completely. But at least she wasn't running scared from him. "So, what do you have to lose? If you're right, then you've lost a few hours. If I'm right, you've gained the holiday spirit."
He held his breath, half expecting her to say no thanks.
He'd never heard of someone not loving Christmas. In his family, they began preparing for Christmas in September, planning gifts, Christmas tree themes, and parties. When he first opened Bangers, as soon as Thanksgiving ended, holiday decorations went up. Hearing that someone didn't celebrate Christmas, didn't appreciate the holiday as he did, was a concept that was as foreign to him as someone not liking ice cream.
He dried a glass, striving for nonchalance while inside, he was twisted up. Damn, she was beautiful, in an understated way, easily missed by most of the guys hanging out in this bar looking for something more obvious. Maybe he could finally figure out why she was so attractive and work out this connection between them.
The silence dragged on and he had to push her. He wasn't above a little emotional blackmail. "Unless, maybe you don't want to spend time with me. Maybe you don't like me or something."
The look on her face was priceless. Shock, surprise and a hint of something his ego might interpret as fascination.
"Of course not. But it would be a waste of time," she replied, voice prim and proper.
"Spending time with you is never a waste of time.”
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