Are you in the Christmas spirit yet? If not, today’s the day! Unforgettable Christmas Joy: Hopes and Promises is available exclusively at all Amazon online retailers.
Dreams CAN come true at Christmas.
Join these heroes and heroines in their search for love and joy at this special time of year. Whether it’s in the wilds of Alaska under the Northern Lights, in towns, offices, or hospitals across the land, or on cruise ships under tropical skies, the magic of Christmas will make this the most wonderful time of the year.
Nine New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Authors have crafted stories of love and joy, ranging from sweet to spicy, the perfect box set to read with your favorite holiday beverage. So, whether your Christmas means snow, sand, or something in between, you’re sure to enjoy the romance and joy found in the pages of Unforgettable Christmas Joy: Hope and Promises.
Sweet Christmas: Mimi Barbour, New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author: Will she destroy her first real Christmas because she’s never been in love or experienced that holiday before?
Christmas Love: Natalie Ann, USA Today Bestselling Author: What happens when even the strongest are blinded by insecurities?
His Christmas Family: Susanne Matthews, International Bestselling Author: Can Christmas magic bring two broken souls together and fill six lives with joy?
Scrooge Falls In Love: Leanne Banks, New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author: Millionaire Stock Jock Justin Langdon experiences Scrooge-like dreams that make him re-think his independent lifestyle after new adoptive mom Amy Monroe saves his life.
Holiday By The Sea: Traci Hall, USA Today Bestselling Author: Opposites attract. Can they find a way to make the most unlikely of relationships work?
A Heavenly Christmas: Patrice Wilton, New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author: Can the magic of love mend a young woman’s heart?
Alaskan Christmas: Jen Talty, USA Today Bestselling Author: He was the second date that should have lasted a lifetime.
Honeymoon Cruise: Mona Risk, New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author: The perfect fiancé is a cheater and the fabulous Christmas wedding is off. But the would-be honeymoon cruise may fulfill the dreams of Julia and her unexpected companion.
Bittersweets Christmas – Arvin and Tina: Suzanne Jenkins, USA Today Bestselling Author: What does a Jewish neurologist and a Muslim ER physician have in common? LOVE! And how will they celebrate Christmas? All romance, all the time.
Here’s a sneak peek at His Christmas Family.
Chapter One
Jennifer Wilson sat back and ran her hands through her long, honey-brown hair, hoping to ease the stress headache that had become her constant companion these past few weeks. She stifled a yawn. How many more sleepless nights could she endure?
Removing her glasses, she rubbed the bridge of her nose. One of the plastic nose pads had broken, leaving the pad clamp to dig into her tender skin. Last week, she’d had to super glue the left temple, too. Given her current finances, purchasing new glasses was way down the list.
After turning off her computer, she straightened her desk and removed her pride and joy from the drawer, a Michael Kors knock-off bag she’d purchased in Minneapolis before leaving to come back home. She stood and stretched.
“You aren’t seriously going out to lunch in this?” Cassie shook her head. “I’ve got lasagna to spare. It’s not as good as yours, but you’re welcome to half of it.”
The friendly brunette was one of the few people Jenn had reconnected with two years ago when she’d moved back to Payton Falls. She’d found comfort in the familiar places of her childhood, despite the fact she shied away from socializing.
“You might be so used to living in that cold, drafty old house that you don’t notice the icky weather, but the rest of us do,” she added.
Cassie hadn’t been thrilled with the Henderson house Jenn had rented and recently purchased. Yes it was draughty, but since it was the only five bedroom house she could afford, they would make do—just as they always had.
There was little call for a pâtissier, a pastry chef, in Payton Falls, so thanks to Cassie’s help, she’d found a job at Ostler Construction. The company paid well and provided its employees with top-notch benefits. Her job as payroll clerk might not thrill the creative side of her, but it beat waiting tables at Cal’s Catfish Café in Floodwood, or cocktail waitressing at The Viking Bar and Grill, where the patrons considered the staff part of the menu.
“Thanks, Cassie, but I’m off for the afternoon. I cleared it with Mrs. Morris. I’ll be working through my lunch hours next week to make up the time. I have to take Fiona to the clinic to see Dr. Jeffries. They’re squeezing me in between patients, so who knows how long the wait will be. Her ears acted up again last night, and I had to leave her with the sitter again this morning.” Another unexpected expense.
“Poor baby—”
Jenn raised her hand, palm out to stop Cassie’s next comment. “Don’t go blaming the house. I’ve already spoken to the doctor about it, and he assures me that there’s no correlation between her earaches and home. If there were, the rest of us would be sick, too. And speaking of the weather, you’re getting soft in your old age. This is just a little wind and rain.” She smiled at her best friend. “I spent ten years in Chicago and then six more in Minnesota, remember? I’ve got this. Besides, despite what they say about climate change, the weather was just as bad, if not worse, when we were kids. Can you remember a single Halloween when we didn’t have snow?”
“I guess,” Cassie agreed, but her face said she wasn’t convinced.
Jenn exchanged her recently re-heeled black leather pumps for her worn knee-high boots, something else she’d planned to replace. Unfortunately, Mike had needed new basketball shoes. Her feet would be soaking wet by the time she got home this afternoon, but it couldn’t be helped. The kids came first—they always had, and they always would.
“I need to pick up the tablets I ordered for the kids at Carter’s. It’s in-store shopping only, but I called and begged, so Mrs. C. set four aside for me, but I have to get into the store before five. Cassie, they’re half the price they normally are. I won’t get a better deal ever. I’ll go over there as soon as I get Fiona back to Lucy’s, and then stop to pick up another prescription and a few groceries.”
Before agreeing to buy the house, Jenn had crunched the numbers carefully, and with her budget as tight as it was, she couldn’t keep adding to it the way she had been lately. As it was, her meager savings’ account was bleeding money on a regular basis, and would be bone dry within months.
“Mrs. Carter’s great. There are too few family run businesses left.” Cassie grinned. “Don’t forget to grab a sandwich or something while you’re out. You’ve lost weight again. The one thing those kids of yours don’t need is a sick mother.”
Jenn’s cheeks heated. There’d only been enough oatmeal for the kids this morning, and last night, she’d run out of meatloaf before the kids had run out of appetite.
“You’re preaching to the choir.” She shook her head. “Most people would consider me fashionably slender,” she argued, knowing her friend was right. Her clothes hung on her, and she couldn’t afford new ones. Ironic, wasn’t it? She would’ve given her eyeteeth to be this svelte at sixteen—might even have made the cheerleading squad.
“There’s slender, and there’s downright skinny—which is where you’re heading. I don’t get it. You do all that baking for the social committee, and yet you never eat any of it. Are all chefs that way? I can understand it. I cooked Thanksgiving dinner for the family, and the last thing I wanted to do was eat any of it, but there was no way I would pass up that pumpkin cheesecake you made me. It was the best I’ve ever tasted.”
You can read more by purchasing the set or reading it for free with your Kindle Unlimited membership. https://www.amazon.com/Unforgettable-Christmas-Joy-Hope-Promises-ebook/dp/B08MTJY23B
Living the Dream 