Hiring an escort to pose as my boyfriend sits at the top of that list. But the idea of sitting alone at Mom’s table for the fifth year in a row after my fiancé cheated on me has me feeling desperate. It started as a drunken joke when I let my best friend convince me to fill out an application for a male escort. Now, I’m on my way to see my family with the man I paid for.He’s nothing like the polished professional I expected—complete with tattoos, a sinful muscular physique, and a blunt attitude. I almost call the whole thing off. Yet there’s something he’s hiding under his gruff exterior, and while I’m supposed to be getting to know my fake boyfriend, I’d rather learn about who this mysterious man truly is.What started as a simple business transaction isn’t so simple anymore. We can barely keep our hands off each other—even when no one’s watching. The lines we drew in our contract are blurring, and it doesn’t feel like we’re pretending. I can’t keep up with our lie for much longer.But how can I trust my heart with someone who fakes love for a living?

    It’s palpable. The whole town knows it. They have been at each other’s throats since their sand castle building days. But what everyone doesn’t know is that there was a winter, a long time ago, when Max had a secret and Patrick was there for her. They forgot to be hateful and thought maybe, just maybe they were in love….But you know, then it all fell apart. Until now...Get ready to watch tension fly and the three french biddies meddle when Max and Patrick reconnect at the Laurent Bakery in Martha's vineyard.A Christmas Tart is a standalone novella with an HEA, but it features characters from the Universe of all of Lola West's books.Pine-ing for the perfect holiday romance? It’s love at frost sight with The 12 Days of Kissmas! A dozen standalone holiday novellas so steamy they’re sure to melt that winter chill. From dashing doctors to dirty-talking mountain men, staying off the naughty list just got a whole lot harder.

    Kate isn’t sure if Nikolai is the real deal, but this silver fox with big hands and thick thighs might just make her believe in Christmas miracles.See if Kate has been naughty or nice in this light, fun, and steamy 15,000 word holiday romance with a guaranteed HEA.“I devoured this… It’s like a cup of cocoa, but if the tiny marshmallows were shaped like Santa boners” –Sierra Simone

    She needs a fiancé pronto. Can the cowboy and the debutante find common ground? Or will their shot at happily-ever-after get stomped to smithereens before it even has a chance to begin?Lucas Romeo has no time for love. He’s been down that road before, and it didn’t end well. When his sister Lexi fixes him up on a blind date with her friend Magnolia, things take a disastrous turn. Lucas has no intention of ever going out with Magnolia again—not if she were the last woman on earth. Forget that she’s stunningly beautiful. She’s also spoiled and entitled, the kind of woman who wouldn’t last a day on a ranch.Then, Magnolia makes Lucas a deal he can’t refuse …

    She runs a year-round Christmas shop in the little Scottish village, and is a fan of all things mulled, sparkly and festive. So when her warring family shows up on her doorstep, ready to spread discord and tension, Meg is determined not to let them ruin her favourite time of the year.Meanwhile, Christmas-hating Tom Riley-Clark has been called to the Highlands to help his old friend at The Apple Cross Inn. He’s ready to work hard and has no time for mince pies, tinsel or hanging a promise on the tree: the thought of every day being Christmas is his worst nightmare, and you wouldn’t catch him dead buying a bauble. So everyone is surprised when Christmas-loving Meg and grinch Tom start to get cozy under the mistletoe.But Tom has a big secret about his past, and in a small town like Lockton it’s hard to keep anything hidden for long. Will everything fall apart when Meg discovers who he really is? The pair are about to learn the hard way that some promises are impossible to keep…It’s time to curl up for an enchanting festive romance about learning to trust yourself, taking chances and not being afraid to fall in love. Perfect for fans of Nicola May, Debbie Macomber and Milly Johnson.

    Especially this year. No job. Flat broke. And an ex most definitely on the naughty list.But the unexpected inheritance of a Victorian cottage in the idyllic town of Poppy Creek may be the miracle Cassie needs. Except for one problem: a clause in the will. Cassie must complete a series of festive tasks for each day in December leading up to Christmas. Overseen by the disarmingly handsome, Christmas-loving lawyer, Luke Davis. Luke is as strong and steady as the bespoke furniture he crafts as a hobby. He has to be. Stepping into his late father's shoes as the town lawyer comes with a sleigh full of responsibilities. Which means the alluring stranger collecting her inheritance is a distraction he can't afford.As the unlikely pair works together to complete the daily tasks, fighting their attraction becomes more futile than putting good ol' St. Nick on a diet. But when Cassie's ex reappears with the offer of a lifetime, she'll have to choose between love and the life she always wanted. Curl up with a cup of hot chocolate and visit a town that feels like home. This endearing, sweet romance will warm your heart and fill you will hope. A "must-read" year after year.

    But no, the lot of them had to ruin it by inviting my childhood crush, Oliver Moore, and throwing us together at every possible moment. Heaven, help me. Now, instead of sipping hot cocoa by the fire, I’m dodging matchmaking attempts and trying to pretend I’m not attracted to Oliver’s adorably perfect smile. I will not become another one of my family’s projects.Oliver:I mean, am I upset Elle’s family swindled us into this Christmas vacation together? No. Will I ever admit that aloud? Also, no. I’ve long ago come to terms with the friend zone Elle placed me in back around ninth grade. But there’s something different about her this week. Something that’s bringing up feelings I really should ignore.Too bad ignoring has never been my strong suit.

    Deciding not to follow in her family's Oscar-winning footsteps, Jules chooses to take a more behind-the-scenes career in one of the Top 10 Talent Agencies in Chicago. After being dumped five hours before spending Christmas with her dysfunctional family, she needs a plan to avoid their judgmental eyes. Enter: Kayden Reece.Kayden is the black sheep of his family, being the one actor drowning in a world of doctors and lawyers. Never really getting a jumpstart at his acting career or landing a big time role, he can feel his dad’s disappointment soaking into his spirit. When Kayden gets a chance to meet and sign with a big name agent at Walter and Jacks Talent Agency, he’s ready to prove everyone wrong. Jules stumbles into the building in shambles, ugly crying, and begging to pay an actor a big sum of money to be her made-up boyfriend for five days, Kayden jumps at the opportunity—finally able to say he landed a role. When secrets start to unravel, Kayden and Jules must learn that all families have their baggage, sometimes co-stars fall in lust, and it’s important to always have invisible mistletoe hanging around. This holiday season join the two fake lovebirds as they partake in the role of a lifetime.

    But when they start crashing the same parties, the mittens are off!As much as she loves Christmas, after her mother’s death, events planner Nat can’t face the jolly season anymore. So to get her festive hit she crashes everyone else’s party. It’s a sweet gig, until she meets her competition, tech empire millionaire, Dean, under the mistletoe…!When it comes to relationships, Dean doesn’t do serious—being left at the altar will do that to a guy. So when he meets feisty Nat, the first woman in ten years to pique his interest, he’s tempted to break his one-night rule…just for the holidays!Nat and Dean might get more than they bargained for in their stockings this Christmas!

    He has a new career that doesn’t feel like his, and parents who would just love to see him settled down. All he needs is a temporary buffer for the parties he has to attend, and for his parents to leave him alone. Enter, Luke.Luke is twenty-thousand dollars short for the renovations on Halligans; his family’s bar in New York’s Financial District. A favor for a buddy has him agreeing to play the part of boyfriend to a guy with more money than sense.But when the spirit of Christmas works its magic on the two men, and they begin to fall for each other, Derek runs scared, and Luke needs space. It doesn’t matter what obstacles you throw in the way of love, or how much you run in the other direction, because, when you’re least expecting it, whether you want it or not, love happens anyway.

    Set against the most charming London backdrop, Meet Me in London is an irrisistable seasonal treat! What do you do when your fake engagement starts to feel too real… Aspiring clothes designer Victoria Scott spends her days working in a bar in Chelsea and her evenings designing vintage clothes, dreaming of one day opening her own boutique. But these aspirations are under threat from the new department store opening at the end of her road. She needs a Christmas miracle, but one is not forthcoming.Oliver Russell’s Christmas is not looking very festive right now. His family’s new London department store opening is behind schedule, and on top of that his interfering, if well-meaning, mother is pressing him to introduce his girlfriend to her over the holidays—a girlfriend who does not exist. He needs a diversion…something to keep his mother from meddling while he focuses on the business.When Oliver meets Victoria, he offers a proposition: pretend to be his girlfriend at the opening of his store and he will provide an opportunity for Victoria to showcase her designs. But what starts as a business arrangement soon becomes something more tempting as the fake relationship starts to feel very real. But when secrets in Victoria’s past are exposed, will Oliver walk away, or will they both follow their hearts and find what neither knew they were looking for…?"An ideal Christmas escape!"—Laura Jane Williams, Bestselling author of Our Stop

    And Nicholas Ryan is the good looking Santa I really don’t need in my life.They say the spirit of Christmas finds you on holiday vacations, but instead I run into the only person who could get my Christmas lights twisted: freaking Nicholas. A man I haven’t seen in twenty years and who I never wanted to see again. Except now he’s my hot bartender, complete with a silver-fox beard, a twinkle in his eye, and looking a lot like my kryptonite: jingle belling Santa Claus.It’s five days until Christmas, I’m stuck in a snowy town straight out of a Hallmark movie, and my ultimate goal? Avoid the Grinch who stole all my Christmases and pretend that our chemistry is simply just the magic of Christmas in the air.

    Meet Cuba Hudson, the heartbreaker of Briarwood Academy:I'm the tattooed bad boy girls think they can change.I have it all: a football career, a stellar GPA, and a family that owns half of Dallas, Texas. Everyone wants to be me, but all I want is to forget...Then she shows up.Dovey Beckham arrives at Briarwood Academy and looks right through me, unconcerned that I rule the school. I wasn't part of her precious plan, and it drove me insane...so I made it my mission to claim her, to put her notch on my bedpost.She would be mine and her heart would be broken.I didn't plan on falling for her, and I sure as hell didn't plan on losing her...Welcome to Briarwood Academy...where sometimes, the best things in life are Very Wicked Beginnings.

    He’s been on my naughty list for years.He’s also my brother’s best friend.When they come back to town for Christmas, the last thing I expect is Nash to be an extra houseguest. Even more surprising, he’s nice. This new side of him has me more tangled than the Christmas lights.Is it Christmas spirit messing with my head or is there more to Nash than I thought?NashJulia Rowe isn’t just my best friend’s little sister, she’s the love of my life. She’s also the only woman I’m not allowed to touch.Why?Because of a promise I made to her brother years ago. Not to mention, she hates me. Now, we’re under the same roof, and I’m not sure I can resist her. With Christmas right around the corner, can I show her I’ve changed? Or will I ruin my chances, destroy Christmas and lose my best friend?I may be in need of a Christmas miracle.

    Especially when she hires him to play the role of her adoring, hands-on significant other to waylay her boss’s unwanted advances.But what starts as a casual, sexy arrangement quickly evolves into an emotional connection neither one of them anticipates. Falling in love was never part of the deal, but you know what they say about best laid plans . . .Originally published as Christmas Fantasy by Janelle Denison