Worth the Wait


Caitlin Ricci - 2015
    It’s three days until Christmas and he's cold and miserable, but Addie will be devastated if he gives up.A cute guy who offers him an umbrella is just the encouragement Tate needs to stick it out, especially when Brandon brings him something hot to drink. But the signing ends before Tate can get to the front of the line, and Tate is sure he’s ruined Christmas for his niece. Luckily Brandon gets him in to see the author, who happens to be his mother.A simple thank you isn't enough for Tate, and neither he nor Brandon wants to end things there. For two men unused to such an instant mutual attraction, the Christmas season just got a little more merry.

Lessons Learned, Wishes Earned


Cassandra Gold - 2012
    Nick’s Naughty list. Lachlan is sure Haven is just like the spoiled rich boy who broke his heart and ruined his life a year earlier. But after watching Haven help the less fortunate, Lachlan longs to offer him shelter on a lonely Christmas Eve. Maybe this year, he’ll actually get his Christmas wish.

Bashert (2013 Advent Calendar - Heartwarming)


Gail Pruszkowski - 2013
    He can't reconcile his faith with his attraction to boys, so he turns his back on Judaism. A college scholarship is Jonah's ticket to freedom from his disapproving parents. Next step: losing his virginity to Christian, the blue-eyed blond man of his dreams. Instead, Jonah has a fateful meeting with Aaron Blumberg and ends up celebrating Hanukkah. Aaron tells him they're bashert—meant to be. But Jonah has doubts. He believes his lack of faith will create a wedge between them. It's up to Aaron to bridge the gap and convince Jonah to take a leap of faith.

Pop-Ups


Clare London - 2010
    It's the perfect arrangement for two men who are attracted to each other but don't have much else in common. Then a few days before Christmas, Jack's holiday plans are thwarted, leaving him home with just his volatile PC for company while Henry—his usual tech support—is on his way to a secluded Christmas hideaway. So what’s Jack to do when, to his horror, weird pop-ups start appearing?

Saint Martin's Day (Celebrate! - 2014 Advent Calendar)


Kim Fielding - 2014
    Since then, he’s led a quiet life as a librarian—until one November afternoon when Toby, who has never stopped loving Neno, shows up in Zagreb. When he left the United States, Neno wasn’t ready to give up his home and family to take a chance on a long-distance relationship. But Saint Martin’s Day has arrived, the day pressed grapes turn to wine and autumn turns to winter. Perhaps it will be a day when other changes are possible as well.A story from the Dreamspinner Press 2014 Advent Calendar package Celebrate!

Welcome Home, Soldier


Deanna Wadsworth - 2017
    After Clay’s convoy was ambushed, PTSD changed him, and their relationship ended in a horrible fight on Christmas Eve.Twenty-five years later, they’ve reconnected on Facebook, and Clay finds out Daniel will be alone on Christmas Eve. Impulsively, he sets out for Daniel’s hometown of Gilead, Ohio—where Daniel is now the mayor—to surprise him with a visit. But a blizzard strikes and Clay wrecks his car. All hope of seeing Daniel is lost—until a mysterious old man named Nick offers Clay a ride. The weight of past wounds and the scars of war might make their reunion awkward, but Clay is willing to take the risk to win back his lost love. Despite a lifetime of disappointing holidays, Clay hopes that this soldier is finally coming home for Christmas.

Fruit and Cheese


Madeleine Urban - 2008
    Then a man comes in and makes an on-the-fly special order for fruit and cheese. Eli fills the order and forgets about it … until the man comes back with another order the next week. And the next. And the next ….

Green the Whole Year 'Round


Rowan McAllister - 2014
    He desperately hopes a week of peace and quiet at a quaint mountain cabin will be just what he needs to regain his personal and professional confidence.Neil Kelly is a computer programmer who just got promoted to full time and is celebrating over Christmas by going on his first real grown-up vacation at the Cabins in the Pines Inn. When he runs into Ted, his longtime crush, Neil can't believe his luck, and he vows to do whatever it takes to make Ted see him as something other than the dork next door.Neil wasn’t part of Ted's plan for the holidays, but he might turn out to be exactly what Ted needs.

Gaudete


Amy Rae Durreson - 2013
    Stepping back out into the bustling Christmas Market outside the cathedral brings back memories of the boy he met here every Christmas, his best friend and first crush Callum. When their paths cross again, can Jonah and Callum mend their fractured friendship and fall in love again as adults? Gaudete was previously published in 2013.

The Boy Behind the Red Door


John Goode - 2011
    But ten years after high school, he’s still just as miserable and just as in love with the boy who lived down the street as he ever was. Now on a trip home for Christmas he finds out that running away from your problems isn’t always the best way to deal with them, and that for mending a broken heart, sometimes there’s no place like home.

Wish List


J.J. Cassidy - 2012
    What he doesn't have is someone to share it with. Berg Pedersen is out of the Army and out of the closet, and he's traveled clear across the country to spend the holidays with a former lover - until the guy's wife answers the door. Now he's stranded on Christmas Eve with no idea what to do next.Then DJ comes home and finds Berg outside his duplex, looking lost. One look into pale blue blue eyes, and DJ is curious enough to offer the guy a warm place to wait while he calls a cab, and then, on impulse, offers to make him dinner. Berg isn't sure why the tall cop seems to be into him, but he's not going to argue. After all, it's Christmas Eve, and miracles do happen.

Campfire Confessions


Bru Baker - 2014
    Case’s dad even buys them a joint gift—a camping trip. Even though Case hates the woods, he wants Mitchell to have a good time. When they discover the trip is a couples’ retreat, they have to fake a relationship. Case can’t understand why the trust and intimacy exercises the other couples struggle with come so naturally to them. After all, they’re not really boyfriends….

Tutus and Tinsel


Rhys Ford - 2018
    Ashamed of the bleakness and poverty she came from, Zig struggles with the assignment until an epiphany strikes the whole family—it’s time to start their own traditions.Zig and her fathers plunge into the insanity of holiday joy, exploring everything the season has to offer and learning how precious family truly is along the way.

Kindling Fire with Snow


Kate McMurray - 2010
    Despite moping over his ex-boyfriend Evan, who recently dumped him, Seth pretends all is well as he steps into his regular local bar, where he's surprised by a blast from his past. Enter Kieran O'Malley, Seth's very first boyfriend, in the city for a conference. It might have been just a chance meeting, but first a train derailment and then the predicted blizzard keep Seth and Kieran in close proximity. It's enough time for old feelings to surface, rekindled attraction to take hold, and new hopes for a future together to fill them both. But once the storm passes, the real challenge begins. Will Seth and Kieran work to make the relationship last, or will they let it melt away like snow in the sun?

The Holiday Hoax


Skylar M. Cates - 2014
    Oh, and let's not forget—recently dumped. If only my family wasn't expecting to meet my new boyfriend over the holiday break. Enter JD Laurens—a sweet and quiet science major who mostly keeps to himself. When he gathers the courage to come out, poor JD gets abandoned by his only family right in front of me, and now he has nowhere to go for Christmas. But I have a proposition for him: pretend to be my boyfriend for the holidays so I can take him home. It’s a win-win. What could go wrong?