Lila made a decision to stick by his side. But in order to go forward, she had to confront an issue from her past.Home For Christmas: Cynthia Cooke, USA Today bestselling author: Melanie returns to Pineville to renovate her old home and turn it into an Inn. With the help of the contractor who had taken so much from her in the past, she discovers what was lost in her old house, holds the answer to what’s been missing in her heart.Keep Me Warm: Alicia Street, USA Today bestselling author: Can a small-town working girl make it work with a wealthy jet setter, when their relationship suddenly changes from enemies to lovers?Miss Christmas: Stephanie Queen, USA Today bestselling author: Scarlet is too independent to play Cinderella, but when she enters the Miss Christmas pageant she has trouble resisting the Prince Charming of the Regal family--who happens to be running the pageant.Christmas Con: Rachelle Ayala, USA Today bestselling author: Two ex-cons pose as stellar success stories to swindle a grandfather to change his will for Christmas.Courage To Celebrate: Taylor Lee, USA Today bestselling author: Luke and Ava face their biggest challenge yet. In the past they found the courage to dare, the courage to love and the courage to triumph. Now they have to decide if they have the Courage to Celebrate.Christmas Wish: Patrice Wilton, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author: When confirmed bachelor, Byron Watts meets school teacher, Meghan Shaunessy and her 4-year-old autistic boy, he’s met his match. Can these two stubborn people overcome the pain of their pasts and learn to trust the healing power of love?

    How will the town survive without its main employer? A close-knit group of women think they've got just the plan to save Smitten. They'll capitalize on its name and turn it into a tourist destination for lovers complete with sweet shops, a high-end spa, romantic music on the square, and cabins outfitted with fireplaces and hot tubs.But is this manly town ready for an influx of romantically-minded guests?Country music sensation Sawyer Smitten, the town's hometown hero, wants to help by holding his own wedding there on Valentine's Day. And little Mia's lavender wreaths hang all over town as a reminder that faith can work miracles. Along the way, four women spearheading the town's transformation energetic Natalie, sophisticated Julia, graceful Shelby, and athletic Reese get in the spirit by reviving their own love lives.Join best-selling inspirational romance authors (and real-life BFFs) Colleen Coble, Kristin Billerbeck, Diann Hunt, and Denise Hunter for an inspiring stay at the (soon-to-be) most romantic town on the eastern seaboard.One visit . . . and you ll be smitten too.

    But have you ever wondered how it began? Billionaire Warren Sherbrooke assumed someday he’d marry a woman from a well-connected family who understood what it was like to live and breathe in his world. He never expected to fall in love with Ruth Taylor. Despite the differences in their social standings, Warren has considered Ruth a close friend for years. One weekend will forever alter that friendship.

    . .Lila Summers just wants to know one thing for certain: that Ethan Gregory will be with her always. Once her friend, he's become so much more, melting the pain of her past away with each kiss. Now Lila is on a road trip with Ethan, in the wilderness under the stars, and she can't imagine her life without him. But when she talks about the future, something in Ethan changes . . .Ethan has no doubts about his feelings for Lila. His life with her gets better every day-and that's the scary part. How can he walk into a future where he has everything to lose? With Lila, his whole heart is on the line for the very first time. But if Ethan can't give her the promise she needs, his greatest fear might come true: he'll lose Lila for good.(30,000 words)

    He needs to get a job and find a sense of normalcy if he’s going to keep his own demons at bay. The job that falls into his lap, though, is anything but normal. Bodyguard (and baby-sitter) to spoiled-rich-girl Kelsey Summers isn’t exactly what he’d been looking for, but it’s a chance to travel, to get away from the home that has felt stifling ever since his return. It would be a pretty sweet gig if it weren’t for the fact that Kelsey’s father doesn’t want Kelsey to know she’s being followed. Hunt feels guilty (and a little bit creepy) as he watches her from afar. She’s vibrant and infuriating, exciting and reckless, mysterious and familiar. When he sees her falling into the same patterns that he suffered years ago, he decides it’s time to stop watching and help her instead. But getting to know her is more difficult than he thought, especially because the more he knows her, the more he wants her.

    10 Things I Hate About You. Kiss Me, Kate. Contemporary audiences have always craved reimaginings of Shakespeare’s most beloved works. Now, some of today’s best writers for teens take on the Bard in these 15 whip-smart and original retellings!Contributors include Dahlia Adler (reimagining The Merchant of Venice), Kayla Ancrum (The Taming of the Shrew), Lily Anderson (As You Like It), Patrice Caldwell (Hamlet), Melissa Bashardoust (A Winter’s Tale), Amy Rose Capetta and Cori McCarthy (Much Ado About Nothing), Brittany Cavallaro (Sonnet 147), Joy McCullough (King Lear), Anna-Marie McLemore (A Midsummer Night’s Dream), Samantha Mabry (Macbeth), Tochi Onyebuchi (Coriolanus), Mark Oshiro (Twelfth Night), Lindsay Smith (Julius Caesar), Kiersten White (Romeo and Juliet), and Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka (The Tempest).

    A quaint inn at Christmastime. Three matchmaking ghosts have found the perfect setting for a modern-day romance between a free-spirited American and a single-minded British executive.Keeping Faith by Casey ClaybourneWhen a little orphaned girl is befriended by a ghost and saved from the streets of Regency London, she proves to be a Christmas miracle for a grieving couple.Only Fifteen Shopping Days Left by Elizabeth BevarlyWhen the jolly matchmaking ghost of a department-store Santa makes his Christmas gift list, he has a very special present planned for the busy store manager: one of Santa’s elves.The Ghost of Christmas Present by Jenny LykinsAlane was looking forward to spending a cold, snowy Christmas alone—until an unexpected visitor causes a change of heart.

    Don’t miss this chance to snap up the series that USA Today calls “smart, tart, and sexy”! Love On The Line: Violet Morgan puts the personal in personal chef…right up until her twin brother’s detective partner is injured in the line of duty. The last thing Violet wants is to get up-close and personal with tough, gruff Noah Blackwell…again. But despite their differences, Noah and Violet find heat in more places than the kitchen. When Noah goes back to active duty despite Violet’s deep-seated fears, will these two simmer down, or will their feelings boil over? Drawing The Line: Detective Jason Morgan must protect Serenity Gallagher from one of Brentsville’s most vicious criminals after she witnesses a brutal crime at her diner. The task is easier said than done with Serenity reluctant to leave Mac’s, the only place she’s ever called home. As they bide their time in protective custody, the stakes get higher and the sparks burn hotter for Jason and Serenity. But can they draw the line? Outside The Lines: Julianna Shaw walked out of Dr. Blake Fisher’s life eight years ago. He never expected to see her again, let alone be tasked with coordinating Brentsville Hospital’s charity fundraiser with her. But the sexy diner manager has secrets, ones that change everything both Blake and Jules once knew about love. Will the truth bring them back together…or send them apart for good? Pushing The Line: Artist Harper McGee has never met a change of address she didn’t like. So when she comes back to Brentsville to settle her beloved grandmother’s final affairs, it’s not for an extended stay…until Harper discovers that her grandmother has bequeathed her the family candy shop. Firefighter-slash-contractor Aaron Fisher is all too willing to help her with the renovations needed to sell the shop, but will he fix up her guarded heart, too?

      When Jenny Wright becomes involved in an online romance with someone she knows only as “C,” she can’t get enough of their erotic conversation. Flirting online helps Jenny temporarily escape confronting the innumerable changes to her life as she slowly loses her vision. It’s easier having a relationship with someone behind a computer screen, someone with whom she doesn’t have to share every intimate detail of her life.   Jenny’s occupational therapist, Evan Carlisle-Ford, is helping her prepare for the challenges ahead. But the forthright, trustworthy man can no longer ignore his growing attraction to his fiercely intelligent client. His only option is to end their professional relationship . . . and embrace a romantic one.   Now Jenny must choose between the safe, anonymous “C”—or the flesh-and-blood Evan, whose heated kisses can melt snow faster than it can fall. And after receiving an unexpected present for Christmas, Jenny just may find the courage to let down her defenses and trust—in herself, and in the possibility of lasting love.  Includes a special message from the editor, as well as an excerpt from another Loveswept title.

    Butcher and Stephanie Tyler and Larissa Ione, writing as Sydney Croft. Sydney Croft's special forces couple, Annika and Creed, work for the Agency for Covert Rare Operatives (ACRO), all of whose members have special powers, while Shannon K. Butcher's hero is an ex-Navy SEAL. But these fighting men and women have a gentler, protective side; hard-edged weapons when on active duty, they can be caring lovers, of special forces teammates or the civilians they protect.

    12 Bestselling Authors. November 2013***********It’s Maggie and Clay’s first Christmas together…***Spoilers for those who have not read Find You in the Dark or Light in the Shadows***Clay and Maggie have gone through the dark and come out on the other side. For the first time, they are on this journey together. Fighting for something they both need and can’t live without…each other.But a long distance relationship is hard. Particularly for two people who are still trying to build something solid on a shaky and troubled foundation. Clay is finally out of treatment and is living in an out patient halfway house. He struggles with what he wants to do and where he wants to go. Questions he worries he will never have the answers to. Maggie is trying to transition into college life and learning how to create a future with someone who is over a thousand miles away.As the months pass and they struggle with being a part, old insecurities and fears take root and threaten a love that has come so far.When Maggie decides to fly to Florida as a surprise for Clay on Christmas, she is unsure whether it will be the first step toward what they both desperately want or whether it could possibly be the end of it all.But with the holidays approaching, Maggie and Clay are reminded that even when the days are coldest, you can still find the warmth and that hope and love are the greatest gifts of all.

    Claire!Linda Lael Miller delivers a holiday miracle in the bittersweet tale of a young woman who can't hide her broken heart -- or her past -- when she returns to her hometown. But a sexy widower may just help her discover the true meaning of home in "Christmas of the Red Chiefs." Catherine Mulvany spins a fairy tale come true in "Once Upon a Christmas." They flirted as teenagers, but it takes time -- and some divine intervention -- to bring two star-crossed lovers together at last. Julie Leto pairs fire and ice in "Meltdown," the sensual tale of a Cuban-American PR whiz whose job description includes thawing out her CEO boss's frosty image. Will their sparks torch into flames of passion? Roxanne St. Claire unwraps the thrills of Christmas in New York, where a female bodyguard toys with a dangerous desire for a mysterious hunk while protecting his young daughter. It's a risky game with passion as the prize in "You Can Count on Me."

    Then officer Gideon Stone shows up at her door. Calla thought her kitchen was hot enough beforePLAYING GAMES by Meg MaguireWith her plane grounded on Christmas Eve, Carrie Baxter agrees to share a rental car with her secret high school crush. Sure, Daniel Barber is hotter than ever, but he's still just as prickly, too. It's gonna be one looong drive and an unforgettably X-rated night!ALL NIGHT LONG by Debbi RawlinsOverworked paralegal Carly Watts needs Jack Carrington's signature, but he'll do whatever it takes to buy more time before selling his grandfather's company. Including having one very naughty night before Christmas!

    So what do you get a man who has everything? Innocent and comely Verity Ewing plans on giving Julian her heart—the most precious gift of all.previously published in The Gifts of Christmas AnthologyThe Season for Suitors (Tallants, #3.5) by Nicola CornickAfter some close encounters with rakes in which she was nearly compromised, heiress Clara Davenport realizes that she needs some expert advice. And who better for the job than Sebastian Fleet, the most notorious rake in town? But the tutelage doesn't go quite as planned, as both Sebastian and Clara find it difficult to remain objective when it comes to lessons of the heart!previously published in Christmas Keepsakes AnthologyThis Wicked Gift (Carhart, #0.5) by Courtney MilanLavinia Spencer has been saving her hard-earned pennies to provide her family with Christmas dinner. Days before the holiday, her brother is swindled, leaving them owing more than they can ever repay. Until a mysterious benefactor offers to settle the debt. Innocent Lavinia is stunned by what the dashing William White wants in return. Will she exchange a wicked gift for her family's fortune?

    A Waldenbooks exclusive.contains the following stories:"Stranger in Her Bed" by Suzanne Forster"The Marrying Kind" by Debbie Macomber"Satisfy Me" by Lori Foster"The Brass Ring" by Lisa Jackson