A Montana Born Christmas Boxed Set
Publication date: October 20th 2015
Genres: Adult, Romance
Ready to two-step under the mistletoe with a hot cowboy? How about a gorgeous tycoon? Spend a white Christmas in Montana with eight heartwarming, contemporary romances. This limited edition collection features sweet and sexy holiday stories from bestselling and award-winning authors. You’ll find eight romantic heroes to fall in love with in A Montana Born Christmas boxed set. And all for less than a dollar!
Christmas at Copper Mountain by Jane Porter
Life has been tough at Copper Mountain Ranch and widower Brock Sheenan’s kids have never had a proper Christmas. His new housekeeper, Harley Diekerhoff, is determined to change that–but she doesn’t count on falling in love with her taciturn boss.
Come Home for Christmas, Cowboy by Megan Crane
Christina Grey Cooper has finally given up on her marriage and returned home to Marietta to lick her wounds. But Dare can’t let the love of his life go, even if what’s standing in the way of a true holiday miracle is himself… Can the magic of a White Christmas in Montana help him save what he’s nearly lost forever?
A Cowgirl’s Christmas by CJ Carmichael
Betrayed by her father, Callan Carrigan has to decide what matters most to her. Fighting Court McAllister to get back the family ranch, or giving Court what he really wants—her heart.
A Cowboy for Christmas by Katherine Garbera
Back in Marietta, disgraced, the last person Annie Pruhomme wants to see is hunky Carson Scott. Does he hold a grudge, and why does he still look so hot?
Mistletoe Wedding by Melissa McClone
An instant family isn’t on ranch foreman Tyler Murphy’s Christmas list, but event planner Meg Redstone’s kisses are. Getting her under the mistletoe, however, is going to take a miracle…or help from Santa.
A Sweet Montana Christmas by Roxanne Snopek
A marriage in jeopardy, a decrepit honey farm and an unexpected birth on a dark, snowy night. All they need to rediscover their love is a Christmas miracle.
Blame the Mistletoe by Dani Collins
Commiseration over being alone for the holidays turns to a holiday fling, making Liz Flowers think Blake Canon is giving her the Best Christmas Ever. But when family secrets are revealed and their children arrive home early, will they be able to keep the season bright?
Her Mistletoe Cowboy by Alissa Callen
Ivy Bishop plans to spend Christmas holed up on an isolated Montana ranch far from the city and her ex-fiancé. But the more time she spends with the workaholic cowboy next door the more she realizes her heart isn’t actually broken – yet.
Excerpt
for Her
Mistletoe Cowboy by Alissa Callen
She was only staying for one night.
It didn’t matter how much
Rhett repeated the thought on the walk from the main ranch house to his log
cabin, the tension constricting his ribs refused to ease. His self-preservation
had already earmarked Ivy’s pretty face and strong spirit as a distraction. A
distraction he simply couldn’t have. He had to remain focused on the end game.
He had a new ranch to establish and a deathbed promise to honor.
It also didn’t seem to matter
how casual he kept their banter as they collected Ivy’s bag from her car, the
closer they walked to his house the more the spark in her eyes dimmed. She was
running on empty. He needed to get her and Milly inside, get them warm and fed
and ignore the voice that said to load them into his pickup and head to his
family ranch where Peta and Kendall would take over.
After all, it was only one
night.
But as he opened the side
door to his cabin he couldn’t let go of the feeling he was opening the door
into his life.
“Thanks,” Ivy said, her tone
quiet as she entered the mudroom. He followed, set her bag on the floorboards
and removed his boots. She bent to do the same.
“It’s okay. Leave yours on.”
He hung his hat and coat on the hook to his left. “You’ll stay warmer if you
take your boots and coat off in front of the fire.”
“Are you sure? I don’t want
to tramp snow inside.”
He looked at her city
footwear and grinned. “You have as much snow on your boots as Milly would have
on her paws.”
Canine nails clipped across
the floorboards as Rusty, his faithful aged Australian Shepherd, left his dog
bed in the far kitchen corner to join them. Milly popped her head out of Ivy’s
coat and whined. Ivy placed the pup on the floor. The little Jack Russell
launched herself at Rusty and engaged him in a doggy wrestle.
“I’d run now, Rusty, while
you can,” Ivy said, laughing. “Once Milly starts playing she doesn’t have an
‘off’ button,”
Rhett concentrated on the two
tussling dogs and not on the smiling woman an arm’s distance away. Ivy’s husky,
musical laughter reached a place inside him he didn’t even know was lonely. A
place he didn’t want to awaken. The path he’d plotted to achieve his goals was
a single-track only.
He swung away to collect a
small stool and moved it close to a sofa chair near the fire. “Here, take a
seat and rest your feet on this to warm them while I rustle up some coffees.”
“I really don’t want to be a
bother.” She pushed back the fur-trimmed hood. “I’d rather help than sit.”
“It’s fine, I’ll get the
coffees,” he said, already at the kitchen door and in sudden need of air.
Wearing her hood, Ivy had
been beautiful. Without it, she was pure distraction. Her fawn-brown hair was
thick and glossy and longer than he thought. When not wearing her hooded-jacket
it would reach halfway down her back.
He grabbed for the coffeepot.
He wasn’t even going to think about her mouth. Even devoid of color, her full
lips made a man wonder if they tasted as sweet as they looked.
He reentered the living room,
coffees in hand. He had to focus on being neighborly and not on the fact that
over near the fire Ivy shrugged off her jacket. Coffee slopped from a mug and
burned his left hand as he side-stepped the playing dogs. He’d been too
distracted by the perfection that lay beneath Ivy’s coat to notice where he
walked.
Taking her and Milly to
Bluebell Falls Ranch to be fussed over by his sisters had to be the best
option. The alternative was to spend the next twelve hours in close proximity
with a woman dressed in fitted jeans, knee-high black boots and some sort of
tiny white fluffy cardigan that clung to her curves like a second skin. Small
pearl buttons drew his gaze exactly where it shouldn’t go, the top button
having worked itself free and giving him a glimpse of the smooth skin at her
throat. As she bent to drape the jacket over the arm of the chair, her heavy
hair slid over her shoulder. Again he caught the scent of vanilla mixed with
something sweet. All Ivy needed was a pair of wings and she’d rival any
beautiful Christmas tree angel.
Teeth clenched, he set the
steaming coffees on a nearby table. He hadn’t even been around his unexpected
houseguest for an hour and he’d become as sidetracked as a hormonal teenage
boy.
Ivy sank into the huge chair,
its size making her look almost … fragile. She closed her eyes and turned
her face toward the fire’s heat. The bruises he’d noticed earlier beneath her
eyes were now dark crescents. Again he had the impression the cold wasn’t the
only reason for the weariness that seemed to weigh her down. Her saying she’d
had a bad six months must have been an understatement.
“Here,” he said softly, as he
passed her a coffee.
He wouldn’t be taking her
anywhere. She was too exhausted. He might be many things, but he wasn’t a
coward. He’d suck up his misgivings about having her stay and look out for her
as any good neighbor would. He glanced at her chin that still retained its
stubborn tilt even when she relaxed. Well, that was if she’d let him.
Her lashes swept open. The
green flecks in her hazel eyes the only color in her wan face.
The corners of her mouth
curled. “Perfect timing. Without caffeine I don’t think I could get out of this
chair.”
She took a sip of coffee and
placed the mug on the small table he positioned beside her. She then leaned
forward to remove her boots.
Rhett moved away to scoop up
Milly as she chewed Rusty’s tail. He didn’t need to see Ivy’s small and dainty
feet. As it was, his dreams would be filled by angels with long, silken hair,
curves in all the right places and a waist he could span with his hands.
He carried Milly into the
kitchen and busied himself giving her and Rusty an early dinner and on heating
the ham and split pea soup he had in the freezer.
When he returned to the
living room carrying a laden tray, Ivy had settled on the stool she’d dragged
closer to the fire.
“Whatever is in those mugs
smells good,” she said, with a grin.
“Let’s hope it tastes good.”
He sat the tray beside Ivy’s half-drunk coffee on the small table. In his
peripheral vision he caught the flicker of firelight over her pink, varnished
toenails. He passed her a mug of thick soup. “I’m the first to admit I don’t
have time to be a gourmet chef.”
Her eyes smiled her thanks.
He collected his own soup mug
and sat a safe distance away on the sofa. From in the kitchen doggy growls
sounded as Rusty and Milly resumed their wrestling.
He took a swallow of too-hot
soup and sought for something to say. His sudden awkwardness highlighted how
long it’d been since he’d been on a date or talked to a woman he hadn’t grown
up with. On the rodeo circuit, women hadn’t exactly been interested in his conversational
skills.
“So … where are you
from?” It was the best line he could think of.
But it was enough. The faint
crease between her brows cleared.
“Atlanta. I’m a corporate
analyst.” She hesitated. “Well, I was and will be again when I establish my own
consultancy business.”
“From here?”
“To be honest, I haven’t
decided, but I doubt it. I’m not sure there are many corporations needing
financial advice in Marietta.”
He grinned. “We do have a
rodeo committee who needs help balancing their budget.”
She matched his grin. “There
you go. There’ll be plenty of work for me.”
All the reasons as to why he
needed to go outside and fix the tin flapping on the barn emptied from his
head. The hot soup had added color and shine to her curved lips and the fire’s
heat had flushed her cheeks.
Her smile slipped. “After
Christmas I’ll think about the future. Right now I just want my power on and
time to … regroup.”
He nodded. He might know a
little more about her, but it was what she didn’t say that spoke volumes. Her
life was in turmoil and she’d come to her mountain holiday home a month before
Christmas to lick her wounds. She’d removed her gloves, and even though her
ring finger was bare, his gut told him the reason shadows lurked in her eyes
had to do with a man.
THank you for informing me about this book series.
ReplyDelete