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Available 4.15.24


It Happened One Christmas

It Happened One Christmas, December 2011
The Wrong Bed
by Leslie Kelly

Harlequin Blaze
Featuring: Lucy Fleming; Ross Mitchell
224 pages
ISBN: 0373796587
EAN: 9780373796588
Kindle: B005WJGKUI
Paperback / e-Book
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"A charming Christmas tale of forgiveness and love."

Fresh Fiction Review

It Happened One Christmas
Leslie Kelly

Reviewed by Darlene Kendall
Posted December 10, 2011

Holiday | Romance Erotica Sensual

Lucy Fleming once thought her photographs would be in all the fashion magazines but after working in Europe she's found her true passion. Her gift is photographing children and she loves it. On her return to Chicago, she gets a last minute job— a company Christmas party. Things are going well until she runs into the CEO, who just happens to be the man she fell in love with and who left her on this exact date six years ago.

Ross Marshall never forgot Lucy and believes he has been given a second chance with her, except she is still angry about what happened between them. Deciding to give her a little breathing space, Ross graciously steps back. A twist of fate in the form of a blizzard and other complications find them stranded in Ross's office building. There is no way he will let this opportunity slip by. He wants to show Lucy that he is still in love with her and it was wrong to just walk away, even if he thought he was doing what was best for her career.

Ms. Kelly has penned a charming story to read especially during the Christmas season. The only jarring note stems from some of the seemingly forced transitions between the past and the present. However, even these moments seemed small compared to the overall charm of IT HAPPENED ON CHRISTMAS.

Learn more about It Happened One Christmas

SUMMARY

Six years ago, Ross Mitchell and Lucy Fleming shared a hot holiday weekend in Manhattan, back when he was just a hard- bodied guy in a tool belt and she was an impulsive photography student.

Fast-forward a few Decembers: Ross and Lucy meet again, by chance, at his office Christmas party. And when they find themselves alone and snowed in after hours, it's not long before they're making their own body heat—again. Only this time, the sex is better than ever!

But is it just another holiday romp between the sheets? Or will Lucy and Ross finally get to keep what they really want this year—each other!

Excerpt

Her jaw unhinged. "You'vegot to be kidding! You seriously want to go into the biggest toy store in theuniverse today?"

"Come on, it'll be fun."

She took a step back. "It'll be insane. There will be agazillion kids in there."

"Nah. Just their frenzied parents."

"Who are worse than the kids!"

"You'll like this, I promise. Come on, Miss Cranky Ass."

She gaped.

"Look, I need to get for a present for my nephew. I know he'dlove this walking, roaring dinosaur toy I've seen commercials for. My sistertold me he's spent the last month with his arms hidden inside his shirt, wavinghis little hands and roaring at all his preschool classmates."

"Velociraptor?"

"Yup."

"Okay, at least he's gotgood taste in dinosaurs. They're my favorite, too."

"I always preferred theT-rex, myself."

"Not bad," she said with ashrug. "So I guess that means we're a couple of carnivores."

He nodded, liking thebanter, especially liking that the bad mood her ex had caused appeared to havecompletely disappeared. "I guess so. Though, I don't suspect it would take awhole pack of you to bring me to my knees." No, indeed, he suspected Lucy wouldbe quite capable of that all on her own.

He didn't elaborate,letting her figure out what he meant. When she lowered her lashes and lookedaway, he figured she had.

What could he say? He wasaffected by her, had been at first sight. The feelings had grown every minutethey'd spent together. Not that she was probably ready to hear that from a guyshe'd met a few hours ago. Nor, honestly, was he ready to say it. Knowing shewas amazing, fantastic—and that he wanted her, badly—was one thing. Admittingit this soon was another.

So he went back to saferground. "Anyway, that store's probably the only place I'm going to find thedino-toy I'm looking for today. It walks, it roars, he'll love it!"

"Preschool-ageappropriate?" she asked, sounding dubious.

"Hell, no." He grinned."But that's for his parents to deal with. I'm just the cool uncle who buys it."

Considering the presentmight be late, he wanted to make it a good one. No Internet gift card couldever satisfy a four- year-old, and since Ross was the boy's godfather, and hisonly uncle, he had to do right by him.

"So, what do you say?"

"I dunno..."

"We're talking about goinginto F.A.O. Schwarz, not Mt. Doom and the fires of Mordor."

She rolled her eyes. "Atleast there are no screaming little ones on Mt. Doom, unless you count theHobbits."

He liked that she got thereference. He wasn't a total geek but couldn't deny being a LOTR fan. "None inthere either. They're all home being extra-good, hoping Santa will notice."

"How about I wait outside?"she offered, looking horrified by the idea of going in, but also a bit saddenedby it.

Lucy was obviously seriousabout that not-liking-Christmas thing. Though, he wondered if it was theholiday she didn't like, or some sad memories that were attached to it. Given thefew things she'd said about her parents, and the happy childhood she'd hadbefore she'd lost them, he suspected that might be it.

Well, bad memories nevertruly went away, but they could certainly be smacked into the background bygood ones.

"Your call," he replied,tsking. "But remember, you don't have to shop. Don't you think you'd have funwatching the crazed parents fighting over the last Suzy Pees Herself doll, orthe My Kid Ain't Gonna Be Gay Monster Truck playset?"

Lucy laughed out loud, ashe'd hoped she would. "When you put it that way, how could I possibly refuse?"

"You can't. Anyone with anounce of schaudenfreude in their soul—which I suspect you have, at least whenit comes to Christmas and oddly-penised exes—would race me to the door."

Mischiefdanced on her face and a dimple appeared in her cheek as she offered aself-deprecating grin. She didn't deny it. That was something else he likedabout her. Most other women he knew kept up thatI'm-sweet-and-love-puppies- and-kitties-and- everyone front, at least at thebeginning of any relationship. Lucy hadn't bothered. Hell, she freely admittedshe hated Christmas, and had been fantasizing about cutting off a guy's dickwhen they'd met. Talk about not putting on some kind of nice-girl act. Was itany wonder he already liked her so much?

"Okay, Mt. Doom, here we come," she said, taking his hand.


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