Christmas at Mistletoe Lodge: New Holiday Romances to Benefit St. Jude Hospital
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He willed his feet to move, took several steps closer. “You bought this place?”
She closed the gap by another two steps. “CMB were my husband’s initials—Craig Michael Bradford. He sold insurance for a living. I didn’t know it, but he’d purchased an accident policy that paid double and left me well provided for if anything happened to him. I can afford this place, along with several improvements I plan to make.”
“I-I’m,” Mack stammered. “I’m a little thrown off right now.”
The cool wind blew Natalie’s auburn hair into her face. She pushed it away with her left hand, the ring finger missing her wedding band. “I told you I was an Ole Miss Alumni—what you don’t know is that I received my Masters in Hospitality Management with a minor in General Business.” She jutted her chin toward the Lodge. “Compared to the hotels I’ve managed in Biloxi and Gulfport, this is easy—and a welcomed change. I love the one-on-one with guests as much as running a business. This is the perfect blend of both.”
He grabbed the back of his neck with one hand. “I don’t know what to say.”
“Say you’re happy to see me.”
He dropped his arm to his side and grinned. “That’s a given.”
She moved closer, Duke shadowing each step. “Say you’ll work with me. Say you’ll take the time to get to know everything about me—and that you’ll let me get to know you the same way.” Natalie reached out for him with both hands.
He took her hands in his own, pulled her against him. “I can’t believe you’re here. I prayed for this.”
Natalie stood on her tiptoes to give him the sweetest of kisses, pulled back and smiled. “I did too, Mack.” She laid her face on his chest.
Mack wrapped his arms around her, held on tightly, afraid to lose her again. “If this is a dream, I don’t want to wake up.”
She laughed softly, the sound muffled by his shirt. “It’s no dream, Mack—just the forces of nature—rearranging fate to smile on us for a change.”
He kissed the top of her head, rested his chin on it, and closed his eyes. “Thank God.”
THE END
Other Work by Lauren Gayle
Complete Southern Lights series (Available in 2020)
A Southern Lights Christmas (Southern Lights: Book 1)
Southern Landing (Southern Lights: Book 2)
When an off duty accident forces Jacob 'Jake' Jeffries into unforeseen military retirement, he boards a bus to anywhere out of his frigid Minnesota hometown. He steps off in Lake Charles, Louisiana to fill his belly, but the lure of sultry temps, southern hospitality, and delicious food has him taking a job in the kitchen of a local diner. Jake bonds immediately with his pretty co-worker, promising chef Emmelia “Emm” Saucier. When Emm stumbles onto information that has her questioning her heredity, it takes her to Molina, a small town in the Florida panhandle. Jake accompanies her as she seeks answers to lifelong questions. Will Emm’s relationship with her parents back in Louisiana survive the strain? Can her bond with Jake withstand further complications regarding the accident that ended his career?
Southern Retreat (Southern Lights: Book 3)
Garret “Max” Blades, a former Marine on a Harley, is trying to find his niche in the world. He chills for a while as the kitchen help at a diner in southwest Louisiana. He meets waitress-turned-manager, Ava Grace Roussel, who’s struggling to overcome an incident in her past that’s kept her from expanding her horizons. Can Max and Ava defeat their individual demons of PTSD to forge ahead and create new lives for themselves?
Southern Redemption (Southern Lights: Book 4)
Recovering alcoholic, Caro Jeffries, 59, moves south to be closer to her son and his growing new family. She’s taken off-guard by Derrick Hudson, a 60-year-old widower who seems determined to push past her defenses. Caro thinks she’s prepared to win over Derrick’s family, but rejection from someone in her own home-camp throws her for a loop. Can she stand strong, or will the added stress tempt her back to her old demons?
About the Author
Lauren Gayle writes sweet, southern romances with an inspirational flair. Her Christmas novella, A Southern Lights Christmas, is the first in her four-book Southern Lights series. She plans to publish the remaining three in the series by the summer of 2020.
Lauren resides in south central Louisiana with her husband of twenty-five years.
Email: laurengayleauthor@gmail.com
Website: http://www.laurengayle.net
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/laurengayleauthor
Twitter: @LGayleAuthor
Bookbub: @laurengayleauthor
Instagram: @lgayle58