by Ari McKay
Dane gestured to the gray leather sofa, which was a designer piece in the same stark, modern style as everything else in his apartment. Randolph had set him up in the place after he finished law school and began working at the family firm. Dane hadn’t even gotten to decorate; instead, Randolph hired an interior decorator to make the apartment look the way Randolph thought it should look. There was a lot of gray, white, and stainless steel, and it felt like a showplace rather than a home to Dane even though he lived there. He hadn’t bothered to personalize the place, not even with photos, because Randolph would have criticized him for “ruining” the decor.
“I’m not sure what you mean,” he said as he sat down on one end of the sofa.
Cal took off his leather jacket, tossing it carelessly over a chair before taking the other end of the sofa. But he turned his body toward Dane, and the expression on his face was almost imploring. “I have to know if this engagement is really what you want.”
Cal was his best friend, and Dane couldn’t lie to him. Besides, Cal knew how controlling Randolph was, so the truth shouldn’t come as a surprise.
“Father thinks it’s time I got married,” Dane said, clasping his hands together tightly. “He thinks Portia is a good choice.”
“I don’t give a damn what your father thinks, and he can go to hell,” Cal replied. He sighed, then scooted closer to Dane so that he could rest his hand on Dane’s shoulder. “I care about what you think. You’ve never mentioned this woman’s name. Not once.”
Dane knew he ought to shrug off Cal’s hand, but he didn’t want to. He needed the comfort of Cal’s solid strength even though Cal’s touch made him feel things he shouldn’t.
“We haven’t known each other long,” Dane said. “She’s a cardiologist. Originally from some ridiculously wealthy family in Texas. She moved here because of a job opportunity. Father presented me with a list of candidates, and she seemed like the best one.”
The truth was, Dane had chosen her because she was thirty-two, which meant she was only two years younger than him instead of ten to twelve years younger like the others on the list. She was also focused on her career, and she’d admitted to Dane she had only considered the match because it was easier than carving time out of her busy and erratic work schedule to try to meet people.
Cal looked stunned. “A list? Really? You’re going to spend the rest of your life with someone you picked off your father’s list?”
“Why not?” Dane gave an insouciant shrug. “I haven’t found a wife on my own. She’s a nice woman from a good family. I’m sure we’ll do fine together.”
And maybe if he said it often enough, he’d start to believe it himself.
More from Ari McKay
From the frying pan into the fire.
After a critic’s review attacks both Chef Liam Walker’s culinary skills and his personal life, Liam can no longer take the heat of the cutthroat New York City restaurant scene. He needs to get out of the kitchen—at least long enough to cool down and regroup.
At the Overlook Resort in North Carolina, Liam meets owner Carter Galloway. Carter has a passion for the hospitality business to rival Liam’s own, and it’s not hard to see where their shared interests—and attraction—could lead. But Carter has no interest in a fling, and Liam has no intention of walking away from the career he fought so hard for. If they want a taste of happiness together, they’ll have to find the courage to break the bonds threatening to pull them apart.
Boston in 1888 is quite urbane, but unfortunately for Gil Porter, that isn’t the same thing as being understanding. When his sexuality is exposed by the scandalous suicide of his lover, Gil is exiled to the small town of Mercy, Texas, by his domineering father, George, who believes life on Vernon Porter’s ranch will cure Gil of his “unnatural” desires. Grieving and ashamed, Gil is determined to keep his distance from everyone until he can return home. To his surprise, he finds acceptance at Bent Oak Ranch, especially from Matt Grayson, the handsome son of the ranch foreman.
Knowing he must fight his attraction to Matt, Gil courts a local girl, but an unexpected encounter with Matt leads to his discovery of Matt’s feelings for him. Torn between Matt and his desire to be “normal,” between returning to his old life and building a new one in Texas, Gil is faced with a choice—appeasing his father or becoming the man Matt knows he can be.
After breaking up with his partner, English professor Dr. Derek Chandler feels like a failure who will never win at romance. His aloof colleague, Dr. Macon Pinney, disagrees and pens an anonymous note of encouragement to Derek, which he signs “Cupid.” Thus begins an exchange of correspondence, a courtship through words where the two men find out they have a great deal in common. Meanwhile, Derek reaches out to Macon, not knowing Macon is his anonymous pen pal. Derek reveals through his letters that someone close by has piqued his interest. Could he mean Macon—or has Macon missed his opportunity and lost Derek to another man?
Perhaps the time has come for Cupid to put in an appearance, and when better to do so than Valentine’s Day?
The stakes are high and the heat is on.
Beau Walker, owner of the Barbecue Shack, needs the help of Jake Parnell, his one-time rival and secret crush, in a televised barbecue competition. Beau is a proud man, but the stakes are high, and smart, sexy Jake is his only hope, even if being around Jake reawakens the attraction he’s fought for years.
Jake left his hometown, determined to build a life somewhere his sexuality wouldn’t hurt his family’s restaurant business—and far away from hunky, obstinate Beau Walker. Then his twin, Josh, is killed, and Jake returns to support his brother’s wife and children. Despite his reservations, he agrees to go head-to-head against Beau on national television. Between stress and grief, as well as pride and determination, only one thing is certain—the heat between Beau and Jake extends well beyond the kitchen.
Boone Phillips needs a girlfriend—now! If he shows up to the family reunion alone, his mother will throw every woman in sight at him. But the only “woman” Boone trusts enough to ask is Honey, the drag queen alter ego of his best friend, Rob. It’s a crazy idea, but Boone is desperate.
Boone wins Rob over to the idea after first going on a “date” with him as Honey, but everything feels different once the plan is set in motion. Between nosy relatives, illegal moonshine, and the sight of Rob in white lace panties, Boone starts to wonder if he’s as straight as he thought. When an earth-shattering kiss sends Rob running, however, Boone learns some surprising things about both his family and himself. Now he needs to convince Rob to give him another chance, or his first taste of Honey might also be his last.
ARI MCKAY is the professional pseudonym for Arionrhod and McKay, who have been writing together for over a decade. Their collaborations encompass a wide variety of romance genres, including contemporary, fantasy, science fiction, gothic, and action/adventure. Their work includes the Blood Bathory series of paranormal novels, the Herc’s Mercs series, as well as two historical Westerns: Heart of Stone and Finding Forgiveness. When not writing, they can often be found scheming over costume designs or binge watching TV shows together.
Arionrhod is a systems engineer by day who is eagerly looking forward to (hopefully) becoming a full-time writer in the not-too-distant future. Now that she is an empty-nester, she has turned her attentions to finding the perfect piece of land to build a fortress in preparation for the zombie apocalypse, and baking (and eating) far too many cakes.
McKay is an English teacher who has been writing for one reason or another most of her life. She also enjoys knitting, reading, cooking, and playing video games. She has been known to knit in public. Given she has the survival skills of a gnat, she’s relying on Arionrhod to help her survive the zombie apocalypse.
Visit Ari on:
Website: arimckay.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/pages/Ari-Mckay/266185570179748
Twitter: @AriMcKay1
By Ari McKay
Changing the Things
You Can
Finding Forgiveness
Heart of Stone
Last Leap of the First-Foot
Letters from Cupid
Love’s Cabers Tossed
On the Rocks
The Once and Future Love
Santa’s Naughty Helper
A Taste of Honey
DREAMSPUN DESIRES
THE WALKER BOYS
#24 – Striking Sparks
#35 – Breaking Bonds
Published by DREAMSPINNER PRESS
www.dreamspinnerpress.com
Published by
DREAMSPINNER PRESS
5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886 USA
www.dreamspinnerpress.com
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of author imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Santa’s Naughty Helper
© 2017 Ari McKay.
Cover Art
© 2017 Bree Archer.
http://www.breearcher.com
Cover content is for illustrative purposes only and any person depicted on the cover is a model.
All rights reserved. This book is licensed to the original purchaser only. Duplication or distribution via any means is illegal and a violation of international copyright law, subject to criminal prosecution and upon conviction, fines, and/or imprisonment. Any eBook format cannot be legally loaned or given to others. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the Publisher, except where permitted by law. To request permission and all other inquiries, contact Dreamspinner Press, 5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886, USA, or www.dreamspinnerpress.com.
Digital ISBN: 978-1-63533-581-1
Published July 2017
v. 2.0
First Edition published by Torquere Press, 2012.
Printed in the United States of America
