Secret Santa

Secret Santa
Cynthia Reese

Losing a parent is never easy, and during the holidays the emptiness seems magnified. Local newspaper owner Neil Bailey knows that first-hand. That’s why he’s determined to help his neighbour, Dr. Charli Prescott, find the meaning of the season. Luckily he has enough cheer to go around—and the recipe for perfect cocoa.If that isn’t enough to get Charli into the spirit, the town also has a Secret Santa. Everyone's buzzing with news of the large anonymous donation and, once Neil promises to discover Santa’s identity, his paper’s circulation numbers sky-rocket. It’s his duty to report the truth. Except, as he gets closer to Charli, he’s sure she’s keeping something from him.All he can try to do is keep his journalistic integrity intact… while protecting the woman he thought was his Christmas miracle.

“Stop looking at me like that.” Charli chopped yet another carrot. “Talk to me. About anything.”

“Okay. How about what I heard from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation today about Secret Santa?” Neil asked.

The knife in Charli’s hand came down at an awkward angle, and Neil could see she’d almost cut herself. He sprang up to check on her, but she waved him off.

“Sorry! I’m all thumbs tonight,” she joked.

“More cutting like that, and you won’t have thumbs at all,” he said. But his comeback was reflexive. What he’d said had surprised her. That was clear.

“So …” Three more whacks and the carrot was history. “What did they tell you? Chief Hawkins didn’t seem to think it would be a high-priority case”

How was it he could still want to kiss her when he was convinced she knew more than she was telling him? Or telling the police?

Dear Reader,

As a kid, I never could understand my mom’s deep loathing of any Christmas lights that weren’t “white and twinkling.” After all, to my six-year-old eyes, our neighbor’s outlandish display of Christmas décor, complete with a Santa, a sleigh and reindeer on his roof, was perfect. My mother? Bless her heart, she’d grind her teeth when she drove by.

Eventually, my mom succeeded in converting me to the “white and twinkling” school of Christmas décor. When I married, though, my husband turned out to be a lot like Neil in Secret Santa—Christmas is his time to shine! Every year it’s a loving fuss over whether we keep my white lights or break out a new set of “real” (his words) Christmas lights. Still, as Neil and Charli discover, the true meaning of Christmas isn’t decorations, but the spirit of giving.

I loved writing Secret Santa … I loved discovering Neil’s wonderful, playful personality and seeing Charli learn to enjoy Christmas, despite some formidable obstacles. As you read their story, I hope you root for Neil and Charli as much as I did.

I’d love to hear from you. If you’re on Twitter, you can follow me at @cynthiarreese, and why not check out all the Heartwarming authors as we blog? You can find us at www.heartwarmingauthors.blogspot.com.

Merry Christmas!

Cynthia

Secret Santa

Cynthia Reese

www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)

CYNTHIA REESE Cynthia Reese lives with her husband and their daughter in south Georgia, along with their two dogs, three cats and however many strays show up for morning muster. She has been scribbling since she was knee-high to a grasshopper and reading even before that A former journalist, teacher and college English instructor, she also enjoys cooking, traveling and photography when she gets the chance.

In memory of William, one of my biggest cheerleaders ever. April is surely the cruelest month.

Acknowledgments

This book was a miracle in the making, impossible without my awesome editors Victoria Curran and Laura Barth—thank you, Laura, for all your cheering!

Many doctors helped me with technical and personal insight into the life of a young doctor, including Dr. Lawton Davis, Dr. Misty Poole, Dr. Gary Branch and Dr. Jean Sumner. More technical advice came from Terrance Shulman of The Shulman Center for Compulsive Theft, Spending & Hoarding, as well as Investigator Ron Bivens, who is not at all like the police chief in this story! All errors are mine, and I apologize profusely for any that may be there.

A huge thanks goes to my critique partner Tawna Fenske, to my sister Donna, and to my Twitter cheer squad—Jessica Lemmon, Linda Grimes, Jeannie Moon, Jamie DeBree, Susan Adrian, Deb Salonen, and Patty Blount—as well as to my wonderful Heartwarming blog sisters.

Most of all, big hugs to my wonderful, long-suffering husband and The Kiddo. I couldn’t have done it without you!

Contents

CHAPTER ONE (#ue96b1c8d-6039-5eec-be92-791fefa46165)

CHAPTER TWO (#u7f6c8049-da7d-50b8-9966-8c29cc00d17d)

CHAPTER THREE (#u9c2e7d31-6f61-575d-9723-d0fe5df7c4df)

CHAPTER FOUR (#ueebf09c1-387d-5b48-9f44-8f8ddb0fe8ea)

CHAPTER FIVE (#uc35a52fc-f844-5141-81da-07a7f8946999)

CHAPTER SIX (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER SEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER EIGHT (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER NINE (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER TEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER ELEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER TWELVE (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER THIRTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER FOURTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER FIFTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER SIXTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER NINETEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER TWENTY (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE (#litres_trial_promo)