“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Maya helped Lucy pack boxes
of the Fingersnug into a bag. “Isn’t there a risk that turning up
at his house in Scotland makes you look like a stalker?”
“I can see why
you might be concerned about that and I’m not going to say it
didn’t cross my mind, but no. Firstly because I’m in Scotland
anyway, doing a photoshoot for the Fingersnug along with reindeer and
several influencers, and secondly because this is what Zoe told me to
do. I’m simply following her advice. And it’s not as if I haven’t
tried every other route first.” Maybe she was overstepping a
little, but sometimes you had to take a risk to get ahead.
Ever since
Arnie’s health scare she’d been working flat out to put together
ideas for Miller Active. She was excited about her plan and desperate
to get her proposal in front of Ross Miller before the competition
snagged his attention. She was willing to take the chance that the
whole thing could explode in her face. What was the worst that could
happen? He’d slam the door on her, which wouldn’t be pleasant but
at least she’d be able to limp home knowing that she’d done
everything she could to help Arnie and protect people’s jobs.
“Who is Zoe?”
“Ross Miller’s
personal assistant. She’s great. She’s organized, and she knows
everything. We went to that new wine bar near the river last night,
and—”
“You went to a
wine bar with Ross Miller’s assistant?”
“Yes.” Lucy
tucked some of the festive “props” she’d bought into the bag.
“We’ve been talking every day for the past week, and we’ve
become friendly.”
Maya shook her
head in disbelief. “How do you do it? If someone stands still for
long enough, you befriend them.”
“It wasn’t
hard. I like her. I took my proposal over to the office and we got
chatting. Turns out she’s from Scotland, too, and she knows Ross
from school.”
“And he gave
her a job?”
“Why not? She’s
brilliant. And who knows, maybe she threatened to reveal all his
secrets if he didn’t employ her.” Lucy added two boxes of fairy
lights to the bag. “They’re obviously good friends. Sounds as if
they have one of those fun relationships full of banter where she
scolds him, and he pretends to do as he’s told. Can you pass me the
snow globe?”
Maya handed it to
her. “Good friends? Or very good friends.”
“Not romantic.
According to Zoe, Ross isn’t involved with anyone. He occasionally
dates, but women tend to get frustrated by his focus on work. He
actually forgot about his last date, left her sitting in a
restaurant.” She forced the snow globe into the bulging bag. Maybe
it had been optimistic of her to think she could manage with the one
bag.
“Not the king
of romance, then,” Maya said. “Does Ross know that his assistant
is revealing his entire personal life to strangers?”
“I’m not a
stranger. I’ve seen her four times this week.”
May rolled her
eyes. “And no doubt by Friday you’ll be godmother to her
children.”
“She doesn’t
have children, although she would like to. She’s dating William,
but he’s currently living in Edinburgh and she misses him horribly.
William, it seems, is very slow to make a commitment so Zoe is
thinking of proposing herself. We talked through a few strategies.”
Lucy tried to close the bag and failed. “A little help, please?”
Maya pushed the
sides of the bag together. “No offense, but since when did you
become the expert on marriage proposals?”
“I know a lot
about the theory.” Finally, Lucy managed to close the bag. “You
don’t have to travel the world to teach geography. I’m creative,
that’s my job. I know how to make an impact. Also, I pay attention
to what people want and need. That’s the basis of successful
selling and, in the end, that’s what we’re doing. All the time.
Every day. I’m going to be selling the idea of me to Ross.”
“So where does
William fit into this?”
“William works
in risk assurance so it’s understandable that he won’t be given
to impulse. He needs a little something to nudge him past that
caution barrier. Fortunately Ross Miller closes the office for a week
over Christmas, which means Zoe can go home, too.” Lucy lifted the
bag. “This weighs a ton. Nothing else is fitting in there.”
“He closes the
office?”
“Yes. He goes
home to Scotland to spend time with his family.”
“That’s
nice.”
“It is. I like
it when people appreciate family.” Lucy lowered the bag back to the
floor. “I feel as if I’ve forgotten something. What else do I
need?”
“A whole lot of
good luck and the bound copies of your proposal. You wanted two, is
that right?” Maya handed them to her. “You haven’t discussed
this with Arnie, have you?”
“No. He is
supposed to be resting. No stress. You know what he’s like. If I
even mention this, he’ll want to be involved.” She knew she’d
never forget the sight of Arnie being taken away in an ambulance. For
a horrible moment she’d thought she might lose another person she
loved, but fortunately it hadn’t turned out to be as serious as
they’d feared.
Arnie had been
discharged with medication and a lecture on lifestyle.
He was keeping in
touch with the office, but Lucy had given everyone strict
instructions not to contact him.
The office felt
strange without him there. Even the Christmas tree and the
decorations couldn’t make up for his absence. But if he rested now,
hopefully he’d be well enough to come back to work in January.
In the meantime
she was holding the fort.
Maya gestured to
the proposals in Lucy’s hand. “Good work, by the way. Clever. I
think Ross Miller will be impressed.”
“Let’s hope
so.” She grabbed some Christmas wrapping. “Did you see the photo
Ted sent round? The baby is gorgeous.”
“They’re not
getting any sleep.”
“I know. Ted
says he watches the baby half the night to check she’s still
breathing.” Lucy knelt on the floor, cut the wrapping paper and
measured a length of ribbon.
“Ribbon?”
Maya frowned. “You’re not seriously gift wrapping the proposal?”
“Why not? It’s
Christmas.” She wrapped the document carefully. “Even the most
hard-hearted businessman can’t help but respond to wrapping paper
covered in cheerful robins, surely?”
“That’s why
you’re wrapping it? To fill his hardened heart with festive joy?”
“No.” Lucy
tied the ribbon and secured the label she’d handwritten in careful
script. “I’m wrapping it in case something happens and I’m not
able to deliver it to him personally. It’s Christmas, and they have
a big family gathering every year.”
“Zoe again?”
“No. I read
about it in that magazine feature I mentioned.” She’d pored over
every page, envious of the oversize Christmas trees, the lush
garlands adorning fireplaces and the curved bannister. “If I hand
them a boring-looking proposal the chances are they’re going to
forget about it. Who wants to read a boring document at Christmas? If
I wrap it, then there is a good chance that at some point over the
festive season it’s going to be opened.”
“Possibly by
one very disappointed kid who is immediately going to throw a tantrum
before tossing it out of the window.”
“No young
children in the family, according to my research.” She tucked the
wrapped parcel carefully into her laptop bag, along with the spare
unwrapped proposal.
“Please tell me
you’re not dressing as Santa when you drop it off.”
“I wasn’t
planning to—” Lucy rocked back on her heels “—but now you’re
making me think.”
“Well don’t
think. You’ve done enough thinking.” Maya rested her hip on the
desk and folded her arms. “So why didn’t he go into the family
business?”
“Ross? I have
no idea, and it’s not relevant. I am not there to interfere with
family politics. I am simply going to ring the doorbell and hand over
my gift. Merry Christmas. That’s it.”
“You should
have put a copy of that marketing magazine in with the proposal.
Cover girl Lucy.”
Lucy stood up and
put the unused wrapping paper back on her desk. “That’s one of
those awards that we are all super proud of, but no one else in the
world has ever heard of.”
“But you’re
the face of modern marketing. He might be impressed.”
“Or not.”
Lucy glanced at her phone. “I have an hour before my train leaves.”
“The sleeper.
I’ve always thought that sounds romantic. Traveling on a train
through the darkness, clickety-clack, clickety-clack.”
“There is
nothing romantic about having a carriage to myself.”
“Maybe it will
be like one of those spy movies,” Maya said, “where the bad guy
is lurking, waiting to throw you out of the window.”
“And for that
comforting thought, I thank you.”
“You should
have taken some days for yourself while you’re up there. Have a
mini break.”
Lucy couldn’t
think of anything worse. “I’ve already booked my return journey
the following night. All organized. It’s a flying visit.”
Even if she had
the money for it, she didn’t want to spend time in a hotel on her
own at Christmas. How miserable would that be?
No, she’d spend
the day taking creative photos of the Fingersnug with the reindeer
herd as her backdrop, and then she’d deliver her proposal to Ross
Miller on her way back to catch the train.
As far as she
could see, there was nothing that could go wrong.
Excerpted
from Snowed in for Christmas by Sarah Morgan. Copyright © 2022 by
Sarah Morgan. Published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
Unromance by Erin Conner
Sawyer Greene knows romance. She’s a bestselling author of the genre—or she was, until her college girlfriend left her with nothing but writer’s block and bitterness. So when Sawyer gets stuck in an elevator with a handsome stranger, she sees it for what it is: not a meet-cute but a chance encounter with a charming man whom she will sleep with exactly once and go on her way. Easy enough...until she runs into him again at a Christmas market straight out of a Hallmark holiday movie. 
Sawyer is a romance writer going through a bit of a writer's block. Once she manages a meet cute encounter with a guy stuck on an elevator they strike up a deal this winter season to help her out. 
