All I Want for Christmas is You by Miranda Liasson - Book Excerpt
Being naughty was nice, but now these friends-turned-lovers are in for an unforgettable Christmas . . .
Book Description
The award-winning author who writes with "humor and heart" (Jill Shalvis, New York Times bestselling author) invites you to visit the charming small town of Angel Falls.
Being naughty was nice, but now these friends-turned-lovers are in for an unforgettable Christmas...
Just when Kaitlyn Barnes vows to get over her longtime crush on Rafe Langdon, they share a sizzling evening that delivers an epic holiday surprise: Kaitlyn is pregnant. And if that weren't life-changing enough, everyone assumes they're engaged -- a charade they must keep alive through the holiday season. But Kaitlyn knows Rafe better than anyone, and Rafe settling down is about as likely as Santa skipping Angel Falls this year...
Rafe would rather Kaitlyn believe a lie -- that their night together was a fling -- than face his own dangerous truth: he's falling for her, hard. After a devastating loss, Rafe swore he'd never risk his heart again. Yet the longer they pretend to be engaged the more Rafe starts to want the real thing. But now he has to convince Kaitlyn he wants to be by her side -- and their baby's -- for all the Christmases to come.
Includes the bonus novel Christmas on Mistletoe Lane by Annie Rains!
In the author's words . . .
I think Rafe is my favorite hero that I've ever written. Maybe it's because got to know him really well...this couple has been building their relationship in the past two books. On the outside, he's smooth, easygoing, and always ready with a quip. He's a great son, brother, and friend. But his inner life is so complicated. Impacted by a devastating tragedy, Rafe truly believes he can never love again, yet his love for Kaitlyn comes out at every turn. Watching him resolve his inner demons and come to accept her love and be able to fully love her in return was a wonderful journey for me! Hope you all enjoy it too. :)
"A scrumptious holiday treat."—Publishers Weekly
Be still my heart! Miranda what have you done?? Good gravy this book made me all kinds of crazy! —Goodreads reviewer
Enjoy an Excerpt from
All I Want for Christmas is You
Tonight’s celebration wasn’t unusual. Kaitlyn had been part of the Langdon family since she was ten years old. But despite Rafe’s belief that his family would take their baby news in stride, she couldn’t help but think that it would dramatically change things, change her place in the family. And oh, what if they really did push for her and Rafe to get together for the sake of the baby?
She’d just started the coffee and then leaned on the island, taking a big breath, when she heard a familiar voice behind her.
“Hey, need some help?” Rafe asked.
She spun around at the sound of his voice. “Oh. Rafe, hi. Just starting a pot.” She thought about how great he was with those kids…yet how he’d said he didn’t want to be a father. He was filled with contradictions, and she couldn’t help but wonder if that was a line he used to protect himself—to protect his heart.
“Okay, just wondering.” His gaze rolled over her in that way he had, not missing a detail.
He walked into the pantry and grabbed a brown paper bag with handles and pulled out a pretty silver box, wrapped with a red bow. “Happy birthday,” he announced. “From me.”
Her already sensitive stomach plunged. “You didn’t have to get me a gift,” she said.
He leaned close, his hand propped on the counter beside her. “Open it,” he said, nudging the box toward her. “You only turn forty once.”
“Will you stop with the teasing?” She waited for him to parry, to jest. But he didn’t. He just stared at her with an odd look that she couldn’t quite read.
Finally, he cleared his throat and said, “Okay, no more teasing. Just open the gift, Katie.”
She turned the box over in her hands. “What is it?”
He gave a secretive smile and shrugged. “You’ll have to see.”
“It’s pretty,” she said, shaking it, noting that it was a little heavy.
“I wrapped it myself.”
This was saying a lot, because the bow on top was curled by hand. “Since when do you know how to make bows?”
“Since YouTube taught me. Open it already.”
She set the package down on the distressed oak table and ripped open the paper. Inside was a coffee maker. A high-end, expensive one, the kind you’d buy a couple for a wedding gift.
“It’s a coffee maker,” he said.
“You’re kidding,” she said with mock surprise.
“Do I ever kid you?” he quipped right back.
“Um, all the time.”
“Not all the time.” He flashed a Rafe grin. Sweet, adorable, and irresistible. She immediately shifted her gaze back to the gift.
“It’s a very nice coffee maker,” Kaitlyn said. “But Rafe, I own a coffee shop, remember?”
He laughed. “And yet you don’t have a coffee maker like this.”
She looked at him, perplexed, as he tapped his finger on the text on the side of the box.
“‘Brews a single cup or a whole pot,’” she read. “‘Thermal carafe. Grinds the beans.’ Great features.”
He shook his head at her sarcastic tone, took the box out of her hands, and pointed to the picture on the side like she was just not getting it. “It’s programmable. Charges your phone too.”
She looked at him. Was he crazy?
“You can set it, and your coffee will be ready at four thirty a.m. on the dot.”
“Oh. I see,” she said softly. The gift was thoughtful. It was nice. And she knew exactly where he’d gotten this idea. She’d told him how hard it was to wake up so early, and how she never had time to make herself coffee before she headed out to open the cafe.
It was an odd gift but also oddly…touching. And she didn’t have the heart to tell him she wouldn’t be drinking any coffee for a while. Instead she made the mistake of looking at him. His face held a look of careful anticipation. That look—innocent, hopeful, and more than a little boyish—undid her.
Heck, he could have given her spray-painted rocks and she would have gotten emo about that too.
Before she could think, she kissed his cheek. It was rough with stubble, and warm, and he smelled like simple Dial soap and shave cream and…Rafe. She lingered a few seconds too long, unable to pull back. He stiffened, and she thought he was going to pull away.
Suddenly his arms came around her, encircling her waist. She sucked in a breath. Or was that him? Unable to move, she stood frozen in place, searching his eyes.
“Happy birthday, Katie,” he whispered, his voice soft as spun silk.
End of Excerpt © Miranda Liasson
Learn more by visiting the author's website. ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU released October 29, 2019 from Grand Central Forever Romance.
Meet the Author
Miranda Liasson loves to write stories about everyday people who find love despite themselves, because there’s nothing like a great love story. And if there are a few laughs along the way, even better!
She’s an Amazon bestselling author whose heartwarming and humorous small–town romances have won accolades such as the National Readers' Choice Award and the Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence and have been Harlequin Junkie and Night Owl Reviews Top Picks.
She lives in the Midwest with her husband and three kids in a charming old neighborhood which is the inspiration for many of the homes in her books.
All I Want for Christmas is You by Miranda Liasson
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Type: Novel
Heat Level: 4
Language Level: 1
Violence Level: 1
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