Love Under the Mistletoe

Love Under the Mistletoe

last updateLast Updated : 2022-05-25
By:  Krista LakesCompleted
Language: English
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Holly has always loved Christmas, but this year is different. As a school teacher, she’s worried about her students, her dad, and her entire town. All of them are poised for a terrible Christmas, and there’s nothing she can do about it. The only bright spot in her life is the mysterious man she meets at the holiday party. Nathan has always hated Christmas, but this year is different. As a billionaire, he’s excited about his new plans for his company, but as always, it’s all about the money. When he meets the bubbly woman who doesn’t care about his wealth, love blossoms under the mistletoe. It almost seems like magic. But their lives are more intertwined than either of them originally thought. It turns out that Nathan’s plan for the future of his company is the very thing that’s destroying Holly’s community. Holly begins to understand why everyone refers to Nathan as a Scrooge, and she thinks that the wonderful man she shared a passionate weekend with was nothing more than a lie. Will Nathan be able to prove that she saw the real him? Will Christmas magic prevail, or will their love vanish like a kiss under the mistletoe? NYT Bestseller Krista Lakes brings you this brand new heartwarming holiday romance. This standalone novel will convince you that love can make the magic of Christmas real.

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Chapter 1

Chapter One

Holly

Holly Jones pulled out a red pen and started grading.

“Did you seriously bring your grading with you?” Aliyah asked, turning to look from the road to stare at her friend.

“Yes. And pay attention to the road, please,” Holly replied, motioning to the twisting mountain road in front of them. “It’s snowy and this pass is always slippery.”

“Yes, Ms. Jones,” Aliyah replied, sounding like one of their second-grade students. “You know this is supposed to be a vacation, right?”

“Yes.” Holly circled and marked the writing assignment of her student in front of her. “But, I’ll feel like I’m on vacation when these are done. I only have a couple left.”

Aliyah shook her head sadly. “You work too hard.”

“You work just as hard as I do,” Holly replied. She slid a finished page back into her folder.

“I’m not the one grading papers right now,” Aliyah said, turning on the windshield wipers to brush away the big snowflakes. It was snowing harder the closer they got to the ski resort.

“That’s because you’re driving.” Holly grinned at her. “So, it’s a good thing you’re not grading papers.”

“You are going to have fun this trip, right?”

“Yes. I promise to have fun,” Holly replied, not looking up from her grading. She'd asked her students to write their three wishes for the holidays and wanted them ready to return to her students as soon as she got back from her trip.

“I’m serious. I don’t know the last time you did something that wasn’t work related.”

“I do fun things,” Holly insisted. “I did that 5k race in November. That was fun.”

“That was a school fund-raiser and you ran one of the check-in desks.” Aliyah gave Holly a disapproving glance. “Seriously, when’s the last time you went out on a date? Or did something not sponsored by the PTA?”

Holly opened her mouth, but couldn’t find an answer. “Uh...” She shrugged and tried to turn the question back onto Aliyah. “What do you do for fun? You’re just as busy as I am.”

“I went on a date with a fireman last week, remember? Captain McHotty?” Aliyah sighed with pleasure. “We played laser tag. We ate at a fancy restaurant that didn’t have a teacher’s discount.”

Holly clicked her pen a couple of times. “Fine. Your point’s made. I’m boring.”

“You’re not boring. You’re stuck. You’ve focused only on work. You need a life outside of work.”

“I know.” Holly sighed. She wasn't sure how she'd become boring. She'd just become so focused on her students that she'd become blind to the world around her. Her dad often told her that she gave too much of herself, and she had a feeling she was doing it again. “But, at least it got us this weekend, right?”

“Partly,” Aliyah acknowledged. “You've always been an amazing teacher. You earned this award. And you still deserve to have fun sometimes. It is possible to have both. You need some balance in your life.”

The entire reason Aliyah and Holly were driving up to the mountains was for Holly to be awarded with the Educator's Award. She'd been nominated by her students and selected by a committee as the best teacher in the nation.

As such, she and a friend got to go stay at Blue Aspen Ski Resort for a weekend and go to a fancy party. The party was as much to honor her as to raise funds for education scholarships, so she was happy to be there and assist.

“I’m going to remember how to have fun this trip,” Holly promised. “Just as soon as I finish these papers.”

“Sure.” Aliyah chuckled and rolled her eyes. “Will you hand me my sandwich?”

“Sandwich?” Holly frowned, looking around the interior of the car. “Where’d you get a sandwich?”

“At the gas station before we started up the pass,” Aliyah replied. She pointed to the backseat. “It should be right back there.”

Holly twisted around in her seat until she found a sandwich wrapped in plastic wrap. It had fallen off the seat and onto the floor. She held it up, making an unsure face.

“Are you sure you want to eat this?”

“It’s wrapped in plastic. It’s fine.”

“It’s not just that.” Holly turned the sandwich around in her hands and grimaced. “It’s a gas station sandwich.”

“I’m hungry.” Aliyah grabbed the sandwich from Holly’s hands. She gave Holly a glare as she ripped open the plastic and took a big bite. “I’ve eaten worse at the school cafeteria.”

“And that’s why I bring my lunch,” Holly murmured, shaking her head and going back to her grading.

“How's your dad?” Aliyah asked, her mouth full of sandwich. “Is he still closing the store?”

Holly paused her grading. “He's okay, and yeah. The store is still closing. He just can't make it work without Elements in town. They're his biggest customer. With them leaving, we just don't have the sales.”

Aliyah shook her head. “Damn. I was hoping he was going to make it.”

“Me too,” Holly said. She looked down at her grading, but her eyes didn't want to focus on it. The biggest employer in town, Elements Computer Technologies, or ECT as everyone called it, had been bought by some big tech firm.

At first, the town thought it would be great. Paradigm was huge and had great growth potential. That was until Paradigm announced that they were moving ECT to San Francisco. Suddenly, a huge portion of the town was preparing to move across the country. The town was in a panic.

Holly tried not to think about it, but it was affecting nearly everyone she knew. Her students were planning on moving. Businesses were closing or trying to figure out how to deal with the loss of customers.

Unfortunately, there wasn't much Holly could do about it. She was just a second grade teacher.

Snow fell in big flakes on the small car as they made their way up and into the Rocky Mountains. Heat blasted out of the vents, but it was still cold in the old car and Holly was glad she’d worn a sweater. Frost formed on the edges of the windows as they crossed over the continental divide. The trees disappeared at tree-line, giving the two women a clear view of the rocky tops of the mountains and miles of gray clouds.

Winter was heavy in the mountains as they crested the top of the pass and descended toward the ski slopes. White drifts stood high on the side of the two lane highway as tall evergreens came back to line the road. The car engine didn’t whine on the way down like it did on the way up.

Slowly the gray faded into black and the mountains disappeared into the darkness of night. Snow drifted in hypnotizing patterns in front of the headlights, dancing around the car and back into the trees.

“Almost there,” Aliyah announced just as Holly finished grading her last page. She was rather proud of her students. They’d all done the assignment and done well. It made her glad that they were learning.

Holly raised her eyes, scanning the snowy mountain road for the ski resort. As a native Coloradoan, Holly had been skiing nearly every winter of her life, but the Blue Aspen Ski Resort was always way out of her price range. The lift ticket prices were higher than any other resort, and the hotel price might as well cost her entire teaching paycheck.

Blue Aspen was a place for A-list actors and billionaires to come play in the snow. The skiing was always said to be superb, but the hotel was the main attraction. It was supposedly a winter wonderland of comfort. Holly had only seen pictures of it in fancy magazines.

But today, Holly and Aliyah were going to get to experience it for themselves.

“Are you done working now?” Aliyah asked, turning off the highway and following the signs for the resort. “You promised you would use this as a vacation.”

“I finished.” Holly held up her school folder and tucked it back into her bag. “I’m ready for our weekend adventure. No work, just play.”

She leaned over and turned up the Christmas carols on the radio. Only a couple of weeks remained until Christmas. Holly was already signed up to help with the town parade and the Christmas Party at her dad's bookstore. The spirit of Christmas was slowly starting to infuse her soul.

“Good. We won this trip and we both need to just relax.” Aliyah peered through the dark to check a road sign. “No work.”

“No work. Promise.” Holly held up three fingers like a scout.

“You weren’t a scout, but I’m going to trust you on this.” Aliyah gave Holly a serious look as she turned onto a smaller road. Snow drifted around a beautiful rock sign emblazoned with the Blue Aspen logo. They were almost to the resort.

The car came around a bend and both Aliyah and Holly gasped.

It looked like something on a Christmas card. If Holly were younger, she would have sworn they’d been magically transported to the North Pole and were about to visit Santa.

Tall peaked roofs dusted with snow glowed under white Christmas lights. The windows sparkled with fireplaces inside. Trees sparkled with lights and decorations. Everything was classy and contemporary. No blow-up decorations or plastic figurines, just the careful placement of lights and reflective ball ornaments.

It was absolutely stunning and magical.

Aliyah parked the car and turned off the engine. The car’s cabin instantly dropped several degrees and they hurried to grab their bags from the back and head inside.

The inside of the resort was just as beautiful as the outside. Warm wood furniture filled the lobby. A giant fireplace glowed with flames. Candles flickered in nooks and on tables, while the scent of snow and fresh-baked cookies filled the air. A giant Christmas tree decorated with red satin streamers and fake snow stood proud in the center of the room.

“Wow,” Aliyah whispered as they walked wide-eyed through the lobby to the check-in desk. “This is nice.”

“Yeah.”

“Welcome to the Blue Aspen Resort and Spa,” the woman at the front desk greeted them with a smile. “How can I help you?”

“Hi. I’m Aliyah Jameson and this is Holly Jones. We have a reservation.” Aliyah smiled at the woman as they set their bags down on the floor. “Holly won the Educator's Award.”

“Of course.” The woman quickly typed something into the computer. “Here you are.”

Holly grinned at Aliyah. This was going to be great.

“You’ll be staying in one of our premium suites.” The woman handed them two plastic key-cards with mountains engraved into them. “These are your room keys as well as your lift tickets. You also have equipment rentals through our rental shop. You can pick up your gear any time tomorrow morning.”

Holly slipped the key into her back pocket.

“Breakfast starts in the main dining room at five in the morning and goes until eleven,” the woman continued. “The gym is on the third level with the spa. You also have access to the main pools and the network of hot springs pools around the resort. Your keys will let you into those areas as well. You can reserve any of the private ponds here or online.”

“Network of hot springs?” Aliyah asked, her brow crinkling.

“Yes,” the woman replied with a nod. “Blue Aspen Resort has a natural hot spring. There are several pools and private soaking ponds throughout the resort. They all interconnect and combine into the main pool just outside. It gives us a naturally heated outdoor pool.”

Aliyah’s jaw dropped open. “That’s awesome.”

The woman smiled at her and slid an envelope across the desk. “These are your tickets to the Educator's Award Ceremony tomorrow evening. The dress is formal.”

“We already have a hair appointments booked,” Holly informed her. Holly was going all out for this party. She even had a fancy designer dress that she’d borrowed from a friend.

“Excellent. If you need anything, please don’t hesitate to let me know. Please enjoy your stay here at Blue Aspen.” The woman smiled at both of them. “Do you need any assistance with your bags?”

“I think we’re okay. Thank you,” Holly replied. She bent over and picked up her duffle bag full of snow gear. Beside her, Aliyah did the same, but groaned slightly with the motion. Holly figured her friend was just sore from being in a car for three hours.

Holly turned and nearly ran directly into a man in a dark wool peacoat.

“Oh, I’m so sorry,” she said quickly, stepping back and nearly into Aliyah. Holly’s eye widened as she took in the expensive suit under the expensive jacket. She didn’t recognize him as a celebrity, but then she wasn’t exactly up to date on all the newest stars.

He certainly was handsome enough to be a celebrity.

“No harm,” the man replied with a smile. His eyes were warm and dark. Holly blushed and quickly stepped out of the way. Aliyah was already halfway to the elevators when Holly caught up with her.

“Did you see that guy?” Holly asked her, glancing back at the man.

“No,” Aliyah replied, shaking her head. She pressed the elevator button twice in rapid succession and it miraculously appeared.

“Huh.” Holly looked at the man one last time before stepping onto the elevator. She started to grin.

This was going to be amazing.

Merryweather

Things were looking up.

There were possibilities for love popping up all over the place. All it took was a little magic.

Merryweather felt rather than saw those possibilities when she watched Holly bump into Nathan. Love was written all over their futures.

It just needed a little push.

That was Merryweather’s specialty.

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Kei Hofer
Hi, have you thought about expanding your work to other platforms?
2022-12-30 15:13:43
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38 Chapters
Chapter One
HollyHolly Jones pulled out a red pen and started grading.“Did you seriously bring your grading with you?” Aliyah asked, turning to look from the road to stare at her friend.“Yes. And pay attention to the road, please,” Holly replied, motioning to the twisting mountain road in front of them. “It’s snowy and this pass is always slippery.”“Yes, Ms. Jones,” Aliyah replied, sounding like one of their second-grade students. “You know this is supposed to be a vacation, right?”“Yes.” Holly circled and marked the writing assignment of her student in front of her. “But, I’ll feel like I’m on vacation when these are done. I only have a couple left.”Aliyah shook her head sadly. “You work too hard.”“You work just as hard as I do,” Holly replied. She slid a finished page back into her folder.“I’m not the one grading papers right now,” Aliyah said, turning on the windshield wipers to brush away the big snowflakes. It was snowing harder the closer they got to the ski resort.“That’s because
last updateLast Updated : 2022-05-25
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Chapter Two
NathanNathan’s phone buzzed like an angry hornet on the leather seat. Nathan didn’t even glance at it. He kept his eyes on the road. Snow flurries danced in front of his headlights as he sped along the dark road toward the ski resort.The heated seats kept him more than comfortable. The engine hummed with power as he shifted into a lower gear to accelerate up the mountain road. Behind him, two black SUVs struggled to keep pace with his silver all-wheel drive Ferrari.The phone continued to buzz and he continued to ignore it as he focused on speed and taking the turns. He pushed harder, taking the icy turns just a little bit faster. The car slid, but he stayed in control.He was on vacation now and there was no way he was going to let anyone ruin that for him.It had been a rough month. He needed this.He took the corner and the ski resort came into view. It was only then that he stopped driving like a madman. Blue Aspen Resort and Spa was one of his favorite places to ski. He’d skied
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Chapter Three
Holly“Is that your stomach?” Holly asked. A low grumble filled the elevator.Aliyah shifted her feet uncomfortably. “Yeah.”“Are you okay?” Holly asked. Beads of sweat popped out on Aliyah’s forehead and she looked pale. Her beautiful skin was usually a rich milk chocolate, but right now, she looked like she’d been Photoshopped into black and white.“My stomach,” Aliyah whispered. She swallowed hard and stared at the elevator buttons, willing the elevator to get to their floor faster.When the silver doors opened, Aliyah bolted, leaving behind her bags as she sprinted down the hallway. Holly put Aliyah’s bag over her shoulder and followed behind at a much more human pace.“Wow,” Holly said, coming in the front door of their hotel room.It was bigger than her apartment.The style was elegant western. Wood furniture with rustic accents decorated the living room, but the main appeal was the huge windows overlooking the ski slope. It was too dark to see the full view, but Holly could tel
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Chapter Four
HollyHolly stretched out in the soft bed and sighed with contentment. There was something magical about not waking up to the sound of an alarm clock. She snuggled into the fluffy comforter for a moment, enjoying the dark silence of the hotel room.Then she remembered that she was going skiing today. With a grin, she threw back the covers and got out of bed. The floors were heated and she nearly moaned with delight. She’d gotten so used to keeping her apartment cold to keep the heating bill down, she’d forgotten how nice it was to wake up and be warm.In the next bed over, Aliyah slept. She still looked pale, but better than the death-warmed-over look she had last night. The poor thing had spent most of the night in the bathroom dealing with the aftermath of food poisoning.No more gas station sandwiches for either of them.Holly tip-toed to the bathroom and enjoyed the heated tile floors in there. If she ever built a house of her own design, heated tile floors in the bathroom were de
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Chapter Five
MerryweatherThings were going well, Merryweather thought to herself. She busied herself behind the Ski Shoppe counter, making sure things were just so. She liked it when things were how they were supposed to be.She looked out and watched as the man found his way to the lift.The smile between them told Merryweather she was on the right track, but that they needed more time.Well, that just meant that Merryweather had to use some magic. She'd start small.Something to keep them talking. Something to give them the time they needed to find the love within them.HollyHolly turned to see the man from last night. Or at least, she was pretty sure it was him. It was hard to be sure with the dark sunglasses over his eyes.Either way her stomach did an excited flip-flop. The guy was cute.“Sure.” Together they glided out after a ski chair and waited for the next one to pick them up. Holly was grateful she managed to sit down on the chairlift seat gracefully. She only clattered her poles a li
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Chapter Six
NathanHe wasn’t quite sure why he invited her to ski with him.Maybe it was her smile. Maybe it was how easy it was to talk to her. Maybe he was lonely. Maybe it was the fact that she rocked the snow-bunny look.Whatever the reason, he was glad he’d asked her.They did three more runs, taking Lovely Lady twice and then Dragon Tamer. She kept pace with him easily. He was a decent skier and had taken lessons from some of the top names in the sport, yet she moved with an effortless grace that he admired.Plus, the conversation on the lifts was the best he’d had in weeks. She didn’t talk about mergers and expense reports. There was no mention of board members and equity payments.Instead, they talked about books. Her tastes were wonderfully eclectic, ranging from romance to science fiction and then to political thrillers. It seemed there wasn’t a book she hadn’t read. They talked about plots and stories. They connected on characters and laughed about things they’d read.It was one of the
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Chapter Seven
NathanThe snow was falling hard enough that the restaurant didn’t have many patrons. It was on the top of a mountain. The only way to get to it was by chair-lift or a snowmobile. As such, they practically had the place to themselves.“Just wait until you try their hot chocolate. It’s amazing,” Nathan told her. “You’ll love it.”“I can’t wait,” she replied with a grin. “I love hot chocolate. It’s one of my favorite drinks in the whole world.”They left their skis outside and hung their jackets on a wooden peg inside the heavy front door. Warmth from multiple fireplaces made the room comfortable after the cold outside. Yet another Christmas tree sat in a position of honor. Nathan ignored it.The restaurant was styled like an old log cabin. The furniture inside was rustic, but the windows were huge. The hostess sat them at a small table in front of the main window overlooking the ski basin.“Wow,” Holly whispered. She sat staring out the window at the incoming storm over the craggy peak
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Chapter Eight
HollyLunch was amazing. And not just because of the food.While the food was delicious, it was the company that made it spectacular. Holly found herself laughing and smiling while she ate. She couldn’t seem to stop smiling.If this were a first date, she’d be inviting him up to her room for a drink.“I’m really sorry to bother you,” the waitress said, standing at their table. “But, we need to close. The snow’s coming down too hard for us to stay open much longer.”Holly glanced outside through the huge window. White, fluffy flakes floated down and swirled around like the inside of a snow-globe. Already it looked like there was several inches of fresh powder.“Of course,” Nathan replied. He looked over at Holly. “You interested in doing a couple more runs? Or we could go to the hot-spring. I have a private pool reserved for the weekend.”“That sounds tempting.” Holly bit her lower lip. A hot spring with Nathan? Nathan in a swimsuit? She wanted it.“We could skip the skiing,” Nathan of
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Chapter Nine
Holly“There you are,” Merryweather said as soon as Holly walked in. “I was afraid you were going to be late.”“For returning my gear?” Holly asked, handing the skis, poles, and helmet off to Merryweather.“No for your hair appointment,” Merryweather replied. “I’m managing a couple of stations today. The snow has us a little short-handed.”“Oh.” Holly nodded as she sat down on a small wooden bench and took off her boots. She groaned with pleasure at the sensation of loosening the boots. They fit perfectly, but they were still ski boots and made to keep her ankles immobilized. It felt good to move them again.“Come with me,” Merryweather said, motioning Holly to just leave the boots on the floor. “I’ll take you up.”Holly slid on her regular snow boots from the small storage area and followed Merryweather into the lobby. They went past the check-in desk and up a wide staircase. The hotel was quiet.“What do you think of the snow?” Merryweather asked as they walked. “The weatherman is s
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Chapter Ten
MerryweatherThey were perfect for one another. Merryweather could see the strands of love starting to bind them together. The magic of love mixed with the magic of Christmas, making a heady combo for Merryweather to work with.She rubbed her hands together once again, excited at the possibilities before her.Love like this didn’t happen every day. This was where magic came from.Holly“Hot damn, girl!” Aliyah whistled when Holly walked into the bedroom of their suite to grab her shoes. “Where did you get that dress?”“It was from the hotel. Kind of a fluke thing,” Holly replied. “You like it?”“Like it? I love it. It’s perfect. It’s like it was made for you,” Aliyah told her. “You look like a freaking princess.”Holly looked over at her friend, taking her in. Aliyah was still in bed, a big silver bowl in the bed with her. There were saltines and ginger ale on the nightstand.“You doing okay?” Holly asked, feeling guilt creep in at leaving her friend.“I’m doing great,” Aliyah assured
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