Home Sweet Christmas

James (Dangerous Water) proves opposites attract in this sweet Christmas romance between a big-city pastry chef and an easy-going small-town lawyer. Kayla Hunter returns to her hometown to help her grandparents’ chocolate shop, Candy Manor, prepare for the town-wide Christmas Eve festivities. When they tell her of their plans to sell the business after the holiday season, Kayla is disappointed but agrees to oversee Candy Manor while they take a quick trip to Florida to scope out a retirement community. She begrudgingly accepts the help of Dominick Rowe, the lawyer aiding in the sale of her grandparents’ property. Though things between them start off sour, they each develop a sweet tooth for the other while working together to decorate the manor and cook up holiday treats for the Christmas Eve event. Differing life plans and miscommunication threaten to keep the couple apart, but the allure of the holiday season and a series of close romantic encounters prove difficult to resist. James draws on the joy of family togetherness and the appeal of love during the holidays to craft a heartwarming love story that’s sure to fill readers with Christmas cheer. Agency: Jana Hanson, Metamorphosis Literary Agency. (Nov.)