A Christmas Fling — Beth Barany

"I had to keep reading far into the night just to see the budding romance between Dahila and Liam." -- Sherry Ewing

What if falling in love put the life you cherished in jeopardy?

Dahlia, a Santa's Elf, has 21 days left before Christmas to create the best toy in the world without using magic or revealing her true identity.

tuck on how to complete the prototype, and working as a temp in San Francisco's financial district with no time for love, will her Christmas fling get her unstuck, or will she turn her back on her beloved career for her heart?

Liam, an up-and-coming financial analyst, swore off women after getting dumped by the love of his life.

He just found out his ex is going to the company Christmas party with his rival Michael Hendricks.

Up for promotion against Hendricks, Liam has to win the favor of his boss.

His best bet is to invite the vivacious secretary Dahlia to the party.

Will Dahlia be a welcome distraction, or will she turn his life upside down?

"A heartwarming joy to read during a quiet afternoon." -- Wendy Strain

"What I really liked about this story is that, even though it's a love story, it doesn't fall into the familiar trappings that typically litter the genre..." -- Chelsey Nichols

"This is a lovely, Christmastime love story and I think anyone who's looking for something of a different “fairytale” style story would absolutely love this. Strong female lead, interesting love interest �" fun characters throughout and a great setting make this a wonderful holiday read." -- LJMiles

READ AN EXCERPT HERE
CHAPTER 1
DECEMBER 1, OAKLAND, CA

Dahlia strolled through the small neighborhood park. It was great fun to think about how the children would enjoy her toy once she was done with it, but she had to complete it first. She only had twenty-two days to fix whatever was wrong with it before returning home. She'd gone over her designs and schematics and taken it apart and put it back together a dozen times, but it still wouldn't work.

Dahlia left the park and headed down the street toward the detached studio she rented on Miles Avenue.

A dog bark had her look up just in time to almost but not quite avoid getting tangled up in a long leash. A man with the warmest brown eyes she'd ever seen gazed down at her, a half smile on his face.

She smiled back startled out of her daydreaming, but not before she noticed his endearing dimple on one side of his mouth.
She said, “Sorry, I didn't see you. Thank goodness for your dog. Oh, she looks like a Husky.”

Dahlia shifted her bag to one hip, so she could bend down and pet the dog.

The dog wagged her tail.

Dahlia said, “You must feed her really well. Her coat is so soft and luscious.”

“She's a Bernese Mountain Dog. Sally. My roommate's.”

His voice was deep. She had to look up to smile into his deep brown eyes. He was a whole head taller than she was. Almost two meters. She translated into American measurements. Six foot three or something.

“My uncle, well one of my uncles has one -- that he uses for work. But I hardly see him because he lives -- ” She paused. “I'm prattling, aren't I?”

“Yes, you are, but I like listening to your accent. Scottish?”

A short novel -- this is a novella of approximately 21,000 words.

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Beth Barany writes magical tales of romance and adventure to transport readers to new worlds where anything is possible.

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All the Books in the Touchstone Series
Touchstone of Love (A Time Travel Romance) (Touchstone, #1)
A Christmas Fling (A Christmas Elf Romance) (Touchstone, #2)
Parisian Amour (A Fairy Tale Romance) (Touchstone, #3)
A Labyrinth of Love and Roses (A Fairy Tale Romance) (Touchstone, #4)
A Cupcake Christmas (A Christmas Elf Romance) (Touchstone, #5)

The first 4 Touchstone books are also in Touchstone Series: Romance Novella Books 1-4, plus a bonus short story.