Rewriting Christmas
Abigail Lush is skipping Christmas—and not even glitter can fix it.
With her second novel in shambles and her family’s holiday chaos closing in, she escapes to her brother’s remote North Carolina cabin to regroup, recharge, and disappear. The last thing she expects? Gabe Hayes—broody, off-limits, and the man she’s secretly wanted for years—staying in the cabin next door.
Gabe was counting on a quiet, solo December. No holiday cheer. No complications. And definitely not his best friend’s little sister showing up next door. Abby is sunshine wrapped in stress, chaos in cozy socks—and still the one woman he can’t stop wanting. He pushed her away once for... reasons. But now that she’s here? Letting her go again might be impossible.
With snow falling heavily and history simmering just beneath the surface, old sparks catch—and this time, they’re not so easily extinguished.
As expectations unravel and boundaries blur, Abby and Gabe might just discover they’re not only breaking the rules...
They’re rewriting them—Kiss by kiss, touch by touch, until there’s no going back.
Read a Sneak Peak
Chapter 1
Jingle Bell Hell
Abby
Jingle Bells and every ounce of holiday cheer could go straight to hell.
I kicked off the flannel sheets — hot, clingy, and basically the fabric demon in my current nightmare — and wrestled my way out of the oversized bed that swallowed half of my brother’s otherwise normal-sized cabin. The sheets twisted around my ankle like the ghost of Christmas chaos itself, not quite ready to let me go. With one yank, one rip, I hit the floor with a thud that matched my mood.
Jingle Bells started to play again.
I banged my forehead against the wood floor. “I hate everyone.”
Dragging myself to my bare feet, I stomped toward the kitchen, snatching my phone off the dresser on my way. Its cheery ring tone filled the cabin with the kind of joy that should be banned.
I tried to throw the window open above the sink. It didn’t budge. Of course it didn’t. My brother really needed to have someone check out his place more. He was never here. I jumped onto the counter, bracing all five foot three of my rage-fueled body against the frame.
One grunt. Two. Finally, an inch. Good enough.
I frisbeed my phone through the barely big enough gap. Not the dramatic slow-mo toss I’d imagined, but it was enough.
All I wanted was to wallow in peace. And fix my disaster of a manuscript. Not answer the demands of my mother.
Ordinarily my mother was a standard-issue parent. But from about Thanksgiving to New Year’s, she transformed into the Patron Saint of Christmas. Christina Lush didn’t just celebrate Christmas. She embodied it. If Santa had a workshop, she’d be enshrined in gingerbread and guilt.
And I’d just committed the worst cardinal sin.
A knock broke the silent war I hadn’t realized I was having with the cappuccino machine.
My blood froze.
Nobody knew I was here — except Travis. Unless that traitorous traitor ratted me out…
I charged the door, fury thawing my veins. I had a right to have Christmas meltdowns. I had a right to avoid my parents. I was a grown woman with Christmas baggage and manuscript deadlines.
I yanked the door open, the cold blast hitting me in the face.
Except it wasn’t my mother or my father. Nope. It was much, much worse.
Gabe Freaking Hayes.
He stood there with that smug, slightly crooked grin, like he’d just won something. His light brown hair was messier than usual. Scruff, scruffier. But those stupidly beautiful sea-foam eyes shimmered with condescension.
Of course he looked good. In a smug villain kind of way. Huh. Maybe I should add a villain to my manuscript?
I jammed fists onto my hips. “What are you doing—“ I gasped, the words dying in my throat when I saw it. That sparkly pink and purple phone pressed to his ear.
My phone pressed to his ear.
“Mmhmm,” the jerk said, his grin widening. “I’m sure she’ll be home for the family caroling night. She wouldn’t want to miss that.”
“Hang up!” I mouthed.
He covered the phone and whispered, “You’re in trouble.”