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About Guiding the Grouch by Shana Hatfield
Title: Guiding the Grouch
Author: Shana Hatfield
Series: Summer Creek #5
Genre: Sweet Contemporary Christmas Romance
He’s a billionaire set on escaping the holidays and his demanding family.
She’s a single mom with a sunny smile who keeps her heart safely hidden.
When she makes him her personal Christmas project, what could possibly go wrong?
Gabe Gatlin would do anything to evade the obligatory family holiday hobnobbing that is nothing more than one horrible business event after another, all wrapped up with a gaudy Christmas ribbon. Then the opportunity arises to explore a property in the small town of Summer Creek, Oregon, and gives him the idea to run away for the holidays. This year, he’s skipping Christmas. All he has to do is hide out until January in the quirky little town where the residents have dubbed him Grinchy Gabe. But when a delightful woman starts making his sleigh bells jingle, he might find it impossible to avoid losing his three-sizes-too-small heart.
Single mom and waitress, Dani Latham, has two priorities: give her son the stable life she never had, and spread joy to her friends and neighbors in Summer Creek. When a stranger with a grinchy attitude sits at her table, she makes it her personal mission to make him smile. As she guides him into a flurry of Christmas festivities, she starts to wonder if this grounch’s heart will ever return to normal size. And even worse. . . if it does, who is going to save hers from breaking when he leaves?
Will a little Christmas magic and wonder bring these two lonesome people together?
Discover the joys of the season mixed with humor, holiday fun, and moments that tug at your heartstrings in this sweet contemporary Christmas romance.
Excerpt from Guiding the Grouch
© 2022
Shana Hatfield
“Mr. Sinclair?” Gabe asked, shocked to see the owner of the chain of stores standing right there in Summer Creek. “Jon, is that you?”
The older man looked at him, blinked a few times, then grinned. “Well, I’ll be. Gabe Gatlin. What in the world are you doing in Summer Creek? According to the gossip, you’ve disappeared and are in a rehab center in Europe.”
“Seriously?” Gabe asked, not at all surprised by the stories society’s wagging tongues spread.
Jon leaned closer to him and grinned. “Actually, my wife spoke to your mother a week or so ago. Jacqui told her you’d run away from home and refused to talk to anyone unless it was an emergency email. Is that true?”
Gabe shrugged. “That about sums it up.”
Jon laughed and slapped him on the back. “Son! You are forty-two. You don’t get to run away from home at your age.”
Gabe grinned and waggled an eyebrow. “Oh, yes, I do. It’s been the single best thing I’ve ever done.”
Jon shook his head. “I’d think you’re in the midst of a midlife crisis, but instead of cheating on a wife you don’t have or buying a sports car you don’t need, you ran away from home. How are your father and Monique handling it?”
“About like you’d expect. Monique calls at least once a day with a snotty message about fulfilling my family obligations and returning home immediately. Dad has threatened to fire me, disown me, or have a hit put out on me if I don’t, to quote him, ‘get your head back on straight and return posthaste.’ What he fails to remember is that Grandpa left the realty division to me, not the company. I elected to have a board, but ultimately Daniels Realty belongs to me, and there is nothing Dad or Monique can do about it.”
“So, what brought you to Summer Creek?” Jon asked with interest.
“One of the things my father has been doing lately that is causing any number of issues is insisting Chadwick cut back expenses. Of course, Chadwick is like an obedient lapdog, doing whatever good ol’ Dad tells him to do. He came to my office one morning with a file on a property we’ve been maintaining for years, but no one knew where it was or what it was. I did some research and discovered it was my grandmother’s childhood home here in Summer Creek. When I couldn’t take another minute of Monique’s holiday plans, I basically disappeared. I’d sure appreciate it, sir, if you didn’t mention to your wife—who will surely tell my mother—that I’m in Summer Creek.”
“My lips are sealed, but you might want to at least get in touch with your mom.” Jon gave him a look of fatherly wisdom. “Jacqui sounded quite worried about you. Even billionaire playboys need to be home for Christmas.”
A gasp behind him made Gabe spin around and look at Dani as she gaped at him. “Billionaire?” she asked on a breathless wheeze. “You’re a billionaire?”
Gabe shrugged. “That’s what my accountant tells me.”
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About Shana Hatfield
USA Today Bestselling Author Shanna Hatfield writes sweet romances rich with relatable characters, small town settings that feel like home, humor, and hope.
Her historical westerns have been described as “reminiscent of the era captured by Bonanza and The Virginian” while her contemporary works have been called “laugh-out-loud funny, and a little heart-pumping sexy without being explicit in any way.”
When this farm girl isn’t writing or indulging in rich, decadent chocolate, Shanna hangs out with her husband, lovingly known as Captain Cavedweller. She also experiments with recipes, snaps photos of her adorable nephew, and caters to the whims of a cranky cat named Drooley.
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