When Cody White's anxiety reaches a breaking point, he's sent to the small town of McAdenville for a quiet escape. Instead, he gets tricked into running a local five-and-dime -- and handed over to the care of Joshua Lee, a gorgeous ex-Marine with a heart as big as his shoulders.

Cody doesn't want a babysitter, even if Joshua is the most attractive man he's ever seen.

Joshua understands Cody's silent struggles better than anyone. He runs to McAdenville every winter to escape his own corporate anxiety and find peace under the holiday lights. Helping a friend's shy son find his footing seems easy enough -- until he actually meets Cody. Suddenly, Joshua's protective instincts kick into overdrive, especially when a predatory local butcher tries to slide his way into Cody's life.

This Christmas, under the glow of a million twinkling lights, two anxious souls might just find the one thing they've been searching for: each other.



Shawn Bailey writes from New Orleans, Louisiana. Shawn is an avid manga and yaoi novel collector and watches a lot of Japanese anime. Shawn recently retired from working as a financial analyst and now devotes her time to being a full-time writer.



Shawn has published books with Silver Publishing, Phaze Books, MLR Press, and Amber Quill Press, but currently writes for Jaded Press, Siren-Bookstrand, Painted Hearts Publishing, and JMS Books.