He didn't want to come home for the holidays-but can an unexpected reunion with a woman from his past make this cowboy's Christmas merry and bright in this sweet and sizzling novella? When Cooper Mason left Gold Valley, Oregon behind him eight years ago, he told himself he wouldn't be back. But when a Christmas promise sends him home to face his demons, he'll find that not everything is as he remembers-especially family friend Annabelle Preston, who's somehow morphed from childhood pest to full-grown, hot-blooded and oh-so-tempting woman. Growing up, Annabelle had built a lot of dreams around the ruggedly gorgeous Cooper-dreams she's long ago learned to put behind her. Until a chance encounter with Cooper leads to a night neither can forget, and all the old feelings come blazing back to life. Now, Annabelle has a week to prove there's more between them than a no-strings holiday fling…and with a little Christmas luck, she just might convince Gold Valley's favorite cowboy to come home for good.