A white lie, a winter romance, and a love I shouldn’t have…

Christmas in Virgin Cove was supposed to be simple—one last lonely holiday before I figured out what came next. But then I found Kaveh Norouzi bleeding in the snow, and a split-second decision changed everything.

One white lie. That’s all it took.

Now, the entire Norouzi family thinks I’m engaged to Kaveh—including Ralph, the man I’ve secretly loved since we were kids. The one who got away. The one who never looked back.

Except now, he’s looking at me like I belong here. Like I belong to him.

But Kaveh wakes up with no memory of what really happened, and suddenly, I’m not just playing along—I’m trapped in a holiday fairytale I never meant to start.

A mansion filled with Christmas lights. A family who welcomes me like I’m one of their own. And Ralph… the only man I’ve ever wanted, now completely off-limits.

I should leave before this all explodes. Before Kaveh remembers. Before Ralph and I do something we can’t take back.

But if I walk away, I’ll lose the only real Christmas I’ve ever had… and the only man I’ve ever loved.

It’s only a white lie… until I fall.

Gina

Three Days till Christmas

The falling snow stopped me in my tracks as I looked out the restaurant window. It never snowed in Virgin Cove really, at least for the holidays.

Most families would be excited by the snow, I was sure. My father would have loved to watch it come down. He’d probably have dragged me to the center of town, and we’d have caught snowflakes with our tongues—if I’d still been a little girl, and he’d still been here with me.

The hardest part of my life was that I had no one—not anymore. I cleaned the last counter in the diner, which had tiny poinsettias sitting in the corner, and turned in my last receipt to the till that had bells hanging from it.

The tassels I’d hung on the walls for cheer only cemented to me that I had no one to share any joy. Practically every customer I’d served had either come to the diner with family or had talked about family.

This year it was my turn to get the holiday off. In two days, I’d have my first Christmas to myself. Maybe then I’d figure out whether I wanted to leave New York and Virgin Cove forever and where I’d go.

Every dime I had made was in my savings account—I just needed a dream.

I changed into my jeans and packed my uniform in my backpack, preparing to head home.

The quietness of the night always calmed me. As I walked toward the door, the owner, Jessica, stepped in front of me with her arms crossed. “So, Loretta’s in-laws decided to come in for Christmas.”

I stilled as I caught what Jessica was implying. Loretta’s sudden influx of family or not, I needed time for myself. “That’s nice, but I still worked last Christmas and the one before that.”

“Let’s not break tradition, then,” she said.

My hairs stood on end as I stood taller. My lip curled. “Just because I’m alone doesn’t mean I don’t deserve a holiday.”

“And you’ll get one,” she said. “Just not Christmas.”

I felt tears form. I needed the day off. I lowered my head and urged, “Please don’t do this.”

“You’re the only one who can work,” she said then backed away.

My shoulders dropped, and I curled my arms over my stomach as I left the diner. If I quit, I’d owe four months of rent—and I had nowhere to go for Christmas and no one to be with.

My life needed a change. I headed down an alley as I’d done countless times. However, at the end of the alley, beside an Aston Martin, two men flanked a third man.

“Give us your money!” one of the men shouted.

Fancy cars like that usually belonged to the local trillionaires, and I thought of Ralph Norouzi, who I hadn’t seen in ten years. His branch of the Norouzi family lived in Florida, but his aunt and uncle had a mansion in Virgin Cove, a small beach town near the Hamptons. Without another thought, I ran to see if I could help.