Christmas in Spite of You

by K.C. Mills

Genres: Holiday Romance

Synopsis

A neat freak Scrooge and a Christmas-loving ball of chaos must coexist for a week, and the friction and separation that ensue make the most magical time of the year highly remarkable.

After pumping her hard-earned savings into a business plan that doesn’t pan out, Noel Anderson is left financially strapped and needs a way to earn money to stay afloat. She decides to rent her apartment as an Airbnb for the Christmas holidays while visiting her family for Christmas. What she didn’t plan on was coming down ill and having to cancel the trip.

Kanton Joseph is on the cusp of securing a lucrative business deal. In order to get a one-up on his competition, he rents an Airbnb in the same apartment complex where his potential client resides. He’s surprised when he shows up, and the owner of the Airbnb not only wants to cancel the reservation but is still occupying the space.


With great reluctance, Noel and Kanton agree to cohabitate for one week. Noel attempts to stay out of Kanton’s way, but they undoubtedly cross paths, causing friction between them. They immediately clash on everything, most notably with their views on the holidays. Noel is determined to have a very Merry Christmas despite her temporary housemate, which is the source of Kanton’s irritation. Eventually, the two begin to soften toward each other and Kanton learns to view things through Noel’s eyes.

Will the holiday magic fizzle, or will these two spark a connection they didn’t realize they needed?

Release date: September 24, 2024

Publisher: Black Odyssey Media

Print pages: 288

Sample

“WELL . . .”

I was sweating, literally sweating, because this was the make-it-or-break-it moment. And I needed this—like really, really, needed this.

“Noel, open the email. Waiting isn’t going to change the response.” I narrowed my eyes at Simone, my very best friend, who, at the moment, was being a pain in my—

“Give me that,” she demanded. Before I was able to object, she confiscated my laptop. Once she dragged it across the counter and I could no longer stall, I closed my eyes, waiting for the final nail in the coffin. My coffin. It was coming. I felt it by the way my stomach knotted.

“Hmm . . .”

Hmm. She said “hmm” and “hmm” wasn’t good.

“They said no, didn’t they?” My voice released barely above a whisper, and my heart sank to the pit of my stomach.

“Not exactly. They—”

I snatched my laptop back and read the email.

Happy Holidays to you too, jerks!

“This said no, Simone.” I slammed my laptop closed, and my shoulders deflated. But, as usual, my overly supportive best friend wouldn’t allow me to sulk. She quickly rounded the counter and placed her hands on my shoulders.

“It’s not a no. It’s a ‘we’re too lazy to decide before the holiday. We’ll be sending you a contract and more than generous offer the first week of January.’”

“Right,” I groaned, not believing one word of the overly optimistic pitch. I stepped around Simone and entered my living room, flopping onto the sofa, where I lifted a pillow and covered my face to muffle the coming scream.

Once I finished, Simone snatched it from my face and loomed over me, arms folded over her chest. She had that look. The one that meant I was about to be lectured.

“Save it, please,” I groaned.

“Absolutely not. You will not sit here and self-destruct or sulk—whichever of the two you’re personally choosing at the moment.”

“Both.”

“Then, no and no. Denied!”

“You can’t deny a person’s self-destruction or sulking, Simone.”

“Actually, I can.” She sat next to me and inched closer. I lifted my head and allowed it to rest on her lap. “It’s not the end of the world, Noel—just a minor setback. You’ll be fine. Your business will be thriving in no time. You have to believe that.”

“I do believe my business will thrive. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have dumped all my savings into taking this leap of faith. I’m not the one who needs to be convinced. My mounting bills need that pep talk. If I don’t start making money soon, I’m going to be homeless. I was really counting on this contract to hold me over until the first of the year. Now, what am I going to do?”

“You’re going to put on your big girl pants and use what you have.”

I glanced up at Simone, who was staring back in a way that meant I wouldn’t like what she was about to say.

“No. Whatever you’re thinking, don’t think it because my answer is no.”

“Can you at least hear me out first?” She smiled mischievously, and I groaned, lifting from my current position and shifting until I was seated with my legs tucked and crossed at the ankles in front of me. I flicked my wrist to signal for Simone to continue. She got up and traveled back to the kitchen, returned with my laptop, which she opened, and began typing something, turning it to me shortly after.

“Not happening,” I declared when I realized what the plan was. I was looking at the Shared Space profile she’d created for me a few weeks ago. I’d agreed to consider it as a last resort, but . . .

“Why not? You need the money, Noel.”

I frowned, shaking my head and pointing at the screen. “I know I need the money, but that’s just weird.” I shivered in a cringy manner at the thought of what Shared Space was.

“How is it weird?” She raised a brow in a challenge, and I untucked my legs and stood from the sofa, pacing.

“It just is. Having strangers in your house, with access to your things, is creepy. Like, what if it’s some perv who goes through my drawers messing with my things or worse—wearing them? Or what if it’s some crazy person who likes to use that app to get intel on their next victim and then starts—”

“Starts what, Noel?” Simone was way too amused while I was freaking out. My mind shifted to the worst-case scenarios.

“I don’t know . . . stalking me or something. If you think about it, the idea is genius. They’ll be in my home, sharing my personal space and having access to my things. They’ll know everything about me, and that’s just . . .” I stopped pacing and wrinkled my nose. “Weird.”

“Was it weird that we used Shared Space when we traveled to Miami or LA last summer?”

I rolled my eyes and flopped into the corner of the sofa again. “No, because we’re not weird, and it wasn’t my place. It was someone else’s.”

“You get to screen whoever you allow to stay. You can do the whole background check thing to make sure they’re not—”

“Crazy? A stalker? A creepy pervert who goes around the country staying in women’s apartments?”

“You’re so dramatic, but yes. You’ll know if they have a history of anything that seems off.”

I narrowed my eyes. “And what if I’m their first victim? Then what? No criminal record exists, and bam! Some strange guy named Newton is spending the week in my apartment, sleeping in my bed, wearing my favorite silk pajamas.”

“Or, you pack your favorite silk pajamas for your trip home to spend the holiday with your family and skip past all applicants with the name ‘Newton.’”

I shot her a narrowed glare, and she smiled wider. “Come on, Noel. It’s a great idea, and you need the money. People pay really good money for these temporary rentals. It can help you with your bills until you get the official ‘welcome to the team’ email from all those lazy people who aren’t doing business because of the stupid holidays.”

“Hey, go easy on the ‘stupid holiday’part.The holidays are our friends and are the innocent party in all this.”

“Okay then, stupid, lazy people.” We sat in a standoff, and I chewed my lip, struggling with the decision until I finally gave in. She was right. I needed the money, and it really wouldn’t be that bad.

I hoped.

“Fine. But you’re helping me box up all the important stuff I own, and you’re helping me sanitize the place when I get back.”

“Deal. Now, are you doing this or what? One click, and your place is officially available on Shared Space.”

She lifted a brow again with her finger hovering over the keyboard. One touch and my life would be officially exposed to strangers.

I nodded, quickly squeezed my eyes shut, and turned my head. I couldn’t watch.

Seconds later, I heard Simone’s overtly amused voice, and my laptop close. “Done. Now, we wait.”

MY ASSISTANT WALTZED into my office with an iPad tucked under one arm, phone in hand, with her eyes glued to the screen. She was dressed in her typical business attire. Today’s ensemble was deep navy, wide-legged pants and a matching blazer, giving a sleek and professional look.

Her honey-auburn-colored hair was slicked back into a ponytail, exposing her thin lips and nose, manicured brows, and flawless makeup. Shelby looked like a corporate shark in heels, which she would one day be, but for now, she was my secret weapon. The woman who kept my life organized and running like a well-oiled machine. She was the fine line between keeping me from tipping over the edge and pulling it all together.

Without removing her focus from the device in her delicate hand, she navigated through my office, avoiding a collision with the furniture, and placed the iPad in front of me. I lifted it into view and leaned back, crossing my leg so that my left ankle rested on my right thigh.

“What’s this?” I squinted at the brightly colored furniture and floor-to-ceiling windows, highlighting the interior and allowing for the perfect optics.

“A listing on Shared Space. Take a look and let me know what you think. These spots go insanely fast, and you’re running out of options this close to the holiday.”

Ah. My last-minute trip to Atlanta.

“What’s Shared Space?” I wasn’t familiar with the name and had made assumptions, but I needed to be sure what was meant by shared. I damn sure wasn’t planning on spending a week with someone I didn’t know.

“A modern-day co-op. People offer up their homes to others, short or long term.”

“Offer, as in they leave, and the guest will be there alone?”

Her eyes snapped up to mine, and a smug grin eased onto her pretty face. “Of course. I know there’s no way you would spend the week with someone you don’t know. Lord forbid you be placed in a situation where you must ignore those pressing mergers and acquisitions long enough to be social.”

I lifted one shoulder into a lazy shrug. “I can be social. I simply choose not to. I have a—”

“Ten-year plan. Yes, I know. Take over the world, and then you’ll consider having a life.”

My smile expanded. “I have a life, Shelby. It’s just not what most consider ideal. I’ve built a solid foundation that I can hopefully pass down to my kids, which they, in turn, can pass down to their kids. It’s called creating a legacy, something we as a community need to improve upon. My parents did it, and now, so will I.”

“I know what a legacy is, Kanton, but you are aware that a social life is required to afford you the opportunity to meet the woman who will assist in creating those kids who you’re building this legacy for, right?”

“I can always adopt.” That wasn’t the route I wanted to take, but it was fun antagonizing Shelby. She was every bit of the astute and tunnel-visioned businessperson that I was at times, but she had the advantage of sharing her life with someone who often softened her in ways that I wasn’t.

“I’m serious, boss. All work and no play—”

“Keeps my portfolios growing.”

“Kanton . . .” she warned with a sharp look that had my smile expanding again.

“I’m kidding. I want a family as much as you want me to have one. Just when the time is right. After I secure this deal, I’ll consider slowing down enough to go on a date or two . . . maybe.”

“You’re insufferable sometimes.”

“But I pay you handsomely, which is why you stay around to suffer. And for the record, I tried the relationship thing, remember? Jordan is currently packing her things, or at least, I hope she is, so that she can be moved out of my apartment by the time I return.”

Jordan, who I had dated for all of three months before she conveniently moved in with me . . . without my knowledge. I returned from a business trip to find her things arranged in my place, and since I was trying to embrace a social life, I gave Jordan and me a valid chance at having a future. After living together for six months, I realized she and I were mismatched. Unfortunately, she refused to accept our differences wouldn’t make for a happily ever after, and I was having a hard time detaching her from my life. It seems we had finally reached a common ground since she agreed to be out of my place before the first of the year.

“If she knows what’s good for her, she’ll be out before I return.”

I handed Shelby a warning look. The last thing I needed was Shelby getting personally involved in Jordan’s removal from my life, although it might be amusing to see the fallout. “Leave it alone. I have it covered.”

She groaned and rolled her eyes, pointing to the iPad again. “Do you want the place or not? I need to accept the offer because my guess is it will be gone by the close of business . . .”

“It’s nice but kind of . . .” I frowned, trying to find the proper terminology without being offensive.

“Quirky and eclectic. Yes, it’s all that. Probably belongs to some artsy type, but the space has beautiful bones and more importantly, it’s the perfect place for you to stay when it comes to closing this deal with Brighton.”

“What makes you say that?”

“The unit is in his building.” She smiled smugly, feeling accomplished. She knew me better than anyone, considering she spent more hours with me than her boyfriend. The opportunity to be in the same building as Brighton was golden. Nothing would prevent me from having access to him, not even a bout of bad weather, which Atlanta wasn’t known for this time of the year, but I wasn’t taking chances.

“Then there’s your answer. Book it.”

“Perfect.” She extended a hand, and I leaned over my desk, passing the iPad back to her. Her fingers moved across the screen with expert speed. She tucked the device under her arm a few moments later and smiled.

“Done. You’re officially booked for the week of Christmas. Which, by the way, I think is insanely crazy. Who the heck wants to work the week of Christmas? I would have loved to be a fly on the wall when you had that call with your mother.”

“I do if it means closing a multimillion-dollar deal, and my mother was not happy at all. However, she’ll survive. I need to convince Brighton that Global is the only chance he has of keeping controlling interest in his family’s company. All I have to do is meet with him in person to prove how great this merger can be, not just for me but for his company and future business between the two of us. The Prestige Luxury brand is huge but in dire need of our help if they want to continue owning the monopoly on luxury hotels, apartments, and spas worldwide.”

“Right, and while you’re doing all the heavy lifting, which will make us all rich, I’ll be with my boyfriend, hopefully, celebrating our engagement.”

“He’s proposing?” I arched a brow, and she smiled mischievously.

“If he’s smart, he will. I’ve given him every opportunity to pick the perfect gift, which is a Tiffany True diamond that he will present me with on Christmas Eve at an intimate dinner we’ll share in our cozy little cabin in Breckenridge.”

I chuckled, shaking my head. “You’ve planned the entire thing for him?”

“Yes and no. I might have dropped subtle hints, but I’m leaving it all in his very capable hands.” She winked, heading to the door. Then she paused and turned to face me just before leaving. “Once I have all the access information for the listing, I’ll forward it to you. They don’t send it until twenty-four hours before you’re scheduled to arrive, just in case you change your mind. In the meantime, I’ll finalize the reports you’ll need to present to Brighton and his team next week. Should I order lunch for you today, or will you be going out?”

I drummed my fingers on the desk, mentally walking through my day, realizing I had a lot of work to do. “You can order in. How about—”

“Thai from ThaiSquared. Got it.”

I chuckled at how well she truly knew me. “Perfect. Always on top of things. Thanks, Shelby.”

“My boss pays me handsomely to suffer. No thanks necessary.” She flashed me a smile before leaving my office, and I fired up my desktop to get my day started.

It was after nine by the time I made it home. I entered my apartment, placed my things on the kitchen table, then paused momentarily to fold my overcoat over the back of one of the chairs. Releasing a sigh to exhale away the day, I pulled open my refrigerator and removed a beer, taking it into the living room with me, where I lifted the remote and sank into the sofa.

I loved my life. There wasn’t much to complain about. After graduating at the top of my class with a degree in business, I had the type of career most only dreamed of. By twenty-two, I started my first Global Restructuring Firm. By twenty-four, I had my first million-dollar account. At twenty-eight, I had already far exceeded my goal of being listed as one of the nation’s up-and-coming corporate restructuring firms and financial strategists. I’d already obliterated my ten-year plan but still wasn’t ready to slow down. Mainly because . . .

My phone vibrated with a call, and I groaned, seeing my mother’s name flash across the screen. If I didn’t answer, she would repeatedly call until I did. This was her thing, which had turned into our thing. She called, and I dodged her. She refused to let me rest until I answered at least once.

“Good evening, Mother.” I kept my focus on the television as I mindlessly flipped through channels.

“Well, good evening to you too, my long-lost son.”

I chuckled, lifting my beer and taking a healthy gulp.

“You know the address to both my residence and my office, Mother. I’m far from lost.”

She scoffed. “You know what I mean, Kanton. It’s the week before Christmas, and we don’t have your flight information. Will you bring a plus-one to the gala, and if so, please send me her bio so I can be prepared.”

I snorted at the thought of dating a woman who had a bio that my mother would approve of. There were plenty. I would bet my life my mother had several bios from women who met her standards of being qualified to date her son—none of whom would meet my qualifications of being interesting enough to entertain for longer than my mother’s gala would last. She and I differed greatly in that area.

“That’s easy. There are no arrival plans, which means no plus-one. I’ll be in Atlanta next week, working.”

“You absolutely will not, Kanton. Next week is Christmas.”

“I’m well aware, Mother.”

“Then what’s this nonsense about you working? Everyone will be expecting you to be home for the holidays. We have a tight schedule as is, with our family dinner, Christmas Eve decorating, and the gala—which, by the way, has already raised over a million dollars that we’ll be sending out to well deserving charities.”

The Christmas dinner and Christmas Eve decorating performance would be captured by whatever newly hyped videographer my mother had hired to narrate the perfect story of our perfect family. Hard pass on that.

“I’ve already sent my donation from my personal and business accounts, but I won’t be there. Sorry, but this deal is important.”

“Our family is important, Kanton. What am I supposed to tell everyone when you don’t show?”

I shrugged, not really caring. I was one piece of the perfect holiday puzzle. My mother didn’t give a damn about seeing me. Well, that wasn’t the complete truth. She loved it when I came home because she did love me, but this was more about me playing my part in a holiday creation that she would have flawlessly edited and then placed on her personal and charity websites. It was always about appearances.

“I’m sure you’ll figure it out, and if you can’t, that’s why you pay your team of minions. They’re very capable of drafting a speech for you to deliver to anyone concerned about my absence.”

“It’s not about that. I look forward to you being home for the holidays, Kanton.”

“Seriously, Mother? You could not care less about me coming home beyond how it disrupts your perfectly laid plans. Unfortunately, you’ll have to improvise this year. I won’t be home.”

“I suppose I can spin this one way or another, but I will miss you. Just know I’m terribly disappointed.”

“I’m sure you are. As sure as I’m convinced that you’ll survive. Good night, Mother. I love you. I have an extremely early morning tomorrow.” I smiled into the phone, knowing that she was pouting.

Not exactly a lie. All of my mornings were early, which I would bet my life she knew, and that was why she didn’t argue with me.

“Good night, Kanton. I love you, and if you just happen to change your mind—”

“I won’t. I love you too, Mother.”

She sighed again just before my phone went silent. I glanced at my phone, feeling a tinge of guilt that I wasn’t going home for the holidays, but then again, it wasn’t like i. . .