Her Pretend Christmas Date: A Cider Bar Sisters Novella

She's home for the holidays with her starchy fake boyfriend. Although she's the fun and outgoing one, Julie Tam has always lived in the shadow of her older sister, Charlotte. Now Charlotte has a good career and a great boyfriend whom their parents love, and Julie has neither of those things. Her blind date with Tom Yeung is disastrous; however, he's exactly the sort of guy her parents would like-a methodical, strait-laced pharmacist who even folds his underwear and wears paisley ties.
So, she pretends they're a couple to impress Mom and Dad in their phone conversations. When her mother insists that Julie bring Tom to her hometown for Christmas, Tom, who has no plans for the holidays, agrees. But Julie doesn't know how she'll tolerate a whole weekend in his company, especially when they have to share a bed and participate in a gingerbread house competition together. The man is irritatingly proper and set in his ways. Except after hours of baking and skating and opening presents, she's starting to find Tom annoyingly attractive and even endearing.
And now, she doesn't want this holiday weekend to end.