Mistletoe Magic by Terri Weldon

Another Christmas story, and yes, there are more to come! Gotta love 'em!

Welcome Terri, and thank you for joining us here on my little blog corner of the webiverse. I just want to share a little bit of this story since I enjoyed it so much!

Back cover:

Misty Winslow is determined to find her prince, and she meets the man of her dreams through an Internet dating service. Or is he, because the new dentist in town also sets her heart aflutter.

It's love at first sight for Tyler Davenport, but before he can finish his first root canal, Misty is involved in an exclusive online romance with Wes99—Tyler’s online persona. How can he tell her he’s the man she’s been waiting to meet, and how rational is it for him to be jealous of Wes99! Soon Tyler's pulling out all the stops to woo Misty.

As Christmas approaches, Wes99 and Tyler both ask her to meet them under the mistletoe. Which man will she choose?

Excerpt:

“This is my area.” Britt moved behind the front counter. “It doesn’t look like much now, but Dr. Davenport is going to add some kind of bead junk to make it look different.”

“It’s called beadboard, and it will look fantastic,” Misty said.

“He’s also having a granite countertop installed. Plus, I’ll have a new computer. A lot of the files and stuff will be computerized. He’s really into going paperless.”

“Your doctor’s a smart man. It will change the way the counter looks without costing a fortune. Frugal and good-looking, tell me more.”

“Good-looking doesn’t even begin to describe him. He’s perfect. Dark hair, dreamy blue eyes, and a killer smile. He’s smart, after all he is a dentist, and he’s great with kids. I mean he hasn’t met Kayla and JD, but I’ve seen him around other kids and he’s a natural.” 

Brittney looked at her watch. “Hey, I really need to run a few errands and then I’m going to stop by Mom and Dad’s and have a quick bite of lunch. You’ll be OK here by yourself, right?”

Considering Brittney was halfway to the door, Misty guessed it would be a smart idea to say yes. Besides, she’d get a lot more work done when her friend was gone. “No problem, catch you later.” She watched Brittney leave then wandered back to the small dental library. She noticed the faded paint and nicked woodwork in the clinic, not to mention the sixties-style light fixtures. Old Doc Harris hadn’t updated a single thing since he opened the doors for business fifty years ago. The clinic needed a major facelift, and it sounded like the good doctor intended to give it one.

Misty slipped a green scrunchie from her pocket, pulled back her hair in a ponytail, popped in her earbuds, and cranked up the volume on her MP3 player. Christmas music filled her ears, and she let out a contented sigh. She sent up a silent prayer that this Christmas would indeed be the most magical time of the year for her. She filled three cardboard boxes with dental journals from 1975. Seemed Doc Harris never threw anything away.
Achoo! 

Or dusted it. 

She grabbed one of the boxes and started towards the front door. She loved Christmas and since no one was around to hear her, Misty allowed herself the freedom to sing along with the music—loud and off key. As she reached the end of the hall, she tripped, sending the box of journals flying through the air as she grabbed for the doorframe. Her fingers scraped it and one perfectly manicured fingernail snapped as Misty tumbled forward and landed in a heap on the floor. 

Her elbow slammed into the hard tile floor, and she knew once the throbbing stopped she’d have a bruise the size of Rhode Island. Her chin was cushioned on a pair of brown loafers, the leg of perfectly creased jeans the first thing she saw. 

“Are you all right?” a deep male voice asked.

Misty lifted her head and gazed into gorgeous indigo blue eyes. Her brain melted like butter, and she stammered, “I, uh, I think I’m fine. Nothing feels broken.”

“Let me help you.” He reached down, grasped her hand, and pulled her to her feet. 

A boyish smile flashed across his face revealing teeth as white as the fresh snow that had fallen before dawn. Oh man, oh man, talk about gorgeous. This guy rewrote the definition. Forget Rural Romance. The only date she wanted stood about six-foot-two right in front of her.

The gears in her mind whirled. This had to be the new dentist, Dr. Tyler Davenport. In a town the size of Winslow, the coffee shop would have been abuzz with news if another good-looking man had moved to town. Wait until she told Brittney she no longer needed to join Rural Romance. Well, at least not until she learned more about the new dentist. Now what had Britt said about him this morning?

Brittney. Uh oh, her best friend forever had already staked her claim, and Misty wasn’t losing twenty-five years of church camps, sleepovers, and late night phone calls over any man.

“Are you sure you’re OK?”

Finding her voice, Misty forced herself to answer. “Sorry, your teeth were so white they dazzled me. You must be Dr. Dreamy.” She brushed the dust from her jeans. 

He chuckled, and heat flooded her cheeks. Had she really said that? 

“I, uh, I mean Dr. Davenport.” She’d never be able to look him in the face again.

“Call me Tyler. And you are…?”

“Oh, sorry. I’m Mistletoe Joy Winslow, the town librarian. But please, just call me Misty. Brittney Peters, your receptionist, is a friend of mine. I volunteered to come clear out Doc Harris’s old dental library.”

“Brittney mentioned you’d volunteered to help. I appreciate it, but I could have thrown everything in the school’s recycling dumpster.”

“Actually, I’m going to list the items on several online auctions. You’d be amazed at what people will buy. I’ll split the proceeds fifty-fifty with Winslow Elementary.”

“Nope, if you do the work I insist you take 100 percent of the profits for the library. Besides, that benefits the kids as well.”

Oh, man, why did he have to be as nice as he was handsome? More importantly, why did Brittney have to see him first? Lowering her head, Misty looked at the stack of dusty journals littering the tile floor. “Thanks. Well, I guess I’d better get this mess cleaned up.”
Tyler helped her, and in no time the journals were back in the box. 

When they finished, he picked up the carton and their eyes locked. After a beat of time in which Misty couldn’t take her eyes off him, he said, “Hey, I’m getting ready to have lunch and I hate the thought of eating alone. Would you care to join me?” 

Misty opened her mouth to answer just as Brittney appeared in the doorway, a frown darkening her pretty face. Misty bit back the guilty urge to accept Tyler’s lunch invitation. “Sorry, I can’t. I need to run a few errands.”

Review:

What fun! This story is priceless! The doctor competing against his own online dating persona for Misty's attentions is just quirky enough to be true! I can just imagine him getting tangled up in his own web of mistruths.

Misty is such a sweetheart, thinking always of her friend first. But where her heart really lies is evidenced with her first slip of the tongue when facing "Dr. Dreamy". 

And Dr. Davenport really is dreamy - but very real. Ms. Weldon did a very nice job of letting them bob and weave around each other. Loved it!