Holiday Surprise #2
Sean's not looking forward to another year of playing the Ice Palace Prince.
When Sean came up with the idea for Valle Granja's Ice Palace and Winter Village market for the holidays, he never imagined that he'd be named the honorary prince of the event. Now, several years in, he can't seem to ditch the title. But at least there's one perk. He gets to admire one of the business partners for the event, a man he knew in hich school: Lowell. It's just too bad the handsome alpha is probably already taken.
Lowell's been attracted to Sean since high school, but never dared to say anything.
Between being a nerdy alpha during high school, and not wanting to face off against Sean's alpha girlfriend, Lowell's always admired the other man from afar. But as he interacts with the gorgeous omega he starts to wonder if everything he knew about the him was true.
But even if Sean's available and likes men, would he be interested in Lowell?
Ice Palace Prince is a 14K word , non-shifter, M/M, Mpreg romance
Original Review December 2024:
Again, another book read out of order but in this series, Holiday Surprise, each book is a standalone with a different couple at the forefront. Some friendships carryover but it's not a necessity to know their journeys before reading a new book.
Ice Palace Prince is another lovely, entertaining, and fun read that is perfect for holiday fare. Second chance romance just screams Xmassy to me, or perhaps in this case "youthful miscommunications" mixed with "bossy perceived high school girlfriend" is more accurate than "second chance" as Sean and Lowell never really had a first chance waybackwhen.
Again, Lacey Daize nails everything in this entertaining holiday gem.
Chapter 1 - Sean
~July~
“Knock-knock!” sing-songed a cheery voice.
I looked up from my computer to see my supervisor, Elaine, standing in my office door, a huge grin on her face.
I sat back in my chair. “Either the wicked witch was fired, or you’re here to tell me that I’ve got more work.”
She laughed, strode over and dropped into the guest chair on the opposite side of my desk. “The second.”
“Damn,” I sighed. “A man can hope.”
She shook her head—salt-and-pepper curls bouncing—with a chuckle. “I don’t know if any of us will live long enough to see her fired or forced into retirement. She’s been here longer than anybody else and seems to think her sole purpose is to make everybody miserable.”
I blew out a long breath. “Benefits of a government job, can’t be fired without cause.”
Elaine nodded. “And as HR manager, she knows exactly where the line is that keeps her on the safe side.”
“I’m just glad I only have to interact with her a couple times a year.”
“You and me both. Now… onto the reason I’m here.”
“Wait!” I said, holding up a hand. I glanced at the calendar. “Lemme guess…”
I scrubbed a hand down my face when I put two-and-two together. There was only one option: it was time to start the promos for the Valle Granja Ice Palace and Winter Village.
It also meant that she likely had other reasons for being there too. “No…”
Elaine laughed again. “Yep. It’s time.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Please tell me I’m just one of the coordinators this year.”
Please don’t ask me to play the prince. Please don’t ask me to play the prince.
“And why would we take away your key role?” she joked.
“Maybe because it’s time for somebody else to do it?”
“Oh no, this event was your idea, and everybody loves it. I think it’s only fair that you get to play the part of the prince for another few years.” She paused. “Besides, it’s not as if you’re not used to being in the public eye, not with all those debate and cheer competitions your teams won when you were in high school and college.”
“It really should go to somebody younger. I’m almost thirty!”
“So what?” she asked with a shrug. “You’re still single. Maybe this will land you a good alpha.”
“How would playing the prince get me an alpha? There’s no time to flirt when I’m that busy! Besides, there’s nothing special about me.”
“Oh hun, there’s always time to flirt. And you’re far more desirable than you give yourself credit for.”
I decided to ignore her second point. “You try flirting with anybody during the opening ceremonies. I can barely get in a few sentences before I’m pulled away to talk to somebody else.”
“Long enough! Give them a nice smile, bat your eyelashes a few times, and you’ll get the alphas falling all over you. That’s a promise.”
“You do know that most bosses would discourage flirting while on the job.”
“When have I ever been like most bosses?”
I groaned. “Point.”
She leaned forward. “Anyway, we’ve got to schedule a photo shoot for you so that the graphics department has time to get everything together. It’ll be time to start getting vendors soon, then the posters need to be out by the beginning of October.”
“You’re really going to make me do this?”
“What would the Ice Palace be without its prince?”
“Then get a new prince! Tie it to one of those scholarships we just got the funding for.”
She laughed and stood. “Too late! You’re it.”
I sighed and she headed towards the door.
I thought I was free when she poked her head back in. “Oh, by the way…”
“What now?”
“Jefferson Construction has offered to donate their time to building again this year.”
I swallowed. Hard. That meant…
She laughed. “I knew it!”
“Get out!” I yelled, throwing a pen at the door for emphasis.
She kept chuckling as she headed down the hall.
Of course Elaine noticed my crush. She wouldn’t say anything to anybody else, but she loved making people face their own truths, and mine was that I was majorly attracted to Lowell Jefferson.
Just thinking about his green eyes, dark hair, scruffy beard, and broad shoulders made my cock perk up. Unfortunately, I’d missed my chance when I didn’t chase him when he was the nerdy alpha in high school. There was no way a man that fine was still available.
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Lacey DaizeLacey lives in New Mexico with her four critters. She’s a Jill-of-all-trades by day, but loves writing in her spare time. She dabbles in a variety of pairings, but jumped feet-first into the deep end of omegaverse the first time she read it. She loves the play on social expectations and the different ways to express romance.
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