ARC Review – Baby Under the Christmas Tree by Teresa Carpenter

Description:
Gift-wrapped family San Diego hockey team’s PR director Elle Austin goes beyond the call of duty to keep their rebel captain in check-even playing nanny to his son!

Max Beasley knows nothing about looking after a baby, so he enlists Elle’s help after little Troy is left on his doorstep by his irresponsible ex.

Maybe it’s the spirit of Christmas, or seeing Max’s softer side, but Elle wishes he saw her as more than just an employee, and that they could give Troy the best gift of all-a family!

Needed: the perfect wedding date!

Trying to move on from a disastrous engagement, Sophie Morgan needs a date for her best friend’s wedding…and fast! And what quicker way to find a man than speed dating? Only, it’s bar manager, Dan Halliday, who catches Sophie’s eye.

Dan can’t resist helping a damsel in distress, so he offers her a deal-a few shifts in the bar in exchange for the date-no strings attached. But when pretence leads to passion, they both get more than they bargained for. And it’s too late to have any secrets between them.

Baby Under the Christmas Tree is a sweet, fast-paced, story full of holiday magic and sparkling love.

Max is an enforcer for the San Diego Thunder hockey team. He lives for the game. He is not looking for a relationship and doesn’t have time for anything permanent in his life.

Elle works in the PR department for the team. Organization is the foundation to her life. Her dream is to take over as Director when her boss retires in a year. In order to make this happen she has to make sure the players are happy and their lives are in order.

When Max’s son is dropped off at his home he is forced to make room in his life and in his heart for him. Max grew up in foster care. He knows what a life without parent’s stability is like and he will not allow it for his son. He needs help to make this happen and Elle is just the one to lend a hand.

Elle has always thought that Max was attractive, but he is nothing like the type of guy she is going for. She grew up in a family full of sports fanatics. She wants more to life than sitting in the bleachers watching a game.

The more time they spend together the harder it is to remember all her objections. She gets to see the layers and the real man that Max is. These two have a lot of obstacles getting in the way of securing a future together. They have to learn to communicate and trust each other. I loved the way that Max opened himself up and shared his past with Elle. It wasn’t easy for him and it showed the amount of respect and trust that he feels for her. I loved the way Elle jumped right into the situation with Troy and showed him unconditional love. I loved the way these two were able to hurdle over their problems and finally give in to true love.

If you’re looking for a heartwarming story sprinkled with spice, sass, and romance, you will really enjoy this. It wasn’t full of a lot of drama and intense situations. It’s more about two people admitting their true feelings. With warm characters, an endearing child, and a story full of supportive secondary characters, this is a perfect book to read curled up around a fire with holiday lights twinkling in the background.