Debra Dixon

Doc Holiday by Debra Dixon
Mouse and Hayseed, their pet names for one another while they were teens and growing up in the same town. He had lived at their house more than his own. She was there to decorate her dads house and to restore order to the misfits.
She opened up to Drew on their walk around town after her dad told Taylor Bishop the town had changed. He's there to get away from his ex wife. Harvey, AR is not a place she'd even consider looking for him.
He just needs one favor for her-to make a Christmas his son Noah will never forget, her style. Yes the ones where the tree was attached to the wall with wires, lopsided with homemade decorations on it.
She has to turn him down cuz she's so busy with the decorations, presents, the food, float for the parade and everything else involved with pulling off a typical holiday season in a few days time. Problem is she just might have some time now that her brother Clay's wife, Martha has taken over the kitchen.
Drew showed up to ask questions and she was there to answer them: her mother had a special ornament for each of the kids with their names on them so they'd each have a memory of childhood. He would have to do a lot of shopping to catch up while she told him just get a few special ones per year. I also have
special ones that go on our tree and they do make it very special every year. She doesn't have time to help him with Noah til Martha finds out and shoos her out of the house.
Love how the book got it's title... There are many moments of hand holding and kisses and hugging but she gets rescued when Noah is nearby. She says it's all a mistake and he informs her even from a distance he can carry on a relationship with her. No matter what goes wrong, Doc is there to fix it.
Loved hearing of the cookie baking as i've yet to make gingerbread men and never thought of how to decorate them...… (meer)

Debra who?! Dixon? Never heard of her, but I loved the cover of the book; title was cute and it’s free on NetGalley, so why not? I’m on a roll to read not just Christmas themed stories, but taking a dip into contemporary genre of which I wasn’t such a fan of..before this month that is. I’m changing my mind and mighty quick, especially after I read ‘Doc Holiday’.

Before I go all out and start gushing, let me warn you: Do NOT start reading this story without having Klinex close to you! You’ll need it, trust me.

Ms. Dixon put this story together so perfectly that I gobbled it up, hating to put it down and go to sleep, or eat [that one wasn't so bad, I need to lose a few] or do anything but turn the pages to see…what NOW?!
The emotions within the pages were palpable and raw; the characters too real and loving; the story filled with tension, sexual and emotional.

For our heroine, Taylor, who took over ‘mothering’ duties of her six brothers while helping her father after her mother’s death thirteen years ago, her personal life was put on hold. The promise she gave her mother was to look after them until they all were grown and well on their way to taking care of themselves, and that time it seems to be close at hand as the youngest is in college, although he doesn’t think he should be.

Taylor is finally ready to be herself, her own person, and unencumbered by the ‘boys’. She can almost ‘taste’ that ‘freedom’…that is until the man from her past shows up…with a son in tow! And she slowly enters into a fight…with herself. To let go of everything she thinks she wants, or give in to what she really needs…

Drew Haywood comes back to his home town with one goal in mind: to give his son their first Christmas together that they never had, and to do that he needs ‘Mouse’ [his nickname for Taylor] to help him. The question was, will she agree to it or will she remember, that thirteen years ago their kiss sobered him up into pulling away from her because he was six years older.

This is one of the best ‘past meets present’ stories I’ve read in a while and to have a child in the mix was absolutely marvelous! This kid was so cute and if you’re one of those that can’t read a romance with children [I know you're out there], don’t let that stop you from picking this one up, as little Noah will steal your heart.

Hands down, heartwarming, at times [many times] sad and frustrating sexy and sensual; modern tale of real, true love; and just overall sweet, sweet romance. Can you tell I loved it?!

Book provided by NetGalley… (meer)

I've read a couple of other Loveswept Classic Romances before and I either found those to be just okay or not to my liking. So, I have to say, I was a little disappointed after I realized this was a classic romance. I went into reading this book thinking the book blurb was great but I didn't have high hopes for it. Oh my GOSH! I loved this book. It has everything I could possibly want in a contemporary romance.

Taylor Bishop is a twenty-nine-year-old single girl. Her mother died when she was sixteen years old and she has been pretty much taking care of her father and six brothers ever since. In Taylor's mind, she has already raised one family and she doesn't want to raise another. Thus, she doesn't have any kids and she's not married. One of her rules is to NOT date guys who have kids. Those guys, in her mind, are only looking for someone to raise their kids. Now it's a week before Christmas and she's back in her hometown of Harvey, Arkansas trying to will herself to put together another perfect Christmas for her family.

Drew Haywood is a thirty-five-year-old single dad to a five-year-old son named Noah. Drew has been divorced from his ex-wife Anna for about four years and two months ago she flew to Arizona and left Noah with Drew, with no intentions of coming back for him. It appears Noah didn't fit into her new life. So Drew moves him and his son back to his adopted hometown of Harvey. It's Christmastime. It has been a difficult last couple of months. Drew wants to give Noah a Christmas he will remember.

This is one of those happy-ever-after stories, so you know Drew and Taylor are going to end up together. If you've read any of my reviews before, then you know I'm all about the journey. I LOVE the journey Ms. Dixon takes us on. In fact, I don't think there's anything about this story that I don't love.

Taylor and Drew have had a thing for each other for years but the age difference was a problem. Drew is six years older than she is. In fact, on one of the lowest days of her life, the day of her mother’s funeral, Drew kissed a then sixteen year old Taylor and made her feel better about herself. Drew immediately realized his mistake and apologized, thus breaking a young girl's heart. Now, thirteen years later, Drew has not only moved back, he's come looking for Taylor to give him the one thing only she can give, a Christmas he and his son can remember for a lifetime.

Drew is an only child. He grew up with parents who loved him enough to take care of him, but did not fill the house with a warmth of home. They were all about appearances and the country club scene. In fact, when Drew told his parents he was moving back, they decided to move to Florida. They aren't even planning on being around to share Christmas with Drew and Noah. Ever since Drew and his parents moved to Harvey, Drew has been in awe of the Bishop household. They are/were a large family who immediately welcomed him in, like he was apart of the family.

When Drew goes looking for Taylor at the Bishop family home, she thinks he’s there for her brother Clay, who happens to be the same age and is a really good friend of Drew. Taylor refuses to believe that he actually came looking for her. Through some pushing from her new sister-in-law and father, Taylor agrees to spend the week putting together a Christmas Noah and Drew can both cherish and remember. She swears to herself that she’s not going to get involved or attached. But how can you not get attached to a little boy who isn’t a little boy at all. Noah is the perfect child, a little too perfect in fact. Turns out when his mother left him, she told him that he better not misbehave, because then his dad would send him away too.

Through the course of the book, Taylor tries her best to not fall for Drew and Noah. After all, she still thinks Drew doesn’t want her romantically, but as a mother replacement for his son. You have Drew who can read his “Mouse” just by looking at her and does everything he can to break down the walls she’s desperately trying to put up. Over the course of one week, Taylor manages to turn Drew’s beautiful yet dreary house into a warm home, filled with Christmas decorations. She turns Noah into a little boy who gets his first stuffed animal and has his first fit with his dad (that was a funny scene). Also during this time, Drew confesses his feelings for Taylor after all these years. Of course, she doesn’t believe him. Turns out, at least one member of the Bishop family knew of Drew’s feelings for Taylor thirteen years ago and finally tells her so.

In the end, Taylor fulfilled her promise to give Noah and Drew a Christmas to remember. In the process, she also made her own family as well.

Debra Dixon is a fabulous storyteller. While reading this book, I could actually picture the scenes as if they were truly being played out in front of me. This is a MUST Christmas read.

Source: NetGalley… (meer)