Christmas in July

All it takes is a little love to warm his heart.

Kauko Sallinen has fled the cold climate of his native Finland for the warmer climes of Australia where he hopes to spend all his spare time sunning himself on the beach, and surfing. And he wouldn’t mind finding himself a bronzed Aussie to complete the picture. But he arrives Downunder to the coldest winter in one hundred years. Even worse, he’s staying in a hotel in the Blue Mountains which specializes in the celebration of Christmas in July, without any hope of a holiday romance. Just when he thinks things can’t get any worse, he slips during a bush walk, injuring his foot. But things aren’t all bad when the doctor who calls to attend his injury is exactly what Kauko ordered, except the doc has a secret that could bring their budding relationship to its knees.

Excerpt:

“Kauko Sallinen, you are an idiot.” I didn’t say it out loud, I merely thought it. I’m not really an idiot, although I’d be hard pressed to prove it by my behavior on this occasion. I’m in the top ten in my IT field, usually excellent at everything I do. I guess that also includes my newly discovered expertise – getting lost. Right now, I was wet, miserable, literally shaking with cold, and to cap it all I had no idea where I was. Did I mention I was injured?

I knew I was on the other side of the world to my native Finland, in the Megalong Valley in the Blue Mountains, 115 kilometers to the west Sydney, but did they really celebrate Christmas in a totally different month to the rest of the world?

Kylie laughed when I asked her the first day I arrived – was that just two days ago? – explaining that it was a tradition to celebrate Christmas at the hotel in the month of July for those who couldn’t acclimatize to the heat and humidity of a Sydney summer Christmas. I’d been in the country just a few weeks and was giving myself a well-earned break before beginning in my new employment. I wondered how they’d feel when I hobbled in on crutches to start work.

Nick helped me onto my bed. I was guilty of clinging to him much more needily than was necessary because I’d had very little warm human contact since I’d flown out of Helsinki. A few quick fumbles had been enough to quench the itch but what I longed for was someone to hold. I hadn’t had that sort of contact since…I didn’t want to go there.

“You’re in luck.” Nick smiled as if to indicate he knew perfectly well what I was doing in holding on to him way too tight. “There’s a doctor staying at the hotel and he’s agreed to have a look at your ankle. Anyway, I’ll send up a tray of sandwiches and tea? Coffee?”

“Coffee would be great.” I was about to thank him again but he must have read it on my face and just put his index finger up to stop me. “Don’t,” he said. I grinned sheepishly and the gratitude died in my throat.

Sitting propped against the pillows of my bed I wanted to examine my injury but it was covered by a thermal sock the rescuers had put on my feet. By comparing the two, however, I could see the left ankle was swollen.

I heard a knock.

“Come in,” I shouted.

The door opened and suddenly my whole world changed. The sexiest man in the entire world opened the door bringing in a tray of sandwiches and a pot of coffee.

“What happened to Nick?” I said rather rudely. I’m always flustered by good-looking men.

“They’re really busy downstairs. He asked me to look in on you so I thought I’d bring your snack up as well to save him time.” He came over to place the tray on the bedside table after he’d moved a few of my personal items aside. He glanced at the gay romance novel I’d been reading, making me blush to the roots of my hair because the cover was of a silver daddy, stripped to the waist to expose his very prominent abs and pecs, fighting some unseen enemy while protecting his equally gorgeous young lover under a finely muscled arm.