The Christmas Dare

Riley Hartman keeps every piece of her life in line except her love life. As a polished PR executive known for flawless events and impossible deadlines, she can handle almost anything. What she can’t handle is showing up alone to her company’s Christmas gala after her coworkers dare her to bring a date.
Enter Sloane Rivera, the tattooed, disarmingly charming bartender who overhears Riley’s panic and makes an offer: she’ll play the perfect girlfriend. Confident. Flirty. Totally convincing.
Their plan is supposed to be simple, but the act slips the moment their pretend spark starts feeling real. Sloane cuts through Riley’s careful polish with a warmth Riley isn’t ready for, and the rules she relies on start to fall apart under the pull between them.
Riley’s world runs on image and structure, while Sloane trusts instinct and heart. As their connection deepens, every boundary they set begins to blur, forcing them to question whether this unexpected desire is worth shaking the lives they’ve built.
When the lights fade and the night turns cold, one question remains:
what if the fake date becomes the real thing they both want?

***

This story is one ember in the Fires of December a series where every flame tells its own tale of winter passion and unexpected love.

In a month built for cozy nights, five women learn that heat hits harder in the cold. Snowy cabins, bright city windows, a hidden inn tucked into the mountains, even skies brushed with aurora they all set the stage for desire that refuses to stay quiet. Each story carries its own spark: a forgotten crush finally spoken aloud, a moment with a stranger that feels too sharp to ignore, a flicker that might be human or something just out of sight. And every December, with holiday lights buzzing in the dark, one question lingers: what kind of fire will they find this time?