He had a rule for everything. She had a smile for every disaster. Neither had planned for each other.

After a gingerbread mansion collapses on camera and takes her baking career with it, Tessa Finch returns to Alderbridge determined to rebuild. A Christmas commission to create a gingerbread version of her hometown could give her the fresh start she needs.

There’s just one complication: Ellis Bell.

The precise, maddeningly capable model maker is her project partner, and he has strong opinions about structural supports, shared workspaces, and glitter. Tessa brings warmth and ambitious ideas. Ellis brings a ruler and absolutely no intention of becoming anyone’s Christmas entertainment.

But between crooked biscuit doors, community workshops, and a miniature bus with surprisingly important wheels, Tessa discovers the tenderness beneath his gruff exterior. Ellis discovers that her brightest smiles sometimes hide the things she’s afraid to ask for.

Soon, working late becomes dinner. Dinner becomes a kiss. And a temporary partnership starts to feel like something worth keeping.

Then an opportunity threatens to take Ellis across the country, and Tessa’s determination to hold their future together could cost her his trust.

With Christmas approaching, she must learn that love takes more than making herself indispensable—and that the best things they build will need room for both of them.

Gingerbread Rules for Grumps is a warm grumpy/sunshine holiday romantic comedy filled with baking mishaps, small-town charm, tender chemistry, and an earned happily ever after.

Maren Winslow

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