Dancing in the Snow

By Cozy DuBois

The girlfriend was real, in the beginning. Em simply forgot to tell everyone they broke up. For five years.

Emerald Cloud has backed themself into a corner. What started off as a lie by omission (did their coworkers need to know the woman they were seeing ghosted them?) has spiraled into carefully managed lore about a fake girlfriend-a secret only Em's best friend knows. For years, everyone has been begging to meet this mysterious Sara. Em has always fibbed reasons for her absence at the annual holiday party, and being besties with the single-by-choice Sanzhar always got Em out of bringing a date.

This year, Em is out of excuses. The party planning committee is laying the guilt on thick, and Sanzhar's new boyfriend will be his date this year. But Rory has an idea to free Em from their lies: Find someone to play Sara, just for the holiday party, and then fake a break-up.

The plan sounds solid, on the surface. Except Em knows themself. They always feel too much, too soon, with the wrong people; even a fake date will break their heart. Too helpful for his own good, Rory insists he has the perfect candidate: a woman charming enough to fit the Sara lore, who is married so Em can keep some emotional distance, and the best part?

Her name is Sarah.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1964386195
• ISBN13: 9781964386195
• Release Date: November 2026
• Publisher: Heartwood Forest Publishing
• Length: 186 Pages
• Weight: 0.42 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 5.0" x 8.0"