Little Tree

By Amanda Hocking

A brand new holiday story in the bestselling phenomena, the My Blood Approves Saga...

Set seven years after the final book in the series, Alice gets called away on a job right before Christmas. In a quiet mountain town, mysterious happenings are afoot, and Alice is sent to figure out what is going on. Jack tagged along, and now she is once again balancing danger and romance.

"Little Tree" is also available in paperback form in the story collection, Letters, Love, and Blood.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Amanda Hocking
• Release date: Nov 7, 2022
• ISBN: 9781005463052

Amanda Hocking

Amanda Hocking lives in Minnesota, had never sold a book before April 2010 and has now sold over a million. According to the Observer, she is now 'the most spectacular example of an author striking gold through ebooks'. Amanda is a self-confessed 'Obsessive tweeter. John Hughes mourner. Batman devotee. Unicorn enthusiast. Muppet activist.' Her books include the Trylle Trilogy, the Watersong series and the Kanin Chronicles.

Book preview

COPYRIGHT

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

LITTLE TREE. Copyright © 2022 by Amanda Hocking. All rights reserved.

First Edition

www.hockingbooks.com

ISBN: 9781005463052

Table of Contents

Other Books by Amanda Hocking

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

About the Author

Other Books by Amanda Hocking

My Blood Approves Saga

My Blood Approves

Fate

Flutter

Wisdom

Swear

Letters to Elise (Prequel Novella)

Little Tree (Short Story)

My Blood Approves: Complete Saga (eBook Bundle)

Seven Fallen Hearts

Virtue

Tristitia

Superbia (Coming Winter 2022/2023)

Trylle Saga

Switched

Torn

Ascend

Frostfire

Ice Kissed

Crystal Kingdom

The King’s Games: A Short Story

The Lost City

The Morning Flower

The Ever After

Watersong Saga

Wake

Lullaby

Tidal

Elegy

Forgotten Lyrics: A Short Story

The Hollows

Hollowland

Hollowmen

The Hollows: A Graphic Novel

Valkyrie Duology

Between the Blade and the Heart

From the Earth to the Shadows

Stand Alone Novels

Freeks

Bestow the Darkness

Chapter One

Our bags were packed and ready to go, but Jack was an entirely different thing. Even though it was his idea to join me on my last-minute work trip, he hadn’t really been apart from Zuzu yet.

He knelt on the floor as our four-month-old Newfoundland puppy covered him in kisses and chomped on his shirt. She was a big, black, fluffy girl, and she was absolutely the light of Jack’s life.

I will see you very soon, and Bobby will take good care of you, Jack promised Zuzu.

Are you sure she won't be too much for you? I asked Bobby. Zuzu was potty trained, but she chewed on everything still, and she'd never been on a plane before.

Honestly, I can't imagine it's worse than traveling with two kids under the age of three, Bobby said, and he was only half joking. He and Milo had added two children to our family, with the aid of a surrogate mother. One puppy versus two babies in diapers. Bobby held up his hands, pretending to weigh the two options. Today I'll find out which is more difficult.

Thank you, I told him again. This job shouldn't be too dangerous or take too long, but it's still no place for a puppy.

Well, I'll have my phone and laptop if you need anything, he reminded me.

I always do, I said. But it should be fine, and we'll see you in a few days at the Christmas party.

Jack stood up, holding his wiggly pup in his arms, and he proceeded to run through all the important info about taking care of Zuzu, as if Bobby wouldn't be able to handle it. In Jack's defense, he wanted Zuzu to have a long, healthy life.

Last December, his beloved Great Pyrenees, Matilda, had died of old age, and he had been devastated. It had taken him a while to even feel ready to get another dog, but the apartment had been so quiet. Before Milo and Bobby decided to have children, they'd moved out and bought a house about twenty minutes away from mine and Jack's apartment in downtown Amsterdam. So, our home had actually been kinda empty until Zuzu.

But with the new puppy, it had been even harder for Jack and me to get away. Not that we'd really been big travelers before then. In fact, in our seven years of marriage, we'd only gone on two true vacations.

Which is why when my boss called me this morning, it seemed serendipitous to Jack.

I know that this is bad timing, Ettie had told me over the phone, her French accent apologetic. "You are free to say no, of course, and I couldn't blame you. You’ve asked for the time off to visit your family, and I wouldn’t want to