Under the Mistletoe - A Christmas Anthology

By Carol Cassada, Tammy Campbell and Tammy Godfrey

Within the pages of the 'Under the Mistletoe Anthology,' you'll embark on a journey through tales of enchanting holiday romance. Experience the allure of mistletoe kisses that ignite the spirit of the season. Join couples as they navigate the joys and challenges of long-distance relationships during this spe

• Language: English
• Publisher: Warrioress Publishing
• Release date: Nov 28, 2023
• ISBN: 9798868934742

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Carol Cassada, Tamsyn Beard, Tammy Campbell, Tammy Godfrey,

Under the Mistletoe Anthology

A Christmas Anthology

First published by Warrioress Publishing 2023

Copyright © 2023 by Carol Cassada, Tamsyn Beard, Tammy Campbell, Tammy Godfrey,

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise without written permission from the publisher. It is illegal to copy this book, post it to a website, or distribute it by any other means without permission.

This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

Carol Cassada, Tamsyn Beard, Tammy Campbell, Tammy Godfrey, asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

Carol Cassada, Tamsyn Beard, Tammy Campbell, Tammy Godfrey, has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party Internet Websites referred to in this publication and does not guarantee that any content on such Websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

Designations used by companies to distinguish their products are often claimed as trademarks. All brand names and product names used in this book and on its cover are trade names, service marks, trademarks and registered trademarks of their respective owners. The publishers and the book are not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. None of the companies referenced within the book have endorsed the book.

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Contents

I. CARE PACKAGE FOR CHRISTMAS

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

II. CHRISTMAS PRESENT MESS-UP

Chapter One

III. LOVE AND PRIORITIES/ A CHRISTMAS JOURNEY

Chapter One

IV. WHAT WE SHOULD TELL MOM

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Also by Carol Cassada, Tamsyn Beard, Tammy Campbell, Tammy Godfrey,

I

Care Package For Christmas

By Tammy Campbell

Chapter One

Hey, Lieutenant. The supply is about ten minutes out. Do you have anything that needs to go back to headquarters? Sergeant Thomas Caprice asked as he entered my make-shift office.

Yeah, I replied. Grabbing a sealed envelope, I placed it into a document pouch, zipped it shut, and activated the lock. Come on. I’ll walk up to the landing zone with you.

I sure hope there’s mail on this bird. It’s been hard on the men, not getting anything from home for the past few weeks, especially this close to Christmas, Sergeant Caprice said as we walked up to the landing zone.

Hope so, too. Morale is suffering without it, I responded.

Just as we arrived at the landing zone the familiar ‘wip…wip…wip’ sound of the helicopter’s main rotor signaled its arrival. As soon as it touched down, the pilot killed the engine and he and the co-pilot climbed down to stretch their legs after the long flight from the carrier cruising a hundred or so miles off the coast.

When he saw me, he reached back into the cockpit and retrieved a similar pouch to the one I was holding. Once we exchanged the bags I asked about mail. Your guys are going to be really happy; I got a ton of it on board, he said.

Great, I smiled. After exchanging some info on what was happening in the world, I left, leaving the sergeant to organize a work party to unload.

As soon as the first mail bag came off I knew the morale in the camp would skyrocket. As for me I knew there would be nothing from home. I had no family. My father was killed in action when I was fifteen years old and my mother followed six years later, two months before I received my commission. I have a sister, but she was mad at me for joining so she hasn’t talked to me in years.

Up until two months ago, I had a fiancé. Then I got the letter. Nine words that crashed my world. ‘You’re not here. I was lonely. I found someone.’ She didn’t even sign it.

Returning to my office, which also doubled as my sleeping quarters, I unlocked the bag and retrieved the envelope inside. It contained a single page of orders. To sum it up. ‘Remain on station. Continue monitoring the situation. No relief. No going home.

Twenty minutes later I heard the helicopter as it took off heading back to its carrier.

I made my way to the mess tent and remained at the door, out of sight. Inside, Sergeant Caprice and his partner in crime Staff Sergeant James Dean Burton, known as JD to friend and foe alike, were distributing the mail. There were some two dozen large mailbags containing letters, cards, newspapers, magazines, and packages. One particular package was simply addressed ‘United States Serviceman, War Zone’. Somehow it found its way here. As was the custom with packages such as this one, each man wrote his name on a slip of paper and placed it into a box. One name would be drawn, and that individual would receive the package.

Sergeant Caprice filled out two slips and held one up for all to see that it had my name before he dropped it into the box. I later discovered that the other slip of paper also had my name on it, but no one saw that one. The sergeant knew, as did everyone else in the unit, about the ‘Dear John’ letter. Things like that are impossible to keep secret amongst men who live and fight together in the military. He figured that his lieutenant had two shots out of a hundred to win the prize. Little did he or I know at the time, that every man in the outfit had written my name down before placing it into the box.

Hey, Lieutenant, Sergeant Caprice called out after catching me slipping quietly out of the tent. you won.

I mumbled my thanks before returning to my office and began opening the package. Packed in Styrofoam peanuts I found two cans of shaving cream and a razor with two eight-packs of blades. Someone had spent some serious money on this gift as I knew that the blades alone ran about twenty bucks a package each. Digging deeper I found a bottle of aftershave and a couple of bottles of shampoo. From the very bottom, I lifted out a Christmas cookie tin. Inside were two dozen homemade Christmas cookies tightly wrapped in aluminum foil. Inside the tin with the cookies was a note that read.

Hello

My name is Penny Campbell and some of my girlfriends at church decided to send Christmas packages to you guys overseas. Not knowing what to send, my dad suggested sending some things that every guy could use. The cookies were my idea.

I cannot begin to tell you how proud and grateful we all are for the sacrifices you have made for our country. It must be very lonely for you to be so far away from family, loved ones, and