Sara and Cisco chase their grandparents through a blizzard to Vegas, where Santa Grandpa and Grandma have run off to get married. Will they catch Santa and his crazy Mrs. Claus before it's too late, or will love stop them in their tracks?
When widow, Sara Marks, hears her Grams has gone on the lam from Happy Acres Residence on Christmas Eve – on Santa’s arm, no less -- she teams up with sexy stranger, Francisco de la Vega, to chase the couple down with one thing in mind. Keep her Grams from becoming Mrs. Claus. Of course, Francisco's grandfather is not really Santa Claus, but Grams did run off to Vegas to marry him and she's obviously not in her right mind.
Sara leaves her seven-month-old baby, Lanie, with a friend and she and Cisco head west in the worst snowstorm in decades, chasing his grandfather's '57 Ford Fairlane over the river and through the woods.
Will they catch Santa and his crazy Mrs. Claus before it's too late? Or will love stop them in their tracks?
(Novelette, approximately 17,000 words/50 pages)
Excerpt
“What do you mean, Grams ran off with Santa Claus?” Sara Marks stared at the first floor orderly, Buddy Cantor, who’d met her outside her grandmother’s room at Happy Acres Residence. She could barely catch her breath after dashing through the facility carrying her sleeping seven-month-old. It had taken her a full thirty minutes to drive from the church near her apartment across Denver’s snow packed streets in her crotchety, old Ford, when it should have taken ten. Twenty minutes too long if her grandmother was truly missing.
She should never have gone to the Christmas Eve service. She’d suspected Grams was up to something when she called and told her to come later so she could take a nap before their usual dinner together. There was something in her voice, but Sara hadn’t paid enough attention with little Lanie fussing in her ear. “Next thing you’ll tell me is Santa took her to the North Pole in a sleigh pulled by reindeer.”
“No. A gold ’57 Ford Fairlane convertible.” The man shuffled uneasily in the doorway. “And they’re headed to Vegas. We think.”
“Vegas.” Movement in her arms made her aware Lanie was fully awake and ready to play. She grinned up at Sara with two shiny new bottom teeth, like she’d woken up just to laugh at her great-grandma’s latest flight of fancy.
Oh, Grams, what have you done?
Professional Reviews
Holiday Cheer that warms your heart!
Karen Docter has done it again! Catch That Santa is a light hearted, feel good novella about a lonely widow with an infant and a dashing but stressed stranger. On the way to trying to stop his grandfather and her grandmother from a surprise Christmas wedding, Francisco de la Vega and Sara Marks discover that love doesn't have to hurt or be the seal for a deal-- to be real! Karen's wonderful writing delivers heart warming holiday cheer and love. It's like that bite of scrumptious Christmas fudge... without the calories! Enjoy!
Another fun enjoyable read by Docter
Karen Docter writes wonderful contemporary romance. I loved her Satin Pleasures novel.
Catch That Santa was a fun novella, with a Christmas theme. The romantic couples were endearing, and you liked them from the start. They are both brought together when they go looking for each of their grandparents, who have runaway to get married in Vegas. It was fun to watch them together as begin to discover each other on their wild drive in the snow to catch up with their grandparents. If you want a fast fun romantic read with two attractive people, and in the mood for a Christmas story, then Catch that Santa is perfect for you.
Christmas weddings...
Lanie and Cisco meet when they find out that their grandparents have ran off to Vegas to get married in the worst snow storm that Denver has seen in awhile. They take off to try to stop them but in the storm there are no flights so they have to drive, it's over 800 miles.
What did I like? A believer of love at first sight, I loved the thought of them falling in love. By the time they reached Vegas I was sure they were goners.
What will you like? A truly fairy tale story filled with unbelievable magic like every woman wishes she would find. Written beautifully and well deserving 5 stars, you'll fall in love with each of the characters. A sad story turned magical all on Christmas day.
For the past two years (2006-2008) The Bridge of Silver Wings has earned a name for itself both as a series of poems published in different e-zines and as a book first published in 2007.
What makes this 2009 edition a special one is th
Christmas - only days away; plastic snowmen and glowing reindeer adorn the lawns of neighborhoods all across America. All is calm, all is bright, and yet there is something tragically wrong about this Christmas night.
With swift passage thr
A short story of mine was included in an anthology of short fiction by fourteen of Port Town Publishing Company's authors. It is out of print and no longer available except as a download. Contact me at charlenetess@yahoo.com if you want it.
