Holly is not looking forward to Christmas. Her brother has a wife and kids to bring to their parents' house. She hasn't had a boyfriend since Ted. Holly loved Ted but he broke her heart when he chose to break up with her when he was transferred to an out-of-town newspaper owned by his family's publishing empire. Oh, and work is unrewarding--today the woman Holly was helping failed to regain custody of her kids when pro bono lawyer Ryan Hughes never showed up to the hearing. Knowing she will never meet Hughes, Holly settles for dictating a nasty letter to him. Holly's friend Diane tries to perk her up by promising to send her a great Christmas present. So when a handsome man with a Christmas tree knocks at her door, she realizes that Douglas Firwood is her present and she can take him home to her parents for the day as a serious boyfriend. Holly thinks the day is going perfectly--she and Doug are hitting it off, her family likes Doug, and her family believes every fact about Doug that she dreams up on the spur of the moment. There are three truths she doesn't realize: her brother's wife foresees great professional advancement if she can get his new boss Ted married to Holly so Ted is coming over, Diane's gift to Holly was a great bottle of booze, and how unbelievably coincidental is it that the man showing up at her door carrying a Douglas fir should claim to be named Douglas Firwood?—ccomly