Christmas In the Footlights by Declan Rhodes

A failed audition. A hometown he swore he’d left behind. And a Christmas magic he never expected to believe in.

When Broadway dancer Alex Garland’s career implodes during a panic attack on stage, he retreats to Yuletide Valley—the Christmas-obsessed small town he escaped fifteen years ago. He’s only passing through. Just long enough to settle his grandmother’s estate and get back to his real life.
But the valley has other plans.
First, there’s the community theater desperate for a director. Then there’s the sick little boy who needs someone to believe in Santa. And then there’s Ben Blitzen—the quiet carpenter with sawdust in his hair, magic in his hands, and a family legacy tied to Christmas itself.
As the Twelve Nights before Christmas unfold, Alex discovers that Yuletide Valley’s magic is more than tinsel and tradition. The theater lights respond to emotion. The wood in Ben’s workshop holds secrets. And the love growing between them might be the most impossible thing of all.