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How My Billionaire Boss Ruined Christmas
He’s hot. He’s rich. He hates elves.
I thought I’d found the perfect way to stay safe from my stalker ex: convince him I’m engaged to my mega-ruthless billionaire boss, Wulfric Pierce.
It works like a charm.
Until the whole city finds out. Including Wulfric.
But instead of firing me, he makes a demand of his own: I'm going to spend Christmas pretending to be his loving fiancée.
Because Wall Street’s number one villain has exactly one soft spot: Mimi, the woman who adopted him off the streets. She’s facing risky heart surgery the day after Christmas, and the news of our engagement has lifted her spirits like nothing else.
She can’t wait to meet the bride!
That would be me.
And Wulfric has no intention of letting her down.
So now I’m caught in a whirlwind of Christmas festivities, increasingly steamy fake kisses, and eagle-eyed society ladies planning my wedding. And my stalker ex hasn't gone anywhere.
And Wulfric? The more time I spend with him, the more I realize he'd do anything for the people he loves.
And the way he looks at me makes me wonder if I've been one of them all along.
I thought I’d found the perfect way to stay safe from my stalker ex: convince him I’m engaged to my mega-ruthless billionaire boss, Wulfric Pierce.
It works like a charm.
Until the whole city finds out. Including Wulfric.
But instead of firing me, he makes a demand of his own: I'm going to spend Christmas pretending to be his loving fiancée.
Because Wall Street’s number one villain has exactly one soft spot: Mimi, the woman who adopted him off the streets. She’s facing risky heart surgery the day after Christmas, and the news of our engagement has lifted her spirits like nothing else.
She can’t wait to meet the bride!
That would be me.
And Wulfric has no intention of letting her down.
So now I’m caught in a whirlwind of Christmas festivities, increasingly steamy fake kisses, and eagle-eyed society ladies planning my wedding. And my stalker ex hasn't gone anywhere.
And Wulfric? The more time I spend with him, the more I realize he'd do anything for the people he loves.
And the way he looks at me makes me wonder if I've been one of them all along.
332 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 15, 2026
About the author
Annika Martin
70 books3,606 followersAnnika Martin is a NYT bestselling author who loves reading, taking pictures of her cats, consuming boatloads of chocolate suckers, and helping animals. She lives in the Twin Cities with her awesome husband and adorable cats.
Website: http://annikamartinbooks.com
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Annika on Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/annik...
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Google Play http://bit.ly/2UKJ45O
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Website: http://annikamartinbooks.com
Amazon books: https://amzn.to/2UIYzeA
Apple Books: https://apple.co/2PkneA7
Annika on Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/annik...
Instagram: instagram.com/annikamartinauthor
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2UH02SC
Google Play http://bit.ly/2UKJ45O
Nook: http://bit.ly/2Gt304m
Newsletter: https://geni.us/nwslettr
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
Review of advance copy received from Author
When you read an Annika Martin romcom, you know you'll have a good time. This book is an ideal holiday read, another great addition to the series, and one that is full of the Spirit of Christmas nudging our couple together. Listen. Do I want us to romanticize billionaires? No. But am I willing to create a very selective loophole for this series? Yep! We know Wulfric through The Grumpy Billionaire, he made zillions at his Romance Business doing something something math. And he's a terror. His assistant of two and a half years is Lola, who sees focus where others see obsession, and passion where others see temper. She's lasted ummmm, two and a half years minus at best a week longer than anyone else in the role and they have a great working relationship.
Lola has a stalker (which we learned about in the previous book) and with the help of Wulfric's bodyguard, she borrows his mother's engagement ring and fur coat and plants a gossip item that she and Wulfric are secretly engaged, knowing his reputation as dangerous will keep her stalker away. What she doesn't anticipate is that Wulfric will find out, summarily fire her and the bodyguard without listening to explanations, and blackmail her into faking an engagement for two weeks before his elderly adoptive mother has heart surgery to make her happy. Which quickly for Romance Holiday reasons turns into them staying at his mother's house, and try to guess, does all the faking seem real? Are they forced to share a room to keep up appearances? Does Lola fit in beautifully in his life and his loved ones know they are perfect together? Just try to guess.
Wulfric had a RUFF first decade of life, and he feels the emotional scars. He compares himself to a "gorilla reading a book," where he can pretend to be loving and good, but doesn't actually know how to. What he doesn't realize is that we are what we do, and his demonstrated constant care and love for his mother and her close friends IS love. Lola, on the other hand, is a natural. The care and attention she has put into making his work life seamless extends naturally to showing care and attention to his mother and her friends, and championing Wulfric.
I loved Wulfric's backstory, love a super King of the World MMC whose nightmares that are soothed by the FMC. Love a man struck dumb by his first glimpse of her outside of work uniform. Love the jealousy of finding out others know her story that he's never learned. Of COURSE the man who refused to listen to explanations when they were offered is desperate for them later. Of COURSE we all activate like sleeper agents at hearing that he hasn't "gone on a date in at least two and a half years." (what an astonishing coincidence!) Of course they both have secrets they want to tell the other but are scared to, and then do because they can face their fears and be vulnerable! And BOTH characters have character arcs, realizing they need to change and grow to be worthy of the love they found together, which seems like, well duh Jody that's romance, but has been somewhat missing in the past few years in this book era of perfect MCs with no conflict.
This book is like a love letter to New York City at the holidays. Wulfric and Lola join his mother and her friends for many outings, and they all sound delightful. While characters from other books in the series certainly show up, this book like all the others very much stands alone. In an uncharacteristic move I've chaos read about half this series, NOT IN ORDER (!!!), and it doesn't seem to matter. I both enjoy seeing cameos from characters I know through other books, and have to look up everyone's quickly-forgotten name anyway, so you could definitely pick up here. I read Grumpy Billionaire after this, for example. If you are looking for a delightful and clever book to read during the holidays, you couldn't do better than this one.
Thank you to the author for the arc.
Lola has a stalker (which we learned about in the previous book) and with the help of Wulfric's bodyguard, she borrows his mother's engagement ring and fur coat and plants a gossip item that she and Wulfric are secretly engaged, knowing his reputation as dangerous will keep her stalker away. What she doesn't anticipate is that Wulfric will find out, summarily fire her and the bodyguard without listening to explanations, and blackmail her into faking an engagement for two weeks before his elderly adoptive mother has heart surgery to make her happy. Which quickly for Romance Holiday reasons turns into them staying at his mother's house, and try to guess, does all the faking seem real? Are they forced to share a room to keep up appearances? Does Lola fit in beautifully in his life and his loved ones know they are perfect together? Just try to guess.
Wulfric had a RUFF first decade of life, and he feels the emotional scars. He compares himself to a "gorilla reading a book," where he can pretend to be loving and good, but doesn't actually know how to. What he doesn't realize is that we are what we do, and his demonstrated constant care and love for his mother and her close friends IS love. Lola, on the other hand, is a natural. The care and attention she has put into making his work life seamless extends naturally to showing care and attention to his mother and her friends, and championing Wulfric.
I loved Wulfric's backstory, love a super King of the World MMC whose nightmares that are soothed by the FMC. Love a man struck dumb by his first glimpse of her outside of work uniform. Love the jealousy of finding out others know her story that he's never learned. Of COURSE the man who refused to listen to explanations when they were offered is desperate for them later. Of COURSE we all activate like sleeper agents at hearing that he hasn't "gone on a date in at least two and a half years." (what an astonishing coincidence!) Of course they both have secrets they want to tell the other but are scared to, and then do because they can face their fears and be vulnerable! And BOTH characters have character arcs, realizing they need to change and grow to be worthy of the love they found together, which seems like, well duh Jody that's romance, but has been somewhat missing in the past few years in this book era of perfect MCs with no conflict.
This book is like a love letter to New York City at the holidays. Wulfric and Lola join his mother and her friends for many outings, and they all sound delightful. While characters from other books in the series certainly show up, this book like all the others very much stands alone. In an uncharacteristic move I've chaos read about half this series, NOT IN ORDER (!!!), and it doesn't seem to matter. I both enjoy seeing cameos from characters I know through other books, and have to look up everyone's quickly-forgotten name anyway, so you could definitely pick up here. I read Grumpy Billionaire after this, for example. If you are looking for a delightful and clever book to read during the holidays, you couldn't do better than this one.
Thank you to the author for the arc.
Review of advance copy received from Author
I really enjoyed Wulfric and Lola’s story. They have a great working relationship… until they don’t. One slightly foolish idea Lola had to scare off her creepy ex somehow ends with Wulfric using it against her and before she knows it, his adoptive mother believes they’re engaged. Add in some forced proximity and slowly opening up about their lives, feelings they’re both trying so hard to ignore become impossible to fight.
Wulfric is definitely not an easy man to love. When he completely misreads another situation and pushes Lola away, by the time he finally realizes just how bad he messed up, she’s already let him go.
And then came THAT moment which i did NOT appreciate; Wulfric begging for another chance gave me one of the biggest ugly cries I’ve had over a book in a while. Luckily, life has already thrown enough at these two and despite the bumps along the way, Wulfric making some pretty big mistakes, Lola finds it in her heart to forgive him.
And finally, they get to start the life they were always meant to have - TOGETHER.
***Review copy requested and reviewed on behalf of Annika Martin Review team***
Wulfric is definitely not an easy man to love. When he completely misreads another situation and pushes Lola away, by the time he finally realizes just how bad he messed up, she’s already let him go.
And then came THAT moment which i did NOT appreciate; Wulfric begging for another chance gave me one of the biggest ugly cries I’ve had over a book in a while. Luckily, life has already thrown enough at these two and despite the bumps along the way, Wulfric making some pretty big mistakes, Lola finds it in her heart to forgive him.
And finally, they get to start the life they were always meant to have - TOGETHER.
***Review copy requested and reviewed on behalf of Annika Martin Review team***
Review of advance copy received from Author
ARC review
The magic of Lola and Wulfric working together to pull off a fake engagement was pure bliss! Even though the circumstances that brought them to this point were a little rough, I absolutely loved watching their relationship develop.
One of my favourite things about this story was the wonderful found-family connections. Lola and her beasties are such a delight, and seeing Wulfric's family connections with his mum Mimi, Doris and Aruna was equally heartwarming. The sweet, intimate moments between Wulfric and Lola had me swooning, and I loved the genuine connection they shared.
The glorious Christmas traditions they embraced together brought so much warmth and festive magic to the story. Their love and concern for Mimi as she faced her upcoming surgery added another beautiful layer of emotion.
This book just had me grinning all the way through! It was funny, heartwarming, romantic and full of the kind of Christmas magic that makes you want to curl up with a good book and never leave its pages. Annika Martin has delivered another absolute delight!
The magic of Lola and Wulfric working together to pull off a fake engagement was pure bliss! Even though the circumstances that brought them to this point were a little rough, I absolutely loved watching their relationship develop.
One of my favourite things about this story was the wonderful found-family connections. Lola and her beasties are such a delight, and seeing Wulfric's family connections with his mum Mimi, Doris and Aruna was equally heartwarming. The sweet, intimate moments between Wulfric and Lola had me swooning, and I loved the genuine connection they shared.
The glorious Christmas traditions they embraced together brought so much warmth and festive magic to the story. Their love and concern for Mimi as she faced her upcoming surgery added another beautiful layer of emotion.
This book just had me grinning all the way through! It was funny, heartwarming, romantic and full of the kind of Christmas magic that makes you want to curl up with a good book and never leave its pages. Annika Martin has delivered another absolute delight!
November 11, 2026
Okay, but for real now, I now need the story of the lawyer making bank on all these billionaire prenups.
More seriously, this was probably my favorite of the series so far. It was nice to have a more reserved heroine.
More seriously, this was probably my favorite of the series so far. It was nice to have a more reserved heroine.
November 6, 2026
Annika Martin’s “Billionaires of Manhattan” series is basically my go-to feel-good rom-com indulgence. I have found each one to be endlessly re-readable for capturing that lovely balance of humour, romance, and emotional growth that Annika has perfected for her secret recipe. So, Wulfric and Lola’s story (teased in Hugo and Stella’s Book 8 “The Grumpy Billionaire”) has been worth the anticipation. I truthfully couldn’t put it down, reading well into the early morning despite my better judgment!
Lola has excelled as Mr. Wulfric Pierce’s personal assistant, the only one to last for more than a few days. In her own words, she’s more than a PA, she’s an “operating system.” Her special status spins an about-face when Wulfric discovers that she bragged about being engaged to him, showing off his adoptive mother’s ring and mink coat. She had a good reason, but he won’t let her explain. Now, he’s bent on punishing her. But first she has to keep pretending to be his fake fiancée for the holidays to keep his mom happy before her heart surgery.
What can readers expect? Mr. Pierce ruining Christmas as promised, of course. Forced proximity. Working through suppressed feelings. Falling in love. Falling more deeply in love. Mucking it up. Grovelling. More love, yada yada. I loved it all because it’s well within my comfort zone. I adore Lola so much from the first page! I was totally cheering for her and wanting to see her make Wulfric squirm a little more. Bonus happiness came in the form of cameos from previous couples. May this series live forever.
Lola has excelled as Mr. Wulfric Pierce’s personal assistant, the only one to last for more than a few days. In her own words, she’s more than a PA, she’s an “operating system.” Her special status spins an about-face when Wulfric discovers that she bragged about being engaged to him, showing off his adoptive mother’s ring and mink coat. She had a good reason, but he won’t let her explain. Now, he’s bent on punishing her. But first she has to keep pretending to be his fake fiancée for the holidays to keep his mom happy before her heart surgery.
What can readers expect? Mr. Pierce ruining Christmas as promised, of course. Forced proximity. Working through suppressed feelings. Falling in love. Falling more deeply in love. Mucking it up. Grovelling. More love, yada yada. I loved it all because it’s well within my comfort zone. I adore Lola so much from the first page! I was totally cheering for her and wanting to see her make Wulfric squirm a little more. Bonus happiness came in the form of cameos from previous couples. May this series live forever.
November 9, 2026
ARC Review
How My Billionaire Boss Ruined Christmas by Annika Martin
5/5 stars
ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS AN ANNIKA MARTIN BILLIONAIRE. SANTA DO YOU HEAR ME? Listen, as a girlie that has given up on real men and am for the dismantling of the billionaires in real life, I will never pass on Annika Martin's billionaires. I could NOT put this book down once I got this book this morning!!
WOLFIE. Wulfric, sir. You had no chance. I knew this story from his first chapter. Sir, let’s be so for real, you just needed to open your eyes and heart. The journey and his past made me want to hug him, but I'll leave that to Lola.
Lola, my girl. I love you. That is all. Annika Martin's FMCs are always my favorites and add Lola to the list. I loved her from the first page to the last. My galpal for real and forever.
A huge thank you to Annika Martin for including so many of the other billionaires, but especially Malcolm. I asked and you delivered. I love seeing all of the other surly not so surly men living out their best lives with their beaus. Billionaire Boy Club is something that I desperately wanted and something you totally delivered. THANK YOUUUU.
Catch this holiday novella on Nov.10th and add this Billionaire romance to your stockings!
A very big thank you to @annikamartinauthor and her AMAZING team for a speedy eARC copy for review.
How My Billionaire Boss Ruined Christmas by Annika Martin
5/5 stars
ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS AN ANNIKA MARTIN BILLIONAIRE. SANTA DO YOU HEAR ME? Listen, as a girlie that has given up on real men and am for the dismantling of the billionaires in real life, I will never pass on Annika Martin's billionaires. I could NOT put this book down once I got this book this morning!!
WOLFIE. Wulfric, sir. You had no chance. I knew this story from his first chapter. Sir, let’s be so for real, you just needed to open your eyes and heart. The journey and his past made me want to hug him, but I'll leave that to Lola.
Lola, my girl. I love you. That is all. Annika Martin's FMCs are always my favorites and add Lola to the list. I loved her from the first page to the last. My galpal for real and forever.
A huge thank you to Annika Martin for including so many of the other billionaires, but especially Malcolm. I asked and you delivered. I love seeing all of the other surly not so surly men living out their best lives with their beaus. Billionaire Boy Club is something that I desperately wanted and something you totally delivered. THANK YOUUUU.
Catch this holiday novella on Nov.10th and add this Billionaire romance to your stockings!
A very big thank you to @annikamartinauthor and her AMAZING team for a speedy eARC copy for review.
November 10, 2026
The Billionaire Who Ruined Elves for Readers or ...
How to Fall for Your Billionaire Boss While You Were Trying to Avoid Jail Timr
I adore Annika Martin's writing. Quirky fun, rom coms with a side of "oh no, you didn't." Her billionaire series has it in spades. Miscommunication...(like it's both of their jobs) check. Fake fiancée trope...check. Found family...double check. Secretly in love...well, I guess you'll want to read it to find out.
How My Billionaire Boss Ruined Christmas is a fun, pride filled romp that even Jane Austen would enjoy. Though I must say that Antonio has definitely tried to steal the show. Oh and Mimi and her girls are absolutely the kind of side characters you'd want to road trip with or make adopt you.
This book is fun, funny, and the perfect amount of sweep you off your feet. Just don't let anyone bulldoze their way through you...or maybe just a certain Billionaire.
How to Fall for Your Billionaire Boss While You Were Trying to Avoid Jail Timr
I adore Annika Martin's writing. Quirky fun, rom coms with a side of "oh no, you didn't." Her billionaire series has it in spades. Miscommunication...(like it's both of their jobs) check. Fake fiancée trope...check. Found family...double check. Secretly in love...well, I guess you'll want to read it to find out.
How My Billionaire Boss Ruined Christmas is a fun, pride filled romp that even Jane Austen would enjoy. Though I must say that Antonio has definitely tried to steal the show. Oh and Mimi and her girls are absolutely the kind of side characters you'd want to road trip with or make adopt you.
This book is fun, funny, and the perfect amount of sweep you off your feet. Just don't let anyone bulldoze their way through you...or maybe just a certain Billionaire.
November 6, 2026
5 ⭐️
What a fantastic book! I loved it, Lola is a very loveable charachter and you want to support her immediately after you learn what a horrible ex she has. Our first encounter with Wulfric doesn’t leave a good impression but once you get to know him, he’s so sweet! Although the reasons why they start their fake relationship aren’t the best, they do it for a greater cause. Mimi and her friends are a pure delight! I had a smile on my face the entire time. I also loved the found family aspect. The sweet and romantic moments between Wulfric and Lola had me swooning. I received a copy and I’m leaving this review voluntarily. I love all the books by Annika, it’s always a joy to read them. This one has it all: it’s funny, romantic, heartwarming, a little bit of drama but with a lot of family vibes.
What a fantastic book! I loved it, Lola is a very loveable charachter and you want to support her immediately after you learn what a horrible ex she has. Our first encounter with Wulfric doesn’t leave a good impression but once you get to know him, he’s so sweet! Although the reasons why they start their fake relationship aren’t the best, they do it for a greater cause. Mimi and her friends are a pure delight! I had a smile on my face the entire time. I also loved the found family aspect. The sweet and romantic moments between Wulfric and Lola had me swooning. I received a copy and I’m leaving this review voluntarily. I love all the books by Annika, it’s always a joy to read them. This one has it all: it’s funny, romantic, heartwarming, a little bit of drama but with a lot of family vibes.
November 8, 2026
I've been looking forward to Wulfric and Lola's story since they first appeared in the Billionaire world, and it was so worth the wait. Oooh, Wulfric made me so mad at the beginning of the book! 😂 What a jerk! But then Annika did such a good job of redeeming him, that even *I* wanted to marry him by the end. 😍 Annika has a way of making her characters feel like people you'd love to hang out with. Her little details--Lola's ducks; the ridiculously handsome Italian actor who is actually a giant, fluffy goofball; the cheeseballs (IYKYK)--take her stories from standard romances to something really special. As always, reading one of her books makes me want to go back and reread the entire series from the beginning just to bask in her world.
November 10, 2026
I had such a good time reading this story, and I absolutely fell for Wulfric's character and he became my favorite grump with a heart of gold for those he loves!
Annika Martin's dialogues are always entertaining and the characters always touch the soul, but a have a special appreciation for this couple, for the way they connected and healed each other.
I absolutely recommend this book, and not only to romcom fans, but to all those who want to read about Christmas, hope, found family and redemption.
Annika Martin's dialogues are always entertaining and the characters always touch the soul, but a have a special appreciation for this couple, for the way they connected and healed each other.
I absolutely recommend this book, and not only to romcom fans, but to all those who want to read about Christmas, hope, found family and redemption.
Review of advance copy
I knew that these two were going to make a hard time of it, and they did not disappoint! They weren’t enemies to lovers, they weren’t a workplace romance, they weren’t a forced proximity – they were a mash-up of all three, until they were a couple. It was going to fall apart, and it did, they failed to mend, until he had the best grovels, and got back his woman <3
Want to Read
November 7, 2026I can't wait for Wulfric's story!
November 12, 2026
The problem with a Annika Martin book is that you can't put it down. Another great read from this author.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews