{A Holiday Chronicles Cover Reveal} Holiday Quest by Lindsey Gray

Holiday Quest by Lindsey Gray
Series: The Holiday Chronicles #4
on November 30th, 2026
Genres: Comedy, Fiction, Adult, Romance, Contemporary, Holiday
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She’s quick with a controller and sharp with a clue.
He’s ready to prove he’s her player two.

For eighteen months, MacKenna “Mac” Ashe and Damian Fielding have been building a virtual friendship through late-night gaming sessions and impossible quests. But neither knows the real person behind the screen.

When one of their favorite games brings them face-to-face, their online chemistry takes on a whole new dimension. With a little help from an irksome twin, a Christmas quest through New York City might be just what they need to discover whether their connection is more than pixels and code.

Mac has spent years learning to navigate a world that doesn’t always make room for her. Damian is ready to show her she doesn’t have to face every challenge alone. But when Mac joins Damian for Christmas in Clarkstown, they’ll discover that happily-ever-after isn’t a game you can win with a cheat code.

Sometimes the greatest adventure begins when you accept the quest.

Exclusive Excerpt from Holiday Quest

Damian

“I’m so fucking tired.”

Damian gave a small toss of his head, entirely unimpressed by the misery radiating from his twin brother, Duncan. The marathon streaming session left Duncan half-dead in his gaming chair. But Damian was on a high, his eyes bright and his posture alert, entirely fueled by the post-stream buzz. He picked up his phone and noted the time, five minutes after ten. Most nights, he dropped into bed between one and two a.m.

“Drag your ass to bed, then. I’m going to play a little Legends of Elaria. Get some research in before we do a gameplay next month.”

His brother imitated his rolled eye movement. Duncan’s “research” meant Damian’s never-ending quest to assemble a group of gamers who matched his schedule, skill level, and sense of humor.

Duncan threw the same unimpressed look right back across the room. Calling it “research” was Duncan’s way to sugarcoat Damian’s exhausting quest for a regular crew of gamers. With his ungodly schedule, precision skill level, and twisted sense of humor, the search wasn’t an easy one.

“Night. Have fun. Don’t die too many times.”

Damian threw an empty soda can at Duncan but missed him by a few inches. Duncan’s laugh carried out into the hallway after he closed the door of their home studio.

The Fielding identical twins, at long last, settled into their new home, with a much bigger studio than their last apartment. The brothers streamed several different games online for a living, and in a few months, they would release their own game. As the extroverted twin, Damian thrived on challenges, both in-game and out. He approached every project with a burst of energy and relentless optimism. His retro comic book collection filled several of the bookcases in his bedroom. To clear his head, he played the acoustic guitar he bought for ten dollars in high school and taught himself to play it. Duncan, by contrast, declared himself an introvert. While Damian pitched ideas with contagious enthusiasm, Duncan polished them in quiet, caught inconsistencies, eliminated bugs, and asked the questions no one thought to ask.

After some smart investments and years of careful saving, the twins purchased and remodeled an old Victorian in their hometown of Clarkstown, New York. While the fact that Duncan’s high school crush, Molly, lived across the street didn’t affect Damian’s decision to buy the property, it convinced Duncan after their first walk-through. With all the major projects completed, they filmed their first live gameplay from their new studio that evening.

A cold, crisp can of soda in his cup holder, his voice modulator on, and the game lobby entered, Damian readied himself for another search for a worthy group to play with.

“Your screen name is Dominion? Is that because of your overinflated ego?”

The woman’s trill of laughter shot straight into his heart. He crossed paths with countless players across the years, but none landed a critical hit on his heart so fast.

“And Ashe? Is that a reference to leaving your party in the dust? You just let me fall into that lava pit,” he argued.

A quick cackle tickled her microphone. “You should’ve listened to me. That lava? All. Your. Fault.”

Dominion and Ashe continued playing throughout the night. Others filtered in and out of their party, but the two of them stayed together. After the lava incident, Duncan got back at her by leading her off a cliff. He tripped a few traps by accident, and she pounced on every mistake with another quip. Every jab landed squarely on target, and somehow, he kept handing her ammunition. He couldn’t remember the last time a conversation flowed that easily with someone he just met.

They took time between games to chat about life. The more they talked, the more their worlds overlapped. The two were night owls, loved jalapeño cheddar bagels, lived in the same time zone, and each confessed to having an almost comically annoying sibling. When Damian joked about their shared misery, Ashe admitted she sometimes wished to trade places with her character and escape into pixelated worlds for real. For a moment, Damian felt the urge to say he understood. He experienced those nights too, when reality became heavier than a full inventory. It surprised him how much he wanted to hear more.

“As entertaining as watching you swan dive into lava and jump off cliffs, I have to work tomorrow. I need my beauty sleep.” Ashe yawned, and Damian realized time slipped away from him.

“Wanna play again tomorrow night?” Damian drummed his fingers against his desk, not at all surprised by how much her answer suddenly mattered.

“Only if you promise to follow me when there is lava around.”

“Promise.”

Damian smiled as her name disappeared from the lobby. Somewhere behind the name Ashe was a real person with an infectious laugh and a quick wit. He didn’t know her name, where she lived, or anything about her physical appearance. He only knew one thing.

He couldn’t wait to go on another quest with her by his side.