Merry & Bright

In Britewell, Ohio - self-coined the candy cane capital of the world - Cate Merriwether has been the CEO of Merry and Bright for one year, she taking over upon the death of the company founder and fifty year CEO, her maternal grandmother Carol. The company only produces candy canes, and as such is a seasonal operation. Cate never had any intention of taking over the family business, but did so only to keep the company in the family to retain Carol's vision. The Board of Directors has hired New York based Empire Corporate Recovery as a consultant to ensure the stagnant company's survival, this move which doesn't sit well with Cate who feels she hasn't had enough time yet put her own stamp on the company. Who Empire sends also doesn't sit well with Cate: Empire's best consultant, Gabe Carter, with who she immediately butts heads. Gabe too doesn't much like this assignment being used to bigger named companies in more global business centers, and in not really doing Christmas at all, he usually spending Christmas in some airport on assignment. Cate and Gabe are able to overcome their animosity not only to become friends, but become attracted to each other, Gabe who, if he admits to himself, may have found his sense both of home and Christmas in Britewell with Cate. Their burgeoning relationship may not have a happy ending if they cannot come to a happy business end, especially if Cate believes Gabe does not understand her overall want to retain Carol's vision. Meanwhile, Sophie, Cate's assistant, wants some help to convince her boyfriend of three years, Pete, to pop the question as her Christmas present, signs which are leading to he getting her something big but less personal. And Joy, Cate's mother, has adopted a rescue dog from the shelter that Cate had had her eye on as a Christmas gift for Cate. The problem becomes keeping the dog hidden from Cate until Christmas Eve, which is made all the more difficult for Joy in not being a dog person, or so she thinks.