Kiss Me Forever (Bachelors & Bridesmaids #1) (21 page)
Read Kiss Me Forever (Bachelors & Bridesmaids #1) Online
Authors: Barbara Freethy
Tags: #Contemporary Romance
"Same here. You can trust me Alex. I know that may be hard for you to believe—"
"It's not," he said, cutting her off. "If I didn't believe I could trust you, I wouldn't be here." He took a breath, then added, "I've always resisted love, because it's usually followed by pain. Every time I love someone or something, they disappear. It's been easier not to care. But I don't want easy if it means you're not in my life."
She was touched by his words. "I'm not going anywhere," she said, putting her hands on his face. "I'm in love with you, Alex."
"I'm in love with you, too," he said, a husky note in his voice. His lips touched hers with passion, purpose and promise.
Then her sister's voice rang out, and they broke apart.
Laurel walked over to join them. "Sorry to interrupt," she said with a curious gleam in her eyes as she turned her gaze to Alex. "I don't think we've met."
"Alex Donovan. I apologize for the wedding crash, but I couldn't wait another minute to talk to your sister."
"It's very nice to meet you. So what's going on out here? Are you two together now..."
"We are," Andrea said as Alex put his arm around her shoulders.
"This is so exciting," Laurel said with delight in her eyes. "Come inside, both of you. Let's tell everyone."
"No way, this is your day," Andrea protested.
"You're my sister. I can't think of anything better than for you to fall in love on my wedding day. It's so romantic. And I am definitely throwing the wedding bouquet in your direction, so come on."
"Okay, okay," she said, giving in. "We'll be inside in a second."
As Laurel returned to the party, Andrea glanced back at Alex. "You do know my sister is going to start planning our wedding before the night is over."
"Really? That soon?"
"But that's her and my mother, not me," she said, wanting him to understand that she wasn't going to rush him into anything. "I just want to be with you. Whatever comes down the road we'll figure out together."
"I like the sound of that."
"But that won't stop the flood of questions you'll get as soon as we step into the ballroom together, so if you want to make a hasty exit—"
"I don't. After getting interviewed by you, I think I can handle any questions," he said dryly. "And it's not like I didn't put you in uncomfortable situations."
"That's right, you did. The awful boat ride was way worse than this," she agreed.
They laughed together at the memory.
"Ready to go inside and watch me catch the bouquet?" she asked.
"I have a better idea. Catch me instead." He put his arms around her, gave her a long, loving look and started a kiss that would last forever.
Epilogue
Liz Palmer watched Andrea enter the ballroom with the very attractive Alex Donovan at her side. Andrea's cheeks were bright red, her blue eyes sparkling as she pulled her hand out of Alex's grip and walked to the center of the dancer floor where the single women were getting ready for the bouquet toss.
"Where have you been?" Liz asked.
"Kissing Alex," Andrea said with a mischievous grin.
Liz laughed. "At least you're honest. Did you know he was coming? You didn't say anything earlier."
"I had no idea. He surprised me—in a lot of ways."
"Good ways?"
"Very good."
"Andrea?" Kate came forward with a question in her eyes. "Laurel said you have news and that I might have another wedding to plan soon. It's Alex, isn't it? I knew you two were going to fall in love. Didn't I say that the first time you went to meet him?"
"You did," Andrea said with a laugh. "But no wedding plans yet. Alex and I are just beginning."
"But you already love him," Liz said, feeling incredibly moved by the joyful glow in Andrea's eyes. She hadn't seen her friend this happy ever.
"I do," Andrea confessed. "I know it's fast, but I feel so sure that he's the one." She gave a helpless shrug. "I never really believed there was one perfect person for me, but now I know there is. Alex isn't perfect, and neither am I, but together we seem to make each other better."
"That's so beautiful," Kate said, giving Andrea a hug. "You're going to make me cry."
Liz felt moisture gathering in her own eyes, and she had never thought of herself as an emotional person. Andrea had never been all that sentimental either. In fact, up until about two minutes ago, she'd always considered Andrea to be her cynical counterpart when it came to love and romance. They had both been more focused on work and career than men and romance.
"No crying, this is a happy day," Andrea said, but her eyes were suspiciously wet.
Laurel stepped up to the microphone, drawing their attention to the bandstand. "Are you ready, ladies?" she asked.
The crowd of twenty or so single women cheered in response.
"Let's see who's going to be the next bride."
"I'm standing next to you, Andrea," Kate said. "I know who Laurel is going to be aiming for."
Liz moved off to the side as Julie and Maggie also closed in on Andrea, obviously sensing where the toss was headed. She wasn't interested in catching the bouquet. She had more important things to worry about than falling in love. She wouldn't even be out here if it wasn't required as part of her bridesmaid duties.
A drum roll began, and Laurel turned her back to the crowd. One, two, three—the bouquet of gorgeous white roses went flying through the air. A dozen women leapt for it, but Laurel's throw was remarkably strong and sailed over the crowd.
Liz was shocked when the bouquet literally hit her in the chest. She was three feet away from everyone else. She couldn't help but wrap her arms around the beautiful stems.
"Liz," Laurel squealed with delight as she rushed across the dance floor.
"You know what this means," Kate said with a gleam in her eyes.
"No," she said. "This is for you, Andrea." She tried to hand the bouquet to Andrea, who had obviously been Laurel's intended recipient.
"No way," Andrea said with a shake of her head. "You caught it. It's yours."
"You're going to be the next bride," Laurel said with a smile.
"I don't even have a boyfriend," she replied in bemusement.
"That could change at any second," Andrea said. "Look what happened to me."
"Let's get one more photo with all the bridesmaids," Kate said, gathering them together.
They stood in a half circle, their arms around each other, as the photographer took their picture. And right in the front was Liz and the wedding bouquet she'd never expected to catch.
It didn't mean anything, did it?
The End
* * * * *
Coming November 20, 2014
STEAL MY HEART
Bachelors & Bridesmaids (#2)
Was there no escaping her high school nemesis, Michael Stafford? Liz Palmer had had her first run-in with the football hero when he’d tried to kiss her in high school, and she’d broken his nose. Now ten years later Michael is back in her life, vying for the same business account, and she is determined to win.
Liz’s career is her life, but something has been missing all these years, and in her heart she knows it’s Michael. With her friends falling in love, and yet another stint as a bridesmaid in her future, Liz wonders if there’s a way to mix business and love…
Dear Reader:
I hope you enjoyed reading Alex and Andrea's love story in KISS ME FOREVER, the first book in the Bachelors and Bridesmaids series about seven college friends who start out as bridesmaids and end up as brides!
The next book in the series, STEAL MY HEART, will be out November 20, 2014 with the third book, ALL YOUR LOVING, coming December 15, 2014.
I'm also writing a connected family series: The Callaways. Every book features love, romance, suspense and adventure. If you haven't met this intriguing family, check out the first book,
ON A NIGHT LIKE THIS
. The first seven books are currently available with book #8 SOMEWHERE ONLY WE KNOW coming out in January 2015.
If you'd like to stay up to date on all my releases, please
sign up for my newsletter
.
Happy reading!
Barbara
Book List
The Callaway Family Series
#8 Somewhere Only We Know
Nobody But You
(A Callaway Wedding Novella)
The Wish Series
Standalone Novels
The Sanders Brothers Series
The Deception Series
#1
Taken
#2
Played
The Angel's Bay Series
#1 Suddenly One Summer
#2 On Shadow Beach
#3 In Shelter Cove
#4 At Hidden Falls
#5 Garden of Secrets
About The Author
Barbara Freethy is a #1 New York Times Bestselling Author of 41 novels ranging from contemporary romance to romantic suspense and women's fiction. Traditionally published for many years, Barbara opened her own publishing company in 2011 and has since sold over 4.8 million ebooks! Nineteen of her titles have appeared on the New York Times and USA Today Bestseller Lists.
Known for her emotional and compelling stories of love, family, mystery and romance, Barbara enjoys writing about ordinary people caught up in extraordinary adventures. She is currently writing a connected family series, The Callaways, which includes: ON A NIGHT LIKE THIS (#1), SO THIS IS LOVE (#2), FALLING FOR A STRANGER (#3) BETWEEN NOW AND FOREVER (#4), ALL A HEART NEEDS (#5), THAT SUMMER NIGHT (#6) and WHEN SHADOWS FALL (#7). If you love series with romance, suspense and a little adventure, you'll love the Callaways.
Barbara also recently released the WISH SERIES, a series of books connected by the theme of wishes including: A SECRET WISH (#1), JUST A WISH AWAY (#2) and WHEN WISHES COLLIDE (#3).
Other popular standalone titles include: DON'T SAY A WORD, SILENT RUN, SILENT FALL, and RYAN'S RETURN.
Barbara's books have won numerous awards - she is a six-time finalist for the RITA for best contemporary romance from Romance Writers of America and a two-time winner for DANIEL'S GIFT and THE WAY BACK HOME.
Barbara has lived all over the state of California and currently resides in Northern California where she draws much of her inspiration from the beautiful bay area.
For a complete listing of books, as well as excerpts and contests, and to connect with Barbara: