Wedding Wonderland Read online

  Copyright 2021 Samantha Chase

  All Rights Reserved.

  No part of this book, with the exception of brief quotations for book reviews or critical articles, may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Cover Design: Uplifting Designs/Alyssa Garcia

  Editing: Jillian Rivera Editing

  Praise for Samantha Chase

  “If you can’t get enough of stories that get inside your heart and soul and stay there long after you’ve read the last page, then Samantha Chase is for you!”

  -NY Times & USA Today Bestselling Author Melanie Shawn

  “A fun, flirty, sweet romance filled with romance and character growth and a perfect happily ever after.”

  -NY Times & USA Today Bestselling Author Carly Phillips

  “Samantha Chase writes my kind of happily ever after!”

  -NY Times & USA Today Bestselling Author Erin Nicholas

  “The openness between the lovers is refreshing, and their interactions are a balanced blend of sweet and spice. The planets may not have aligned, but the elements of this winning romance are definitely in sync.”

  - Publishers Weekly, STARRED review

  “A true romantic delight, A Sky Full of Stars is one of the top gems of romance this year.”

  - Night Owl Reviews, TOP PICK

  “Great writing, a winsome ensemble, and the perfect blend of heart and sass.”

  - Publishers Weekly

  “Recommend Chase to fans of Susan Elizabeth Phillips. Well-written and uniquely appealing.”

  - Booklist

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Epilogue

  Preview

  Also by Samantha Chase

  About Samantha Chase

  Chapter One

  It was madness, plain and simple.

  She didn’t understand how she had gotten to this place, and she certainly had no idea how to escape. With every step, her heart beat harder–so hard she thought it would soon come right out of her chest.

  Slowly, cautiously, she peered around the corner, and then the pounding in her chest stopped. Her scream pierced the silence as dozens of faces stared back at her in abject horror.

  Oh, how she hated the element of surprise sometimes…

  “Mia? Mia, are you even listening to me?”

  With a slight shake of her head, she minimized the document on her screen and put her attention back on the video call she was currently having with her mother.

  “Sorry, Mom,” she said without any real sense of remorse. “I’m in the middle of a scene, and you stepped away to answer the door, so I thought I’d get a few sentences written before I lost my train of thought.”

  Being an author meant she usually had a story going on in her head at any given time. This particular story was coming at her hard and fast, and if there was one thing she knew about writing, it was that you had to get the words down when they were there.

  The weary sigh was her mother’s first response.

  Then came the disapproving look

  “Mia, we have wedding plans to discuss, and you haven’t responded to any of my inquiries! You know I want to sit down with the wedding planner next week and get things going.” She pursed her lips as she shook her head. “You need to put that book on hold and focus on what’s important.”

  With a serene smile, Mia knew it was time to put her foot down and was thankful they weren’t having this discussion in person.

  “Okay, first things first–my books are important, Mom. I’m an author; it’s my livelihood, not a hobby. Secondly, we’ve been over this. The wedding isn’t going to be up in Boston. Austin and I are getting married here in Magnolia Sound. We have an appointment with our wedding planners next week.”

  “This is nonsense. Utter nonsense! You have to have the wedding up here! This is where you’re from, and your father and I have dozens of friends who we simply have to invite to the wedding! No one’s going to travel down to that tiny town,” she added with more than a hint of disgust. “And where would you even have a wedding there? On the sand? One of those…those…pubs? Or perhaps the sorry excuse for a country club? I mean, honestly, think about what you’re proposing! I insist…”

  “No,” Mia firmly interrupted. “You do not get to insist this time. Austin and I are paying for this wedding and it’s our wedding! Now I’m sorry if that disappoints you, but that’s just the way it is. The only people calling the shots–and writing up the guest list–are Austin and me. Feel free to send me some suggestions, but this isn’t going to be some kind of three-ring circus. We want it to be small and intimate and about us.”

  It appeared she had left her mother speechless and decided to use that to her advantage.

  “Now you’ll have to excuse me. This book won’t write itself and I’m suddenly very inspired! We’ll talk soon! Love you!” And then she turned the video off and sagged down in her seat, groaning.

  “Uh-oh…that doesn’t sound good.”

  Turning, she saw her fiancé standing in the doorway to her office, looking all kinds of sexy. She stood and walked over to kiss him. “Just another wedding conversation with my mother.”

  His arms banded around her as he held her close. “Another one? Didn’t she get the memo that we’re handling everything?”

  One of the many things she loved about Austin was how blunt he was. “Apparently, it was lost in the mail.”

  He held her for a moment before kissing the top of her head and taking a step back. “You know you can still change your mind. If you want to get married up in Boston, then…we’ll get married up in Boston.”

  Frowning, she shook her head. “I don’t want to get married up there. That’s her dream. Ever since we moved here, I envisioned getting married on the beach and being barefoot and…” She sighed happily. “That’s what I want.”

  “So…you’re thinking…summer?”

  She nodded. “It would be silly to be barefoot in the winter, right?”

  A low chuckle was his first response. “And are you thinking this summer–like six or seven months from now–or…the following one?”

  “I don’t think I want to wait another year and a half,” she reasoned. “We’re not looking to do anything over-the-top, so planning something for this summer shouldn’t be a problem.”

  He looked ready to argue–or at the very least give another opinion. Instead, he simply shrugged and murmured, “If you say so,” before walking out of the room.

  Mia stood where she was in mild confusion before walking out after him. In the kitchen, she found him staring into the refrigerator.

  “Are you hungry?” he asked without turning around.

  “What? Um…no.” Pausing, she let out a soft sigh. “Is something wrong?”

  Now he did turn around. “No, why?”

  Shrugging, she studied him because she didn’t quite believe him. “I don’t know. It just seems like you had something to say about when the wedding is but you kept it to yourself.”

  Closing the refrigerator door, Austin crossed his arms over his chest and matched her gaze.

  Silently.

  That was never
a good sign.

  “Okay,” she prompted. “Out with it.”

  Nothing.

  “Austin Coleman, I am in the middle of a very gripping scene that my mother already interrupted. I’d like to get back to it, but I’ll stand here and wait you out if I have to.” She mimicked his pose. “And then you can deal with my editor when the book is late.”

  He let out a small snort. “Please. Jillian adores me and knows that I would never keep you from writing.” Then he stepped in close until they were practically nose-to-nose. “The only one not willing to go write is you.”

  Ugh…she hated when he was right.

  “Come on!” she demanded, even stomping her foot for emphasis. “What’s wrong with a summer wedding?”

  “Fine,” he mumbled, walking over to the breakfast bar and sitting down.

  Wow…that was easier than I thought…

  Quietly, she sat down beside him. “What’s going on?”

  “If you wanted to do the whole Boston wedding thing, I would have gone along with it. It would have taken forever to plan, and I would have hated every minute of it, but I would have done it for you.”

  “O-kay…”

  He gave her a lopsided grin. “I think we’re on the same page with this–we want something simple and elegant with just our closest family and friends.”

  She nodded.

  “Then what are we waiting for?” he asked softly, taking one of her hands in his. “I don’t understand why we have to wait.”

  Mia was pretty sure her eyes were bugging out. “Why wait? Austin, even a small and simple wedding takes a little time to plan,” she explained as calmly as she could. “And even if we said small, we’re still looking at a hundred people, easily! You have a big family, we have a ton of friends, and…”

  She saw his expression fall slightly and knew she needed to take a different approach.

  “Why don’t you tell me what you’re thinking?”

  “It’s not like I spend all my time dreaming about the wedding,” he mumbled, and he was just the cutest thing in the world when he pouted like this.

  “But…?”

  “But…I want to marry you, Mia. Hell, I’d marry you today if I thought you’d say yes.”

  “Austin, we’ve talked about this. You know I’m anxious to marry you too, but weddings take time. We’ve both been so busy with building the house, and the books, and the movie…” She sighed. “And we just found the wedding planners. Our appointment is this weekend with them, so what are we going to tell them?”

  He squeezed her hand. “I want to get married over the holidays.”

  “Um…what?”

  “Yeah, I want us to get married sometime between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve.”

  “Austin, Thanksgiving is only…it’s a month away!”

  “Then we’ll do it closer to Christmas,” he reasoned, totally unfazed that he essentially just dropped a bombshell on her.

  “You have to be reasonable,” she said, gently pulling her hand from his. “The holidays are chaotic enough without trying to throw a wedding in the middle of them!” Jumping down from her stool, Mia began to pace. “And…and…I can guarantee that half the people we wanted to invite who don’t live locally won’t be able to make it! How is that fair?”

  He stood and blocked her from pacing, gently grasping her shoulders. “I don’t care if it’s just the two of us and a handful of other people. None of that matters. The only thing I want is to say our vows and make you my wife.” Moving in close, he slowly wrapped his arms around her and rested his forehead against hers. “I love you so damn much. You know I’m not big on patience…”

  “That’s the understatement of the year,” she teased.

  “Mia, tell me what you need to convince you that we can do this,” he pleaded. “We can do a video call with the planners today if you want. All of my cousins have gotten married here and on short notice. It’s sort of our thing,” he added with a laugh. “We can get them all over here to help.”

  “Austin…”

  “Imagine how beautiful everything will look decorated for Christmas,” he went on. “Ask my cousin Mallory to show you their wedding photos. It was amazing.”

  “They were married on Christmas?”

  “New Year’s Eve,” he corrected. “But everything was still decorated.

  “I just don’t see how…”

  “I’ll take your last name,” he blurted out.

  Mia pulled back. “Excuse me?”

  Nodding, he said, “I’ll become Austin Kingsley.” He shrugged. “Everyone calls me Mr. Kingsley already because you’re so famous and I’m…you know…not.”

  Groaning, she rested her head on his chest. “That is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. No one does that.”

  “Trust me. They do.” He hugged her close again, kissing her softly. “And I’d do it. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you, Mia.”

  And that’s the thing. He was telling the truth.

  He’d put up with so much in this last year with her crazy publishing schedule, all her moods while she was writing, and the craziness of her book being made into a movie. He’d handled all of it without asking for anything for himself.

  Wait…am I considering this? Really?

  A six-week timeframe for a wedding was pushing it. However…it would mean a lot less opportunity for her mother to harass her over the plans.

  Now that had merit.

  Pulling back, she looked up at him. His expression was so hopeful that there was no way she could say no.

  She just prayed she wouldn’t regret it.

  “If the wedding planners can pull something together in your timeframe, then I’m in.”

  “Yes!” Austin lifted her off her feet and swung her around until she was dizzy and laughing hysterically. “You are not going to regret this!” He kept her in his arms as he strode across the room and toward their bedroom.

  “Wait! I’m supposed to be writing!” she said, still laughing.

  “The words can wait. We need to celebrate right now!” And when he lay her down on their bed and smiled down at her, she had to agree. Everything else could wait.

  * * *

  Three pairs of eyes blinked at him like he’d suddenly sprouted horns.

  Skylar Sullivan, Leanna Baker, and Josie Sullivan-Alexander were the owners of Meet Me at the Altar–a wedding planning business out of Raleigh. A few weeks ago, Austin had accompanied Mia to a signing at a hotel in Chapel Hill. There was a wedding going on in one of the ballrooms and they sneaked in to take a peek and get ideas. That’s when they were caught by the wedding planning trio.

  Not their finest moment…

  Either way, they had talked, and once Mia explained that they were getting married, all seemed to be forgiven. They made the appointment to get together and talk about their plans, and now…here they were at the Meet Me at the Altar office after a three-hour drive.

  “Um…”

  “Mr. Coleman, that’s a tall order you’ve presented us with. When we first spoke on the phone, we were told that the wedding would be next summer.”

  Austin looked at Mia and she just smiled sweetly at him and waved her hand for him to continue. The three wedding planners continued to focus all their attention on him, making him feel mildly foolish.

  “Look, Ms. Sullivan,” he began.

  “Please, call me Skylar,” she replied.

  “Skylar, our original plan may have been for either this summer or next, but I figured it couldn’t hurt to ask.” He glanced at Mia before he went on. “We realize it’s short notice, and if it can’t be done, it can’t be done. All I know is that I knew I’d regret it if we didn’t ask.” Reaching for Mia’s hand, he gently squeezed it. “We can easily wait until the summer to get married, but…I like the thought of having this beautiful girl as my wife as soon as possible.”

  “Aww…that is the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard during one of our consults!” Leanna crooned with her hand
over her heart.

  Austin was good at reading people, and he knew if he was going to convince them to be on his side with a holiday wedding, Leanna was the one to win over first.

  He smiled at her. “I feel like we’ve already waited so long…”

  “It’s been less than a year, Austin,” Mia corrected with a small laugh.

  Turning, he gave her his most endearing, loving smile. “And I would have married you the day you said yes.”

  Her gaze narrowed because she knew exactly what he was trying to do. Fortunately, she also didn’t stop him.

  Josie seemed to be the most no-nonsense of the group, and as she leaned forward in her seat, Austin knew this was going to be the make-or-break moment. “The list of things that would have to fall into place on such short notice is a bit overwhelming,” she said, and Austin had a feeling they were going to turn him down. “However,” she went on, “if you are prepared to hammer out as many details as possible right now…”

  “Actually, all the details,” Skylar interjected.

  Nodding, Josie agreed. “All the details, then I think we could potentially know by the end of the week if we can make it happen for you.”

  Beside him, he heard Mia’s soft gasp of surprise, and he knew she had only been humoring him because she didn’t think it could happen. But now that it seemed like a very real possibility, he wanted to make sure he wasn’t forcing her into something she honestly didn’t want.

  Ignoring the planners, he turned and gave Mia his full attention. “I don’t want you to feel any pressure here. If this isn’t going to make you happy or it’s going to stress you out too much, just say the word and we’ll go back to our original plan for the summer. I know you’re on a deadline, and the holidays are always chaotic, but…”