Groomed to Perfection: A Meet Me at the Altar Novel Read online

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Epilogue

  Who will be taking the next trip down the aisle with

  Also by Samantha Chase

  About Samantha Chase

  Copyright 2022 Samantha Chase

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  All Rights Reserved.

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  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.

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  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.

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  Cover Design: Kari March Designs

  Edits: Jillian Rivera

  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

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  “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

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

  -NY Times & USA Today Bestselling Author Erin Nicholas

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  “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

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

  - Night Owl Reviews, TOP PICK

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

  - Publishers Weekly

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

  - Booklist

  Chapter One

  On any given day, Emilie Michels hit the ground running.

  But today, for some reason, it seemed like the ground was made of mud.

  Or quicksand.

  Either way, she was feeling out of sorts and nothing seemed to be going her way.

  Morning traffic was a beast thanks to an overturned tractor trailer. Usually it wouldn’t be an issue for her, but this was the first week she was in charge of dealing with clients at Meet Me at the Altar—specifically for tastings—and she was the head baker on all events for the next few weeks while her boss Leanna was on her honeymoon.

  Glancing at the dashboard clock, there was no way she would make it in by eight for the morning meeting with her other bosses, Skye and Josie. Traffic was now at a standstill, so she took a moment to tap out a quick text explaining the situation before settling in and putting her car in park.

  With her phone still in her hand, Emilie pulled up the calendar for the week so she could memorize it a bit and feel a little more at ease when she met with clients. Some were for small affairs like sweet sixteens and engagement parties, but there was also a difficult group coming in for a tasting.

  The Vandergrifts.

  Tapping her schedule, she brought up Leanna’s notes on them and it seemed way more complicated than their usual tastings. Typically, Leanna sends a sample menu in advance of the tasting, which has a dozen cake varieties for couples to choose from. Apparently that wasn’t enough for the Vandergrifts. They wanted more—something different from what any other bride and groom had ever had.

  The funny thing was the Vandergrifts weren’t the bride or the groom.

  They were the parents of the groom.

  Well…grooms. This was a tasting for the weddings of both of their sons, but somehow only one of them had a bride.

  “You just know they’re going to be a nightmare,” she murmured.

  The pressure was on her to dazzle them, and while that normally didn’t bother her, Emilie wanted to be able to prove herself to her bosses that she was up for the challenge.

  Even if she wasn’t.

  “Wrong way to think,” she reminded herself. The only way she would get through this was with positive thinking.

  And the ability to bake thirty-two different flavored mini cakes over the next three days.

  Pushing that distressing thought aside, Emilie scanned further down in the notes and realized there was some information she had missed. It seemed that Skye and Josie had met Mr. and Mrs. Vandergrift at another wedding that Meet Me at the Altar handled. It was the Macon wedding from two months ago down in Pinehurst.

  She remembered that wedding well.

  Very well.

  Sighing wistfully, Emilie also couldn’t help but smile.

  It was the first and only time she had ever lingered after she and the rest of the staff were done and simply observed the wedding. True, she watched it from the dark corner in the back of the room, but…it was magnificent.

  Like a fairytale.

  And as if to hammer that point home, it was like the prince and princess were having their wedding ball, and Emilie was like Cinderella watching from the shadows.

  “Wow, even in my own fantasies I don’t have a starring role,” she muttered.

  The wedding had truly been amazing—the venue was a mansion on a gorgeous estate, there were close to 500 guests in attendance, the menu was prepared by a team of celebrity chefs…everything was over the top, but Emilie remembered walking around outside and seeing what looked like a million twinkly lights set out in the gardens.

  Like a fairytale.

  While working at any event, the key was to stay out of sight and leave once their job was done—and she almost did but her curiosity had gotten the better of her for the first time. She simply wanted to stay hidden and just…watch and imagine what it would be like to attend an event like that as a guest and not the hired help.

  It would have been enough to just be a fly on the wall for a few minutes, but it was what happened while standing in the shadows that was the best part of the night…

  “I hate these things, don’t you?”

  “Excuse me?”

  The male voice took her by surprise—not only because she never heard or saw him approach, but because it was so close—practically against her ear.

  Coming to stand beside her, he motioned to the room while holding a glass of champagne. “Over the top weddings,” he said as if it were obvious. “They’re nothing but spectacles. I mean, why does anyone need to invite five hundred of their closest friends and family to watch them cut a cake? It seems absurd.”

  Emilie didn’t quite know how to respond. This man—this very attractive man—was obviously a guest of the wedding and had no idea she wasn’t. It would be rude to simply walk away, so…

  “Oh,
I don’t know. I think it can be interesting.”

  He took a sip of his champagne. “Care to expand?”

  Tilting her head, she studied the crowd. “Well, I happen to find it fascinating to people watch.”

  He nodded. “That explains your position in the furthest corner of the room.” He leaned down and added, “The only thing missing is a large potted plant for you to hide behind.”

  That made her laugh. “Well…I wouldn’t say I was hiding…”

  Beside her, he straightened once again to his full height, which was easily six feet. “Aren’t you? I haven’t seen you at any of the tables or out on the dance floor.”

  Okay, now it was getting awkward…

  With a casual shrug, she did her best to…well…avoid mentioning she was part of the staff. “I’m not much of a dancer,” she said instead. “And it’s too loud to enjoy talking to anyone at the tables.”

  He nodded again. “I agree. Which brings me back to my original observation of how ridiculous these events are.”

  “I thought you said they were spectacles?” she commented and felt herself smiling at her teasing tone.

  Lifting his glass to her, he smiled. “I stand corrected. Although…spectacles tend to be ridiculous, so really…either phrase would fit.”

  Emilie nodded and forced herself to go back to looking around the room. They were at the point in the evening where there wasn’t much for her to do. The couple had cut the cake, so technically, her job was done. She was free to leave, but this was one of the biggest weddings she’d ever seen and she wasn’t ready to leave just yet. So while the rest of the Meet Me at the Altar staff was probably packing up and heading out to their cars, she stayed behind to just…observe.

  “So, are you here for the bride or the groom?” he asked.

  “Um…”

  “The groom is my cousin Felix.” He rolled his eyes. “Honestly, none of us ever thought he’d get married. Maybe that’s why so many people showed up. Curiosity.” He took another sip of his champagne. “So, are you here for Felix or Mary Beth?”

  “Mary Beth,” she quickly replied because it seemed the easiest way to explain her presence.

  “Well, that’s certainly convenient.”

  Turning, she looked up at him. “Why?”

  His smile was downright lethal. “It would be incredibly awkward if I was standing here flirting with some long-lost cousin of mine. I mean, it would have been weird to find out you’re my second cousin three times removed, right?”

  That made her laugh. “That would definitely be awkward,” she agreed.

  “Good, then we’re in the clear. Can I get you a drink?”

  It was tempting, but…

  “No but thank you.”

  “Oh, come on. Think of how much more exciting the people watching would be while sipping champagne!” Pointing out toward the dance floor, he chuckled. “Although, this is pretty entertaining, even stone-cold sober.” He shook his head. “Clearly alcohol loosened some inhibitions out there because no one would dance like that sober.”

  Emilie looked at the couple he was referring to, and…yeah. They were clearly under the influence because what they were doing resembled a poorly choreographed routine.

  “Someone should call them a cab and send them on their way,” her companion said.

  She readily agreed, but maybe they weren’t the only ones. Now that she thought about it, it was probably best for her to go. It was a little after ten, she had a long drive home, and people were expecting her.

  Smiling up at him, she said, “Well, I hope you enjoy the rest of the evening.”

  “Leaving already?”

  She nodded.

  “Rumor has it there’s some sort of celebrity scheduled to show up and sing.” He glanced at his watch. “Of course, that was supposed to happen an hour ago, but I suppose it’s still a possibility.”

  Damn. Now she truly was curious, but…responsibility called.

  Like it always did.

  “I’m sure whoever it is, everyone will be thrilled.” She let out a small breath before stepping away from him. “Have a good night.”

  But when she turned to walk away, a large warm hand on her arm stopped her. Unable to help herself, she glanced over her shoulder at him.

  “It’s not even midnight,” he cajoled. “Even Cinderella stayed at the ball until midnight.”

  Oh, if only he realized how close that comparison was…

  “Sadly, I really do need to go.”

  “But…” He turned and put his glass down on the nearest surface before coming to stand in front of her. Smiling down at her, he was all boyish charm. Dark hair, lightly stubbled and strong jaw, his suit was probably custom made for him, he smelled positively divine, and he had the most incredibly intense blue eyes she’d ever seen. “Can I interest you in one dance?”

  Silently, Emilie shook her head. And it was the hardest thing she’d ever done.

  In a perfect world, she would be able to simply put her hand in his and say yes. They’d dance and talk and laugh and have a wonderful time at it.

  Unfortunately, she was here as the baker’s assistant. He was related to the very wealthy groom, which meant he was probably uber-wealthy as well.

  “I know you mentioned not being much of a dancer,” he was saying, interrupting her thoughts. “But I can honestly say I wouldn’t mind you stepping on my toes a time or two.”

  She couldn’t help but laugh softly. “While that’s very commendable, I really do need to go.” This time when she started to walk away, he didn’t stop her.

  But he did start walking with her.

  “Um…”

  “I was taught to never let a lady walk outside alone after dark. So…this is me being gallant.”

  It's funny that Josie and the girls always told the staff the same thing—they were never to walk to their cars alone after dark—but she figured they were all gone by now.

  But just to be sure, she pulled out her phone and checked for messages.

  Since there had been valet parking and she had driven herself, Emilie had taken full advantage of the service. Of course she’d have to deal with tipping them, but it would be worth it simply for the convenience after being on her feet all day.

  Lea: Sorry I had to take off so fast. Thanks for all your hard work today. See you at the staff meeting on Monday!

  As Emilie took another quick look around, she didn’t see any of the other girls and let out a small sigh of relief. She hadn’t told anyone she was going to hang back and be like some sort of weird wedding crasher—how crazy would that be?—but she had simply wished everyone a goodnight and hoped they took it to mean she was leaving.

  Slipping her phone back into her purse, she also managed to snag her valet ticket.

  Beside her, she heard him clear his throat and realized she’d gone silent for several moments.

  “Sorry,” she said, feeling a bit foolish.

  “I hope you weren’t sending out an SOS to someone to come and save you from me.” It was said lightly but he let out a nervous laugh. “You are safe with me…um…” Pausing, he shook his head. “I just realized I don’t know your name.”

  There would be no harm in telling him her first name. After all, it was a fairly common one, and if he ever did mention to his cousin that he had been talking to Mary Beth’s friend Emilie, well…surely she had one!

  “Emilie,” she said. “And you are?”

  He paused and took one of her hands in his. “Cooper. It’s very nice to meet you.”

  Her knees almost buckled. His hand was warm and large, and she felt a little zap of awareness that she’d never felt before. Part of her wanted to pull her hand away, but the way he was holding on told her he wasn’t ready for that to happen yet.

  “And it’s nice to meet you too,” she quietly replied. “So, um…” They were almost to the lobby. Well, not a lobby. This wasn’t a hotel or even your typical wedding venue. No, this was an estate and it was massive. The
main house—which was where they were—was bigger than her high school! She’d only seen the main floor and couldn’t even begin to imagine what the rest of it looked like.

  As if reading her mind, Cooper moved in a bit closer. “They’re a family of six,” he said. “Why does a family of that size require a house like this?”

  Wordlessly, Emilie shook her head because she honestly had no idea.

  “Granted, it’s been in the family for five generations, but…” he chuckled. “Why am I telling you? You know all that.”

  “I…I do?”

  He nodded. “Oh, come on. Even if you’re a friend or distant cousin of Mary Beth’s, I’m sure you’ve been here before.”

  “Oh, right,” she murmured and wished she had left with the rest of the girls earlier.

  “So tell me, Emilie, why would you want to skip out and miss the rest of the wedding?”

  Slowly, she glanced toward the entryway and almost willed someone to tell her she had to leave. It was one thing to have a quick conversation in the midst of a loud ballroom. It was another to be alone with him and have all his attention on her.

  “Um…”

  Cooper squeezed her hand before releasing it. “No worries. Your secret is safe with me. I believe the first words out of my mouth to you were how much I hate these things.”

  She nodded. “Right. Exactly.” Another nod. “Hate them.”

  “At least no one’s forcing you to stay,” he murmured. “Believe me, if I tried to do what you’re doing, I’d never hear the end of it. I’m actually surprised no one’s followed me out here to make sure I’m not leaving.”