Excerpts

Chapter 1

"To have and to hold, from this day forward..." Jenni Beth Beaumont whispered the age-old vows.

Tiny white lights transformed Savannah's Chateau Rouge's gardens into a magical fairyland. The heavily beaded bridal gown shimmered in their reflected light.

Unfortunately, Jenni Beth was not wearing the gown.

But oh, how she wanted this. Not the wedding itself. No. She wanted to be the driving force behind making a bride's wedding day the most special of her life. Instead of organizing events here at Chateau Rouge, she wanted her own wedding planner business.

Tonight's bride fairly radiated. The groom, Jenni Beth's second cousin, looked so handsome in his dress uniform. He'd just last week come off a tour of duty in the Middle East.

Pain, instant and excruciating, washed over her, left her light-headed. Her brother Wes had been even more handsome in his dress uniform the day he'd graduated from Officer Candidate School, then again the day he'd deployed in his camos. The day she'd kissed him good-bye. The last time she'd seen him alive. Her throat constricted.

She exhaled, forced herself to shake it off. Not tonight. Tonight was a celebration of love. The beginning of a new family. Of dreams come true.

While the bride and groom funneled their guests through the receiving line, Jenni Beth bolted to a separate section of the garden to make sure the cake, the bubbly, and the band were in place. She did a last-minute check on table settings, place cards, candles-the list was never ending.

The music started, the bridal party wended their way to the area, and the celebration began.

As the evening wore on, Jenni Beth relaxed.

A familiar voice whispered in her ear. "Dance with me."

Cole Bryson. She hadn't seen his name on the guest list.

Shivers raced down her spine, and her heart stuttered. It had been too long, not long enough. "No."

She wouldn't turn around, wouldn't meet those mesmerizing eyes.

His hands settled on her bare arms, and she nearly jumped. As the work-roughened hands moved over her skin, her stomach started a little dance of its own.

"I'm working, Cole."

"Nothin' needs doin' right now. Sean and Sarah are deliriously happy, and everything's runnin' smoothly. Come on, sugar. You don't want to cause a scene."

Knowing she shouldn't, she turned to face him. Mistake. She had always found him irresistible, and that hadn't changed. He'd perfected that slow Southern drawl, had the sound of a true gentleman. But the twinkle in his eyes gave him away. Revealed the bad boy tucked not far below the surface.

Right now, dressed in a dark suit and tie, the man looked like every woman's dream. He appeared smooth and debonair, but beneath lay the wild.

He took her hand, and, God forgive her, she followed him, weak-kneed, onto the portable dance floor, telling herself she didn't want to, that she only did it to keep peace. Knowing she lied.

A full moon shone overhead and candlelight flickered. When he drew her into his arms and pulled her close, she sighed. One hand held hers, the other settled south of her waist.

"You smell good, Jenni Beth. You always do."

His voice, low and husky, sent goose bumps racing up and down her arms. Despite herself, she rested her head against his chest, seduced by the strong, steady beat of his heart, the illusion that he could make everything and anything all right.

One song drifted into another and she stayed in his arms, her mind drifting to what could have been. What should have been. She'd loved this man-or had it simply been a bad case of puppy love?

Whatever. She was over him.

And yet one glance at that face had her insides turning to jelly. She was deceiving herself. Sometimes, late at night, her thoughts still turned to him. The man was drop-dead handsome. All that gorgeous dark, wavy hair, those sexy hazel eyes, and that mouth-capable of making her lose her mind. Her survival instincts.

His feet? Well, they were made for walking, and she'd better darned well remember that.

Still, one night, a dance or two. What could it hurt?

"Your hair looks like molten gold in the moonlight, Jenni Beth." He brushed a hand over it. "Sure wish you'd let me loosen some of these pins and set it free."

Her own hand moved up to the chignon she'd arranged earlier that afternoon, bringing her back to reality. "Sorry, Cole. I'm working, and it's time for me to clock back in."

Before she could change her mind, she stepped out of his arms, felt the slight chill in the air.

She forced herself to stand still, to show no reaction while his eyes traveled the length of her, taking in the slim black sheath, the black pumps, and the understated jewelry. Her work uniform.

Despite herself, she ran her own mental inventory. At six foot, Cole's eight-inch advantage made her feel petite. And every bit of him was muscle. When he held her, she felt protected.

Until he walked away.

And tonight? She needed to be the one to do the walking. For oh, so many reasons.

This would be her last wedding at Chateau Rouge. Earlier today, she and her roommate had packed both her car and a tiny U-Haul to the gills, the day bittersweet. She'd miss Molly, her life here in the city.

She'd be risking everything. No choice. Her parents needed her. And this was her shot at her dream. The old go big or go home. She almost laughed. In her case, she had to go home to go big.

Or she'd go home to fall flat on her face.

Either way, by this time tomorrow, her time in Savannah would be history.

"Good-bye, Cole."

"Good-bye?" He grasped her hand as she took a step away.

"I still have a lot to do here tonight."

"How about later? I don't mind waitin'." He threw her one of those bad-boy looks, the one that made her want to fling herself at him. Made her want to beg for one more minute in his arms, one more kiss.

Stupid, stupid, stupid! She looked away, pretended to check on the wedding crowd.

"That's not a good idea. And after tonight?" Aiming for indifference, she shrugged. "I'm moving home tomorrow, Cole. Back to Magnolia House. So it's not likely we'll be running into each other. You'll be here in Savannah, I'll be in Misty Bottoms."

He frowned. "Thought you liked it here."

"I do."

"But you're goin' home."

"I am."

He leaned toward her.

Her breath caught, but when his lips brushed her forehead, feather light, she let herself relax. Too soon.

With a nearly imperceptible shift, his lips dropped to hers. She fought not to go under as the heat seared her. Battle lost, her hands moved to his shoulders, his hair, and she clung to him.

But sanity returned when his lips slid from hers to taste her neck.

"No, Cole."

He lifted his head, his whiskey-brown eyes heavy-lidded and passion-filled. Wavy brown hair, streaked by the sun, touched his jacket collar in the back.

He winked. "We might be seein' each other sooner than you think, sugar."

With those enigmatic words, he drifted away from the party, into the darkness.

Excerpted from The Best Laid Wedding Plans by Lynnette Austin All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.