An Unexpected Bride
The Bride Series, Book 1
The Bride Series, Book 1
Shadonna Richards
Genre: Contemporary Romance/ Romantic Comedy
ISBN: 978-1463774820
ASIN: B005GXLALY
Number of pages: 260
Word Count: 54,000
Cover Artist: Ramona Lockwood
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AN UNEXPECTED BRIDE (Book 1 in The Bride Series)
- #1 Bestseller in Humor
Emma Wiggins is about to marry her heart-stopping, gorgeous boss,
CEO Evan Fletcher, in seven days--too bad he doesn't know it yet!
Desperate to fulfill her ailing grandfather's last wish to see her
settle down and get married, Emma Wiggins, a 30-year-old, career-focused
executive tells him a little white lie on his deathbed that she is in
fact engaged--to her boss, deliciously handsome and emotionally unavailable,
Evan Fletcher.
The situation takes an unexpected turn when her grandfather's condition improves
slightly and to her shock, he goes ahead and arranges a wedding ceremony
at his hospital bedside before he passes on. Now, all Emma has to do
is convince unsuspecting, commitment-phobic Evan to tie the knot with
her in seven days. Can love blossom in the most unlikely situation?
The Bride Series novels
and novellas have sold over 260,000 copies in the last year
***The Second Anniversary
Edition! Newly published with an additional 5,000 words, added scenes, a new ending and a bonus
steamy love scene!***
Ahh EVAN!! You're best!!! his love to her is incredible.
He's so in love to her,it's adorable.
An Unexpected Bride was an unexpected delight to read. It showed the extent to which one may go to ensure the dieing wish of a loved one.
Emma Wiggins is the last member of the Wiggins line. Her grand father; who raised her along with his now deceased wife, is in a long-term care facility facing his own mortality. He is dieing of cancer. He has but one unfulfilled wish. He wanted to see his grand daughter married before he left this earth. So what does a girl do in this instance? Why she fabricates an fiance of course.
Enter the marriage phobic Evan, Emma's secret crush. He is handsome, successful, and built like a god. Now she just has to convince him to marry her. Thankfully he agrees. After all, Emma's not to hard on the eyes herself and he finds himself attracted to her even though he never mixes work with pleasure.Evan Fletcher has grown his little company into a large competitor. With the help of his junior account exec, Emma, he's landed a huge account with Weddings R Us. So what if he doesn't believe in the institution of marriage or commitment for that matter. When Emma tells him that she told a small fib and said that they were getting married, in a week, he at first thought Emma was crazy. But he agrees to go along with the fact marriage. Evan would do just about anything for his junior account exec, because he can't stop thinking about her and thinks he may even be in love with her, although he has no plans to act on those feelings. He wasn't going to fall victim to the Fletcher curse.
But is there a wedding in her upcoming week?? I'm not going to spoil all the fun! Make sure to check out this great read and see what happens to Emma and Evan.
Note: I lost my schedule time.I'm sorry About that. I'm sorry for all of you guys.
Chapter 1
“…It is better to marry, than to burn with passion.” -1 Corinthians
7:9 (NIV)
“You
mean to tell me, you can’t find a decent man? Not one?”
“Grampa!”
Emma Wiggins felt the blood siphon from her face. She could not believe
she was having this conversation again.
She
shifted her hips uncomfortably on the hospital bedside of her ailing
grandfather, trying to find the right words to say. She knew quite well
where he was going with his comment. He was desperate to see her settle
down, get married and have kids one day—like normal people. But after her previously
tainted relationships left her with emotional burns to seventy percent
of her heart, no way was she going down that yellow brick road to happiness again.
There was no place like home…alone.
“Oh, Gramps!” she whispered, tilting her head to the side.
“Look, I promise you, I won’t end up…dying alone and penniless.
You have my word on it—okay?”
Her
whispered reassurance was virtually inaudible. Was that a promise she
could even keep? She really didn’t want to fall in love again. It
would hurt too much. On the other hand, she wanted to give her grandfather
hope, something to cheer about. Especially now as he neared the end
of his long time battle with what he called "a dreadful opponent
that had a habit of sneaking up at the wrong time—prostate cancer."
The
long-term care unit at Mercy Springs Memorial Hospital was unusually
quiet during the busy lunch hour. The place was tranquil except for
the sound of the air conditioner gently humming in the background and
the odd clanking of knives scraping plates as some patients ate their
meals. The aroma of hospital food filled the air. The scent of fresh
cut flowers she’d bought and placed at the bedside table wafted to
her nostrils. She eyed his untouched lunch tray. The smell of mashed
potato with gravy and sliced beef reminded her she hadn't eaten.
Laced
with guilt, Emma glanced down at her watch. She didn’t want to leave
him. Not ever. Not after what the doctor told her about his prognosis.
But she didn’t want to push her luck at work either. Her boss, Evan
Fletcher, president of Fletcher Advertising where she worked as an account
executive had been more than kind to extend her lunch hour to visit
her ailing Gramps. They had the pivotal conference call meeting in half
an hour with one of their biggest potential clients. She didn’t want
to blow this. Not now.
This
was a career clincher for her. But speaking of careers.... Her grandfather,
whom she’d always referred to as Gramps when she was a little girl
and had trouble pronouncing Grandpa, just finished a fresh round of
chastising his only granddaughter for putting career ahead of love and
family. If only he knew. She would love to have a family and a husband.
But…
Her
grandfather, Mr. Wiggins, reclined weakly and peered at her with droopy
eyelids. His favorite pair of thick brown spectacles propped on the
tip of his nose. He felt comfortable with them on, even when resting.
The head of his bed elevated to a ninety-degree angle. The green and
white hospital bed sheets covered him up to his chest. He hadn’t eaten
much during the past few days and he appeared older than his eighty
years. Emma knew her grandfather loved her and wanted the best for her.
She was also painfully aware that he regretted only having one child,
a son, Emma’s father. Oh, she looked like her dad. Deep, almond shaped
brown eyes that sparkled, dark, curly long ebony hair that shined. And
a dimpled smile to melt even the coldest of hearts. Always willing,
always helpful.
“I
know that silly guy hurt you when he left you but—"
“Oh,
Gramps. Why are you talking about that now? I’m so over him.” She
emphasized the "so" and bit down on her lower lip. She wished
she could simply delete the bitter memory of her ex-fiancé’s betrayal
from her mind. She longed to erase the baggage of emotional scars he
packed her off with. Yes, her hope was singed during that nasty breakup
period, but she couldn’t dwell on relationships now. Her work was
her love. And so was Gramps.
“Sometimes
you need to take your messed up relationships with a grain of grace
so you can appreciate when the right one comes along. I just don’t
want to see you let him ruin your chances of happiness with someone
else. In hindsight, I can say that other guy was a goof, not worthy
of you!” He struggled to lean forward and touched her cascading mane
of dark, spiraling curls.
Emma
was amazed at his strength. She didn’t realize that many palliative
patients had energy before their inevitable demise. In fact, she was
always in amazement when she visited the quiet unit. Patients were up
and about, walking, conversing, and partaking of typical activities.
Of course, not all patients were responsive and ambulatory. It was a
mixture of diagnosis, prognosis, and illness processes. The ages of
the patients ranged from eighteen-years-old to those who reached their
ninety-ninth year.
“You
realize you’re my only grandchild.” A muffled cough emitted from
his throat. He grabbed a tissue from the side table and covered his
mouth with it, coughed up, and wiped his mouth clean before tossing
the Kleenex in the black garbage bin by his bedside. “The Wiggins
line will be finished if you don’t marry and have kids, pumpkin,”
he emphasized tearfully, water filling his eyes. Emma could barely watch
him cry.
Just
then, one of the nurses, a perky redhead sporting bright pink scrubs,
bought in a plate with a slice of cake on it. Her cheeks glowing red.
“Oh,
what’s the occasion?” Emma was glad to change the subject as she
peered at the icing on the cake.
“Oh,
this is from Mr. Harry next door. His granddaughter just got married
in the room.”
“Married?
Here?”
“Yes.”
The nurse placed the cake on the table before the untouched tray of
food. “We sometimes get requests for wedding ceremonies to take place
at the bedside for palliative patients who are too ill to otherwise
attend. He wanted to give his daughter away. We arranged for the chaplain
to do the honors, but sometimes patient's family members bring in their
own minister.” The nurse smiled and fixed Emma's grandfather’s pillow
and repositioned him before darting out of the room.
Emma
couldn’t help but notice her grandfather’s fresh round of tears.
“What’s
wrong, Gramps?” Surprise caught her voice.
“I
just wished it were you, pumpkin. It’s my only wish before I go to
be with your dear old grandma to see you get married, settle down, and
have a family. You’re hiding yourself in your work. There’s so much
more to life than work, you know. We all need love, pumpkin. It won’t
be nice to be alone when I’m gone—" His voice cracked and broke
off. “I just hate to think you’ll be alone with no one. Just don’t
give up too easy on finding true love.”
Emma’s
heart took a serious plunge into the deep end of despair. She could
bear no more. If only he knew it was just as unsettling to her as it
was to him to see her in this state.
Lord
knows she tried hard to make things work with her ex-fiancé, of whom
she could barely bring herself to recite his name. But, oh, nothing
escaped the careful observation of her grandfather. He knew her all
too well.
Truth
was, she really did hide behind her work, bury herself in its corporate
arms, and lose herself to the company’s aims and objectives.
But
it was the perfect cover. And why not? She’d at least be doing some
good service while keeping her mind busy at the same time.
Why
not pour her heart into working to change images through advertising?
Fulfill a need. Utilize her communications skills to write and design
advertisements for special clients to inform the public about products
and services that could help them to make their lives better. Contribute
to economic growth. Yes, there were some things much more critical than
love, Emma tried to convince herself.
Still,
she really couldn’t live with herself knowing the doctor told her
in the family meeting earlier that Gramps only had days to live. Days!
How could she not want to see him happy?
Her
large, tearful brown eyes surveyed his aging, graceful face as if each
blessed, earned wrinkle had a story of its own to tell. Her eyes penetrated
his dark, kind, tired eyes glazed over with cataracts. At one time,
this same pair of eyes was so filled with life. Love. Hope.
He
was all she had now.
She
was all he had.
Those
time-honored crow's-feet in the corners of his eyes ever so present.
Each wrinkle represented wisdom and sacrifice made to his country and
to his family.
“Gramps,
don’t worry. I’m…I’m okay. I-”
His
tears fell hard like the Texas rain. Her grandfather bellowed out in
pain. Her grandfather, the stronghold of the family, loving, determined,
but wore his heart on his shirt sleeves, was never afraid to weep. That
took a powerful man to do that. This same man took her in when everyone
else—meaning her parents—could not care for her.
Soon,
the nurse would come back in and wonder what Emma did to upset this
poor, dying man.
“Gramps,
I didn’t want to tell you before but…I’m seeing someone. I am
getting married.” Liar.
Emma
bit down on her full, defined lips. Anything to make him happy—a dying
man’s last wish. But before Emma could stop herself, she swallowed
another hard lump of reality. What did she just do? Did she just tell
a lie to spare his feelings? She could shoot herself. But she hoped
he didn’t hear amongst his own wailing.
As
if someone turned off a faucet, his flow of tears almost dried up immediately.
“What
did you just say, darling’?” He sniffled and grabbed a tissue at
the bedside to dab at his tears, his shaky hand removed his spectacles
while the other free one wiped his eyes.
“I’m…you
know…” Hesitation. Crackles shadowed her vocal chords.
“Getting
married? Sweetheart, that’s wonderful news. Why didn’t you tell
your dear old Gramps before? Getting me all worried. Who’s the lucky
guy? What’s his name?” He peered over his spectacles. A light seemed
to beam from his face.
Okay,
now what do I say?
“Um…”
Think,
Emma. Think.
“Evan.”
She could kick herself. By the time she was through she would be beaten
and worn.
“Evan
who?”
Okay.
“Fletcher.” Good Lord. Okay, now I’ve done it. What’s wrong with me?
She
tried to convince herself she wasn’t entirely dishonest. She was seeing
her sexy, heart-stopping, gorgeous boss Evan for the sole purpose of
work—every day. They worked closely at the agency for the past three
years—sometimes late nights to meet tight deadlines, travelling together.
He’d promoted her from new grad receptionist to office manager to
account coordinator and possibly more. He’d always believed in her.
She admired him from afar. Though Evan was as distant as a star in the
galaxy from Earth. Okay, so he was a self-professed bachelor who had
made it known to staff he despises the institution called marriage.
He’d never know about this little secret lie she just spilled out
to her grandfather.
Emma’s
BlackBerry vibrated with a gentle hum. It was the office. Evan probably
wanted to know where she was—since they had that important conference
call shortly.
“I’d
love to see him,” her grandfather blurted out. “When are you going
to bring him by so that we can meet?”
Emma’s
entire body stiffened.
THE TOP 20 LOVE SONGS
Hi, everyone!
I’m Shadonna, author of An Unexpected Bride, a romantic comedy about Emma Wiggins who is about to marry her heart-stopping, gorgeous boss, CEO Evan Fletcher in seven days. Only he doesn’t know about it yet! Since An Unexpected Bride centers around the theme of dream weddings, I thought I’d compile a list some of the most romantic songs for weddings (in no particular order). Check this list out:
- At Last by Etta James
- When I Fall in Love by Nat King Cole
- The Power of Love by Celine Dion
- Can You Feel the Love Tonight? By Elton John
- Eternal Flame by The Bangles
- This I Promise You by ‘NSYNC
- You Are So Beautiful by Joe Cocker
- Here and Now by Luther Vandross
- All My Life by K-Ci & Jojo
- Have I Told You Lately? By Rod Stewart
- On Bended Knee by Boys II Men
- A Moment Like This by Kelly Clarkson
- Thank You (For Loving Me) Bon Jovi
- Everything I Do (I Do it For You) by Brian Adams
- We Belong Together by Mariah Carey
- My Heart Will Go On by Celine Dion
- I Will Always Love You by Whitney Houston
- Love Me Tender by Elvis Presley
- Always by Atlantic Starr
- Endless Love by Diana Ross and Lionel Richie
Hope you enjoyed the list.
Shadonna Richards enjoys reading and writing about the magic of romance
and the power of love. She has sold over 260,000 copies of her bestselling
romance novels, the Bride Series and Whirlwind Romance Series, in the
past eighteen months.
Born in London, England, she has a B.A. Degree in Psychology and a
Diploma in Nursing. She is also the author of the non-fiction books,
A Gift of Hope, Count Your Blessings and Think & Be Happy: 365 Empowering
Thoughts to Lift Your Spirit (an Amazon Kindle #1 Bestseller in Meditation).
Winner of Harlequin's So You Think You Can Write 2010 Day Two Challenge,
she is also a member of Romance Writers of America. She's a proud mommy
and wife and lives in Canada with her husband and son.
Website: www.ShadonnaRichards.blogspot.
Facebook: http://www.Facebook.com/
Facebook: http://www.Facebook.com/
Twitter: @Shadonna
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