Captivated Souls (The Beautiful Souls Collection Book 3)

by Ellie Wade

  At this moment, my chest aches more than it ever has because she is, without a doubt, the most beautiful bride to ever exist. She takes my breath away.

  Walking down the aisle, she is simply stunning. She’s wearing an ivory A-line princess V-neck dress. The bodice and train have an overlay of intricate lace and beading. It’s classic, traditional, and sexy as fuck.

  I know these terms to describe a wedding dress, along with every flower in her bouquet, from the coral pink peonies to the white Alfred Carriere roses because Quinn has been planning this wedding every single day since the moment I slipped that ring on her finger a year ago.

  Planning her wedding was a lifelong calling of hers that I didn’t even know she had, and she took it very seriously. It was adorable, but thankfully, we only have to get married once.

  The theme is a classic, rustic barn wedding. I’m certain she’s had her father cleaning out the large barns on his property for the past twelve months. One holds the ceremony while the larger one is for the reception. Everything looks straight out of a magazine. Ropes of flowers hang from the large wooden beams. Romantic candles light the space.

  I see Quinn in every detail, and it’s all simply beautiful. Yet the most stunning part of the wedding is her.

  She wears her hair up in a fancy updo of curls. Her makeup is subtle, just enough to accent her stunning features, and I know she did that for me. I’ve always found her more beautiful just the way she is.

  Clementine stands to my side in a form-fitting tuxedo as my best woman. She holds our little gray pittie puppy with cerulean eyes named Blue in her arms. Quinn and I still volunteer at the shelter with Clementine, and although we were going to wait until after the wedding to get another pet, it was love at first sight with Blue.

  And now…he’s wearing a bowtie…and is our official ring bearer. Because of course he is.

  Alma is Quinn’s matron of honor, and her four sisters are her bridesmaids. Love and Quinn’s two nieces are our flower girls.

  Quinn has planned every detail out to perfection. I hope it’s everything she’s dreamed about because I can’t imagine anything more perfect.

  Her father gives his blessing and kisses her on the cheek before placing her hand in mine.

  She stands facing me, and I can’t stop smiling. “You are so beautiful,” I whisper.

  “So are you.” She smiles back.

  The minister says all the things, and I repeat the words where I’m supposed to, but it’s all a blur. It’s hard to focus on anything else when Quinn’s standing before me, promising to be mine forever.

  I am one lucky man, and I’ll never take that for granted.

  “In Da Club” by 50 Cent pounds through the speakers. Quinn and a circle of her girlfriends squat low toward the ground, bouncing their booties in the air.

  “There’s college Quinn.” Alma chuckles beside me.

  “Sure is.” I smile wide.

  “I’m so happy for you, Ollie. You two are perfect together.”

  “Thanks.” I wrap my arm around Alma’s back, and she leans in for a hug. “Where’s Love?”

  Alma scans the barn and chuckles. “Dancing behind Quinn, of course, and apparently learning how to dance just like her.” Sure enough, Love is imitating Quinn’s dance moves. “She had better not ask to play 50 Cent anytime soon. I’m not ready for the Disney soundtracks era to be over.”

  “I’m sure she’ll be back on the Disney train tomorrow.” I shoot her a smile. “I have a surprise for Quinn, but Love will love it, too. Make sure to follow us out.”

  I join Quinn on the dance floor. She grinds up against my leg, and I laugh. “Hey, I have a surprise for you.”

  She stops dancing and squints toward me. “Your face looks mischievous. Is this a good surprise?”

  “Aren’t they all?”

  “Uh, no. Some surprises are not good, my love. Especially on a day that I’ve been planning for so long.”

  I take her hand in mine. “You’re going to love it, and I guarantee you that no other elegant, rustic barn wedding will have what I’m about to show you.”

  “Oh, no. What did you do, Ollie?” She looks hesitant.

  “You’ll see.” I pull her outside, and we walk around the barn.

  She starts laughing when she sees her surprise in the field.

  “You are crazy.” She laughs.

  “And you love it.”

  “That, I do.” She pulls me into a kiss.

  A large white castle bouncy house and a huge white inflatable waterslide have been set up in the field.

  “I’m all about the bouncy house,” she says. “But I am not going down that waterslide in my dress.”

  “You only live once, babe.” I shoot her a wink.

  “Can I go in the bouncy house?” Love asks.

  “Of course, Lovie. Lead the way,” I tell her.

  A group of us climb into the castle bouncy house and start jumping into the air. The space is filled with laughter. People in their best attire are toppling over and falling to the floor of the inflatable castle, landing in all sorts of compromising positions. It’s awesome. I face Quinn and hold her hands in mine, and we bounce up and down. Her curls fall around her face as she laughs.

  “Great choice for our rustic wedding, right?” I ask.

  “Yeah.” She chuckles. “Perfect.”

  A line of our friends and family wait outside the bouncy house for their turn.

  “Come on.” I help Quinn out of the castle. “We should lead the way for the waterslide.”

  “Ollie.” She lets out a sigh. “But…my dress. It’s going to be all wet.”

  “You don’t have to do it if you don’t want,” I say in all seriousness. “Or we can wait until the very end or tomorrow when you’re out of your dress.”

  Quinn looks up toward the tall waterslide and releases a sigh. “No.” She shakes her head. “I signed up for a life of adventure. Let’s go.”

  “Are you sure?” I quirk a brow.

  “Yeah, all the big stuff—the cake cutting, and dancing, and pictures are done with. Let’s do this.” She grins.

  “Oh, there will be pictures.” I chuckle as I lead her toward the stairs of the waterslide.

  We climb up the steps until we reach the top. There are two slides, side by side. Water rushes out the tops of both slides and speeds down to the waiting pool below.

  “You wanna race?” she asks, positioning herself in front of one of the slides.

  I step in front of the other. “Of course.”

  “Okay, count,” she says.

  I nod. “On three. One. Two. Three.”

  We jump onto the slides. Quinn screams beside me as we fly down the slick surface. My entire body submerges beneath the water at the bottom before I shoot back up to find Quinn, drenched and laughing.

  She throws her arms around my neck, and I hold her to me. “Who won?”

  “I’m pretty sure it was a tie.” I press my lips to hers.

  “I think so.” She kisses me again. “Thank you for choosing me,” she says, her tone more serious. “I love you so much, Gorgeous.”

  “Thank you for choosing me, Little One, and I love you more.”

  She smiles. “Let’s go again.”

  Quinn

  Eight Years Later

  “Hey baby, bring Momma the shovel,” I say to my little Leo, our two-year-old bundle of energy. Leo holds the plastic sand shovel in his pudgy little grasp and walks it over to me. “Thank you. Are you still working on your castle?”

  He nods.

  “Okay. Make sure to put more sand in the bucket so we can make it even bigger. Momma’s gonna work on the moat so your boat can get to the castle.”

  I dig the shovel into the white sand of our favorite beach in Hawaii.

  Ollie and I spent our honeymoon here and fell in love with the island. We’ve come back twice every year since. Hawaii has become our home away from home. We’ll never leave Michigan because our families and favorite people
are there. It’s our home, but we definitely look forward to our tropical paradise visits.

  I look toward the ocean and cheer, clapping my hands. Our oldest daughter, Maisie at seven years old is up on her surfboard, riding a wave toward the shore. The next wave surfaces, and Ollie and our daughter, Maddie, stand together on the board, surfing the wave. Maddie hasn’t been able to get up on her own yet, but she’s close.

  The girls were born just a year apart. Maisie has my personality and Ollie’s looks, whereas Madelyn looks just like me but is a hundred percent Ollie in personality. And then baby Leo, who is our blessing, also known as our unplanned baby, is a perfect mixture of the two of us in both appearance and personality.

  We thought our family was complete with the two girls, but Leo came along unexpectedly, and now I don’t know what we’d do without him. Our family is perfect.

  Maddie squeals as she and Ollie ride the surfboard toward shore. Ollie’s laughter can be heard over the crashing of the waves, and it makes my heart soar.

  It’s all come full circle. When I first met Ollie, he reminded me of a surfer, and here he is as the hottest forty-eight-year-old I’ve seen making surfing look easy while building cherished memories with our children.

  I’ve loved Oliver Hale since I was nineteen years old. He’s always been irresistibly attractive to me. I loved him as my friend, boyfriend, fiancé, and then my husband. But he has never been more beautiful to me than he is as the father to our children. He’s the best husband I could’ve ever asked for, and somehow, an even more incredible father.

  We’ve been married for eight years, and I still find myself loving him more every day.

  I will love him until the day I die, and even after that, for he’s my forever.

  He’s given me a life of love and adventure—so much more than I knew to wish for. And yet it all came true anyway.

  Every wish.

  The ones I knew, and the ones I didn’t.

  All because he loves me.

  ❤️ Thank you for reading! I hope you loved Quinn and Ollie’s story. Come discuss it with us in my reader’s group, Wade’s Warriors for the HEA! Make sure to pre-order book four in The Beautiful Souls Collection, Fated Souls, releasing November 1, 2021.

  Acknowledgments

  I want to thank my readers so very much. Thank you for reading my stories and loving my words! I wouldn’t be living this dream without you. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!

  To my beta readers and proofreaders—Gala, Suzanne, Amy, Kylie, and Kim—You all are so awesome. Seriously, each of you is a gift, and you have helped me in invaluable, different ways. I love you all so much. XOXO

  To my cover artist, Letitia Hasser from RBA Designs—Thank you! Your work inspires me. You are a true artist, and I am so grateful to work with you. People do judge a book by its cover, so thank you for making mine gorgeous! XO

  To my editor, Jenny Sims from Editing4Indies—Finding you was a true gift, one that I hope to always have on this journey. Thank you for always fitting me in! I am so grateful for you and everything you have done to make this book the best it can be. XOXO

  To my proofreader, Kylie Ryan from Final Cut Editing—You are the best! I don’t know what I’d do without you! Thank you for everything you do for me! Love you!

  Lastly, to my loyal readers—I love you! Thank you for reaching out, reviewing, and sharing your book recs with your friends. There are seriously great people in this book community, and I am humbled by your support. Your messages breathe life into my writing and keep me going on this journey. Truly, thank you! Because of you, indie authors get their stories out. Thank you for supporting all authors and the great stories they write.

  You can connect with me on several places, and I would love to hear from you.

  Join my readers group: www.facebook.com/groups/wadeswarriorsforthehea

  Find me on Facebook: www.facebook.com/EllieWadeAuthor

  Find me on Instagram: www.instagram.com/authorelliewade

  Visit my website: www.elliewade.com

  Remember, the greatest gift you can give an author is a review. If you feel so inclined, please leave a review on the various retailer sites. It doesn’t have to be fancy. A couple of sentences would be awesome!

  I could honestly write a whole book about everyone in this world whom I am thankful for. I am blessed in so many ways, and I am beyond grateful for this beautiful life. XOXO

  Forever,

  Ellie <3

  Other Titles by Ellie Wade

  The Flawed Heart Series

  Finding London

  Keeping London

  Loving London

  Eternally London

  Taming Georgia

  The Choices Series

  A Beautiful Kind of Love

  A Forever Kind of Love

  A Grateful Kind of Love

  Stand-alones

  Fragment

  Chasing Memories

  Forever Baby

  A Hundred Ways to Love

  About the Author

  Ellie Wade resides in southeast Michigan with her husband, three children, and three dogs. She has a master’s in education from Eastern Michigan University, and she is a huge University of Michigan sports fan. She loves the beauty of her home state, especially the lakes and the gorgeous autumn weather. When she is not writing, she is reading, snuggling up with her kids, or spending time with family and friends. She loves traveling and exploring new places with her family.