Once Upon a Wedding

by Stacy Connelly

  “Okay, then, we’re partners.” She should have experienced a moment of triumph, but all Kelsey could think was that she’d just made a deal with the devil.

  Certainly, when Connor smiled, he looked like sheer temptation.

  “Got to hand it to you, Kelsey, you’re one hell of a negotiator. Two outta three ain’t bad.”

  It wasn’t until Connor strode away that Kelsey realized he’d never agreed to her second condition.

  As Kelsey stepped into the florist shop the next morning, cool, floral-scented air washed over her. She breathed deeply, enjoying the feeling of a refreshing spa treatment without the outrageous prices. She wasn’t a big believer in aromatherapy, but the stress of dealing with Connor might drive her to alternative measures. Anything to stop her pulse from jumping each time she saw him—and to keep her hormones under wraps and in control for the next ten days.

  Why couldn’t life be easy? Why couldn’t she plan an elegant, trouble-free wedding? The kind where the biggest worry was the ice sculpture melting too quickly in the summer heat. Instead, she got Connor McClane, a man guaranteed to make women melt with nothing more than a look.

  “Kelsey! Thanks so much for coming!” Lisa Remming, Kelsey’s friend and the owner of In Bloom, circled the checkout counter to greet her with a hug. As always, Lisa dressed in clothes inspired by her favorite flower—bird of paradise. Her long brown hair and blue eyes were complemented by a sleeveless fiery-orange blouse and swirling olive-green skirt. “I feel so bad for calling you.”

  “Don’t be silly.” Kelsey waved off her friend’s apology and pulled out her checkbook from her purse. “It’s no problem.”

  “I still can’t believe I’m doing flowers for Emily Wilson’s wedding! There isn’t a florist around who wouldn’t kill for this job.”

  Hiding a smile, Kelsey teased, “Wow, who knew florists were so bloodthirsty?”

  Lisa made a face, then gave Kelsey another hug. “I totally have you to thank for this.”

  The two women had gone to high school together, and Lisa was one of the few people in whom Kelsey confided. By the time she’d moved in with her aunt and uncle, Kelsey had gotten accustomed to blending in and going through her teen years unnoticed. Telling her fellow students she was a long-lost member of the wealthy Wilson family would have shoved her under a microscope.

  The only worse fate would have been the exclusive prep school her aunt had suggested she attend.

  “I really hate asking you to do this,” Lisa said as she reached behind the counter for an invoice.

  “A deposit is standard practice.”

  “I know, but—We’re talking about the Wilsons. It’s not like they’re going to leave me holding the bill. But with the flowers for the church and the bouquets and the boutonnieres, I have to pay my suppliers and—”

  “And that’s why you need the money up front.” Kelsey tore off a check. The amount for the deposit alone would have depleted her own meager bank account, but Aunt Charlene had given her access to the special account established for Emily’s wedding.

  “Thanks.” Lisa breathed a sigh of relief as she noted the deposit on the invoice. “This wedding is going to mean the world to my business.” She laughed as she pressed a button on the cash register and slid the check inside. “Like I need to tell you that, right? You’ll be flooded with calls after Emily’s friends see the amazing job you’re doing. Have you thought anymore about getting your own place?”

  Excitement pulsing through her veins, Kelsey nodded. “I’ve put down first and last month’s rent on the space in downtown Glendale, near the antique shops.”

  Lisa gave a squeal. “And you didn’t even say anything! When are you moving in?”

  “As soon as the current renters move out. The landlord’s supposed to give me a call.”

  “You must be so excited! I know I was when I first opened this place. Do you have all the furniture and office equipment you’ll need? Have you thought about hiring a support staff and—”

  “Whoa, Lisa! Don’t get carried away,” Kelsey said with a laugh that sounded far too shaky.

  “I’m not. Don’t tell me you of all people—with your day planner and your endless lists—haven’t thought of these things.”

  In fact, she had, and only days ago she’d been riding high on her plans. Now, with Connor back in town, she feared she’d put the honeymoon before the wedding, and her stomach roiled at the thought of losing control. “I don’t want to get too far ahead of myself.”

  “What are you talking about?” Lisa challenged. “Emily’s wedding is only a week and half away. You aren’t too far ahead. If anything, you’re behind!”

  “Well, thank you for giving me that combination vote of confidence and total panic attack.”

  “I’m sorry. But I know how much effort you’ve put into this, and I want to see it pay off for you.”

  I want Emily to be happy. What do you want?

  With Connor’s words ringing in her head, Kelsey insisted, “Emily’s happiness comes first.”

  “Honey, Emily’s happiness always come first,” Lisa deadpanned.

  “That’s not fair, Lisa,” Kelsey insisted quietly.

  Emily and Aileen could have turned their backs when their unknown and potentially unwanted cousin showed up to live with them. Instead, they’d done everything possible to include Kelsey. It certainly wasn’t their fault she’d never fit in.

  “I know.” Lisa’s sigh expressed an unspoken apology. “But I also know you’ve played second fiddle to both your cousins for as long as I’ve known you. I don’t want you to be so focused on Emily’s wedding that you lose track of your dream.”

  “I haven’t and I won’t.”

  Despite her determined vow, a touch of guilt squirmed through Kelsey. She’d kept silent about renting the shop for exactly the reasons Lisa mentioned. Her aunt wouldn’t want her attention on anything other than the wedding. But the shop was nothing compared to Connor McClane. The man was a living, breathing distraction.

  “Emily’s wedding is my dream,” Kelsey added. “A high-profile event with an extravagant budget and built-in publicity thanks to my uncle’s business contacts and my aunt’s country-club friends—it’s guaranteed to put my business on the map.”

  “I agree, and I can’t believe you pulled it off in only two months!”

  “It was short notice, wasn’t it?” Kelsey asked, fiddling with the zipper on her purse.

  “Yes, but you did it!”

  Kelsey nodded. Thanks to working almost nonstop, she’d pulled off planning the event in a fraction of the time it normally took, but Emily had insisted on a June wedding…hadn’t she?

  Sudden doubts buzzed through her mind like annoying insects, unrelenting and unavoidable. Had Emily pushed for the summer wedding? Or was the idea Charlene’s…or Todd’s? Kelsey had been so focused on getting everything done on time, she hadn’t stopped to wonder about the short engagement. Until now…until Connor had stirred up the hornet’s nest of doubt.

  Connor hung up the phone after ordering breakfast and ran his hands over his face. He hoped the distraction of food would wipe the nightmare from his memory. It wasn’t the first time disturbing images had invaded his sleep.

  The beginning of the dream was always the same. Connor watched his client, Doug Mitchell, arrive at his wife’s apartment through the tunnel-eye view of a telephoto lens; only when he tried to stop the man from attacking his estranged wife, did the dream shift and alter, keeping him off balance, unsure, helpless. Sometimes he froze in place, unable to move a muscle, unable to shout a warning. Other times, he ran through air thick as quicksand, each move bogged down by guilt and regret.

  But no matter how the dream changed, one thing remained the same: Connor never arrived in time to stop Doug.

  A sudden knock at the door jarred the memories from Connor’s thoughts. Undoubtedly the Wilsons had picked the best hotel around for Emily’s reception, but no one’s room service was that fast. Besides, h
e had an idea who might be on the other side of the door, and it wasn’t the maid with fresh towels.

  Opening the door, he summoned a smile for the woman standing in the corridor. “Morning.”

  Emily Wilson beamed at him, looking like a Hollywood fashion plate of old in a yellow sundress layered beneath a lightweight sweater and a scarf knotted at her neck. “Connor! I’m so glad you’re here. I know I should have called first, but—”

  He waved off her not-quite-an-apology and held the door open. “Come on in.”

  As she breezed into the hotel room and set her handbag next to his laptop, Connor was glad to see the computer logo flashing across the screen. Last thing he needed was for Emily to see the dossier on her fiancé.

  Emily took her time looking around the suite’s miniature living area: a cluster of armchairs and end tables encircling the entertainment center. The added touches of a stone fireplace, balcony overlooking the pool and hot tub spoke of the hotel’s five-star accommodations, but Connor doubted she was impressed. After all, she’d grown up surrounded by luxury and wealth.

  “What are you doing here, Em?”

  “I wanted to see you.” She blushed as prettily now as she had at eighteen, but somehow for Connor the effect wasn’t the same.

  An image of Kelsey flashed in his mind, and he couldn’t help making the comparison between Emily and her cousin. It was the difference between a sepia photograph—all soft, dreamy hues—and a full-color, HD image that instantly caught the eye.

  As a hotheaded teen, Emily had been his unattainable fantasy. But now it was Kelsey and her down-to-earth reality who kept intruding into his thoughts.

  Like yesterday evening, when he’d stood on the balcony and watched to see if the Arizona sunsets were still as amazing as he remembered. As he watched the blazing light slowly fade on the horizon, it wasn’t past evenings that came to mind. Instead he thought of the way sunshine caught the fire in Kelsey’s auburn curls…

  “I snuck out like when we were kids.”

  Emily’s words jarred Kelsey from his mind. He told himself the swift kick in the gut was remembered pain and not anything current or life threatening. But, dammit, he didn’t need the reminder that as far as the Wilsons were concerned, he’d never be good enough. And while Kelsey might not look like her blond-haired, blue-eyed cousins, she was still a Wilson, and some things never changed.

  Judging by Emily’s impish grin, she’d enjoyed reliving her youthful rebellion and the walk down memory lane. Too bad the trip wasn’t so pleasant for him. Feeling his smile take a sardonic twist, he asked, “Still can’t risk being seen with me in public, huh, Em?”

  Her eyes widened in what looked like genuine dismay. “No, Connor! It’s not like that.” She reached out and grasped his arm, and the frantic expression did take him back in time, filling his thoughts with memories of the girl so desperate to make everyone else happy, she’d made herself miserable.

  Relenting slightly, he leaned one hip against the arm of the sofa and reminded her, “We’re not kids anymore, and we’re too old to be sneaking around.”

  “I know.” Fidgeting with her engagement ring, she added, “But I wanted to see you, and I didn’t want…anyone to get upset.”

  “You mean Todd?” Connor asked pointedly.

  “You have to understand, he’s very protective of me. I’m sorry the two of you didn’t hit it off when we met for dinner in San Diego last month.”

  Connor held back a snort of derisive laughter at the irony. No, he and Todd hadn’t hit it off. In fact, at the end of the night they’d nearly come to blows. Connor could admit he hadn’t walked into the restaurant with a totally open mind. It was entirely possible Connor would dislike any man who met with the Wilsons’ approval on principle alone. But within fifteen minutes of meeting Todd Dunworthy, Connor had stopped thinking about the past and started worrying about Emily.

  In that short span of time, Dunworthy bragged about his Scottsdale loft apartment, his top-of-the-line SUV, his various summer homes in exotic ports of call, all of which would have been little more than annoying except for one thing.

  He talked about Emily the same way. She was new and bright and shiny just like the fancy Lexus he drove, and Connor hadn’t been able to shake the feeling that Dunworthy wouldn’t have thought twice about tossing her aside for a newer model.

  And the bad feeling roiling through Connor’s gut like acid ever since he’d been hired by Doug Mitchell got so much worse. Outwardly, Doug and Todd Dunworthy had as little in common as, well, as Connor and Todd did. But from the moment he met Doug, the cold look in the man’s eyes and the way he spoke about his wife set Connor’s teeth on edge, too reminiscent of the way his father had talked about his mother, the bitter blame he’d placed on her for dying and saddling him with an unwanted kid to raise.

  But Connor had set aside his personal feelings and taken the job. Taken the money, his conscience accused. If only he’d listened to his gut then…

  Taking a deep breath, Connor looked out the window, hoping the daylight might dispel his dark thoughts. Only, it wasn’t the sunshine that broke through the shadows, but memories of the sunset, memories of Kelsey, that eased the weight on his chest.

  The spark in her dark eyes, the stubborn jut of her chin, her determination to stand up to him…even if she barely stood up to the height of his shoulder. He didn’t doubt for one second she’d be a formidable opponent, and he was glad to have her on his side.

  Turning his focus back to Emily, he said, “I’m sorry, too, Em.” And he was. He wanted her to be happy, and he was sorry Dunworthy wasn’t the man she—or more important, he suspected, her parents—thought him to be.

  Something in his tone must have given his suspicions away, because Emily’s already perfect posture straightened to a regal, Charlene-like stature. “Todd is a wonderful man,” she insisted. “I love him. I really do, and I can’t wait to be his wife.”

  How many times had Emily repeated that statement before she started believing it was true? The words had a mantralike sound to them. Or maybe more like the punishment meted out by a second-grade teacher: I will not chew gum in class. I will not chew gum in class.

  “I should go,” she murmured.

  “Emily, wait.” A knock on the door broke the tension. “Look, that’s room service. I ordered way too much food. Stay and have breakfast with me.”

  Without waiting for her response, he stepped around her and opened the door. The waiter wheeled in the cart, filling the room with the scent of bacon and eggs. He pulled the covers off the steaming plates and revealed a meal large enough for two.

  “I shouldn’t,” she protested, eyeing the food with a look of longing. “I need to watch what I eat or I won’t be able to fit into my dress.”

  Connor tried to smile; dieting before a big occasion was undoubtedly a prerequisite for most women, but he didn’t think it was the dress Emily had in mind. He’d shared only a single meal with Dunworthy, but he could still see the smug smile on the bastard’s face as he waved the waiter and the dessert tray away with a laugh. “Gotta keep my bride-to-be looking as beautiful as ever!”

  “Come on,” Connor cajoled. “You’re not going to make me eat alone, are you?”

  Sighing, she slid onto the chair and confessed, “This smells amazing.”

  “Dig in,” he encouraged. “Nothing like carbs and cholesterol to start the day right.”

  The spark in her eyes reminded him of the old Emily, and she grabbed a fork with an almost defiant toss to her head. “Thank you, Connor.”

  “Anytime, Em,” he vowed, knowing her gratitude was for much more than a simple offer to share breakfast.

  He picked up his own fork, ready to dig into the eggs, when a hint of spice seemed to sneak into his senses. Normally sides like toast or muffins were an afterthought, something to eat only if the main meal wasn’t filling enough. But the powder-sprinkled muffin on the edge of his plate suddenly had his mouth watering.

  He broke o
ff an edge and popped it into his mouth. The moist confection melted on his tongue, tempting his senses with sugar, cinnamon and…Kelsey.

  The hint of sweet and spicy had filled his head when he stood close to her, urging him to discover if the cinnamon scent was thanks to a shampoo she used on the red-gold curls she tried to tame or a lotion she smoothed over her pale skin.

  If he kissed her, was that how she’d taste?

  “What’s Kelsey doing today?”

  The question popped out before Connor ever thought to ask it, revealing a curiosity he couldn’t deny yet didn’t want to admit. He set the muffin aside and shoved a forkful of eggs into his mouth in case any other questions decided to circumvent his thought process.

  After taking a drink of juice, Emily said, “Oh, she’s likely running herself ragged with wedding preparations, making sure everything’s going to go according to plan.”

  Her words sent suspicion slithering down his spine. At a small, low-key wedding, the bride’s cousin might be the one behind the scenes, making sure everything went according to plan. But not at the Wilson-Dunworthy wedding, where professionals would handle those kind of details.

  “What, exactly,” he asked, “does Kelsey have to do with the wedding preparations?”

  Emily frowned. “Didn’t she tell you she’s my wedding coordinator?”

  “No,” he said, setting his fork aside and leaning back in the chair, “no, she didn’t.”

  “I’m lucky to have her working on the wedding. She’s amazing when it comes to organization, and she’s taking care of everything.”

  Everything, Connor thought wryly, including him.

  Chapter Four

  So much for unbiased. So much for impartial. So much for finding his insider in the Wilson camp, Connor thought. Kelsey was involved in this wedding right up to her gorgeous red head.

  “She started her business over a year ago,” Emily was saying. “My father offered to finance the company, but she wouldn’t take the loan. She’s always been weird about money.”