by Alexa Riley
Wedding Cake Crashers
Alexa Riley
Contents
HEA on the go
Wedding Cake Crashers
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
Epilogue
Epilogue
Sweet Enough to Eat
Stalk the Author
Copyright © 2019 by Author Alexa Riley LLC. All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, email to [email protected]
http://alexariley.com/
Publisher’s Note: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or locales is completely coincidental.
Edited by Aquila Editing
Cover Design: Perfect Pear Creative Covers
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Wedding Cake Crashers
by Alexa Riley
Sugar is here for the cake and nothing more. She’s not proud of the fact that she sneaks into weddings just for the dessert, but she can’t help herself. There’s so much love in them and they’re so special and she knows she won’t ever get one for her very own. But everything changes when she has a taste of Hank.
Hank works in construction, so he’s good with his hands. He never thought he’d have to step in as a baker, but when his brother’s cake gets destroyed the morning of the wedding, what choice does he have? One look at the unfamiliar woman eating his sweet treat and he’s ready to give her more.
Warning: You think we can base a whole romance around a woman’s love for wedding cake? You’re g*ddamn right we can! Come for the cake and stay for the romance… We promise to leave you satisfied!
NOTE: At the end of Wedding Cake Crasher get the FREE ebook Sweet Enough to Eat to get Dean & Nikki's HEA! Just follow the link!
Chapter One
Sugar
“What do you think of this one?” Nikki does a shimmy in her form-fitting red dress. It’s really pretty and looks new and damn her that we don’t wear the same size. She’s tall and lean from hours spent in a dance studio and I’m short and curvy from hours of sitting at a desk answering phones all day.
“I love it. When did you get that one?” I don’t recall seeing it before and we both have a thing for dresses.
Our styles are different. Hers are sleek and sexy at times and mine are fluffy and fun with cute patterns. The one she has on tonight though is super hot, and if it fit me I would have worn it for a change of pace.
My life could use one right now. I’m stuck in a rut of doing the same things over and over again and my job isn’t helping. I’ve been trying to move up from running the phones at the car dealership to actually being a salesperson. I’m not sure if it’s ever going to happen because they aren’t giving me a chance. I do tend to be more on the shy side, but I thought sales might help me come out of my shell.
“Too sexy?” she asks, turning to give me her backside.
Her long blonde hair cascades down her back where the dress does a zig-zag and shows off part of her black bra. I think that style is in right now, but I don’t follow trends like Nikki does. I grab what I like off the discount racks we find at thrift stores. Those places can be treasure chests sometimes and we almost always luck out.
“I think it’s fine.” The wedding we’re crashing tonight starts later than most.
We sneak in after the bride and groom have their first dance and drinks begin to flow. People don't notice much after that and it’s probably why we’ve never been caught. We’ve snuck into at least twenty weddings by now and we are getting way too good at it. Though that dress will get her noticed, that’s for damn sure.
“Maybe tonight is the night.” Nikki smiles, but it doesn’t reach her eyes. I’m not the only one in a rut but she won't say it out loud.
To Nikki, if you stay positive about everything, then positive will come your way. If it was that easy she’d be married with a few kids by now. The hearts that always dance around her head are fading and it makes me hurt for her.
This motto of hers is what got us into crashing weddings to begin with. She goes to dance and find true love. I go for the wedding cake, and let’s not forget the free food. A girl has to eat and I’m on a budget. A budget that enjoys buying pretty dresses way too often.
“Weddings are filled with so much love and everyone is so happy.” I’m not sure if she’s talking to me or herself.
She’s convinced she’ll find true love at a wedding. So much so that we have been going to one every Friday and Saturday night. I was resistant at first until I realized I could have access to wedding cake on the regular. And wedding cake is so different from all other cakes in the world. You can’t pop into a store and get a cake that tastes like love.
They are made with so much care and take time. Every cake is beautifully crafted and you can tell the baker knows how special it is. I was worried some of Nikki’s crazy ideas about finding love would rub off on me, but I just believe in the cake and not in groomsmen. I fight a shudder thinking about all the groomsmen I’ve met lately. I don’t know how these men haven’t ruined Nikki’s idea of finding love forever.
They tend to be handsy after a few drinks, and I don’t understand why everyone has to rub up on each other when they dance. What is wrong with a little space? I don’t need men I don’t know rubbing their junk against me. The next thing you know they’re trying to kiss you and think you’re going home with them because they bought you a drink. You don’t even have to buy drinks most of the time because it’s an open bar.
I’ve seen too many crap relationships in my life, and my mom’s love life is the worst. Every few weeks she’s on to another man. She’s been married five times and I’ve stopped counting her engagements at this point. She calls me every few weeks to tell me how she’s found the one. Again.
Men always came and went from my home growing up and some were better than others. My second stepdad was my favorite and the only one I still talk to on occasion. We make sure to have dinner together at least once a month and I appreciate that he still makes the effort.
I moved from my childhood home as soon as I could. I love my mom, but she’s in love with being in love. Once that first rush of the crush fades she’s on to the next. Then we have my best friend Nikki, who wants to be in love so badly we’re crashing weddings to find that for her. She has this beacon that attracts jerks and they flock to her. How could I ever want to find a man and have a relationship when I’m surroun
ded by people with such an unhealthy look on it?
“Is that what you’re wearing?” She’s not asking to be rude, because I wear a dress every day to work and I’m still in the one I had on this morning.
“Yeah.” I don’t have it in me tonight to do myself up.
A day with the new guy Jack has put me in a crap mood. He’s the new salesmen they hired last week and he’s a major prick. Not only that, he knew I tried to get the same job he applied for and he got it without any past experience. I don’t have some long-lost dream of selling cars, but this is starting to piss me off. They’re never going to let me leave that desk and I’ll forever be answering the phones, stuck in my rut.
Jack is making it worse for me. One second, he’s a stuck-up ass about getting the job over me and the next I think he’s hitting on me. Maybe I’ll have a couple glasses of champagne with my cake tonight to forget about Jack and the promotion I’ll never get.
“I just need to freshen up my hair and makeup.” I yawn, getting up from the sofa.
“Perk up because there’s something is in the air. I can feel it,” she chirps, ready to get a move on.
“That’s the strawberry lemon candle I lit.” I point to the tiny coffee table in the center of our living room.
“Ha ha.” She smacks me on the ass. “Move it.”
I jump up and dart off toward the bathroom. She’s right, I need to get myself together. I don’t want to bring Nikki down with my sour mood. As her best friend, it’s my job to get those dancing hearts over her head back in working order.
It doesn’t take long for me to fix my hair. I was blessed with good hair that has a nice soft curl to it. I put on some quick makeup and add some lip stain this time. I make my way to the closet to find some different shoes, because with Nikki’s dress, I think it’s going to be a dancing night. It always is with her, but I know she’ll be pulling me out there with her if she’s ready for the dance floor.
I find a pair of light blue flats that match my dress and will make it through the night without my feet wanting to die. I grab my purse off my dresser and wonder what kind of cake this wedding will have. I could really go for something heavy like a red velvet. Sometimes there are multiple flavors and that’s when I get the most excited. If they have a groom’s cake it’s never as good, but I always give it a shot.
“You’re thinking about cake, aren’t you?” Nikki breaks into my thoughts as I re-enter the living room ready to go. “You have that dreamy look in your eyes.” She points at me. “That’s how you’re supposed to look at a man.”
Yeah, but dessert won’t break your heart and it fills you with sweetness. It’s better than any orgasm I’ve ever had and I’m sticking with what’s safe. Why break something that isn’t broken? I’ll have my cake and eat it too, even if I have to crash weddings to do it.
Chapter Two
Hank
“Hank! Get in here. You have to help me,” my brother Rich calls from the other room.
I jolt awake in the unfamiliar room and then I remember the two of us stayed in the guest house of the venue last night so that we’d be here to help set up for his wedding first thing. He calls my name again and I can hear the panic in his voice as I jump out of bed and go to find him.
“What’s going on?” I look outside, rubbing my eyes, and see it’s barely even morning. The sun hasn’t fully woken up, so why is he pacing like the world is coming to an end?
“She’s going to call the whole thing off, I just know it.” He’s running his hands through his hair, not looking at me as he strides back and forth across the living room. “You have to fix this.”
He stops and looks at me with pleading eyes and I go to him and put my hands on his shoulders. “Rich, I’m here. Take a deep breath and tell me what happened. You know I’ll do anything I can to make today perfect.”
“The cake,” he says solemnly and points behind me.
I turn around, and there on the small kitchen counter of the guest house is a metal platter with a pile of what might have been wedding cake.
“Oh shit,” comes out of my mouth before I have a chance to stop it.
“I can’t tell her, Hank. Oh God, she can’t find out. You have to help me.”
“Tell me what happened.” I walk toward the pile of dessert that looks like a barrel of monkeys got a hold of it. “We don’t need to tell Alisha about this. Not while she’s got the wedding day to think about. We’ll fix it, okay?”
I turn around and he looks at me and I can see a bit of relief in his eyes. He nods slowly as he swallows and comes into the small kitchen.
“They needed to drop it off first thing this morning because they have, like, five other weddings today. I told them I could meet them anytime and got up early to be there.” He runs his hands through his hair and I can see the stress of the incident replaying over and over again in his head is not helping. “They had two guys who loaded it onto the golf cart and then I was going to take it over to the reception hall and have them set it up. It was supposed to be a quick drop.”
“At what point did the cake end up in a blender?” I raise an eyebrow, but he’s not in the mood for my jokes.
“I didn’t even make it to the venue. After they loaded it up, I was driving, and I swear I was being careful, but out of nowhere these goddamn geese ran out in front of me and I had to swerve to not hit them. There were twenty of them!” He’s shouting by now as he’s pointing to the ruined cake. “When I turned the wheel of the cart, the cake fell over and then the geese started attacking it. I tried to save it, but there were too many of them, so I scooped up what I could and came straight back here.”
“And you thought saving chunks of goose-eaten cake off the ground was the best course of action?” I really shouldn’t poke at him right now, but the vision of my little brother in a panic and fighting off a flock of geese is just too funny.
“What was I supposed to do? I just kept thinking we have to have a cake!” He flings his hands in the air and I’m reminded of the Kermit flail.
“Coffee,” I say and walk into the kitchen. “This is why your day should not begin until you’ve had coffee.” I turn on the pot I prepared the night before and point to the stool at the bar. “Sit.”
He does what I say and then I watch his shoulders sink.
“Look, if the cake getting fucked up by a pack of wild geese is the biggest problem of the day, then you’re going to be just fine.” I shrug as I pour us some coffee and pass him one.
“She just wants everything to be perfect and I’m determined to make it perfect for her.”
I take a few sips of coffee and I can’t argue with Rich. He is utterly head over heels in love with his bride Alisha. They’ve been together since high school and all he’s ever wanted was to marry his girl.
“Rich.” He looks up at me. “I’m your best friend and your best man,” I say, and he nods. “I’m going to fix this. You need to go get in the shower and wash the feathers and icing out of your hair. Then go over to the reception venue and do whatever it is the wedding coordinator tells you to do.” I check my watch. “She’s going to be there in an hour and you know she’s going to have a laundry list of shit on that notepad of hers.”
“What do I tell her about the cake?” he asks as he gulps down coffee and stands up.
“Tell her that you’re keeping it in the guest house as a surprise and I’m going to bring it to the reception right before the wedding starts. Tell her you told me to handle it personally.”
“Thank you, Hank.” He comes around to give me a hug and I shake my head.
“Shower. Now.” I point. He nods and runs out of the room, and I take a look at the disaster in front of me. “And what the fuck am I going to do about this?”
Chapter Three
Hank
The reception is in full swing after a long day of preparation and the wedding ceremony. It’s nighttime and I’m exhausted after a day of learning how to bake and decorate on the fly. The five-tiered de
ssert is covered in pale pink buttercream frosting with a cascade of flowers down one side. It’s simple, but everything I looked up said that was the way to make it the most elegant.
I know that Alisha loves strawberries, so I made two of the layers with fresh strawberries with alternating chocolate layers. White, milk, and dark. I bribed the florist so she would get me identical flowers from Alisha’s bouquet and Rich’s boutonniere. I know it’s not the design they chose to begin with, but there was no way I could learn the skill of piping in half a day.
The engineer in me was able to figure out how to support the tiers and make sure they didn’t go anywhere. I didn’t want another cake fiasco, so I made sure this beast could hold up the weight of the cake and then some.
“I can’t believe you pulled it off. Who the hell did you get to make one so fast?” Rich’s eyes widen as he looks at the towering dessert.
“Just so you know, I’m going to leave a very nice tip to the cleaning people in the guest house, but I did it myself.” I press my lips together to repress my smile, but I’m actually pretty damn proud of this cake.
“You’re lying.” He turns to look at me and hits my arm. “There's no way you made this. It’s beautiful!”
“Are you saying I can build skyscrapers and weld metal with these hands but I’m incapable of baking?”
