Wedding Dreams: 20 Delicious Nuptial Romances

by Maggie Way

  He imagined this was a beautiful venue for a wedding.

  “Stunning, isn’t it?” she asked.

  He tugged her against him. “It’s doesn’t hold a candle to you.”

  Her lips curved into a coy smile. “Flattery will get you everywhere.”

  “Noted,” he said, “but I’m being sincere.”

  “Noted,” she echoed and nodded to the left. “The dining room is over there.”

  After they were seated in a quiet corner of the vast dining room, Darren perused the wine list. “Do you like wine?”

  “I do,” she said and those two little words were like an arrow striking his heart. This was a first date. It was insane for Darren to get such a thrill out of those words, but when it came to Maddie, his sanity was lost.

  “Red or white?” he asked.

  “Red is my favorite, but we’d better stick with white tonight.”

  “Why is that?” he asked.

  She put her menu down and smiled. “I probably shouldn’t tell you this, but red makes me ambitiously affectionate.”

  “Ambitiously affectionate?” Darren asked, sure he knew what that meant but wanting to hear Maddie reveal one of her dirty little secrets.

  “If I have red wine, I’ll probably jump your bones.”

  Darren bit back the smile and kept a straight face. “Probably? As in pretty likely but not definite?”

  The eye roll and head shake contradicted her playful smirk. “It’s about a 99% chance. There’s a one percent chance I’ll pass out first.”

  “Those are pretty good odds,” he said, making a mental note to buy red wine. “Okay, so we’ll save red for the second date,” he affirmed without missing a beat.

  “Third,” she corrected, shaking her head again. “I have a third date threshold.”

  Darren smiled. “How are things looking for a third date?”

  “Promising,” she said through that beautiful smile.

  Chapter Eleven

  The server brought the menus, including the specials. Maddie took one look at the appetizer at the top of the specials menu and made her decision.

  Spinach and artichoke dip wasn’t the most health-conscious thing she could eat, but she’d been eating a whole lot of greens the last couple days in preparation for enjoying a dinner out. Now seated in the fancy restaurant, she was grateful for her advance planning.

  “Let’s get the spinach and artichoke dip,” she suggested, peering at Darren over the menu. If he didn’t like the dip, she might have to reconsider giving him a second date.

  “I was going to suggest that,” he agreed. “What else would you like?”

  She decided on the chicken special with Mediterranean grilled vegetables, not only because it was a healthy choice, but it sounded delicious. When the server returned, Darren ordered the appetizer and her entree, and ordered himself a chicken dish from the main menu.

  Another server came with the white wine, allowing Darren a sample before he nodded. He surprised her. He wasn’t at all the muscle head she’d pre-judged at the gym and for a guy who worked with horses all day, he was very extravagant.

  “Here’s to the first date,” he said as he held up his glass.

  “To the first date,” she agreed. Maddie tapped his glass and took a long, slow sip. He picked an Austrian Riesling and Maddie savored the hint of peach and citrus.

  “Tell me about your brother,” Darren said.

  Maddie smiled, not only glad he was interested in her twin, but also at the opportunity to test his character.

  “Well, we’re identical, so that makes our bond even more special.”

  He raised one eyebrow. “Identical?”

  She laughed. “Yep. Next time you’re at my apartment, I’ll show you a picture.”

  “I hate to break it to you, but you’d have to be the same gender to be identical.”

  Maddie wasn’t deterred. “A lot of people think that, but brother and sister twins can be identical too. It’s rare, so that makes us that much more special.”

  Darren just stared at her. “Is this part of your spiritual beliefs?” he asked.

  She smiled. Not only was he not buying it, but he wasn’t telling her she was full of crap, either. She’d proctored this test during every single first date she’d ever gone on. The man’s response always gave her clear signs whether or not she should go on a second date.

  Darren was leaning favorably toward that third date.

  “You don’t believe me?” she asked.

  “I took a genetic biology course in college. Twins was part of the curriculum. Siblings of opposite genders are fraternal twins. To have identical DNA, you have to be the same gender. So while I believe you can be twins spiritually, genetically it isn’t impossible.”

  Maddie held up her glass as her cheeks lifted so high, her face hurt from the smile. “Cheers. You just passed the twin test.”

  He chuckled, tapping her glass. “The twin test?” he asked before taking a sip.

  “It’s a test of character, really. People who believe my claim fall into two categories: not very intelligent, or overly accommodating. I’m not interested in dating men in either category.”

  “And men who don’t believe it?” he asked.

  “That’s a little more complicated. Some men have no tact and accuse me of being stupid. Some men disagree, but simply shrug it off, not caring enough to pursue the subject. Only one other person has ever done what you just did.”

  “What did I just do?” he asked.

  “Suggested a spiritual connection.”

  He smiled. “What does that tell you about me?”

  She liked that he was accepting of her profession. Many of her dates preferred not to be analyzed or sought it out so blatantly it turned Maddie off. She’d opened the door, so it was fair for Darren to step through it. “It tells me that you listen and you care about my beliefs. You might even be curious.”

  “I am curious. With each new thing I learn about you, I want to know more.”

  She loved his openness. It was rare to date a man so open and confident, but not at all arrogant. This was a first date, though. Often, it something seemed too good to be true, it was.

  “What happened with the other person who suggested the spiritual connection?” he asked.

  Maddie held no ill feelings for Noah. In fact, she still considered him a friend. “Noah. He lives in Sunset Valley. We went out about five years ago. He was great, we had a great spiritual connection, but we didn’t have any chemistry.”

  Darren took a long sip of his wine, his lips curved. “We have chemistry,” he said when he put the glass down.

  Maddie couldn’t disagree. “We do.”

  “That’s not all we have,” he added.

  She wasn’t sure she wanted to have this conversation with him. She was sure they had a strong spiritual connection. If the cards were any indication, they did, but since she was just taking this dating thing for a test drive, she didn’t want to dive into the deep end head first like she usually did with a relationship.

  The server saved Maddie from responding to Darren when she returned with their appetizer.

  Maddie was starving, but resisted the urge to dive into the dip with reckless abandon.

  Doing her best to behave like a lady because this was a classy restaurant and she didn’t want to scare Darren off, Maddie forked out some dip, spreading it on a chip before taking a bite.

  “You can double dip if you want to,” he chuckled.

  Her mouth watered as she chewed the first bite. It might contain a gazillion calories, but the flavor was worth the indulgence. “I’m trying to be polite,” she insisted.

  Darren took a chip, scooping a generous amount of dip onto it before holding it in front of her mouth. “Just be you.”

  Maddie accepted his offering, biting off half the chip. She still made an effort to chew slowly because she wanted to savor not gorge. Darren dipped the remaining chip in the bread bowl and took it for himself.


  “Not afraid of my cooties, huh?” she joked, taking what was left of the first chip she took and dipping it directly into the bowl.

  “We’ve kissed. I’ve tasted your lips. I want to taste more of you. So no, I’m not afraid of your cooties.”

  His words went straight to her nipples. They tingled, as if volunteering to be the next thing he tasted.

  Maddie chose to enjoy the dip instead of suggesting just that. “This is so good. I’ve never had it with chicken before.”

  “Chicken?” he asked.

  “Yeah. These chunks. They’ve got to be chicken.”

  “Maddie, it’s shrimp.”

  She dropped the chip on the plate and grabbed her napkin, taking extra effort to swallow. Then she took a long sip of wine.

  With her fork, Maddie turned the chunk of meat over on her plate. That’s when she saw the pink flecks, clearly identifying it as shrimp.

  “You don’t like shrimp,” Darren stated more than asked.

  Maddie shook her head. “I don’t eat anything from the water,” she told him. Most people made fun of her. She’d never had shrimp before, but as a child and even as a young adult, every time she tried seafood, she didn’t like it.

  “You don’t eat it?” he asked.

  “I have some weird food idiosyncrasies,” she admitted. “I usually save that confession for a fifth date.”

  Darren smiled then. “Well, then I’ll look forward to that confession.” He nodded at the dip. “You were enjoying that. Are you sure you don’t like shrimp?”

  She shook her head. “I know. It’s a psychological thing. I won’t be able to eat it knowing there’s shrimp in it. I’m sorry. I know it’s weird.”

  Shaking his head, Darren reached across the table and grabbed her hand. “I think it’s charming.”

  Maddie laughed. “No one’s ever described my food issues as charming before.”

  Darren kissed her hand and released it as the server returned. “How is everything?” she asked.

  “Perfect,” he said.

  Maddie wasn’t the type to wait for a man to call. The compulsion had ended many relationships before they even got off the ground, but it never deterred her.

  That compulsion might work to her advantage now. She didn’t want to date Darren. Well, she did, but she shouldn’t. Falling off the wagon wasn’t an option and it would be so easy to do with a man holding the reigns.

  When Darren had left Friday night, after their marathon make-out session outside her apartment, he said he was busy Saturday but would call her Sunday. Now that it was Sunday, she could make herself crazy waiting for the phone to ring because as much as she shouldn’t care, she did. The alternative to going crazy was to do what she always did, take matters into her own hands.

  With a picnic lunch in hand, she slid out of her truck and walked across the yard toward the house where Darren kept an office. As she passed the barn, she heard his voice from the paddock between the barn and the house. She slowed her steps, redirecting herself toward the wooden fence.

  She had witnessed Darren interacting with Chocolate, both in the stable and when they rode. Despite Chocolate’s apparent sadness, he was good with her. Seeing him in the paddock, he looked at ease, not that he ever wasn’t, but it was like this was his home, where he was meant to be.

  He wore a t-shirt that showed off strong arms starting to tan under the warm spring sun. It was the faded denim hugging his thighs and everything else in that anatomical region that turned her insides out, though.

  Mercy, the man was fine.

  Maddie practically foamed at the mouth when he turned and smiled. Thank goodness the fence was there as she used it to stay upright while her knees turned to goo.

  “Maddie, this is a pleasant surprise.” He led the painted horse over to the fence, the smile never leaving his face.

  “I brought lunch,” she said, holding up the basket. “Can you get away?”

  He nodded toward the west. “There’s a storm moving in.”

  Maddie shrugged. “It’s hours away. We’ll be fine.”

  Darren looked skeptical as he gave the horse a neck rub. “What do you think, Calypso? Will we be fine?”

  The horse snorted and shook her head, pushing her ears back. Maddie laughed at the response.

  “Calypso thinks it’s a bad idea,” Darren chuckled.

  “Well, I didn’t invite Calypso. What do you think?”

  He kissed the horse’s nose. “No offense, Calypso, but who am I to turn down a lunch offer from a beautiful woman?” He turned back to Maddie. “I’ll let Tess know. Meet me at my truck? It’s parked next to the barn.”

  “See you there,” Maddie said, watching Darren stride off with Calypso. She was a beautiful horse, on the gray side of white with a long mane and a glint of mischief in her eyes. “I think your name suits you,” Maddie said, petting the horse’s nose.

  Calypso snorted again.

  When Darren disappeared into the barn, Maddie started off for the truck and met him just as he came out of the barn. He opened the door for her, as he had the other night and she climbed up, leaving the basket in the passenger seat as she once again scooted to the middle.

  “You sure you want to sit that close? I’ve been with the horses all day,” he said.

  Maddie didn’t mind the horse smell, but his own scent was so much more powerful. “You don’t scare me,” she said.

  “So where to?” he asked.

  “I know a nice spot on Starlight Lake,” she suggested.

  Darren pulled out of the driveway and headed east toward the lake. It was a short drive, no more than ten minutes and they filled the time with talk of the horses.

  “Just ahead, there’s a turn off on the left. Take that,” she directed. This had been a popular party spot when they were teenagers but Maddie heard several police raids over the last several years deterred kids from partying and parking out here. They drove a couple hundred yards in and parked at the edge of the road. It was another two hundred yards of field to get to the edge of the lake.

  They held hands as they walked a worn path across the grass. Maddie loved Darren’s easy affection. Usually men weren’t like this so early in a relationship, at least not in her personal experience, but Darren wasn’t like anyone she’d ever dated before.

  “So does this count as a second date?” he asked, his voice playful.

  “Maybe. Why?”

  “You promised to tell me your big, dirty secret on our second date.”

  Maddie laughed. “I didn’t promise. I said maybe.”

  “And?”

  She bumped him with her shoulder. “If it’s a good date, I’ll think about it.”

  “What do I have to do to make this a good date?” he asked, bumping her back.

  “If you have to ask, it won’t be good.”

  “Sounds like another dare.”

  “We’re grown-ups. They’re called challenges now.”

  “Okay, sounds like a challenge. I’m in.”

  When they reached the edge of the lake, Maddie spread out the blanket and invited Darren to sit as she pulled two chicken curry wraps from inside the basket.

  With his first bite Darren groaned and Maddie smiled. She had a low fat chicken curry recipe that was to die for and made for great leftovers. “This is fantastic,” he drawled.

  “Thank you. Secret recipe.”

  “You have a lot of secrets.”

  “I’ve been an open book my whole life. I’ve been trying to dial that back some, create a sense of intrigue for people.”

  “Well, you’ve got me hooked. I want to know all your secrets. Every one.”

  Maddie’s nipples responded in kind, convinced he was talking about them. Her magical place also warmed at his declaration.

  Down, girls, she commanded silently. “You must have some secrets,” she inquired before taking a bite of her sandwich.

  “Life’s too short for secrets,” he said and took another bite, chewing with another s
atisfied groan. Maddie wondered if he was this verbal in bed. Her nipples tingled at the thought.

  Down, girls!

  “So, at the risk of turning this into not a good date, have you and Clarissa considered my offer of partnership?”

  “It’s only been a few days,” she said. If she allowed herself to make an impulsive decision, it could end in disaster, so she wanted more time to get to know him and see if it could work.

  Even if the cards promised it would.

  “And Chocolate?” he asked.

  Maddie was about to take a bite of her wrap, but paused and closed her mouth. She didn’t want to hurt him, but she didn’t want to give up the horse either. “I think she’s my soul mate,” she admitted.

  “I don’t plan to have her at the stables. I have my own horse barn at my house.”

  That was interesting. There was a house on the property with the stables. “You don’t live in the old house?”

  He smiled. “No, a couple miles down the road. I like to keep business separate from my personal life. It would have felt like an invasion to have all those people near my home every day.”

  Maddie could appreciate that. “I’m still not sure being with you is the best situation for Chocolate. She’s very empathetic.”

  “I think we need each other,” he said.

  Maddie wasn’t convinced.

  “Tell me what the cards said. Did it have to do with Chocolate?” he asked.

  She hadn’t asked the cards about Chocolate, but maybe that was a good idea. “No, it wasn’t about Chocolate.”

  “Then what? It must be intriguing if you don’t want to tell me.”

  Maddie smiled. It was intriguing and he might even be amused if he knew. But she didn’t feel like it was the right time to tell him. She wanted to see where their relationship was heading without him trying to force it because of her interpretation of the cards.

  Just as Darren held out his hand, palm up, Maddie felt the raindrops on her head. It had grown darker in the last couple minutes. Maddie looked out over the lake and saw ominous clouds moving so fast they looked a moving sand picture that had just been turned.