by Susan Hatler
“I bet they were pretty mad when the deal went bust, huh?”
He shrugged. “I wouldn’t know. I quit.”
“You what?” I didn’t mean to shout it. Truly, I didn’t. We were at a wedding reception, after all, and I only just now became aware of the people near us who turned to stare. Oops.
Jason chuckled. “I handed in my resignation the morning after our fight and decided to go back to the beginning, thanks to your nudging. I want to get my teacher’s certification.”
My chin quivered as I worked really hard at not crying. I couldn’t handle any more tears. “I’m so proud of you,” I whispered.
“Teaching is where my passion is. I may never have seen the light if it weren’t for you.” He cupped my cheek with his palm. “And, you. . . You’re where my whole heart is.”
My own heart skipped a beat. “Really?”
His thumbs brushed my cheeks. “I love you, Avery.”
“I love you, too,” I said, my tummy doing a somersault.
His mouth curved upward and he leaned in close, brushing his lips against mine several times before he finally kissed me. Then our mouths melted together, over and over, my entire world tilting on its axis. Everything felt right. Everything was just as it was meant to be.
And no, Jason wasn’t perfect. Neither was I. But I knew we were perfect for each other. Together, we could make miracles happen.
“Ahem, excuse me. There is a wedding reception happening behind you two lovebirds. You’ve already missed dinner. But I’m guessing by that kiss, you don’t want to miss the wedding party dance,” Melinda said.
“No, we don’t want to miss anything,” Jason said, keeping his arm around me as I laughed and agreed.
Melinda smirked at us, arms folded. “It’s about time you made up. Everybody deserves to be as happy as I am today.”
“I am definitely happy,” I said.
“Me, too.” Jason squeezed me tighter.
Melinda was right, too. It was time to join the party, especially since the DJ had started a love song for the first dance. Then came the father and daughter dance, the wedding party dance, and then came the hit songs as guests took off their shoes and let loose.
A huge array of hors d’oeuvres and small plates circulated, making my mouth water and my stomach rumble since I hadn’t exactly had time to eat so far. The entire affair was casual and fun, not fussy in the least. All the happy couple wanted was for their guests to have a ball.
Jason moved over with Nate along the side railing with some of the other guys, toasting with their beers and making jokes at the groom’s expense, while I danced with Melinda and some of the girls. Erica was one of them, and I sidled up to her.
“Hey, you,” I said, shouting over the music. “How’s your grandma? I’ve been meaning to call and ask how she liked the cake!”
“Oh, she loved it! It made her so happy! Don’t be surprised if I come to you with an order for a new cake, especially bingo-related!” She laughed and it was good to see her looking so happy, when she’d been so worried before. I made a mental note to buy some more almond flour for another cake. Everybody deserved a little sweetness.
“All right, ladies.” Melinda stood at the front of the room, bouquet in hand. “You know what time it is! If you’re single, lemme see you up here pronto.”
“Rules are rules.” Erica laughed, linking her arm with mine.
We walked over to join roughly fifteen or twenty single women, including Sarah who gave her fiancé, Ben, a kiss before hurrying over to us. Anyone who wasn’t married yet was welcome, according to Melinda.
My gaze caught Jason’s. He winked, jerking his chin up as if to say, “You got this.”
He was right. I did have it. I felt like I had everything now.
Melinda turned her back to us. “Okay. Ready? One. . . two. . . three!”
The pink, peach, and white bouquet sailed through the air, and we collectively held our breaths as we reached out for it. I tried to ignore a few gentle shoves from strangers trying to move in on me—some women were viciously invested in this tradition—in favor of keeping my eyes on the prize.
Was this really me? Avery Summers? Was I truly trying to catch a bouquet? When I had never put any stock in such things before? Funny how falling in love could change my perspective. I so totally wanted that bouquet to be mine.
When my hands closed around the stems and I pulled the wedding bouquet close to my chest, cheering erupted. My heart leapt. Woo-hoo! The first person I looked around for was Jason, who I spotted right away. He raised his hands above his head, with his thumbs pointing up, and that adorable dimple appeared. My belly did a little dance as I smiled back at him.
I’d caught the bouquet, but really didn’t need it. I’d already made the perfect catch once I managed to get past my fears and let Jason into my heart.
But when I looked down at the beautiful flowers and thought about what this bouquet symbolized, I considered how lucky I was to have this catch, too. After all, a wedding in our future didn’t sound like the worst thing imaginable. In fact, with Jason, my heart was completely open to the possibility.
The End
If you enjoyed spending time
with these characters,
be sure to read Erica’s story in:
My Wedding Date
(The Wedding Whisperer, 3)
About the Author
SUSAN HATLER is a New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author, who writes humorous and emotional contemporary romance and young adult novels. Many of Susan’s books have been translated into German, Spanish, French, and Italian. A natural optimist, she believes life is amazing, people are fascinating, and imagination is endless. She loves spending time with her characters and hopes you do, too.
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Titles by Susan Hatler
Christmas Mountain Clean Romance Series
The Christmas Compromise
Do-Over Date Series
Million Dollar Date
The Double Date Disaster
The Date Next Door
The Wedding Whisperer Series
The Wedding Charm
The Wedding Catch
My Wedding Date
The Wedding Bet
Kissed by the Bay Series
Every Little Kiss
The Perfect Kiss
Just One Kiss
The Sweetest Kiss
A Christmas Kiss
All About That Kiss
Forever in a Kiss
A Kiss for Santa
Better Date than Never Series
Love at First Date
Truth or Date
My Last Blind Date
Save the Date
A Twist of Date
License to Date
Driven to Date
Up to Date
Déjà Date
Date and Dash
Treasured Dreams Series
An Unexpected Date
An Unexpected Kiss
An Unexpected Love
An Unexpected Proposal
An Unexpected Wedding
An Unexpected Joy
An Unexpected Baby
Young Adult Novels
Shaken
See Me
The Crush Dilemma
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