The Bride's Secret Read online

  The Bride’s Secret

  Sophia Summers

  Contents

  Read all books from Sophia Summers

  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

  Chapter 14

  Epilogue

  The Bride’s Cowboy Chapter 1-2

  Read all books from Sophia Summers

  JOIN HERE for all new release announcements, giveaways and the insider scoop of books on sale.

  Her Billionaire Cowboys Series:

  Her Billionaire Cowboy

  Her Billionaire Protector

  Her Billionaire in Hiding

  Her Billionaire Christmas Secret

  Her Billionaire to Remember

  The Swoony Sports Romances

  Hitching the Pitcher

  Falling for Centerfield

  Charming the Shortstop

  Snatching the Catcher

  Flirting with First

  Kissing on Third

  Her Billionaire Royals Series:

  The Heir

  The Crown

  The Duke

  The Duke’s Brother

  The Prince

  The American

  The Spy

  The Princess

  Her Love and Marriage Brides Series

  The Bride’s Secret

  The Bride’s Cowboy

  Her Single Holiday Romances

  Taming Scrooge

  Chapter 1

  Wyatt felt ill. When had his childhood friend become such a tool? Heath was about to be married. But he acted more like a man on the prowl, hungry for anything in a skirt. Today was the rehearsal dinner for his marriage. Wyatt and he sat at breakfast at the hotel and all the groom-to-be could do was eye every woman who walked by.

  When Wyatt arrived from New York, he had expected to see a doe eyed man in love. He had been prepping to swallow his own vomit at the exaggerated sweetness between him and his fiancé, Carisa. But instead Heath was, right now, making eyes at another woman. She leaned forward over a table she was cleaning in their line of sight. A clear line of cleavage beckoning to Heath. Instead of looking away or joking about her, Heath encouraged her. She slinked closer, dropping a hand across his friend’s shoulder and dropped a slip of paper in his shirt pocket.

  Wyatt snorted and shook his head. “As if.”

  Heath raised an eyebrow. “Dude. She’s hot.”

  “And you’re all but married.” Wyatt wanted to slug him.

  Heath just shrugged.

  Wyatt felt more conflicted than he had in years. Heath’s bride was a vibrant, warm woman. She’d been kind and welcoming to everyone she met. Wyatt admitted a twinge of jealousy when he’d first seen her. Jealous his friend had found such a beautiful person in his life, jealous he had found the kind of love that led to marriage. Wyatt wasn’t even dating anyone. At all. “Dude. It’s time to let that go.” He put a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “Your wife is hot, man. And worth giving all this other stuff up.”

  “Hey now, you calling my wife hot? Let me know if I should step in any time, keep you two apart.” He leaned back and laughed. “I don’t blame you. She’s your type.”

  My type?

  “Yes. She’s from your kind of family. All established. Old money, what little they have left. Her brothers invest in my app. Her father loves me.” Heath had the audacity to wink. “I’ll settle down in a few years. But I had to snatch her up early when she was interested, didn’t I?”

  Wyatt couldn’t speak.

  They stood up. Heath left a huge tip and then as they exited down a long hallway, the server girl showed up, close to him in the narrow space. Heath rested a hand on curve of her waist and winked. She swiveled her hips and shimmied away. And Wyatt really thought he might be ill. He’d been raised so differently.

  They went straight to the rehearsal dinner and Wyatt grimaced when the beautiful Carisa came running to greet her fiancé, all smiles and warm welcome. Heath’s voice turned charming at once. “There’s the most beautiful bride the world.” When Heath pressed his lips to Carisa’s, Wyatt had to look away.

  “Carisa babe, this is my best man, Wyatt. We’ve been friends since he caught the biggest fish back in third grade.”

  Wyatt nodded, ready to shake her hand and move on. But then she turned her amber eyes on him and he couldn’t look away. They had greenish tints, flecks of gold, speckled across the light brown. They widened, searching his own for a moment. “Hello.” She cleared her throat. “The biggest fish, huh?”

  He blinked. “Uh, yeah. So he says. Back in third grade, couldn’t have been more than five inches long…” He searched her face, smiling in her eyes. “He’s mastered the hunt since then.” The words tumbled out of him. Maybe he thought he came off as a comedian. Maybe his subconscious felt guilty knowing what this woman was marrying.

  “Ho ho. Friend. What will my fiancé think?” He wrapped an arm across Carisa’s back and gave him a look. “Mastered the hunt. Whatever. That’s weird. Come this way babe. I want you to meet the other guys.”

  A loud clapping and the click of heels across the floor distracted him. “Come come. It’s time to find your places.” A round woman with tight curls approached and people scattered. She stopped to his front and lifted her eyes to his. “Best man?”

  He nodded. Suddenly a feeling of guilt tickled his insides. Was he on the verge of plotting ways to destroy his friend’s wedding? He wasn’t of course, just sick inside the woman didn’t know what she was marrying.

  “Come with me.” The wedding planner turned, and he followed, suddenly feeling meek. She was a force. She whipped around. “Stand here.” Her long, red nailed finger pointed to one specific tile on the floor and he made sure one of his feet touched that tile. Then he shook his head, smiling. “Thank you. I won’t move.”

  She huffed but he thought he saw the corner of her mouth turn up as she placed all the other men.

  When they all stood across the front to practice the moment Carisa would walk down the aisle, Wyatt’s concern about how to handle his friend’s planned affairs escalated. He was the best man, supposed to be on the groom’s side. The way they managed together in their marriage was none of his business. He had almost talked himself into getting drunk at the wedding and forgetting all about what he’d heard, but then the back doors opened, and Carisa stepped out into the aisle. She beamed, laughing, and moved forward perfectly to the music. What got him though, was her face, her shining eyes looking only at Heath. She would not be disloyal. She was going all in and would love her husband. But she might never know he cheated. He rationalized. Or maybe he wouldn’t cheat. Maybe he’d get over his problem while on a honeymoon with his wife.

  Her eyes fell on Wyatt, mid laugh, and he jolted inside. Stunning. She was an angel. And he felt as though a beam of sunlight had warmed everywhere her eyes fell. It was only a second while she scanned the front, then she was all eyes on Heath. Wyatt wondered how his friend could handle so much light in his direction. Was he affected by her? Did he even love her?

  After, they drove back to the hotel together.

  Heath stretched his hands over his head. “I’m tucking in early tonight. Maybe you can go out with the other guys.”

  Wyatt’s suspicion heightened. “Not that waitress girl.”

  “You don’t know anything about it.” The force of Heath’s venom shocked Wyatt as his eyes turned to him.

  Wyatt swallowed. “You can’t do this. Carisa is special. You’ll never fi
nd something like her again.”

  “That’s why she’ll never know.” His eyes cut into Wyatt’s with a force, but Wyatt held his ground. “You should cut it off, or change your ways. Dude it’s just not right.”

  “Forgive me while I tune out the harps playing. I’m not going to do this forever. I told you. I’ll settle down. We’ll have two kids, a dog, and lead a happy life. She’ll never know any differently.”

  Wyatt looked away and they both jumped out of the car and went their separate ways. Sleep did not come, not for many hours. And even then it was disturbed by dream after dream where Wyatt himself was unfaithful. At the end, right before dawn, he dreamed of his own father, skipping out on his mother, and when he awoke, there was not the typical comforting reminder that it was just a dream. Because he’d lived that nightmare before.

  Chapter 2

  Carisa Hamilton didn’t want to get married. Never mind that the music would start in about forty five minutes and they would open the back doors of the church, everyone would stand… Her heart rate picked up and her breathing must have joined in because Marguerite, her wedding planner, started counting. “Measure your breaths darling. In-two-three-Out-two-three.”

  Carisa tried, but her chest felt tighter and tighter. “I—I don’t know if I can do this.” She clutched her stomach and buckled forward.

  Marguerite’s cool fingers ran a hand gently over her hair, not messing up a single strand. This woman was good. She whispered comforting things. “You’re beautiful. He loves you. Just look into his face. Forget everything else.”

  But that was just it. He was the problem. The groom. She loved everything else about getting married. The dress, the party, her bridesmaids. They were stunning. She’d let them choose a dress following a specific color scheme and they’d nailed it. Pictures had never looked so good. The pictures. A part of her wanted to get married just for the pictures. The food, the cake. She’d picked the best flavors. The party. The playlist. All her favorite songs. She imagined dancing with her father, with her best friends, but then his face jarred to the front, and she remembered she’d have to dance with him too… She clutched at Marguerite’s arms, gripping with a panic that rose up inside. “I can’t dance with him.”

  “Who? Your father?” She clucked. “Honey, if there’s something that makes you uncomfortable we can change the whole plan. That’s what I’m here for.”

  Carisa shook her head, curls bouncing around against her scalp high above her veil. “No, It’s Heath.”

  Marguerite stopped. And for a moment, Carisa saw what really went through her mind. And Carisa feared for her own life, a little bit. No one messed up the wedding planner’s plan. Not even the bride apparently. Not even if she didn’t love the groom. Anymore. Did she ever? “Ugh. I can’t. The thought of him makes me ill. She squeezed harder, the soft skin of the wedding planners’ shoulders squishing between her fingers. “What do I do?”

  Marguerite gently peeled away Carisa’s hands and plugged in her diffuser; immediately the calming scents of lavender and chamomile filled the air. She clicked a few buttons on her phone, and instrumentals sounded above them, as though she were in a spa. Marguerite held the back of a chair and motioned that Carisa sit. “We have plenty of time still. You are ready. You are the most beautiful bride I have seen. Have a sit. Relax. We will make this better.” She handed her a warm cup of tea that had appeared from the countertop almost as if by magic. And then stepped out of the room, closing the door softly behind her.

  But Carisa jumped up. Alone at last. Time to make a break for it. Was she crazy? Insane? Her mother would kill her. Forget her mother. Marguerite would hunt her down. But Carisa couldn’t think about that. All that she could think about was the coldness. Heath’s eyes, for the first time, cold. He’d turned on his Texan charm as soon as he noticed she was watching, but that flash, that instant of cold proved all that she’d suspected. He didn’t really care. And, she breathed out, thank the stars above, because Carisa didn’t care about him either.

  She grabbed her bags, threw all her makeup inside, her hair dryer, her straightener. She left the curling iron, too hot. She pulled her overnight luggage behind her, and tiptoed to the door. Was she going to do this? Really?

  As she edged it open, it pushed further toward her, rapidly, almost knocking her backward. “Oh!”

  “I’m sorry.” Warm brown eyes filed with concern. Big, strong hands reached for her. He cleared his throat. “Miss Hamilton, Ma’am, I’m here.” He adjusted his stance. “I’m here. That is, Heath wanted me to come check on you.”

  Her mouth dropped. “What?” Then she pressed her lips together. “He couldn’t be bothered to come himself?”

  This new man, Heath’s best man, Wyatt was it? She would have been amused at his discomfort if she wasn’t completely almost at break down point. He blushed in such a charming way she decided not to punish the messenger. “Oh, come in. hush.” She pulled on him, his huge frame and thick arm not budging.

  “I can’t come in there with you. It wouldn’t be right.”

  She looked up and down the hallway. “Okay, well then come with me.” She handed him her overnight bag. “This way, and be quiet.”

  “I’m right behind you. Everyone’s almost ready to begin. The planner. She said you might need to talk to Heath, so I’m here to ask, do you need to talk to him? It isn’t lucky to see the bride before the wedding so they say, but if you need a moment with him, I can go back and tell him.”

  She waved at him over her head, hurrying down the long side catering hallway, pushing past people dressed in white and black uniforms. They didn’t glace a second time. Either used to crazy, erratic bride behavior or else trained not to interfere. “Hush now. We’re almost there.”

  At last in the parking lot, she ran for her car. Beeped it open and indicated he throw her bags in the back. “Thank you, Uh, what’s your name?”

  “Wyatt, ma’am. I knew Heath when we were kids.”

  She nodded. Noticing for the first time, his strong jawline. Oh, she had a thing for jawlines. See, definitely not in love with Heath if she thought his groomsman was hot. “Well, thank you for your help Wyatt. If you wouldn’t mind telling Heath, later, much later, that you saw me leave?” She waited and then winced. He couldn’t do that. Wouldn’t be keeping secrets, delaying information, if he were any kind of friend.

  He held up his hands. “Wait. Are you ditching him?” His concerned face was charming, would have been amusing if, again, the situation merited humor.

  “It’s not going to work. He’ll thank me later.”

  A stubborn look crossed Wyatt’s face, and he pulled out his phone.

  Panic rose inside Carisa. “No!” Her shout echoed across the parking lot. “Please. I-I can’t.” Tears rose in her eyes and she grabbed her sides. “This is too much. I can’t explain it but it’s all wrong. He-he doesn’t even love me.”

  Wyatt paused for a moment and then checked the parking lot before he hopped in her passenger seat. She groaned but sat in the driver’s seat, turned on the car, and pealed out as fast as she could. “I don’t know how you’re gonna get back to the wedding but I’m out of here. I can’t be bringing you back.”

  “I’ll be fine. Now, why don’t you talk to me while you drive.”

  Brown eyed, strong jawlined Wyatt was a listener? Well, all the better. Perhaps he could help Heath understand. “He doesn’t love me. And I -I just couldn’t go through with it when the one stressful part about this whole day, is him. I can’t face him. I don’t want to see him. I could never spend the rest of my life with him.” Tears fell freely.

  Wyatt handed her a handkerchief. “And you don’t think if you told him this, if you saw him, he could make you feel better?”

  She shook her head. “No way. He’s a charmer all right, but now I see through it. I don’t believe him.” She sniffed. “I don’t know what to believe. He’ll hold me and tell me I’m beautiful and lift his lip in his one smile I used to not be able to res
ist. But…”

  She held up a finger. “I could have sworn he was flirting with one of the servers. Is that crazy? Maybe I’m crazy. Maybe I have commitment issues. He has told me all along I have issues. I wanted to wait, longer. Something is definitely wrong with me. Who does this?”

  Wyatt was quiet for so long she wondered if he would say anything at all. “Where will you go?”

  She shook her head. “I don’t know. I need to leave, get out, stay far away for a long time.”

  Her swallow came hard and sharp in her throat. “I guess I’ll go on our honeymoon. Maybe catch an earlier flight?” She laughed. A crazed, strange laugh. “You don’t think he’d follow me, do you?”

  Wyatt shrugged. “If you want to hide, then you might want to go somewhere else, but it might be a good thing for him to come? You could talk through things.”

  She shuddered. Some time she would have to talk to Heath, of course. Right now her panic was ruling the day. Fight or flight, didn’t they call it? She was in full flight mode. Whatever the cost. They pulled into the airport. She went straight to long term parking and parked. Getting out of her car, she suddenly remember she was still dressed as a bride. “Oh brother I can’t be going in there like this.” She pulled up the flight on her phone. “Oh! Oh! There’s an earlier flight. It leaves in thirty minutes. If I hurry!” She glanced down at herself. “I’ll change on the plane. She reached into the trunk, lugging her bag out. It thunked to the pavement, and then she placed her duffle over her shoulder. It was so heavy, pressing into her soft skin, bare. She tried to fist the front part of her dress with the one hand while dragging her overnighter with the other hand. The duffle weighed her down. “Thank you, Wyatt. I enjoyed your company. You can tell Heath my concerns.”