The Wedding Wish

The Wedding Wish
Ally Blake

Party planner Holly Denison decides that if she is ever going to have the leading role in her own wedding party, she has to take matters into her own hands! Surely her best friends can fix her up on a few blind dates?Sure, they say. And that's how Holly meets Jake Lincoln. He's gorgeous, rich and successful. In fact, he's perfect marriage material–if only Holly can get Jake to agree…

Dear Reader,

We’re constantly striving to bring you the best romance fiction by the most exciting authors…and in Harlequin Romance® we’re especially keen to feature fresh, sparkling, warmly emotional novels. Modern love stories to suit your every mood: poignant, deeply moving stories; lively, upbeat romances with sparks flying; or sophisticated, edgy novels with an international flavor.

All our authors are special, and we hope you continue to enjoy each month’s new selection of Harlequin Romance books. This month we’re delighted to feature a novel with extra fizz! New Australian author sparkles with a fresh, vivid and lively writing style, and The Wedding Wish simply effervesces with vibrant, witty, lovable characters such as Holly and Jake—but also their friends Beth, Ben and Lydia. It’s fresh, flirty and feel-good!

We hope you enjoy this book by Ally Blake—and look out for future sparkling stories in Harlequin Romance. If you’d like to share your thoughts and comments with us, do please write to:

The Harlequin Romance® Editors

Harlequin Mills & Boon Ltd.

Eton House

18-24 Paradise Road

Richmond

Surrey TW9 1SR, U.K.

or e-mail: www.Tango@hmb.co.uk

Happy reading!

The Editors

Ally Blake worked in retail, danced on television and acted in friends’ short films until the writing bug could no longer be ignored. And as her mother had read romance novels ever since Ally was a baby, the aspiration to write Harlequin novels had been almost bred into her. Ally married her gorgeous husband, Mark, in Las Vegas (no Elvis in sight, thank you very much) and they live in beautiful Melbourne, Australia. Her husband cooks, he cleans and he’s the love of her life. How’s that for a hero?

This is Ally Blake’s first book!

The Wedding Wish

Ally Blake

www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)

This book is dedicated to my angel, Mark, who looked after me, brought me M&M’s and made me feel as if I had it in me all the time.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER ONE (#uea911f94-ae7b-54f2-a085-8b188d34e69f)

CHAPTER TWO (#u264532d9-992b-5e79-b652-e445164726ec)

CHAPTER THREE (#uc15befa2-aae7-58b6-82b2-3405ae34ed29)

CHAPTER FOUR (#u8c74d471-e786-5175-b694-0f0c082ab8b3)

CHAPTER FIVE (#uf14884ae-4b9e-5b3b-8f6c-2ad6588e56e0)

CHAPTER SIX (#u0e0bbfd6-2faf-5b99-88e2-441b1b946c18)

CHAPTER SEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER EIGHT (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER NINE (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER TEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER ELEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER TWELVE (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER THIRTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER FOURTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER FIFTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER SIXTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER ONE

‘I’M GETTING married,’ Holly announced as she slammed her briefcase on the desk in her office at Cloud Nine Event Management, fifteen minutes later than her usual start time.

‘You’re doing what?’ Beth’s voice rang metallic and loud from Holly’s speakerphone.

Holly sat down, crossed her legs, noticed a run in her stockings, and her mood went from bad to worse. She grabbed a new pair of stockings from the neat pile stocked in her bottom desk drawer, before moving into her private bathroom to change from frayed to fresh. She had to raise her voice for it to reach the speakerphone, but in her current temper that was not a problem.

‘I said I’m getting married.’

‘But I can’t remember you dating any man more than once in the last six months, much less becoming familiar enough to want to marry one of them.’

Holly’s assistant Lydia chose that moment to enter the office. She stopped in her tracks, the coffee she carried all but sloshing over the sides, and stared at the speakerphone as though it had produced an offensive noise. Holly came back into the room, new stockings in place, and waved a ‘hurry up’ hand at Lydia who placed the cup down without spilling a drop.

With no apology, Lydia joined the private conversation. ‘Did I hear you guys right? In the time it took for me to make Holly a cuppa, she’s hooked herself a fiancé? That’s saying something for instant coffee.’

‘Is that you, Lydia?’ Beth asked.

Lydia leaned towards the speakerphone, articulating her words as though speaking to someone hard of hearing. ‘How are you, Beth? When is the baby due?’