Ghostly Wedding (A Harper Harlow Mystery Book 17) Read online

  “Well, we do, and what we say goes,” Zander replied.

  “Since when is that the rule?”

  “Since I said so.” Zander gave Jared a terrific push through the door. “Now ... go across the street and do manly stuff.”

  Jared flicked his eyes to Shawn, who was carrying a duffle bag. “So ... what? Is he saying we should watch SportsCenter and make farting noises with our armpits?”

  Shawn brightened considerably. “Can we do that?”

  “I don’t know. I guess it’s worth a shot.” Before Zander could shut the door in his face, Jared wedged himself in the opening and leaned in to give Harper a kiss. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  She grinned at him “I’ll be the one wearing the white dress.”

  “And I’ll be the one gearing up to make all your dreams come true.”

  “You’ve already done that.”

  They kissed again, the exchange long and soft. Jared looked tortured when Zander shoved him outside again. “I’ll miss you.”

  Harper laughed at his morose expression. “We’ll be together again before you know it. Next time you see me, we’ll be exchanging vows ... and then going on the honeymoon you won’t tell me about.”

  Jared smiled. “Yeah, I’m definitely looking forward to that.” He grabbed her hand and lavishly kissed her knuckles. “Until we meet again, Mrs. Monroe.”

  “Until we meet again, Mr. Harlow.”

  Zander put some muscle into shutting the door, and when it was finally just the two of them, his eyes lit with glee. “So ... glow masks, chocolate martinis, and Dirty Dancing?”

  “Ah, it’s just like high school again.”

  HARPER DIDN’T THINK SHE WOULD BE nervous about the actual ceremony. She was wrong.

  She slept hard, the two martinis she allowed herself serving as a pleasant sleeping pill. When she awoke, Zander curled up next to her, she spent twenty minutes staring at the ceiling thinking about what was to come ... and then she proceeded to whack Zander with a pillow.

  “I’m getting married today. Get up!”

  They spent hours getting ready, Zander taking over hair duties when the stylist Harper hired didn’t come up with a hairstyle he deemed appropriate. By the time he was finished, soft waves kissing the tops of Harper’s shoulders, even she had to admit that she looked pretty good.

  “What do you think?” she asked Zander as she pirouetted in front of the mirror in Jason’s bathroom. The restaurant was shut down for the day so they could have the reception on the balcony after the ceremony.

  “I think you look like a princess.” A tear slid down Zander’s cheek as he smoothed the front of her dress. “An absolute princess.”

  “That only works if I’m Princess Leia.”

  “But of course.” His emotions threatening to overwhelm him, Zander sucked in a shaky breath as he straightened his own tie. He’d opted for a purple suit to differentiate himself from Jared and Shawn and still complement Harper’s dress and coloring. “I love you, Harp.”

  Even though she’d promised not to get emotional, Harper felt her throat constricting. “I love you, too, Zander.”

  “You’re always going to be my best friend no matter what.”

  “Of course I am.” Her eyes sparkled with unshed tears. “You’re always going to be my best friend, too.”

  “I won’t let Jared totally steal you from me no matter how hard he tries.”

  That earned a laugh. “He’s not stealing me. We’re simply expanding our family.”

  “It’s been just you and me for a long time.”

  “No, it hasn’t. It was just you and me for a long time. Then Jared and Shawn entered our lives. It hasn’t been just you and me for well over a year now ... and I’m not sorry. As much as I love you, I think we’re better people now than we were before they joined our circle.”

  “I still think we’re the best part of our circle.”

  “I think we all fit together perfectly.” She leaned forward and kissed his cheek. “You’ve been my champion for as long as I can remember. That’s not going to change. We’re only going to get stronger from here.”

  “Yeah.” Zander wiped his cheek with the back of his hand. “I still think you should get him to shave his nipples down. Maybe for a first anniversary surprise.”

  “I think you should be the one to bring it up to him, but only when we get back from our honeymoon.”

  “Deal.”

  ON THE BEACH, THE SUN HIGH in the sky, Jared stood with Shawn and Josh Stoker, a friend from his childhood, and watched as Harper emerged from the restaurant.

  She took his breath away.

  Molly and Zander had already made their way down the aisle — Zander letting loose a glitter bomb halfway down to make sure he had everybody’s attention — but it didn’t matter now. There wasn’t an eye on the beach that wasn’t glued to Harper and Phil as they appeared between the aisles.

  She didn’t cry, although her eyes were glassy. Phil was another story. His chest and shoulders heaved as he walked his only child down the aisle and prepared to give her away. Once they reached Jared, Phil gripped Harper tightly, as if he didn’t want to hand her over.

  “It’s okay, Dad,” Harper reassured him, rubbing his shoulder. “You’ll see me again in a few minutes.”

  “Knock that off, Phil,” Gloria said as she grabbed her husband’s arm and dragged him toward the chairs. “You’re making a spectacle of yourself.”

  The comment only caused Phil to cry harder.

  The minister, an old family friend, made a lame joke to loosen up the crowd. Then he got to the business at hand.

  “Harper and Jared have written their own vows,” he said. “Jared, you’re up first.”

  Even though he knew the moment was coming, Jared found his palms were suddenly sweaty and his voice raspy. He knew exactly what he wanted to say, though, and nothing would stop him from pouring out his heart. This was their moment, and it was one they would never forget.

  “I haven’t been in Whisper Cove long,” he started. “It’s become my home, though, and I knew that would be the case the instant I saw you. We joke about how we were antagonistic to each other that first day, but I knew, even then, that we were destined to be together.

  “It might sound hokey, but I think souls connect,” he continued. “I know my soul connected to yours right away. We bonded so fast and part of me kept waiting for something terrible to happen because I’d never been so happy before. I thought for certain I wouldn’t be allowed to be that happy for the rest of my life.

  “I’m glad the something bad never happened. Sure, we’ve been tested, and life will never be easy for us. I mean ... we have Zander. Nothing is ever easy with him.”

  An appreciative chuckle rippled through the crowd.

  “We’re destined to be together forever, though,” he said. “You own my heart and I willingly give you my soul. Whatever happens in this life and the next, it’s you and me forever. You’re the strongest person I know, and I look forward to giving you the best life I possibly can. I, Jared Monroe, pledge myself to you forever. Nothing will ever change that.”

  Harper swallowed the lump in her throat and tried to hold it together. It wasn’t easy given the naked emotion on his face. She managed , although just barely.

  “I felt something the day we met, too,” she admitted, going for the early joke to settle herself. “I think it was annoyance.”

  Another laugh flowed through the crowd.

  “I thought you were arrogant and full of yourself ... and then you touched me and it was as if my entire body caught on fire,” she continued. “There was something there right from the start. You’re right about that. You made me come alive in ways I didn’t think were possible, even though you continued to drive me crazy at times.

  “We’re not the sort of people who are destined for a quiet life. We have Zander, like you said, so that’s impossible.”

  Zander beamed as he puffed out his chest.

 
; “We’ve built a family together already, and we’re just at the start,” Harper supplied. “Sometimes I wake up in the morning and watch you sleep. Not in a creepy way or anything. I just like marveling at the planes of your face and knowing that I’ll be able to wake up with you every single day, and go to bed with you every single night, for the rest of our lives.

  “You’ve filled my life with laughter, love, and absolute joy. You accept me for who I am and never try to exploit what I am. You love with an open heart and give with an open mind. You’ve become my everything, the one person in this world I can’t live without.”

  Zander cleared his throat and gave her a stern look.

  “One of the two people I can’t live without,” she corrected as Jared grinned. “We’re building something special here, and even though we’re still at the start, I can see the road ahead of us. It stretches far and long. It will be filled with more love and happiness than I ever thought possible. It might not be perfect, but it will be perfectly us.

  “I promise to love you until my dying breath and well beyond. I, Harper Harlow, pledge myself to you forever.”

  Jared gripped her hands tighter, tears springing up out of nowhere and cascading down his cheeks.

  The minister spoke again, leading them through additional vows, but what was important to say had already been said. When they were finally declared man and wife, Jared didn’t wait for the go-ahead. He swooped in and cupped Harper’s face, kissing her until she was breathless as applause exploded around them.

  “I love you,” he whispered, tuning out the rest of their friends and family. “I love you more than anything.”

  Harper wrapped her hands around his wrists and grinned. “I love you, too.”

  “And everybody loves me,” Zander announced as he moved to stand next to them, sliding an arm over both their shoulders.

  “And everybody loves Zander,” Jared agreed. “I guess that means we’re one big happy family, officially.”

  “Definitely,” Zander agreed. “I can’t wait to see how things play out now that I don’t have to worry about chasing you away.”

  Even that declaration couldn’t stop Jared’s smile. Instead, he pulled Harper to him for a hug and held Zander’s gaze over her shoulder. “Maybe we should go inside and drink to our new family.”

  Zander leaned in and kissed his cheek. “You read my mind.”

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  About the Author

  Amanda M. Lee and Lily Harper Hart

  I want to thank everyone who takes the time to read my novels. I have a particular brand of humor that isn’t for everyone – and I know that.

  If you liked the book, please take a few minutes and leave a review. An independent author does it all on their own, and the reviews are helpful. I understand that my characters aren’t for everyone, though. There’s a lot of snark and sarcasm in my world – and I know some people don’t like that.

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  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

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