Have Gown, Need Groom by Rita Herron Read Free Book Online

reporters loved the idea. Josephine—that lady from the Gazette —promised she’d stop by and grab some pictures.”
    Hannah laughed in spite of her misery. “Leave it to Dad to find an advertising venue for wedding cake.”
    “I suggested he freeze some of the leftovers for Thanksgiving.”
    “You’re kidding?”
    “It would save us some cooking,” Mimi said, her tone serious.
    “I’d rather have one of your specialty desserts from the coffee shop, Mimi. I don’t think I want reminders of today’s events on Thanksgiving. Hey, did you take Alison back to school?”
    “I just got back. She—”
    The doorbell rang and Hannah tensed. “That’s probably Dad.”
    “Good luck, Hannah.” Mimi paused. “And, sis?”
    “Yeah?”
    “For what it’s worth, I think you did the right thing today. You and Seth…well, he seems like a nice guy, but you two just didn’t seem suited.”
    Hannah brushed a tear from her cheek, thanked her sister, then followed her to the door. She honestly thought she’d done the right thing, too. For both her and Seth.
    So why did her spontaneity and newfound freedom suddenly scare the bejeebies out of her? And why had her grandmother sounded so confident, as if the legend was bound to come true?

    J AKE CLUTCHED the covers in his fist as he awakened, the sharp sting of his nightmares still fresh on his mind. The drugs maybe?
    No. Not this time.
    Darkness draped the hospital room in a cloak of loneliness.
    He fought off the familiar anger, focusing on the present. Why had the dreams returned from his childhood to haunt him now? Because he was alone?
    Hell, he’d always been alone. He liked being alone.
    Jake Tippins was a die-hard cop who didn’t need anyone. He’d been on his own since he’d turned fourteen and his father had stalked off in a drunken fit and never returned. Oh, his mother hadn’t been too devastated. She’d been a beautiful blond temptress who hadn’t gotten her kicks from raising a kid. And she didn’t like to be alone.
    Ever.
    She’d entertained one man after another until Jake had grown sick of being invisible and abandoned and had found his own way—into a life of crime. Stealing cars.
    How ironic—now he was a cop assigned to uncover a major car-theft ring, probably based at Wiley Hartwell’s used-car lot. And Wiley’s daughter, the woman he’d decided to use to speed up his investigation, was a beautiful blond princess.
    No, not a princess. A beautiful blond temptress. Hell, the woman was sexy enough to make him want to strip off his clothes, with or without a medical exam.
    She’d jilted one man today—would she move on to another target tomorrow? The answer had better be yes or his plan would fail.
    Jake grimaced as he recalled Wiley’s earlier visit. His boss had stopped by to thank him for being a hero, but Jake had pretended to fall asleep while the man expounded on his heroics. He didn’t want thanks for doing his job, especially when he lied to the man repeatedly. Not only lied, but investigated him.
    Sometimes undercover work sucked.
    He rolled to his side, groaning, half in pain, half in frustration as he remembered the gentle way Wiley’s daughter had tended to his wounds, the sweet honeyed scent of her shampoo, those pale gold eyelashes fluttering like a curtain over her remarkable blue eyes. For the first time in his life, he felt a nudge of something like hope stir to life.
    If everything Wiley Hartwell said about his daughter proved true, her sprint from the altar today had been out of character. He half hoped the good doctor would prove the rest of his theory wrong too, about her and her father. But he knew she helped her father with his books sometimes, giving her the perfect opportunity to manipulate the numbers. And her sister Mimi was so tight with Joey, she might be his accomplice.
    If he discovered Wiley was running a car-theft ring, he’d have to arrest him. And if Wiley’s beautiful daughter Hannah or her sister Mimi