Mistletoe Match-Up (Romancing Wisconsin - 3)

EXCERPT:

The church door burst open with a flurry of twirling snowflakes. Derek Walsh halted on the bottom step of the entrance hall when a tall, slender figure hustled in, duffle bag slung over her shoulder and a wadded dress bag clutched in her arms.

Frozen moisture clung to long black strands of windblown hair, catching the shine of the white lights adorning the church foyer this Christmas Eve.

“Stupid snow,” she muttered, wrestling to close the door. The duffle bag slid from her shoulder and hit the ground with a thud. “White Christmases are way overrated.”

Whistling wind competed with the organ music in the church. Derek crossed his arms and leaned a hip against the hand rail. Lisa Riley. The bane of his high school existence. She didn’t appear to have changed much in the past nine years; arriving only moments before the bride walked down the aisle. Still thinking only of herself. Still disorganized. Still late.

With the door finally closed, she turned and slumped against the oak, heaving a huge sigh. One toss of her head flipped the wild locks back over her shoulder and gave him a clear view of her stubborn chin, full lips, high cheekbones and piercing gray eyes framed by a thick fan of midnight lashes.

Still beautiful, damn her.

She froze the instant she saw him watching. Her gaze darted around the empty entrance, paused on the closed doors at the top of the steps, and then returned to him. Her mouth thinned into a flat line. “Where is everyone?”

“Already started. You’re late.”

“I know.” Her chin lifted as if she prepared to debate him like old times. The strains of Collin Raye’s ballad The Gift filtered between the hinges of the doors. Lisa grabbed the duffle bag from the floor and moved away from the doors toward the steps he stood on. “I just need five min—”

Derek stepped sideways to block her path. “That’s Janelle’s cue. This is low, even for you.”

~~~

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