When Doves Lament

There, sitting beside the bride-to-be, was Carissa’s least favorite person in the world: the bride’s father, Max McAllister.
He’d been a thorn in her side during his son’s wedding, and she’d hoped he would be less involved with Lanie’s. From what Carissa had seen, Max didn’t have a close relationship with his daughter, but she supposed it’d been too much to hope that would apply to wedding planning as well. Usually, it was the mothers of the engaged pair who bickered over the wedding details, but Lanie’s mother had passed away the previous year. Carissa reminded herself to tread lightly with her new client. She could only imagine how hard it must be to plan a wedding after such a major loss.
Still, Carissa’s job would be difficult with Max around. Part of her wished she could view it as a blessing that a father was involved, and had it been any man other than that one, she might have been able to. He was, without a doubt, the most stubborn, pigheaded man she’d ever met.
Pasting a smile on her face, she sashayed up to the table. Lanie turned just as Carissa reached them, and she jumped up and greeted her.
“Carissa! Thank you for fitting us in on such short notice.” She pulled Carissa into a hug.
Nate stood and shook her hand, but Max didn’t move. His expression had changed from one of genuine surprise to a cold fury, the warmth in his deep-brown eyes frosted over like a window on a snowy winter day. The feeling was mutual.
“Max.” Carissa tried to keep her tone even.
Unfortunately, he didn’t repay the favor. “What are you doing here?”
She opened her mouth to respond, but Lanie beat her to it. “Dad! You said you were going to behave.”
“I didn’t know she was coming,” he replied without a bit of remorse.
Nate pulled out a chair for Carissa, and she gave him an appreciative smile, choosing to ignore Max’s less-than-welcoming reception. You’re not here for him, she reminded herself. It was a mantra she’d developed for the more difficult family members of her clients, but somehow, it had never worked with Max. Something about that man got under her skin.
“It’s nice to see you too,” Carissa said, surprised by how calm she sounded.
Before Max could insult her further, Nate cleared his throat. “We’ve been looking over the menu, and we have some ideas of what we want to serve at the reception.”
Grateful for his intervention, Carissa nodded. “That’s great! Tell me what you envision, and we can look at how it works with your overall theme.”
“It’s food,” Max said, his eyes narrowing at her. “Food doesn’t need a theme.”
Carissa was tempted to laugh. How little people understood the way weddings worked. From the venue to the decor to the meal, everything needed to fit in with the overall theme of the wedding. Most food was versatile enough to work with any theme, but there were certain ways to finagle dishes to support the overall vision.
But that would be lost on someone like Max McAllister. She’d learned that lesson while planning his son’s wedding. Instead of engaging Max, Carissa decided to do what she’d done the last time she’d had to deal with him: ignore him entirely.

Upon purchase, you will immediately receive an email from BookFunnel with links to the Ebook(s) you purchased.

Click that link and follow the instructions to read online or download the Ebook to your preferred eReader device. Easily read on your iPhone, Android, Kindle Nook or Kobo device.

If you have any issues accessing your new Ebook, there is a Need Help? link in the top right corner of each book download page.

If you do not receive a download email, visit https://bookfunnel.com/help/.

All sales are final. Unfortunately, we do not accept Ebook returns.