Something Borrowed. Miranda Lee

organ started up.

      Kate grinned. ‘Knock ‘em dead, love.’

      ‘You make this sound like the opening night of a show,’ Ashleigh returned in an exasperated voice.

      Kate lifted expressive eyebrows, then laughed softly. ‘Well, it is, in a way, isn’t it?’

      Heat zoomed into Ashleigh’s cheeks.

      ‘Aah,’ the other girl smiled. ‘That’s what I wanted to see. The bridal blush. She’s ready now, Dr O’Neil.’

      As ready as I’ll ever be, Ashleigh thought with a nervous swallow.

      The long walk up the red carpet on her father’s arm was a blur. The music played. Countless faces smiled at her. It felt almost as if she were in a dream. She was walking on clouds and everything seemed fuzzy around the edges of her field of vision.

      Only one face stood out at her. Nancy’s, still looking a little tense, and oddly watchful, as though expecting Ashleigh to turn tail and run at any moment.

      And then the men came into view...

      First came James, looking tall and darkly handsome in a black tuxedo, his thick, wavy hair slicked back neatly from his well-shaped head. And next to him was...

      Ashleigh faltered for a moment.

      For the best man wasn’t Peter Reynolds, the new accountant at Hargraves Pty Ltd and James’s friend since college, but a perfect stranger!

      Her father must have noticed at the same time. ‘Who the hell’s that standing next to James?’ he muttered under his breath to her.

      ‘I have no idea...’ The man was about thirty with rather messy blond hair, an interesting face and intelligent dark eyes. After a long second look Ashleigh knew she’d never seen him before in her life.

      Her eyes skated down to the other groomsman. Stuart, her brother. He smiled back reassuringly, after which she swung her gaze back to James. Their eyes locked and for one crashing second Ashleigh literally did go weak at the knees. For James was looking at her as if she were a vision, an apparition that he could scarcely believe was real, as if he couldn’t tear his eyes away from her.

      All thought of mysterious best men fled, her breath catching at the undeniable love and passion encompassed within James’s intense stare. He’d never looked at her like that before, even when he’d said she was the only woman he’d ever loved, the only woman he could bear marrying. His stunningly smouldering gaze touched her heart, moved her soul. And her body.

      Ashleigh was startled to find that suddenly the night ahead did not present itself as such an ordeal after all. Her eyes moved slowly over her husband-to-be and her heart began to race, her stomach tightening, a flood of sensual heat sweeping all over her skin.

      The raw sexuality of her response shocked her. She hadn’t felt such arousal since...since...

      Quite involuntarily one trembling hand left her bouquet to once again touch the locket.