Susan's Return

By Lisa Smelter

Lovely Susan Randall meets gorgeous Mark Hillman as they both participate in the wedding of their respective best friends. After a chemistry-charged whirlwind romance, they become engaged. Sadly, two weeks before their wedding, tragedy strikes. Now their happy plans are dashed. The fun and vivacious couple suddenly stands to lose the love they found. Will it be lost forever?

Their story will make you laugh and cry as they try to bring about Susan's return.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Captured Muse Entertainment
• Release date: Mar 22, 2022
• ISBN: 9781662922046

Book preview

CHAPTER

ONE

Susan Randall couldn’t believe that she had spent the day with Mark Hillman, Paul’s Best Man. She had been Maid of Honor to his Best Man at the wedding of their very best friends in the world. Mark was the most gorgeous man she had ever seen. In his tuxedo and red cummerbund, he looked like a model for an exclusive gentleman’s magazine. He was the epitome of tall, dark, and handsome. His six-foot-three-inch muscular physique, silky black hair, and bright blue eyes were the stuff of dreams.

That he had a wicked sense of humor was a bonus. He had pulled off an outrageous prank at his best friend’s wedding. He had somehow contrived to get Paul’s two black Labradors to the wedding in the middle of a raging snowstorm. They had followed the bride down the aisle, red velvet bow ties around their muscular necks. Paul’s eyes had widened in disbelief and then laughter. Not that Mark had behaved poorly at the wedding itself.

Susan had hung on to Mark’s arm as he escorted her down the aisle. He was a perfect gentleman as the wedding progressed at the church. He listened intently to the beautiful words of the service and smiled nicely at the bridal pair. During the recessional and exit from the church, Mark had smiled widely at Susan and everyone he encountered. He had seemed very pleased to participate in the wedding of his best friend.

Now the reception had been a different story. Mark’s flamboyant nature showed itself once again. At the reception, Mark had gifted Paul with half a dozen life-sized photos of his friend from age eight to thirty-five, all in his most scruffy clothes and in the worst possible poses. The scruffiest picture of them all had greeted Paul as he escorted his new bride into the reception hall. Susan hadn’t yet heard about some of Mark’s legendary pranks, but Paul had promised that he would tell all after he and Sarah got home from their honeymoon.

Susan had to admit that Mark was a sensational dancer, very light on his feet, considering that he was such a tall man. He was elegant, graceful, and had a dramatic flair to his dancing. Mark danced most of the dances all night. When the women at the reception saw what a superb dancer he was, they lined up to ask him for a dance of their own. He smilingly accepted every request, looking apologetically at Susan. She could tell that he enjoyed dancing with her. Mark had held her romantically close during the slow dances. Susan enjoyed dancing but only with men who didn’t tromp all over her feet. While they danced, Mark had continued to tease her and wildly compliment her. She had rarely enjoyed dancing as much as she did tonight.

What she would never be able to forget was his amazing kiss. Mark had been told to take over the obligatory kissing that the bride and groom had to endure during the wedding supper. Every time a guest clinked their glass with a fork or knife, the newly married couple was supposed to kiss. After a dozen or so of these prompts, Paul had delegated Mark to take over for a while.

Paul had clapped Mark on the shoulder and laughingly told him, You take over now, big guy. Kissing is something that I imagine you are quite an expert in. I want the chance to stay by my lovely bride and maybe even sneak away to kiss her without anyone else watching. Show them all how it’s done, Mark.

With that, he went back to Sarah, whispered in her ear, and they gently laughed about something. Not one minute later, Paul and Sarah clinked their own glasses and then looked expectantly at Mark, laughing. Mark looked at Sarah, wiggled his eyebrows in a sultry way, and then sauntered over to her and placed a demure sweet kiss upon her nose. The guests all clapped at his sweet exhibition.

The next time the glasses clinked, he grinned wickedly and raced over to Susan, swept her dramatically into his arms, and placed a big long passionate kiss on her lips. The kiss went on for a considerable time. When they finally came up for breath, their stunned looks mirrored each other. They both felt the electric shock, from their lips to the tips of their toes. This time Mark got a thundering standing ovation from the other guests. Susan, who enjoyed dating, and had been kissed many times in her life, had never felt that way before. She had laughed at Sarah, who had talked about swooning from Paul’s kisses. This kiss had all the hallmarks of being a swoony kiss. Wow, what a punch it had!

The guests, wanting to see what Mark would do next, started clinking their glasses enthusiastically. Mark smiled a gentle smile and sedately walked over to Kelly, the other bridesmaid. He bowed in a very gentlemanly way to her and then gently kissed her cheek. He grinned saucily at her and waved to his audience as he walked back to his seat. The guests were starting to lose a little interest, so it was ten minutes or so before the next round of clinking glasses started. Mark walked quickly to Paul’s mother and gallantly kissed her right hand.

After he walked back to his seat, he looked around the room, held up his hand to indicate STOP, and said, Okay, I’m done. It is someone else’s turn now. With that, he nodded and took his seat. It had been only Susan who had gotten the ‘big kiss’.

Because of the snowstorm that was raging outside, many of the guests left earlier than they might have done on a calm winter’s evening. That left Mark more time to dance with Susan. They had danced the rest of the night away until it was time to pack up and leave the reception. He had waltzed her, dipped her, and swept her around and around the dance floor. They had laughed and flirted with each other without stopping. Mark had kissed her hand and then followed it up with kissing her with small sweet kisses all the way up her arm. Her arm had tingled under his lips. Once, when her head was bent, he kissed the back of her neck. She had almost fainted from the shock and pleasure of it. Mark was a prince, a scamp, and a gentleman, all wrapped up in one man. And he was the best-looking man in the room, the best-looking man in the world, according to Susan’s estimation.

Susan came abruptly back to the present. The reception was winding down. Paul and Sarah had left their reception an hour previously. They had to catch a morning flight to Hawaii, which was their honeymoon destination. Soon, the remainder of the guests would all leave, and Susan would have to go home. It had been one of the most fun nights she had ever had. Mark had been the ultimate Best Man to her Maid of Honor. He had been attentive, gallant, funny, and several times, very sweet.

Susan took a quick look outside. The snowstorm had abated, but there were deep, cold, white drifts everywhere. She had her own car to drive home from the reception hall. Mark had his rental car there, too. They discussed what their plan should be. Mark told her that he would be happy to drive her home, but then she would be without a car. No, she would have to drive herself home. Mark agreed to follow her home to make sure she got there safely. Mark had grown up in Litton and knew his way around the town.

Susan had met his parents briefly at the wedding. They had been friends with the groom for many years because Mark and Paul had been best buddies since they were in elementary school. Susan had especially liked Mark’s mom. She was tall, dark, and striking--like Mark--and had passed on to him those same incredible blue eyes. Susan could tell from their brief meeting that Mark’s mom had also passed her effervescent personality on to Mark. His father was a tall, nice-looking, somewhat quiet man. His graying dark brown hair and nice blue eyes made him seem older than his vivacious wife. He had gently pulled his wife away when it seemed as if she would take over the conversation completely. That had been the only time Susan had seen them.

They had been standing around talking with their other two children. Mark had quickly introduced Susan to his brother, Matthew, and his sister, Melissa. Matthew had the same Hillman good looks but in a less spectacular way. He wasn’t quite as tall or dark-featured as Mark, but he was still a very nice-looking man. He had smiled and bowed to Susan when they had been introduced. At any other time, Susan might have been interested in hanging around and getting to know Matthew, but with Mark’s heady good looks and outgoing personality, Susan had barely registered Matt’s fine qualities. Their sister, Melissa, was a gently pretty woman with dark curling hair and big blue eyes. Susan had the passing thought that Melissa looked like her dad, while her brothers took after their mother. The snowstorm caused concern for safe driving, so they all left the reception earlier than planned.

After getting her coat, purse, and flower bouquet, Susan ducked outside. With her chin tucked into her woolly scarf, she made her way to her car. It was completely covered in snow. She was going to have to clear the snow off it before she could even get in and drive it. Mark loomed up next to her. He looked all around him at the few snow-covered cars left in the parking lot.

He turned to Susan and said, Susan, you go back into the hall. You will freeze into a tiny little cherry popsicle if I allow you to dig out your own car. I will do it for you. Give me your keys. I’ll start your car for you so that by the time you drive home, it will be at least somewhat warm for you. Oh, and please ask Kelly’s husband and Joe to come out and help clear off the rest of these cars. I’ll get a start on yours and then do mine. After that, I will start on the rest of these cars. It would really be a big help to me if the other guys came out and helped.

Susan nodded and hurried back into the building. She found Paul’s brother, Joe, and Kelly’s husband and conveyed Mark’s message. They agreed and went to tell their wives. Susan walked over to Kelly and told her that their gallant escorts were taking care of getting the cars cleaned off. They gabbed about Sarah and Paul and the benefits of honeymooning in a sunny state until the men came back in. Mark came over to Susan and laid his cold and snowy head on her shoulder.

He laughed as he said, Brrr, I’m cold. Warm me up, little fairy. Here you are, all warm and toasty, and I’m frozen. Susan shrieked as some melting snow dripped down her neck. Mark just laughed and tried to snuggle up a little more.

Susan pushed at his head and said with a tolerant laugh, Mark, I was warm and toasty. You’re making me cold and frosty. Mark looked down at her and grinned.

He just said, I think your car is warm by now. I’ll walk you out to it and follow you home. Are you ready to go?

Susan looked around at the grins on the others’ faces and said, Yes, thanks. Good night, everyone. I’ll see you all tomorrow at noon. They walked out to their cars and got in.

Susan drove carefully, with the lights of Mark’s car shining through her rear window. There was quite a lot of snow on the road home. She was a good driver and kept her car in the middle of her lane. It was a bit tense, driving in all that snow. At least the wind had died down, and the snow was not blowing around chaotically like it had been doing earlier in the day.

She pulled into her driveway and into her garage. The snow was at least a foot thick on her driveway. It was going to be a hassle getting her car out of the garage in the morning. Mark pulled into the driveway and followed her into her kitchen. His quick eyes took in everything.

He looked down at her and smiled. The day had been truly delightful, due mostly because of Susan’s fun personality. He bent his head and kissed her on the cheek.

Good night, Susan. I’ll see you at Joe’s house at noon. Thanks for the unforgettable day. This was the best wedding that I have ever gone to.

Susan murmured good night and shut the door behind him. She was tired after a long and emotionally packed day, but she spent ten minutes or so thinking about Mark. He really was an incredible man. She looked forward to spending more time with him at the luncheon.

As Mark drove back to his parents’ house, he considered the events of the day. Paul’s wedding had been great fun. Paul had looked so sublimely happy. Mark had liked Sarah right away. She was a sweet little thing and just perfect for Paul. It had been blatantly evident that they were madly in love with each other. He hoped that he would have the chance to marry the love of his life one day. Here he was, thirty-six years old, and he hadn’t even met her yet.

Then he thought of Susan and grinned. She had reminded him of a woodland sprite. He had to be at least a foot taller than she was. He had wanted to pick her up and put her in his pocket. With her big brown eyes and deep red dress, she had been the cutest and sweetest woman there. When she flashed that big smile, a dimple had shown itself in her cheek. He just loved dimples. He had wanted to press a little kiss right inside that dimple. He was surprised that he hadn’t done that. He had managed to get in a few other kisses. She giggled when he kissed her hand and arm. Then when he kissed the back of her neck, she jumped. But that other kiss, the one on her lips, that had been mind-blowing. He had never in his life felt a reaction like that. It had been like electricity had flowed from his lips to his toes. He could tell that she had felt something amazing, as well. He wondered if his face had looked as shocked as hers. Susan had been as big a flirt as he was. He had rarely come up against someone who could match his panache.

With extreme effort, he pulled his mind back to the present. He parked his rental car behind his dad’s car. Tomorrow morning, I will have to shovel us both out, he thought, as he went into the house.

The next morning, Susan woke up and blinked at the bright light coming in the window. Thick snow covered everything. The sun was shining brightly that Saturday morning in late January. Susan shivered as she quickly got out of bed. She had forgotten to turn up the heat last night when she got home. She hurried to the thermostat and cranked up the heat. As she ate her breakfast, she thought about the wedding.

Sarah and Paul would be arriving at the airport right about now, getting ready to fly off to sunny Hawaii for their honeymoon. Susan felt a little groggy from lack of sleep after a very eventful day. She had a good amount of time before she had to leave to get to Joe Thompson’s house for the luncheon at noon. There was plenty of food remaining from the wedding dinner last night. Joe and his wife had taken all the wedding gifts and leftover wedding feast to their house. Paul and Sarah would open their wedding gifts there once they returned from their honeymoon.

Susan pottered around her house, restoring order to her house from the hectic efforts to prepare Sarah for her wedding yesterday. She smiled to herself, recollecting how beautiful Sarah looked.

Sarah had been rooming with Susan for the last seventeen days after coming back from a job in Brazil. Sarah was a neat girl, but yesterday they had been so caught up getting her into her mother’s wedding dress and driving to the church that they had left the mess for Susan to deal with today. Susan cleaned her little house until it was spotless.

It was now ten o’clock. She didn’t know how bad the winter driving would be, so she decided to leave her house early to go to Joe’s