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Back The Convenient Groom Save as PDF
Chapters (42)
  1. Cover Page
  2. Dedication
  3. Dear Friend
  4. One
  5. Two
  6. Three
  7. Four
  8. Five
  9. Six
  10. Seven
  11. Eight
  12. Nine
  13. Ten
  14. Eleven
  15. Twelve
  16. Thirteen
  17. Fourteen
  18. Fifteen
  19. Sixteen
  20. Seventeen
  21. Eighteen
  22. Nineteen
  23. Twenty
  24. Twenty-One
  25. Twenty-Two
  26. Twenty-Three
  27. Twenty-Four
  28. Twenty-Five
  29. Twenty-Six
  30. Twenty-Seven
  31. Twenty-Eight
  32. Twenty-Nine
  33. Thirty
  34. Thirty-One
  35. Thirty-Two
  36. Thirty-Three
  37. Acknowledgments
  38. Reading Group Guide
  39. An Excerpt from the Goodbye Bride
  40. Chapter 1
  41. Chapter 2
  42. About the Author

Kate stopped pacing, her eyes fastened on Lucas’s. Could she tell them about Lucas’s parents? She wasn’t going to hang him out to dry again.

“I agreed to help him on a personal project. That part of the story really has no bearing on this.”

“Tell us the rest of the story,” Paul said.

Kate finished, explaining the temporary nature of the agreement. “I think I should face up to what I’ve done publicly. I’m genuinely sorry, and I think once my readers see I was jilted at the altar and made a poor quick judgment, they’ll be generous with their grace.”

“Let’s not overlook the fact,” Ronald said, “that any publicity is good publicity. It’s quite possible the scandal could increase Kate’s sales. It’s happened before with other books.”

Kate stopped at the back window. Now that was the best news she’d heard in a while. Was it possible this might turn out well for her publisher?

“Keep in mind,” Pam said, “that Kate’s book is a self-help book, not a novel or a memoir. Her readers are willing to plunk down their money because they trust her advice. That trust has been broken. She might be seen as hypocritical since she advised her readers one direction and took an entirely different direction herself.”

Kate jumped in. “That’s why I should apologize, offer an explanation. I think my readers would sympathize with the fact that I was jilted at the altar. What woman wouldn’t be confused and prone to bad judgment at that point?”

“The fact is, though,” Paul said, “you aren’t every woman. You are Dr. Kate, expert in love relationships. Your whole book is about finding a marriage partner for a lifelong relationship. You became engaged to the wrong man, then you entered a loveless marriage on a one-year lease. I’m not going to sugarcoat it, Kate. The media sure isn’t.”

Kate felt heat flush her neck and cheeks. That was as close to a dressing down as she’d received since her dad scolded her for loaning out her Nikes when she was in fourth grade.

“We need time to digest this,” Paul continued. “We’ll get hold of you later today and let you know what we’ve decided. Until then, don’t answer your phone.”

By the time they disconnected, Kate felt wrung out. More waiting. I’m tired of waiting. I want to do something. She leaned against the windowsill. Outside, the landscape looked gray through the blanket of rain.

“How’d it go?” Lucas asked.

Kate shrugged. “They’re going to decide how they want to handle it. They’ll call back later today. I don’t think they were too keen on our honesty plan.”

Kate didn’t think they were too keen on her either, and she didn’t blame them.

Twenty-Five

Twenty-Five

Hope is not a strategy.