The Planner - Signed Paperback

Chapter One: Will

“All right, man, see you in a bit,” Paul said as he hopped out of my truck. “Don’t forget the Doritos again.”

“I didn’t forget last time. I just don’t like them.”

He rolled his eyes at me as he shut the door, jogging toward the stairs to the apartment we shared. For now, anyway. He was about to marry his dream girl and move out, so it looked like I’d be flying solo from now on. And I had to admit, I’d miss living with the guy. It had been less than a year since we got the place after being stationed on opposite coasts for the last eleven years with the Marines, and as far as roommates go, I couldn’t do much better than my childhood best friend.

Paul and I lived next door to each other growing up, so even though he was a skater kid and I was a jock, we were thick as thieves. I guessed since we came up right alongside each other like that it didn’t matter that we hung in separate crowds at school. Besides, living so close meant Paul had a front-row seat to some of the crap that went on inside my house. We somehow managed to keep the rest of the town out of our business for the most part, but Paul had been right there to witness it. Right there to become like family to me. And now he was leaving to go start his own.

I shook my head and pulled out of the parking lot towards the grocery store. It was my turn to shop, and after a long day of work, it was basically the last thing I wanted to do. But being a good roomie meant pulling my weight, so off I went.

Two minutes later, I pulled into the lot and parked my truck. I grabbed my ball cap off the center console and smoothed it over my short hair. Since Marines can’t wear their uniforms while running errands off base, I’d brought civilian clothes with me to work. Changing there meant I wouldn’t have to go inside my apartment and risk blowing off the grocery store entirely. The sooner I got it done, the sooner I could get home and crack open a cold one in time for the game.

On my way into the store, I caught sight of a sporty black coupe parked across the aisle and did a double-take. Sure enough, the coupe had a blinged-out license plate frame with a vanity plate that read Say I Do. It was the kind of statement that only South Carolina’s hottest wedding planner would need to advertise for the world to see.

Groaning out loud, I stopped walking and looked up at the sky. Really? Did Aria really need to shop for groceries right now? Of all the days for her to decide to restock her selection of red wine and hoity-toity hummus, it had to be today?

I turned to look back at my truck, wondering how annoyed Paul would be if I booked it and promised to come back tomorrow. How badly did he need those Doritos, anyway? Marines had fitness standards, after all. Besides, Paul probably wouldn’t want me to run into his little sister either. Not if he knew the way I secretly felt about her.

But then I remembered that our fridge was basically bare at this point, so unless we wanted to make a box of Kraft Mac and Cheese for dinner—which negated the fitness point—I needed to suck it up and go shopping. And not only that, but we didn’t even have milk. Or butter. Hard pass. Thanks to my crappy parents, I’d made myself suck down enough boxed Mac and Cheese with only water to last a lifetime.

Straightening my shoulders, I headed into the store. Maybe I could get in, get what I needed, and slip out without running into her. With any luck, she’d be too busy waffling over which kind of organic salad dressing she wanted, and she wouldn’t even know I was there.

I grabbed a cart and pushed it into the store, nodding at an older woman I passed on the way. She looked familiar, but I couldn’t place her. That was the thing about moving back to a small town after being gone for more than a decade. I ran into people all the time who acted like they knew me, but I’d never been very good at putting faces to names. Keeping people at arm’s length was kind of my thing.

I angled my cart to the left, deciding to start with the produce and work my way through the store from there. That way, my last stop would be the refrigerated beer section that ran along the righthand wall. This was key because it would mean the mountains on the side of my cans would likely still be blue by the time I got home. As a high school quarterback turned Marine, I found myself creating a game plan no matter where I went. It just made sense.

I cruised up to the apples first, then grabbed some bananas and avocados. Just as I turned toward the bags of prepackaged salads, I froze. Aria stood in front of the lettuce, her long blonde hair falling down her back in loose curls. She wore a red blazer that accentuated her small middle, flaring out over her hips. She’d paired it with a black pencil skirt, and my gaze momentarily lingered on the small slit at the back of her knees. Aria was big on fashion and looked amazing every time I saw her, and today was no exception. Even her fancy heels matched her outfit with their black tops and red bottoms.

My stomach clenched and I closed my eyes, questioning my healthy eating habits. I should have skipped the produce section altogether. It shouldn’t have been a surprise to find Aria over here. She didn’t look like that because she gorged herself on frozen taquitos every night.

But before I could duck and run, she turned, jumping slightly when she saw me standing behind her. “Will. Hey.”

“Hey.”

An awkward silence came over us, and she pursed her lips. “Doing some grocery shopping?”

Glancing down at my cart, I almost laughed when I saw her eyes crinkle like she regretted stating the obvious. “Yeah, you know. My turn.”

“Right,” she replied with an easy smile. “Don’t forget—”

“The Doritos,” I finished for her. She knew her brother so well. “I won’t make that mistake again.”

“Smart man.”

I immediately disagreed with her in my mind. I wasn’t a smart man. If I were a smart man, I never would have agreed to share an apartment with Paul in our hometown of Bluffton after we both got orders to the base in Beaufort. I would have told him we should stick close to work, for convenience’s sake. Because while the forty-minute commute didn’t bother me, running into Aria all the time definitely did.

“So, uh, I guess I’ll let you get back to your shopping,” I said, eager to get away from her and her brightly painted red lips.

It hadn’t always been like this between us. Paul and Aria were only one grade apart in school, so when we were all kids, the three of us were constantly playing together. On my end, hanging out at their house was my escape from everything going on at mine. I practically became the Bristols’ third kid, I was around so much. We were The Three Musketeers. The Three Amigos. And sometimes even The Three Stooges. Either way, back then, I thought nothing could ever ruin what I had with my pretend brother and sister.

But then as we got a little older, Paul and I decided we were too cool to have Aria hanging around all the time. Our tree house trio became a video game playing duo, and I fully embraced the annoying-little-sister vibes.

And then, when we got a lot older, I started having feelings for Aria that were decidedly not in keeping with the brother-sister vibe. I hated that the protectiveness I felt for her was different than the way her actual brother felt. Since the last thing I wanted to do was wreck the only good relationship in my life by starting something with his little sister, I smashed down those feelings and vowed to never act on them. For that reason, along with other ones, too.

And I did a pretty good job of it. Except for that one time in my senior year of high school, which I still regretted to this day. Leaving Bluffton to join the Marines helped ensure nothing like that ever happened again. Not being here was the only way to pretend that Aria Bristol was something like a sister to me. I’d come home on leave to spend holidays with their family, knowing I’d only have to fake it for a short time, and then leave again without further incident. But living here now made everything a lot more complicated. In fact, a few months ago on Valentine’s Day, I came this close to ruining everything. Again.

Which was why this—standing in front of her now with no idea how to fix the awkward tension between us—was all my fault.

Her mouth straightened into a hard line like she was trying to figure out what to say, then she nodded. “Okay, have fun shopping. Tell Paul I said hi.”

“I will.” My words were quiet. Pointless, really, since she’d already turned and sauntered away. I should have turned too, but man if I couldn’t tear my eyes away from her retreating form. Again, not a smart man.

“Hi, Will.”

I jumped like I’d been caught with my hand in the cookie jar, turning to find the town florist and resident gossip queen watching me with a rueful expression. “Hi, Ms. Hattie.”

“The peaches are looking awful ripe today, aren’t they?”

Stuttering, I blinked at her. “Th-the what?”

“The peaches, Will,” she said, gesturing at the mountain of golden fruit between us.

“Er, right. Ripe.”

“Hand me a bag, will you?” She pointed at the rack holding the plastic bags on my right.

I did as she asked, handing it over with a stilted smile. “Here you go.”

“Thank you, dear.”

“No problem.”

“Aria’s really excited to be planning her brother’s wedding,” Ms. Hattie said, nodding in the direction she’d gone a moment before. “But it’s going to be a lot of work for her. You know, with being the wedding planner and the maid of honor at the same time.”

I lifted my chin, remembering that Aria’s status as the maid of honor in Paul and Shelby’s wedding would mean lots more time with her. And since I was the best man, it would also mean having her on my arm as we walked down the aisle behind the bride and groom. That would be fun. Not.

Shrugging one shoulder, I took a produce bag for myself and opened it, not even sure what I planned to put inside. Definitely not peaches, though. “She’ll be all right. Aria’s a pro at multitasking.”

“That, she is. And she’s always been so capable. A real go-getter. Remember when she was in Girl Scouts and she sold more cookies than anyone else in her troop? She ran those cookie booths like a born businesswoman.”

I did remember. She’d been in fifth grade and I’d been in sixth. She’d charged up to me in her green Girl Scouts sash with a colorful order form and a bag of samples, insisting that I had to try some. After she’d hustled me out of every last dollar I’d earned mowing lawns in the neighborhood, I had my first inkling that Aria might not feel much like a little sister, after all. It was all downhill from there.

“Yep. She’s a force. So I’m sure this wedding stuff will be fine.”

Ms. Hattie sighed as she tied the bag of peaches and placed it in her cart. “It’s a wonder how she has time for a life with all of that work she does. I know June is the busiest wedding month of the year, but goodness. She must never sleep. And how she has time to date is beyond me.”

This brought me up short. “Date?”

“Yes, date. A gentleman came into my shop right before closing saying he had a date with her tonight.”

Swallowing past the jealousy that worked its way up my throat, I tried for casual. “Oh, cool. Good for her.”

“I guess. But I don’t think he stands a chance, between you and me.”

Knowing full well that there was no such thing as between you and me for Ms. Hattie, I crossed my arms over my chest and chuckled. “You don’t think so?”

“Heavens, no. The man bought her daisies, Will. Daisies.”

I wasn’t as well versed in flowers as Ms. Hattie, but I could tell by her tone that daisies were a bad choice. And now that I thought about it, I guessed they didn’t strike me as the kind of flowers that would work for a date. Something you’d buy your grandma, maybe, but not a woman you were interested in.

“What about you?” she asked when I didn’t say anything. “Have you been seeing anyone special lately? We have some great sales on lilies this month. Now those are romantic.”

I shook my head with a snort. “No one special, Ms. Hattie.”

In fact, I couldn’t remember ever thinking any of the women I dated were special. Fun, sure. Hot, always. But special? The word had never entered my mental vocabulary when it came to women. And that was just how I wanted it.

“Shame. You’d be a great catch.”

Taking the chance to make a joke, I pointed at her. “Hey, now, don’t let Thatcher hear you talking to me like that. Wouldn’t want him to worry I’ll steal you away.”

The older woman rewarded me with a blush and waved a hand. “Oh, you.”

Nodding at my cart, I gave her an apologetic smile. “I should probably get the rest of my shopping done before Paul wonders if I got abducted by aliens. I’ll see you around.”

“It was nice talking to you, dear,” Ms. Hattie said with a cheerful smile. “And give my best to Paul. I’m so happy he and Shelby finally found their happily ever after.”

“Sure thing,” I replied as I steered my cart away.

I was happy for Paul, too. I really was. And I wasn’t at all jealous. The thing was, Paul wasn’t like me. He’d always been destined for a happy marriage with the perfect girl. They’d have the perfect house and the perfect life that he’d had growing up, and that was just the way it ought to be.

But for me? Well, that stuff simply wasn’t in the cards. I came from darkness, and there was no way I’d make the kind of husband and father that Paul someday would. It wasn’t in my DNA. Especially if she could be described as special. If she were special, she’d deserve way better than the likes of me.

❤️ Military Hero

❤️ Brother’s Best Friend

❤️ Wedding planner heroine

❤️ Motorcycle rides

❤️ He was her first kiss

❤️ Small-Town Vibes

Brides of Beaufort

📚 The Proposal - Paul & Shelby
📚 The Planner - Will & Aria
📚 The Bridesmaid - Zac & Layla
📚 The Fake Date - Beau & Lindi
📚 The Contract - Chase & Zoe
📚 The Proposal - Nate & Nikki

Related Standalone:

📚 The Beginning - Thatcher & Hattie

Note: Chronologically, this one is set 30 years before book one of this series. It’s where you’ll meet Ms. Hattie (the much-loved, meddling matchmaker in the main series) and watch her find forever with her now husband, Thatcher. There’s no reason you can’t read it last if you’d like to start with the main books, but if you’d like to read them in chronological order, that’s how it goes! :)

📚 BONUS 📚

Love the San Diego or Kailua Marines? The Brides of Beaufort series follows our Kailua heroes, and you’ll even see cameos from the characters in San Diego! But, no worries, all of the books can be read as standalones if you’re just in the mood for a specific trope/location. It’s just fun to run into old friends sometimes if you read them in order! :)

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Jess does it again and does it well!

"Awww, it's good. Aria & Will are so good…once they finally ‘fess up to their feelings. Actually, it was mostly Will, but it's pretty angsty for a while. The best friend's sister storyline is not new, but this one is done well."

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Wonderful Book!

"This is going to be an interesting and exciting series. So far the first two books have been excellent. I just loved Aria and Will's story. Paul and Shelby's wedding was beautiful. Looking forward to read about Layla and Zach in the next book. Very good job Jess."

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Sweet

"This was a sweet brother's best friend romance that I enjoyed. I loved seeing the two characters work together to overcome their challenges. I look forward to the rest of the books in the series and getting updates on the characters I've grown to love."