Falling for her again might be his undoing.
Elizabeth Jones has changed everything about herself—right down to her name.
She’s quashed the naïve, overweight girl she was at nineteen. Now, she was a
savvy, sophisticated woman with a unique and thriving business that, if the
details came out, could ultimately ruin her.
The
young woman who left Carson Hill standing at the altar ten years ago is now scamming
his best friend, and no one can stop her but him. But coming face to face with
her again is like a punch to the gut. Gone is the shy, curvy woman he once
loved and believed loved him.
Falling
for her again just might be his undoing.
This
week Wild Women Authors will feature Mia Augustine and her Fiery Billionaire
Nights series. Today’s story, Wedding Vows for Hire, has a plot
involving long lost lovers reunited under less than positive circumstances. With
author Mia is Elizabeth Jones, owner of Weddings to Go, who will go first.
Thank you for joining us,
Elizabeth—or do you prefer Bindi? Elizabeth
is fine. I’ve haven’t been known as Bindi in ten years.
I
can see you’re uncomfortable so we’ll just move on. Do you believe in true
love? I do not. I suppose I did at
one time… but no longer.
I’m
sorry. It sounds as if you experienced something painful. Hasn’t everyone?
Okaaaay.
Let’s talk about your business. Weddings to Go? What you like to know?
I
understand you plan weddings? But how is a wedding to go? Doesn’t that breed
confusion for the branding? All I can
tell you is that we started out as a wedding planning business, but New York
City has a billion wedding planners. We inadvertently shifted to something a
bit different. I’m afraid I can’t elaborate. Our clients are required to sign a
very specific non-disclosure agreement. I can hardly speak to the details.
Okaaaay.
Have you ever run away? That should be safe enough. Once. Ten years ago.
I
sense I’m striking out here. Do you believe in second chances?
When Elizabeth
only gives a bitter laugh, we ask, Are you a risk taker?
Now, that
I can answer. I didn’t use to be. But when you move from a community as small
as Bloomington, South Dakota to Manhattan, well, that’s risky, isn’t it? And,
while I can’t really reveal the secrets behind our business, I can tell you, that
if the details were to emerge, we would be utterly ruined.
That
is interesting. We thank you for spending time with us, Elizabeth and
wish you luck with your enterprise. We’d like to speak with Mia.
What’s your favorite thing
about being an author? The creativity,
your own schedule, the networking. I’m not a shy person. You would think the
lockdown would have deterred me, but it did not. I’m busier now than I’ve ever
been. I can’t believe how busy. But I love every part of it.
Tell us one story related to
your writing endeavors. Amuse us, make us
cry, make us cringe or make us smirk – your choice. Well, I was working for a large corporation. I had
been with the company nine years before I started writing. I began in 2006. During
our lunch breaks I would talk about these stories I was working on, and no one
got it. I hadn’t yet found RWA at that time. They would look at me as if I was
crazy. Not only that, but they would cut off my conversation and go back to
talking about raising their families. Which I got. Except, my only child was 18
and about to graduate from high school. I was little past that place in my
life. They just didn’t understand. And, when I found “my people,” I found my
home.
What’s the most
challenging thing about being an author? Ironically, it’s the same as my favorite reasons: Do I worry that I won’t
have a story—well, not that. But the schedule? There is no one to hold me
accountable to sitting down and getting the story pumped out. The marketing is
tough, but I'm learning it. But, yes, the marketing has to be the most challenging
part. Oh, and reviews. Reviews are hard to get too. The option is to quit, and
that isn’t an option for me. 😊
Mia
brought an excerpt for us:
“God,
Elizabeth. This has got to stop. I have a bad feeling about this one.”
Samantha
Felix was Elizabeth’s best friend. Sam paced the spacious living room of their
two-bedroom Manhattan apartment, located off Lexington and 35th in
Midtown. The fifth floor of the Marquis building was as high as they could
afford but it worked for their purposes.
Elizabeth
sipped her wine. “We only need this one last job and we’ll be set.”
“But
none of the girls are available. They’re all married.”
Elizabeth
wrinkled her nose. That was an issue, but she had a solution. As usual. “I’m
going to step in myself this time.”
“Are
you crazy?” Samantha stopped her pacing and gaped at Elizabeth. “No! It’s too
risky.”
“It
will be fine,” she said with a confidence she didn’t feel. In the five years
they’d managed this business, no one had found them out. Samantha was an
attorney who specialized in contract law. She handled that end of their
lucrative business. Three of Elizabeth’s friends from her hometown of
Bloomington and one friend from college had all stepped in as needed. The money
was good. Great. The money was great. But to date, Elizabeth hadn’t had to step
into the spotlight due to a disastrous scenario that happened several years
ago. The entire fiasco had given her the idea for their LLC: Weddings to Go.
On
the front it was a wedding planning business. But beneath the surface it was
much, much more. The other thing in her favor? She looked nothing like she did
ten years ago.
AMZ: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09PJ3XSNT/
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/wedding-vows-for-hire
B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/wedding-vows-for-hire-mia-augustine/1143263208
Payhip: https://payhip.com/b/UfCBk
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/books/wedding-vows-for-hire-bloomington-by-mia-augustine
Mia
Augustine can be found at:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100089614103041
Instagram: https://instagram.com/miaaugustineauthor
TikTok:
https://tiktok.com/@kathylwheeler
Website:
https://kathylwheeler.com
An interesting and mysterious premise - can't wait to check it out.
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