Jane Linfoot - Christmas Promises at the Little Wedding Shop - Celebrate Christmas in Cornwall with this magical romance!

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First published in Great Britain by Harper Impulse 2017

Copyright © Jane Linfoot 2017

Cover design © HarperCollins Publishers Ltd 2017

Cover Illustrations © Shutterstock.com

Jane Linfoot asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

A catalogue copy of this book is available from the British Library.

This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.

Source ISBN: 9780008260668

Ebook Edition © June 2017 ISBN: 9780008260651

Version: 2017-09-18

‘Jane Linfoot has got out the mixing bowl and whipped up a truly gorgeous story…A deliciously scrumptious treat’

Rebecca Pugh, bestselling author of Return to Bluebell Hill

‘Just like the perfect wedding cake, Cupcakes and Confetti is beautifully crafted and wrapped in romance’

Heidi Swain, bestselling author of The Cherry Tree Cafe

‘A pure delight…fabulous, fun and unforgettable’

Debbie Johnson, bestselling author of Summer at the Comfort Food Café

‘Simply stunning’

A Spoonful of Happy Endings

‘Gorgeous book with characters full of heart, and an impassioned story to make you smile’

Reviewed the Book

‘This author packs a punch’

My Little Book Blog

‘Loved this book. The main characters are vividly drawn…the writing is fast and feisty’

Contemporary Romance Reviews

‘With every book I read I fall more in love’

Booky Ramblings

For Anna and Jamie, Indi, Richard and Eric, Max and Caroline, M, and Phil. With love. xx

Each of the stories abbot Poppy, Sera, Lily, Holly, Jess and their friends at Brides by the Sea can be read on its own. If you’d like to read consecutively, this is the order:

The Little Wedding Shop by the Sea

Christmas at the Little Wedding Shop

Summer at the Little Wedding Shop

Christmas Promises at the Little Wedding Shop

I hope you have as much fun reading the books as I have writing them, love Jane xx

Taking pictures is like tiptoeing into the kitchen late at night and stealing Oreo cookies

Diane Arbus

Table of Contents

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Praise for Jane Linfoot

Dedication

Author Note

Epigraph

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

Chapter 37

Chapter 38

Chapter 39

Chapter 40

Chapter 41

Chapter 42

Keep Reading …

Some Delicious Recipes from Christmas Promises at the Little Wedding Shop …

Favourite Cocktails from Christmas Promises at the Little Wedding Shop

Acknowledgements

Also by Jane Linfoot

About the Author

About HarperImpulse

About the Publisher

Saturday, 2nd December

At St Aidan station: Sparkle all the way

‘Could you possibly take me to Brides by the Sea?’

The whiskers I’m staring up at are curly, white and, at a guess, a hundred per cent acrylic. And let’s be clear about this – hitching a ride on Santa’s horse and carriage definitely isn’t my first choice to get across town to the wedding shop, where I’m going to be staying for the next month.

When I got on the train this morning at St Pancras there was a seventy-five-foot tree in the departure hall, enough spangley lights to illuminate the northern hemisphere and choirs clustered around pianos singing carols. Christmas in London was rolled out in November. I can’t tell you how blissful it was to leave it all behind and arrive in St Aidan to the sound of seagulls, and one wonky tree by the station exit that hadn’t got its decorations on yet. And I know my mum and dad have let our family house in nearby Rose Hill village and gone off to Spain on a wild winter sun-seeking adventure in a motor caravan. But when I smell the salty air and catch a glimpse of the jumble of white painted cottages and grey stone houses winding up the hill into the town here, even though my parents are away it still feels as if I’m coming home.

The bad news is, by the time I’ve jostled my way through the mass of travellers in their North Face jackets, and dragged my rucksack and a suitcase the size of a garden shed onto the pavement outside the station, the last of the line of waiting taxis is a disappearing dot on the horizon. So when a pony and trap driven by Santa Claus himself jingles to a halt in front of me, even though I’ve come to here to avoid Christmas, the offer of a lift into town is too tempting to turn down.

‘Brides by the Sea, Jess’s wedding shop?’ Santa hitches his belt over a stomach so squishy it has to be hollowfill and raises one eyebrow archly. Then he nudges the huge elf in green beside him. ‘Four floors of bridal gorgeousness, Cornwall’s most fabulous wedding emporium. As advertised on Pirate Radio, and featured in Hello! and OK! magazines.’

‘That’s the one,’ I say, mildly surprised that he’s so word perfect. Although even that gushing description falls short of describing the delicious haven of white lace and prettiness that overlooks St Aidan bay. He’s obviously heard about Seraphina East, known to us as Sera, the shop’s dress designer, hitting the nationals last year, when she made a bespoke dress for a celebrity.

Santa beams as he rubs his belt. ‘Brides by the Sea will always have a special place in our hearts. It’s where we bought the suits for our very own wedding.’ He and the elf exchange dreamy glances, a couple more nudges and some nose wrinkles. ‘You know they’re extending into the shop next door too?’ Santa’s sudden change of tone suggests he’s impressed, yet possibly jealous.

‘Do you know Jess well, then?’ I’ve heard the news about the shop expanding, because I’ve been chatting to my bestie Poppy, who works there. But it always comes as a shock when I remember St Aidan’s, the kind of town where everyone knows everybody, and everything about them too. Pretty much down to their bra size.