From the Publisher

Becca Davis has always played it safe — denying her passion for fashion design in a dead-end job and letting her pragmatic boyfriend (mastermind of the "Kevin Bradley Ten-Year Plan") make the tough decisions in life. Stunned into saying yes when Mr. Predictable springs a surprise proposal on her, Becca realizes that she's running out of time to turn her life around. She's only got one more chance to chase her dreams and no one — not her control freak fiancé, not her dramaholic sisters, not her overprotective parents — will talk her out of it.

Terrified but determined, Becca breaks off her engagement, moves in with her sister in Los Angeles, and prepares to take the fashion world by storm. The reality of the Hollywood scene is much harsher than she anticipated — lots of slamming doors, snooty clients, and double-crossing celebrity stylists — but she won't give up. And while she's waiting for her big break, she meets Connor, a sexy risk-taker who's the polar opposite of her ex-fiancé. Is Becca ready for his all-or-nothing approach to love? With her design business taking off and her family starting to fall apart, she's about to learn the timeliest lesson of all: Love and fashion wait for no woman.

Publishers Weekly

Becca Davis, 25 and living with her parents in Phoenix, is struggling with controlling ex-fiance Kevin Bradley, who is determined to win her back. Liberating herself, Becca heads to L.A., where her rich married sister, Claire, lives, to start a career in fashion, with only one wedding dress and corset in her portfolio. Becca secures a job as a hostess in an upscale eatery run by a handsome, single and adventurous restaurateur. Conner is everything Kevin wasn't, and sparks fly. Meanwhile, Becca may have her first break when she meets Fiona, an aloof and diabolical celebrity stylist who needs someone to put her clients together. Claire, who is a very material girl, is put to the test when husband Andrew loses his studio exec job (Claire ponders putting her unborn twins up for adoption in response to the job crisis). Becca's arc from a flighty, floundering young woman into a self-aware adult features kitschy, cat-scratchy banter ("Don't be jealous of my rico suave finesse") and a happily-ever-after close. The author of Exes and Ohs, Kendrick gives chick lit clich s an adroit turn. (Jan.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

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I knew what was coming as soon as he handed me the teddy bear. White and fluffy, clutching a little red satin heart, this was the harbinger of Kevin's marriage proposal. No matter how I wanted to deny it, I knew, deep in the pit of my stomach, that the moment of truth had finally arrived.

"I have a surprise for you," he murmured, sitting down next to me on the inn's lace-canopied bed and pressing the bear into my hands.

"Oh..." I conjured up a shaky smile and tried to gaze at the bear with a reasonable facsimile of adoring, childlike whimsy. "It's so...cute."

"I'm glad you like it, but there's more," he said, his eyes gleaming with intensity. "This bear has a secret."

Oh no. "Oh yeah?"

"Look closely."

It could not have been more obvious that the red satin heart had been gutted and resewn; from the garish pink thread and large, uneven stitches, I'd say he did the handiwork himself. But in a desperate bid to buy some time, I feigned bewilderment, turning the bear upside down and examining the manufacturer's tag, the back of the head, the red-lined ears.

"Aw, sweetie." My voice came out thin and scratchy. "It's adorable. Listen, do you want to go grab some dinner at that little café we saw down the street?"

"In a minute." He turned the bear back over and placed my fingers on the red heart. "Look at this."

"It...it looks like..."

"There's something in there." His face lit up as he squeezed my hand. "Something special."

"Let me go grab my nail scissors." I jerked free and dashed into the hotel room's tiny bathroom. After splashing some cold water on my face, I caught my reflection in the mirror above the sink -- a wild-eyed,ashen-faced woman who'd just lived through a car crash or a bank robbery. I couldn't let Kevin see me like this. He'd be devastated.

But when I emerged from the bathroom, manicure scissors in hand, he didn't seem to notice my distress. He just smiled and thrust the bear back into my arms. "Open it."

Each severed stitch brought me closer to the inevitable. Snip. Snip. Remember to exhale.

I could feel his hot breath in my ear, accelerating each time another stitch gave way.

Snip. Snip. The room started to spin.

Snip. The heart burst open, spilling polyurethane stuffing and a diamond ring into my lap. Before I had time to put together an appropriate response, he dropped to one knee and slipped the ring onto my finger. "Rebecca June Davis, I love you and I'll love you forever. Will you marry me?"

I looked at his face, bathed in hope and pride. I looked at our suitcases by the door, already unpacked since we were going to be at the bed-and-breakfast for three more days. And then I looked at the ring, already on my finger, and said the only thing I could say: "Um. Yes?"

Copyright © 2005 by Beth Macias

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Fashionably Late

Downtown Press

I knew what was coming as soon as he handed me the teddy bear. White and fluffy, clutching a little red satin heart, this was the harbinger of Kevin's marriage proposal. No matter how I wanted to deny it, I knew, deep in the pit of my stomach, that the moment of truth had finally arrived.

"I have a surprise for you," he murmured, sitting down next to me on the inn's lace-canopied bed and pressing the bear into my hands.

"Oh..." I conjured up a shaky smile and tried to gaze at the bear with a reasonable facsimile of adoring, childlike whimsy. "It's so...cute."

"I'm glad you like it, but there's more," he said, his eyes gleaming with intensity. "This bear has a secret."

Oh no. "Oh yeah?"

"Look closely."

It could not have been more obvious that the red satin heart had been gutted and resewn; from the garish pink thread and large, uneven stitches, I'd say he did the handiwork himself. But in a desperate bid to buy some time, I feigned bewilderment, turning the bear upside down and examining the manufacturer's tag, the back of the head, the red-lined ears.

"Aw, sweetie." My voice came out thin and scratchy. "It's adorable. Listen, do you want to go grab some dinner at that little café we saw down the street?"

"In a minute." He turned the bear back over and placed my fingers on the red heart. "Look at this."

"It...it looks like..."

"There's something in there." His face lit up as he squeezed my hand. "Something special."

"Let me go grab my nail scissors." I jerked free and dashed into the hotel room's tiny bathroom. After splashing some cold water on my face, I caught my reflection in the mirror above the sink -- a wild-eyed, ashen-faced woman who'd just lived through a car crash or a bank robbery. I couldn't let Kevin see me like this. He'd be devastated.

But when I emerged from the bathroom, manicure scissors in hand, he didn't seem to notice my distress. He just smiled and thrust the bear back into my arms. "Open it."

Each severed stitch brought me closer to the inevitable. Snip. Snip. Remember to exhale.

I could feel his hot breath in my ear, accelerating each time another stitch gave way.

Snip. Snip. The room started to spin.

Snip. The heart burst open, spilling polyurethane stuffing and a diamond ring into my lap. Before I had time to put together an appropriate response, he dropped to one knee and slipped the ring onto my finger. "Rebecca June Davis, I love you and I'll love you forever. Will you marry me?"

I looked at his face, bathed in hope and pride. I looked at our suitcases by the door, already unpacked since we were going to be at the bed-and-breakfast for three more days. And then I looked at the ring, already on my finger, and said the only thing I could say: "Um. Yes?"

Copyright © 2005 by Beth Macias

Continues...

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Excerpted from Fashionably Late by Beth Kendrick Copyright © 2006 by Beth Kendrick. Excerpted by permission.
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