On The Way To The Wedding is the eighth novel in the Bridgerton series, by Julia Quinn. The book follows the story of Gregory Bridgerton, the seventh Bridgerton child and youngest son.
Synopsis[]
Unlike most men of his acquaintance, Gregory Bridgerton believes in true love. And he is convinced that when he finds the woman of his dreams, he will know in an instant that she is the one. And that is exactly what happened. Except…
She wasn’t the one. In fact, the ravishing Miss Hermione Watson is in love with someone else. But her best friend, the ever-practical Lady Lucinda Abernathy, wants to save Hermione from a disastrous alliance, so she offers to help Gregory win her over. But in the process, Lucy falls in love. With Gregory! Except…
Lucy is engaged. And her uncle is not inclined to let her back out of the betrothal, even once Gregory comes to his senses and realizes that it is Lucy, with her sharp wit and sunny smile, who makes his heart sing. And now, on the way to the wedding, Gregory must risk everything to ensure that when it comes time to kiss the bride, he is the only man standing at the altar…[1]
Plot[]
PROLOGUE
During the summer of 1827 in London, Gregory was running, as fast as he could, to the church to stop the wedding. He got there just in the middle of the ceremony, confessing his undying love for her, for Lucy, and asks her to stop and to marry him instead.
TWO MONTHS EARLIER
In which Our Hero falls in love.
Gregory, a hopeless romantic, believes he's fallen for Miss Hermione Watson, a daughter of the late Lord Watson, a viscount, just from the sight of the back of her head. He becomes friendly with the lady's friend and companion, Lady Lucinda Abernathy, to get in Hermione's good graces. He even leans in to kiss Lucy's hand first, which makes her gasp from surprise and flattery, asking for a dance after her friend respectfully declines.
In which Our Heroine displays a decided lack of respect for all things romantic.
The two attempt to dance but then Lucy asks to check out the food, which impresses Gregory. While admiring the food, Lucy goes on to tell him that her friend is in love with someone else. They greet Gregory's sister-in-law, Kate, and chat for a bit before Lucy excuses herself to check on Hermione in her room. Hermione talks about her romantic feelings for her father's secretary, Mr. Edmonds. They disagree on how and when one falls in love, with Hermione stating: "One doesn't choose. It just happens. In an instant."
In which Our Hero tries very, very hard.
During breakfast, Kate and Gregory chat, and Kate assumes that Gregory is interested in Lucy, however, he quickly makes it clear that it's not, but, her friend, Hermione. This immediately surprises Kate, since to her knowledge, he and Lucy seemed to be having a good time together at the ball. He then continues to impress Hermione, and Lucy even tries to chime in, giving Hermione complements on her art skills.
In which Our Heroine offers advice, Our Hero takes it, and everyone eats too much pie.
Lucy offers advice to Gregory, and tells him to give Hermione less attention and be patient, Gregory is hesitant about it, but says he'll think about it. He then looks at Lucy, which makes her feel flushed, as if he could see down her very soul. He then thanks her for the advice regarding Hermione, leaving Lucy to feel rather.. jealous. And Gregory soon realises that her advice was far from working..
In which Our Hero and Heroine have a most intriguing conversation
Gregory corners Lucy as the two enter the library, confronting her on her bad advice. They then begin talking about if one should risk anything or everything for love. And suddenly Gregory looks at Lucy in a completely different light, in a different way. As she was standing there, telling him that her friend must come to her senses as Lucy saw and knew that Gregory was so much better than the rest of them. And Gregory just couldn't stop staring at her, suddenly feeling the urge to kiss her.
In which Our Hero makes progress.
Lucy wakes up with instant regret and overthinking again and again over her encounter with Gregory the night before. Afraid to face him, she decides not to go for breakfast, Hermione goes alone and has a talk with Gregory. Hermione finds herself enjoying chatting with him, and gets extremely confused about her romantic feelings at the moment. Does this mean she's not as in love with Mr. Edmonds as she thought?
In which Our Unexpected Guest delivers distressing news
Lucy's brother, Richard, returns. Gregory immediately realises that Richard fancies himself in love with Hermione Watson. Richard informs Lucy that her wedding to Lord Haselby is officially happening, and sooner than she could have anticipated.
In which Our Heroine learns the truth about her brother (but does not believe it), Our Hero learns a secret about Miss Watson (but is not concerned by it), and both learn a truth about themselves (but are not aware of it).
Gregory runs into Lucy on the bench near the lake outside of Aubrey Hall, and sits with her and then walk around for a bit. The two have a long conversation, laugh, and even flirt a little.
In which Our Story takes a turn.
Lucy and Gregory see each other at the masquerade ball, admiring the food. Gregory begins feeling an unease, and impulsively asks Lucy to dance. She happily accepts, and when the music is over, they share a moment.
In which Our Hero does the one thing he would never have anticipated
Slightly drunk Gregory runs into Lucy, feeling overwhelmed, share a passionate kiss or rather multiple kisses until Lucy eventually pulls away,
In which nothing is resolved.
Gregory eats breakfast with Kate, not being able to get his mind of Lucy and their kiss from the night before. He then rushes to catch her before she leaves.
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