The Honeymooner
~ a paradise bay romantic comedy ~
By Melanie Summers
Copyright © 2018 Gretz Corp.
All rights reserved.
Published by Gretz Corp.
First edition
EBOOK ISBN: 978-1-988891-17-0
Print ISBN: 978-1-988891-18-7
No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
PRAISE FOR MELANIE SUMMERS
“A fun, often humorous, escapist tale that will have readers blushing, laughing and rooting for its characters.” ~ Kirkus Reviews
A gorgeously funny, romantic and seductive modern fairy tale…
I have never laughed out loud so much in my life. I don’t think that I’ve ever said that about a book before, and yet that doesn’t even seem accurate as to just how incredibly funny, witty, romantic, swoony…and other wonderfully charming and deliriously dreamy The Royal Treatment was. I was so gutted when this book finished, I still haven’t even processed my sadness at having to temporarily say goodbye to my latest favourite Royal couple.
~ MammieBabbie Book Club
The Royal Treatment is a quick and easy read with an in depth, well thought out plot. It’s perfect for someone that needs a break from this world and wants to delve into a modern-day fairy tale that will keep them laughing and rooting for the main characters throughout the story. ~ ChickLit Café
I have to HIGHLY HIGHLY HIGHLY RECOMMEND The Royal Treatment to EVERYONE!
~ Jennifer, The Power of Three Readers
I was totally gripped to this story. For the first time ever the Kindle came into the bath with me. This book is unputdownable. I absolutely loved it.
~ Philomena (Two Friends, Read Along with Us)
Very rarely does a book make me literally hold my breath or has me feeling that actual ache in my heart for a character, but I did both.”~ Three Chicks Review for Netgalley
ALSO AVAILABLE
ROMANTIC COMEDIES by Melanie Summers
The Crown Jewels Series
The Royal Treatment
The Royal Wedding
The Royal Delivery
Paradise Bay Series
The Honeymooner
STEAMY OFFERINGS by MJ Summers
The Full Hearts Series
Break in Two
Don’t Let Go – Prequel to Breaking Love - E-book only
Breaking Love
Letting Go - Prequel to Breaking Clear & The Break-up
Breaking Clear
Breaking Hearts
The Break-up
Reckless in Rio (A Love at the Games Novella)
DEDICATION
For you.
Because if you've opened this book, it means you need a laugh, which likely means that:
a) you've been either working far too hard,
b) you’re not having a good go of things right now,
c) you’re stuck on a long train ride with no Wi-Fi and someone has left this book on a seat, so you figured what the hell? Might as well read until I'm sleepy enough to have a nap,
Or d) all of the above.
If you fit into any of those categories, it means you are my muse. And since every writer needs a muse, I thank you for being mine.
Melanie
AUTHOR’S NOTE
Dear Reader,
Three years ago, I wrote a short story called Honeymoon with a Billionaire for a rather steamy, multi-author boxed set about…you guessed it, really friggin’ rich guys. I always loved bits of the story, especially the hilarious way the uptight heroine met the hero. Because the original had to be under seventy pages, I had to leave a lot of the good stuff out and always meant to go back and make it a full book.
This spring, I decided to do just that, only as a comedy. The funny thing is, when I went back and reread the story, I realized I didn’t really like the hero (he was a little on the controlling side – eww!), so I needed to scrap him and start over. There are still a few bits and pieces of the original (so if you’ve read it, you’ll recognize a couple of scenes), but what it has turned into is so much more.
Our hero, Harrison Banks, is not a billionaire at all, but a guy trying to keep his family’s resort open in the face of tough times. Our heroine, Libby Dewitt, is no longer an uptight librarian but is now an ultra-uptight business analyst.
The story begins in an unusual way — with some maps, a wedding invitation, a resort brochure, and then you’ll get a chance to read some of our hero’s mail before we jump into the action. I hope you’ll give these a look/read because they really are fun and they are definitely important to help set the stage.
So, without further blabbing, I’ll let you get to it because there’s a whole lot of ridiculously romantic moments and laughs to be had in this book. (Plus, there are maps! How crazy fun is that?)
Thank you for being part of my writing life! Without you, I’d have to go back to being an adult again (and that was not my thing).
Happy escaping!
Melanie
CONTENTS
AUTHOR’S NOTE
MAP – JOURNEY OF THE JILTED BRIDE
MAP – THE BENAVENTE ISLANDS
MAP – SANTA VALENTINA ISLAND
PARADISE BAY RESORT BROCHURE
WEDDING INVITATION
THE ONE TIME IT’S OKAY TO READ OTHER PEOPLE’S MAIL
ONE
TWO
THREE
FOUR
FIVE
SIX
SEVEN
EIGHT
NINE
TEN
ELEVEN
TWELVE
THIRTEEN
FOURTEEN
FIFTEEN
SIXTEEN
SEVENTEEN
EIGHTEEN
NINETEEN
TWENTY
TWENTY-ONE
TWENTY-TWO
TWENTY-THREE
TWENTY-FOUR
TWENTY-FIVE
TWENTY-SIX
TWENTY-SEVEN
TWENTY-EIGHT
TWENTY-NINE
EPILOGUE
THE ISLAND OF EDEN BROCHURE
UP NEXT FROM MELANIE SUMMERS…
A NOTE FROM MELANIE
Special thanks
THE ONE TIME IT’S OKAY TO READ OTHER PEOPLE’S MAIL
August 2nd, 2018
From: Libby Dewitt
Business Analyst
Mergers and Acquisitions
GlobalLux Inc.
510 Windsor Road
Valcourt, Avonia
A8V 4G7
Office Number: 23-334-4545 ext. 201
To: Harrison Banks
Owner/Proprietor of Paradise Bay All-Inclusive Resort
1 Seaview Lane
Paradise Bay, Benavente Island
B3Y T3H
Dear Mr. Banks,
I am writing to follow up on the telephone messages I’ve left with your front desk staff over the past few weeks. I am a member of the mergers and acquisitions team at GlobalLux Inc., one of the world’s premier luxury hotel groups. GlobalLux is currently expanding our brand to include several high-end all-inclusive resorts. In an effort to expedite this expansion, we are seeking to purchase properties that are well-run and well-reviewed, such as Paradise Bay.
Your property is of particular interest to our team, as it is the largest ocean-front property on the Benavente Islands.
GlobalLux is willing to consider either a straight purchase of Paradise Bay, or—what may be a more attractive option to you, depending on your goals—a partnership, where GlobalLux would underwrite your current operation, leaving you in place as the owner/operator but with the capital and purchasing power of an international organization required to stay competitive. As your property is currently carrying a substantial loan, it’s in your best interest (and that of your staff) to consider this opportunity.
The days of privately owned, one-off resorts such as yours are coming to an end. Conglomerates like GlobalLux have the advantage of bulk purchasing from all vendors, which greatly reduces operating costs. We also enjoy robust promotional budgets, thereby attracting a much larger clientele for whom we are able to provide a comparable guest experience at a much lower cost.
The next steps would be to arrange a call so that I can better explain our intentions and see if we can come to an agreement in principle, which would allow us to move forward with what will certainly be a lucrative opportunity for you.
Please email me at [email protected] or phone me at your earliest convenience to discuss this further.
Best Regards,
Libby Dewitt
***
Email from Libby Dewitt to Harrison Banks
Date: August 10th, 2018
Dear Mr. Banks,
I sent you a letter a week ago on behalf of my employer, GlobalLux. As I have yet to hear from you, I wanted to make sure that you received my correspondence.
I have gone ahead and booked a stay at your resort for my honeymoon (September 23rd - October 14th) so we can meet in person to discuss the offer. If you have any questions, please email or phone.
Warmest Regards,
Libby Dewitt
***
Email from Libby Dewitt to Harrison Banks
Date: September 5th, 2018
Dear Mr. Banks,
Hopefully my previous email didn’t end up in your spam folder. As I will be travelling to Santa Valentina Island in a little over two weeks’ time, I am hoping we can connect straight away to set up a time to meet between September 23rd and October 14th.
Regards,
Libby
***
September 17th, 2018
From: Mary M. McNally
Benavente Credit Union
62 Main Street
San Felipe, Santa Valentina Island
B3A P2N
Phone: 248-355-2535
To: Harrison Banks
Owner/Proprietor of Paradise Bay All-Inclusive Resort
1 Seaview Lane
Paradise Bay, Santa Valentina Island
B3Y T3H
RE: Loan Number 5493-07842-012
Dear Mr. Banks,
According to our records, payment on the above referenced loan account is now 60 days in arrears. Recent attempts to reach you by mail and phone have been unsuccessful.
This is the final notice for the entire past due amount, including accrued late charges. The payment is to be received in our office within 7 days. If you are unable to meet these payment terms, you are required to call me to discuss other collection options.
Failure to make payment or respond to this letter within the aforementioned timeframe will force Benavente Credit Union to begin bankruptcy proceedings.
Regards,
Mary McNally
ONE
Get Me to the Church on Time…
Libby Dewitt
Valcourt, Avonia, United Kingdom
The secret to the perfect life is to always have a plan. That and really great hair. The hair will cost you (in my case, a lot, due to the many products needed to tame my bright red curls), but the plan is free of charge and will definitely change your life. In my opinion, the old adage ‘if you fail to plan, you plan to fail’ is 100% true. And if there’s anything I refuse to be, it’s a failure.
That sounded harsh, didn’t it? Failure is such a bleak word. It sounds so…final and loser-ish. But in my case, I’ve had to outrun the possibility of turning into a total failure my entire life because it’s the very word that describes the woman who gave birth to me.
For the bulk of my formative years, I was keenly aware of the fact that everyone who knew me was watching and waiting to see how far the apple would land from the tree. My mother, Penny Dewitt, could best be described as someone who never finishes what she starts, whether it’s a pottery class, washing up the pasta pot after supper, or raising a child.
Penny was twenty-one when I was born, and she never seemed to feel shy about telling people she had no idea who my father was. Instead, she seemed to find it hilarious that I was the end result of a three-day folk festival in Edinburgh.
As a little girl, I didn’t know any better than to think the world of her. I was certain she was the most beautiful, most fun person on the planet. One of my earliest memories is of her grinning down at me with a gleam in her eye, saying, “I’m bored. Let’s do something incredible.”
We didn't have what you would call a conventional lifestyle, but rather drifted from place to place, overstaying our welcome at her friends’ houses before we’d leave and land on someone else’s doorstep. In my first five years of life, I lived in over twelve different countries as far as Bali, Australia, and even Brazil for a while. Somehow, Penny managed to scrape up money for flights. (I now suspect it was given to her by people who were happy to see us go. There's only so long even the most patient person will put up with a hippie and her daughter who rarely bathe, sleep on your couch, and eat your food but don't bother to help with the cooking or the dishes).
Sometimes I wonder how long we would have gone on living like nomads if my great-grandmother hadn’t passed away just before my sixth birthday. My grandparents paid for us to fly home, all the way from Rio to Valcourt, so their daughter could make an appearance, and I imagine so they could see their granddaughter for the second time. I remember not liking them at all. For some reason, they wouldn’t call me by my real name, Breeze, and instead called me Libby (which is the short form of my middle name, Liberty). I couldn't understand why they were so angry with my wonderfully perfect mom. We were there for weeks, and the tension was so thick, I ached to get out of their house.
Clearly so did Penny, because that’s exactly what she did. Except this time, she left without me. They must've convinced her that I would be better off with them. Either that, or she grew tired of me just like she grew tired of everything else. I suppose I should have felt lucky that she kept me around as long as she did. Instead, I was utterly paralyzed with grief to discover that my mum, my best friend, who I'd slept with every night since I was born, could just abandon me. I remember her smiling back at me as she got in a yellow cab. She gave me a little wave and said, “Have fun, Mini-Me!”
Have fun? How the hell was I supposed to have fun without her?
Those first few weeks, I was so sure my mum would show up and whisk me away from this strange life of regular bedtimes, eating peas, and going to school. I’d sit at the front room window, watching for a cab to pull up. (Not constantly — that would be ridiculous. Just each night after supper, when I missed her the most.) But when a month went by, and she hadn’t come back for me, I decided to give her a secret deadline. Ten more days, then I’d give up on her.
Ten days came and went. Then it was fifty, which turned into one hundred, which turned into a full year. Then, when I was seven, I promised myself to give up forever after five hundred days. The disappointment on day five hundred was so overwhelming, I was sure I’d never recover from the pain of it. I sobbed every bit as hard that night as I had the first night she left.
But the next morning, I resolved to grow up to be her complete opposite. For every irresponsible thing she’d ever done, I’d do double the responsible things. I’d never rely on oth
ers for money or a home but would make my own way. I’d accomplish big things in my life and settle down with the right man, not go from fling to fling.
When I was ten, my grandparents asked if I wanted to legally change my name to Liberty Dawn from Breeze Liberty. I said yes, without hesitation.
Penny finally did show up, long after she was no longer wanted. I see her every few years when she pops back into Avonia, usually looking for an infusion of cash from anyone willing and able to provide it. Each time, she's with a new boyfriend, and as she gets older, they seem to be getting younger. I'm pretty sure by the time she’s seventy, she’ll be dating a sperm sample. I can just imagine it now: “This is sample 15428Q, from a Norwegian pediatric surgeon. He’s a champion swimmer, and he just loves to ram his head against things…”
When she shows up, it serves as a reminder of how far I’ve come and how lucky I am that she let me go before I turned into someone like her. Instead, I’m a highly successful, highly organized person. Each year on New Year’s Day, I sketch out my next twelve months, including a breakdown of goals and projected timelines. Sunday mornings are spent developing my schedule for the week so each day when I wake, I know exactly what the day holds. Some may find that boring, but to me, there’s nothing dull about life going off without a hitch.
Take today, for example. I’m about to have the perfect wedding, and I could not be more thrilled. I have just gotten into the back of the limo with my cousin and best friend, Alice, who is my one and only bridesmaid. In an effort to avoid drama, I’ve elected to go with one attendant for myself and one for my husband-to-be, Richard (his useless brother, Tom). This eliminated potential conflicts surrounding dress styles, shower planning, and any cattiness caused by jostling for top position as the bride’s BFF. On the groom’s side, it avoids the ‘let’s get wasted’ pack mentality that crops up when a group of horny young men get together in a place where everyone’s looking their best.
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