Two weeks later and after fourteen hours stuck in a crowded plane, Jared set foot on American soil. Actually, he didn’t set foot on soil, but on one of the buses that transported a whole airplane full of tired travellers to the terminal for immigration purposes. It was still early in the morning. In fact, it was two hours earlier than he had left Melbourne. A fact that amazed him and showed how little he knew about travelling the world. The flight had
fortunately been uneventful. He’d asked for an aisle seat next to the exit and had been able to throw in a snooze or two. Now holding on to flimsy strap in the bus, Jared tried hard to breathe through his mouth to avoid the lingering smell of the passengers who, it seemed, hadn’t had contact with water and soap in many hours. It was like a trap he wasn’t able to escape.
Next on his journey was a long stop-and-go struggle through the immigration hall and customs. For some odd reason, Jared hadn’t expected going through immigration to be a memorable five minutes.
“Sir, may I see your passport?”
Jared Fraser, a landscape business owner in Hobart, Australia, sets out for a holiday to the USA to travel along the Route 66 in a motorhome. Looking forward to his first holiday overseas, he’s excited as he prepares himself for the journey. But little could’ve prepared him for crossing paths with a beautiful hitchhiker.
Will he be able to put his past aside and grab onto happiness?
Ivy Bennett thought leaving her boyfriend would be the hard part. It doesn’t take long to figure out how wrong she was. As she struggles with making a new start in her life, the last person she expects to lead her to happiness is a laid-back Australian on vacation.
But she will have to say goodbye again. And not only to Jared.
AMAZON US: http://amzn.to/2kyJsm9
AMAZON AU: http://amzn.to/2hWGjMh
Barnes and Noble: http://bit.ly/2xsEtF2i
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2z7TPk5
Smashwords: http://bit.ly/2g4b5C6
4 stars – NEW BEGINNINGS is a very emotional read, one that is heartwarming as well as heart wrenching. It gives you hope in the act of human kindness and that good things do happen to good people. I highly recommend this book.
#MFRWHooks “Ya owe me, O.C.” #romance #mustread #amreading
Mark stared at him. “You did what?”
“Booked a holiday. Time for this ol’ man to forget about work and live some. Isn’t that what ya always tell me?”
Raising his brows, he opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out as he continued staring.
Laughing, Jared clapped his friend on the shoulder. “Close ya mouth or the flies will call it a home.”
He did. “The USA?”
Jared gave his thumbs up. “Yup.”
“How long?”
“A bit over four weeks.”
Mark’s eyebrows shot up again. “Four weeks. Who’s looking after the business?”
“If I had known ya’d bombard me with all these questions, I’d have told ya inside. Graham will do most of it, and you’ll help him with the books.”
His buddy raked his hand through his hair.
“Ya owe me, O.C.”
Jared Fraser, a landscape business owner in Hobart, Australia, sets out for a holiday to the USA to travel along the Route 66 in a motorhome. Looking forward to his first holiday overseas, he’s excited as he prepares himself for the journey. But little could’ve prepared him for crossing paths with a beautiful hitchhiker.
Will he be able to put his past aside and grab onto happiness?
Ivy Bennett thought leaving her boyfriend would be the hard part. It doesn’t take long to figure out how wrong she was. As she struggles with making a new start in her life, the last person she expects to lead her to happiness is a laid-back Australian on vacation.
But she will have to say goodbye again. And not only to Jared.
AMAZON US: http://amzn.to/2kyJsm9
AMAZON AU: http://amzn.to/2hWGjMh
Barnes and Noble: http://bit.ly/2xsEtF2i
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2z7TPk5
Smashwords: http://bit.ly/2g4b5C6
4 stars – NEW BEGINNINGS is a very emotional read, one that is heartwarming as well as heart wrenching. It gives you hope in the act of human kindness and that good things do happen to good people. I highly recommend this book.
#MFRWHooks “I’m too scared to ask” #romance #mustread #amreading
A few weeks later, Jared sat across the table from Mark, chugging down a bottle of water. As usual, he had easily beaten his friend at another game of squash.
“After all these years ya still playin’ like a girl,” he said.
Mark flipped him the finger and didn’t bother to reply.
“Trouble at home?”“
Nope, but having a house full of women is exhausting. Hope wakes up before dawn every morning and is cranky in the afternoon. Mia doesn’t want to come out of bed at all. Not to mention the extra person I’ve got to feed.”
“Josh?” Jared asked with a grin.
“Teenage love. I’ve begged Sophie to have the talk with Mia, but she merely laughed and replied I’m way too late.”
Jared nearly spilled his drink. “Too late?”
“I’m too scared to ask,” Mark replied with a shrug before he grabbed his gear and stood.
Jared stood as well and followed his friend into the male changing rooms. They took their showers and left the squash centre half an hour later.
Once they reached their cars, Jared said, “By the way, I’m heading over to the USA in two weeks.” And, as he threw his bag into his old Jeep, he added, “Booked the trip a few weeks back.”
Mark stared at him. “You did what?”
Jared Fraser, a landscape business owner in Hobart, Australia, sets out for a holiday to the USA to travel along the Route 66 in a motorhome. Looking forward to his first holiday overseas, he’s excited as he prepares himself for the journey. But little could’ve prepared him for crossing paths with a beautiful hitchhiker.
Will he be able to put his past aside and grab onto happiness?
Ivy Bennett thought leaving her boyfriend would be the hard part. It doesn’t take long to figure out how wrong she was. As she struggles with making a new start in her life, the last person she expects to lead her to happiness is a laid-back Australian on vacation.
But she will have to say goodbye again. And not only to Jared.
AMAZON US: http://amzn.to/2kyJsm9
AMAZON AU: http://amzn.to/2hWGjMh
Barnes and Noble: http://bit.ly/2xsEtF2i
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2z7TPk5
Smashwords: http://bit.ly/2g4b5C6
4 stars – NEW BEGINNINGS is a very emotional read, one that is heartwarming as well as heart wrenching. It gives you hope in the act of human kindness and that good things do happen to good people. I highly recommend this book.
#MFRWHooks “It was the last drop in a full bucket.” #romance #mustread #amreading
Jared’s gaze moved to Sophie, who smiled at her little girl. Then he caught Mark with a big grin plastered on his face watching his wife and daughter. Blowing out a little sigh, Jared noticed out of the corner of his eye how Josh took Mia’s hand into his own.
That was it. He’d had enough. It was kind of the last drop in a full bucket. He was sick of everybody else around him being happy except him. Without a doubt, he was pleased for them, but it was time that he took matters into his own hands and got out of his daily routine. He wanted more in life than getting up in the morning and working eight to ten hours only to return to an empty home. It wasn’t necessarily that he was looking for a partner — although that would have been nice — but, he looked for something in life. Something to make him more content or his life more fulfilled.
With his thoughts drifting off as he gazed into the distance, he only vaguely followed the wedding ceremony.
Jared Fraser, a landscape business owner in Hobart, Australia, sets out for a holiday to the USA to travel along the Route 66 in a motorhome. Looking forward to his first holiday overseas, he’s excited as he prepares himself for the journey. But little could’ve prepared him for crossing paths with a beautiful hitchhiker.
Will he be able to put his past aside and grab onto happiness?
Ivy Bennett thought leaving her boyfriend would be the hard part. It doesn’t take long to figure out how wrong she was. As she struggles with making a new start in her life, the last person she expects to lead her to happiness is a laid-back Australian on vacation.
But she will have to say goodbye again. And not only to Jared.
AMAZON US: http://amzn.to/2kyJsm9
AMAZON AU: http://amzn.to/2hWGjMh
Barnes and Noble: http://bit.ly/2xsEtF2i
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2z7TPk5
Smashwords: http://bit.ly/2g4b5C6
4 stars – NEW BEGINNINGS is a very emotional read, one that is heartwarming as well as heart wrenching. It gives you hope in the act of human kindness and that good things do happen to good people. I highly recommend this book.
#MFRWHooks “You did well with the flowers” #romance #mustread #amreading
Smoothing the lapels of his jacket, he took in the flower arrangements in the chapel. A sense of pride rose in him at how well it’d come together after all. Natasha had been so determined to use roses, but in the end she’d listened to his advice, and chosen November Lilies. They were everywhere, including the bouquet, and the arrangements came off stunning yet humble. Exactly what she’d told him she wanted.
“You did well with the flowers,” Mia whispered into his ear, hauling him back from his thoughts.
“Thanks. I thought so, too,” he replied. “Had to dig deep to remember how to do all of it.”
“Isn’t that your job?” Josh asked.
Josh was Mia’s boyfriend. They’d been going out for the last three years and were still going strong, a major feat considering they were in the strife of their teenaged years.
Jared was tempted to explain the difference between a florist and landscaping to Josh as well, but decided not to.
He didn’t have to, after all.
“He’s a landscaper,” Sophie added to the conversation. “There’s a big difference.”
Jared cocked an eyebrow towards Sophie, who was desperately trying to get her three-year-old daughter, Hope, to drink her milk before her afternoon nap. He knew very well that she never understood the difference either.
Josh chuckled. “Yeah, mate, but green is green, and plants are plants. Right?”
Jared Fraser, a landscape business owner in Hobart, Australia, sets out for a holiday to the USA to travel along the Route 66 in a motorhome. Looking forward to his first holiday overseas, he’s excited as he prepares himself for the journey. But little could’ve prepared him for crossing paths with a beautiful hitchhiker.
Will he be able to put his past aside and grab onto happiness?
Ivy Bennett thought leaving her boyfriend would be the hard part. It doesn’t take long to figure out how wrong she was. As she struggles with making a new start in her life, the last person she expects to lead her to happiness is a laid-back Australian on vacation.
But she will have to say goodbye again. And not only to Jared.
AMAZON US: http://amzn.to/2kyJsm9
AMAZON AU: http://amzn.to/2hWGjMh
Barnes and Noble: http://bit.ly/2xsEtF2i
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2z7TPk5
Smashwords: http://bit.ly/2g4b5C6
4 stars – NEW BEGINNINGS is a very emotional read, one that is heartwarming as well as heart wrenching. It gives you hope in the act of human kindness and that good things do happen to good people. I highly recommend this book.
#MFRWHooks “I studied teaching, not botany.” #romance #mustread #amreading
Jared Fraser took in the cheerful and relaxed atmosphere of the packed chapel. Every pew was filled, and ushers did their best showing the guests to their seats. Surprising, because he’d been told it was going to be a small ceremony, with only close friends attending. More surprising, however, that he had received an invitation, since the wedding couple, Zach and Natasha, weren’t even programed into his phone speed dial and there were ten speed dial buttons. Or maybe twelve? He wasn’t sure.
Natasha had come to see him a few months earlier and asked him whether he would be able to help with the floral arrangements.
“Darling, I’m a landscaper, not a florist,” he’d explained.
She’d stared at him with her beautiful dark blue eyes. “Your point is?”
Pinching the bridge of his nose with his finger and thumb, he had replied, “You’ve studied at university. Didn’t they tell you about the difference?”
“Jared. I studied teaching, not botany.”
In the end, he’d given up and simply said yes.
Jared Fraser, a landscape business owner in Hobart, Australia, sets out for a holiday to the USA to travel along the Route 66 in a motorhome. Looking forward to his first holiday overseas, he’s excited as he prepares himself for the journey. But little could’ve prepared him for crossing paths with a beautiful hitchhiker.
Will he be able to put his past aside and grab onto happiness?
Ivy Bennett thought leaving her boyfriend would be the hard part. It doesn’t take long to figure out how wrong she was. As she struggles with making a new start in her life, the last person she expects to lead her to happiness is a laid-back Australian on vacation.
But she will have to say goodbye again. And not only to Jared.
AMAZON US: http://amzn.to/2kyJsm9
AMAZON AU: http://amzn.to/2hWGjMh
Barnes and Noble: http://bit.ly/2xsEtF2i
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2z7TPk5
Smashwords: http://bit.ly/2g4b5C6
4 stars – NEW BEGINNINGS is a very emotional read, one that is heartwarming as well as heart wrenching. It gives you hope in the act of human kindness and that good things do happen to good people. I highly recommend this book.
#MFRWHooks “other girls were keen to share a shift with Jack.” #romance #mustread #amreading
Emma stared at the phone in utter astonishment and then dialled the room number again.
“It’s Emma here, again,” she said with as much confidence as she could muster.
Mrs. Gibbs sighed. “Now what?”
“Mrs. Gibbs, my original call was primarily to inform you that Mr. McCormack is here,
and waiting for you in the hotel café.”
“Thank you, dear. I expect you upstairs at one o’clock.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Emma hung up, rubbed her hands over her face, and then sighed in frustration. “Jack,” she said through the little gap of her hands.
Jack looked over and his mouth tugged into a smile. He came closer, leaned against the reception desk, and crossed one foot over the other.
“What’s up, sunshine?”
Emma widened the gap between her hands just a bit further to look at Jack. She shook her head and wearily said, “You don’t wanna know.”
He hooked his finger into her skirt and pulled her closer. “You mucked up?”
“Big time.”
Jack slowly took her hands away from her face. “How big?”
Letting out a small grunt of frustration at her own wrong doing, she said, “Big!”
He smiled, and if Emma hadn’t needed his help, she would have been annoyed with him. Her eyes met his and she sighed. Jack was an attractive man, even in this everboring- looking hotel uniform, which nicely hugged his toned chest and abs. She placed her hand on his chest and another sigh escaped her lips.
Jack’s eyes slightly narrowed. “Okay, Em, spill it.”
Emma met Jack’s gaze. She knew the look of his brown eyes so well from all their staring competitions they’d had, as to who would get the next drink out of the fridge. No wonder all the other girls were keen to share a shift with Jack – or even more.
“I told Mrs. Gibbs I would look after her. I couldn’t find anyone, you know, as in to look after the girl. It’s just something about her… she’s so–” Emma exhaled. “–so… I have no idea. Intimidating, like my old teacher. So I rang her to tell her that this man was here. The good looking one. You know who I mean, don’t you?” Emma didn’t wait for his
answer. “–and she wouldn’t listen, and asked me about the babysitter. The next thing I know… Oh Jack, what’ve I done?”
Becoming a parent can be daunting at the best of times, but for Flynn, a business lawyer in Melbourne, it almost pulls the feet from right underneath him. He’s become a father to six-year-old Nadine literally overnight! He had no idea about her existence, and the news throws him into chaos, even more so when he is asked to take over custody. With the help of Emma, an employee at the hotel where Nadine and her grandparents are staying, and his parents, Flynn tries to do the right thing. Yet, the right thing in his eyes differs from his parents’, and Emma is voicing her opinion as well. And right in the middle is little Nadine, still grieving the loss of her mother and finding a wonderful friend in Emma. There’s no doubt she’s afraid where and with whom she will settle. But in the end, it’s a letter Flynn receives that helps him figuring out what to do.
4 stars – NEW BEGINNINGS is a very emotional read, one that is heartwarming as well as heart wrenching. It gives you hope in the act of human kindness and that good things do happen to good people. I highly recommend this book.
#MFRWHooks “Emma, is that a yes or no?” #romance #mustread #amreading
“My apologies.” Mrs. Gibbs stopped in front of Emma. She hesitated. “Emma, I
suppose the name was?”
“Yes ma’am.”
“I do apologise for my granddaughter. I have no idea where she gets her manners
from.”
“Ma’am, there’s no need to apologise. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed her company.”
But Mrs. Gibbs had already grabbed Nadine by the wrist and pulled her off the seat.
Then she turned to Emma again.
“I need someone to look after Nadine this afternoon. Who would be the best one to contact here in the hotel to organise this for me?”
Emma was a bit stumped by the question. She stared at Teresa Gibbs, feeling somewhat intimidated by her. Mrs. Gibbs glared like her old English teacher from seventh grade. She had the same kind of hair, which probably used to be black and had now faded into grey tied up in a bun. Her face read like a map of her past, maybe a hard life or simply exhaustion. Her grey eyes had dulled with age, lifeless and hollow, and her
mouth was drawn tight as if a polite word had never crossed those lips. Not to mention her clothes, which Emma thought were older than Emma herself.
“Well I suppose the receptionist, which will be me in about fifteen minutes.”
“Can I leave this in your capable hands to organise?”
“Well… I suppose… I mean… that’s a new one for me, but I suppose, yes.”
Mrs. Gibbs grew impatient. “Emma, is that a yes or no?”
“It’s a yes, ma’am,” Emma replied slightly embarrassed, yet with more confidence this time, even though she had no idea how to handle this request.
“Thanks, Emma. I would need someone between one and two-thirty.” And with that, she left. Emma quickly gave a little wave to Nadine before she was out of her sight.
Becoming a parent can be daunting at the best of times, but for Flynn, a business lawyer in Melbourne, it almost pulls the feet from right underneath him. He’s become a father to six-year-old Nadine literally overnight! He had no idea about her existence, and the news throws him into chaos, even more so when he is asked to take over custody. With the help of Emma, an employee at the hotel where Nadine and her grandparents are staying, and his parents, Flynn tries to do the right thing. Yet, the right thing in his eyes differs from his parents’, and Emma is voicing her opinion as well. And right in the middle is little Nadine, still grieving the loss of her mother and finding a wonderful friend in Emma. There’s no doubt she’s afraid where and with whom she will settle. But in the end, it’s a letter Flynn receives that helps him figuring out what to do.
4 stars – NEW BEGINNINGS is a very emotional read, one that is heartwarming as well as heart wrenching. It gives you hope in the act of human kindness and that good things do happen to good people. I highly recommend this book.
#MFRWHooks “The girl’s face instantly lost its spark.” #romance #mustread #amreading
Like most Mondays Emma had accepted a lift from Jack, who worked an extra hour
Mondays and Fridays to cover for a longer lunch, when he was allowed to use the gym
in the basement. Now she was enjoying a delicious breakfast at the hotel’s café before starting her shift in an hour. She looked up and saw her own blue eyes looking back at her in the reflection of the glass divider between the booths. A strand of hair had escaped her ponytail, and she secured it with a bobby pin. Thinking of the girl from the other day,
she hoped the girl wouldn’t get teased for her freckles like Emma did. Her mother had always told her, it gave her a mischievous look, yet in her twenties, she’d prefer to look attractive.
“Excuse me?”
Emma turned and looked into Nadine’s beautiful eyes. “Good morning, Nadine. It was Nadine, wasn’t it?”
The girl’s face lit up. “Yes, but Mum always called me Naddie.”
“May I call you Naddie?”
Emma filled her glass with more orange juice, all the while studying the little girl out of the corner of her eye. Nadine held on to an oversized doll, which seemed to be dressed in the same outfit as Nadine—pink T-shirt imprinted with My beautiful princess, a denim skirt with a princess on it surrounded by lots of pink hearts in all sizes, and pink shiny sandals. Her brown hair had been done up in a ponytail.
“Where are your grandparents, Naddie?”
“Still in the room. Talking on the phone. Grandmother is always on the phone,” Nadine added.
“Do you think you’re allowed to have a bit of breakfast with me?”
With excitement spreading across Nadine’s face, she nodded her head eagerly and sat down opposite Emma.
“Do they know where you are?”
The little head moved up and down again and with her eyes wide open she said, “Told Grandpa.”
“I like your outfit,” Emma said while she took another glass and filled it with juice.
Nadine took one of the rolls. “Mum’s friend gave it to me for my birthday.”
“I take it you like princesses.”
“Yes!” And that was literally the keyword to get Nadine started. She was bubbling with information about her doll collection and which dolls she had at home, which one she would like to have, and all the princess movies. A kind of dizziness spread through Emma’s head overwhelmed by all the details, but she enjoyed listening to her new friend.
Yet, all of a sudden, a firm voice interrupted them.
“Nadine!”
The young girl’s face instantly lost its spark.
Becoming a parent can be daunting at the best of times, but for Flynn, a business lawyer in Melbourne, it almost pulls the feet from right underneath him. He’s become a father to six-year-old Nadine literally overnight! He had no idea about her existence, and the news throws him into chaos, even more so when he is asked to take over custody. With the help of Emma, an employee at the hotel where Nadine and her grandparents are staying, and his parents, Flynn tries to do the right thing. Yet, the right thing in his eyes differs from his parents’, and Emma is voicing her opinion as well. And right in the middle is little Nadine, still grieving the loss of her mother and finding a wonderful friend in Emma. There’s no doubt she’s afraid where and with whom she will settle. But in the end, it’s a letter Flynn receives that helps him figuring out what to do.
4 stars – NEW BEGINNINGS is a very emotional read, one that is heartwarming as well as heart wrenching. It gives you hope in the act of human kindness and that good things do happen to good people. I highly recommend this book.
#MFRWHooks “And this better be worth it.” #romance #mustread #amreading
Emma turned around and checked-in the next few guests. It was only after she had finished her shift that she was able to talk to Jack.
“Thanks for getting me into trouble again.”
Jack placed his arm around her, and gave her a kiss on her forehead. “Sorry for that.
But you seem to attract this guy.”
“Yes, and his focus lands on me every time I muck up.”
“You’ll be right. How about dinner at my place?”
Emma rolled her eyes. “Jerk!”
He grinned, and held his arms up in defence. “What?”
****
“You’ve got to be joking,” Flynn McCormack said into the phone. “What do you mean you need to see me?” Pacing up and down his office, he finally settled by the window. He looked out, his gaze wandering along the Yarra River, watching people strolling along the Southbank Promenade. He liked the view—seeing the people walking at different paces as they took in the sights, or looking for restaurants, or as they were simply in a rush to get to their next destination. His eyes wandered further up and took in the sight of the Eureka Tower. A small shiver went up his spine as he remembered what he had given up for being there; for making his life in Melbourne and for getting this job — something he often pushed to the back of his mind, because being a lawyer in Melbourne was all he’d ever wanted.
The conversation he was having wasn’t going well, and he let out a long breath. “Yes, I’ll be there. And this better be worth it.”
Becoming a parent can be daunting at the best of times, but for Flynn, a business lawyer in Melbourne, it almost pulls the feet from right underneath him. He’s become a father to six-year-old Nadine literally overnight! He had no idea about her existence, and the news throws him into chaos, even more so when he is asked to take over custody. With the help of Emma, an employee at the hotel where Nadine and her grandparents are staying, and his parents, Flynn tries to do the right thing. Yet, the right thing in his eyes differs from his parents’, and Emma is voicing her opinion as well. And right in the middle is little Nadine, still grieving the loss of her mother and finding a wonderful friend in Emma. There’s no doubt she’s afraid where and with whom she will settle. But in the end, it’s a letter Flynn receives that helps him figuring out what to do.
4 stars – NEW BEGINNINGS is a very emotional read, one that is heartwarming as well as heart wrenching. It gives you hope in the act of human kindness and that good things do happen to good people. I highly recommend this book.