Lacey has dreamed of opening a restaurant for years - but first, she needs a loan. When Garrett Halifax, her roommate's Harvard-educated brother, offers to help her clean up her appearance and manner to impress the bank manager, she jumps at the chance. She makes mistake after mistake, and perhaps the biggest mistake is falling for sexy Garret.
This modern retelling of My Fair Lady offers all the humor of the original movie with a splash of romance thrown in.
Jojo Halifax, Lacey's roommate, believes that winning Echo Ridge's float competition is just what her fledgling art career needs. And if that means giving her ex-boyfriend, Anthony, a second chance so she can be a designer on his team, well, she's willing to make the sacrifice. But when a lost bet leads to a blind date with her brother's friend, Wyatt, she begins to have second thoughts about second chances. Wyatt is handsome and charming and just might have been paid to make her forget about Anthony. Is falling for his charm worth the risk or should she take Anthony back again?
Romantic comedy lovers will eat these two novellas up!
Janette Rallison is old. Don’t ask how old, because it isn’t polite. Let’s just say she’s older than she’d like to be and leave it at that.
Janette lives in Chandler, Arizona with her husband, five children and enough cats to classify her as “an eccentric cat lady.” She did not do this on purpose. (The cats, that is; she had the children on purpose.) Every single one of the felines showed up on its own and refuses to leave. Not even the family’s fearless little Westie dog can drive them off.
Since Janette has five children and deadlines to write books, she doesn’t have much time left over for hobbies. But since this is the internet and you can’t actually check up to see if anything on this site is true, let’s just say she enjoys dancing, scuba diving, horse back riding and long talks with Orlando Bloom. (Well, I never said he answers back.)
I have to admit, I've read a lot from Author Janette Rallison and I really love anything she writes. These two novellas have the same characters in them, but different couples are highlighted in each novella.
The first one is called. "My Fair Lacey" and is patterned after the musical, My Fair Lady. This story is just so fun and cute. It had the same humor of someone that doesn't know how to speak properly and her "mentor" who is trying to teach her how to speak properly and wear proper clothes. Lacey is trying to get a business loan for a restaurant she wants to open. Her roommate's wealthy brother jumps in to educate her. There is a bet going on to see if Garrett can teach her what she needs to learn before she goes back to get her loan. This leads to many funny things happening. I loved the chemistry between Lacey and Garrett. It felt very natural how they came together as a couple.
The second novella is "A Perfect Fit". In this story Garrett's sister, Jojo, and his old university friend, Wyatt, go on a date that was the outcome of the bet that was made in the first novella. Garrett hates Jojo's boyfriend and will do anything to get her away from Anthony so he sets her up with Wyatt. As in the first story, Jojo and Wyatt are put into some funny situations. I truly loved the banter between these two characters. Wyatt is "Perfect" and I loved everything about him. Jojo on the other hand has a hard time knowing what to do. Does she give up on her current, manipulative boyfriend Anthony, or does she fall for the charismatic Wyatt? I especially liked the epilogue at the end of the two novellas. I don't want to give anything away, but just know it also is one of the most perfect epilogues you'll ever read. Don't miss out on reading these great novellas that are found in one book.
I'm adding this book to my list of Summer Reading suggestions.Now add it to your list!
Excerpt – From My Fair Lacey
She
pressed her lips together and tried again. “Couldn’t you find some authors who
write more entertainingly?”
He
didn’t answer because he was typing instructions into his laptop. He had a list
of grammar rules that he kept adding to when she made a mistake. She was
supposed to go over his list every day.
She
glared at his bent head. Why did he always have to act like a teacher? Had he
even given her parted lips the briefest of thoughts?
He
turned his attention back to her. “Do you want a romance?”
Her
breath hitched in her lungs. Was he really asking her this question so
casually, and right after he’d written down a grammar rule for her? He wasn’t
looking at her with any sort of passion, just bland interest.
She
shifted in her chair. “Um. Maybe. I’m not sure.” She took a deep breath, and
tried to think of a better way to phrase her feelings.
He
didn’t wait for her to say more. His gaze dropped to the notebook in front of
him. “All right, I’ll give you a few Jane Austen novels to read. A lot of women
are partial to her works.”
Oh.
He had asked her if she wanted to read
a romance, not have a romance with
him. A stab of disappointment went through her. One that was unexpectedly
strong. She bit her lip, swallowed and hoped she wasn’t blushing. No use. She
was definitely blushing. Heat rose in her neck and cheeks. She just had to hope
he didn’t notice.
He
tapped his pencil against the table absently. “I know classics aren’t as easy
to read as modern novels, but you’re not only listening to these books because
of their complex sentence structure and higher vocabulary; you also need to
have a basic cultural understanding. When someone mentions Homer’s Odyssey at a dinner party, you need to know that they’re
talking about an ancient Greek story, not a rock group. Do you see my point?”
“Yeah.
Your point is that you go to a lot of boring dinner parties.”
Excerpt - From A
Perfect Fit
They
were nearing their floor. “Anyway, whatever price Garrett paid for your
services, it was worth it.”
He
smiled. “Glad to know you’re satisfied.”
His
answer shouldn’t have bothered her, but it did. She’d made the comment
tongue-in-cheek and had expected him to deny that Garrett was paying him
anything. Instead, he’d confirmed it. What was Garrett paying him with? A favor
called in? Cash? She hoped it wasn’t that. How much did
make-my-sister-forget-her-boyfriend dates run? Hundreds? The more Garrett paid,
the more pathetic it meant she was.
The
elevator slowed to a stop and the door opened. Wyatt stepped into the hallway
and paused, checking the numbers on the wall to see which way to go. Jojo
followed him, rolling her overnight bag behind her.
“This
way,” he said, heading to the left. His room was 2312; hers was 2310.
She
kept pace beside him. “So you’re saying that Garrett actually paid you to take
me out?”
“I
didn’t say that. I just said I was glad you were satisfied.”
“Then
he didn’t pay you?”
“I
didn’t say that either.”
“Well,
which is it?”
He
gestured to the rooms on his right, completely unperturbed by her questioning.
“Here are our rooms.”
“You’re
not going to answer me?”
He
paused in the hallway, seemed surprised by her insistence. “What are you really
asking? Do you want me to tell you that you’re pretty enough and interesting
enough to get a date without your brother’s help? You absolutely are. But I
suspect you already know that. Girls who are as pretty as you are quite aware
of it.”
The
compliment washed over her, made her tingle. She was pretty and interesting.
“Ah, thanks. You’re so sweet.” And then the next moment her doubts returned.
“Wait, is my brother paying you to say things like that to me?”
Wyatt
laughed, then unlocked his door. “I’ll be ready to go in five minutes. See you
then.” He winked and disappeared inside, shutting the door.
That
wink. Jojo would look stupid if she tried it, but Wyatt made the gesture
flirtatious and intimate, like she’d gained entrance to his inner circle. A
place she suddenly wanted to be.
As
she walked into her room, she made a new goal for the evening. She would not do
impulsive, foolish things, like throw herself at Wyatt in an attempt to get
over Anthony. She would not flirt with him and try to get him to kiss her.
Nothing good could come of that. Except, of course, the kissing part. With a
guy like Wyatt, that was bound to be good.
Nope.
She wouldn’t find out.
But
then again, maybe she would.