Chasing the Sun: The laugh-out-loud summer romance you need on your holiday!. Katy Colins

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СКАЧАТЬ a moment I forgot about preparing myself for this pitch and allowed myself a frisson of excitement. No matter how many times I thought about the fact that Ben and I would soon be homeowners, it still didn’t feel real. Life was almost too good to be true. I didn’t dare think about it too much, otherwise I’d convince myself that something just had to go tits up.

      ‘Got it. Thanks, Erin. Now I do need to go. I’ll catch up with you tomorrow.’

      ‘Great! Good luck with the pitch. Break a leg! Is that what they say? Well, don’t literally do that otherwise your trip down under will have to be called off and, from what you’ve told me, Shelley wouldn’t appreciate that one bit!’

      ‘K, thanks. Bye.’ I hung up, cutting her off.

      ‘All good back at the ranch?’ Kelli asked, stifling a smile.

      I nodded and popped my phone back into my bag. ‘Fine. You need to get used to her; she’ll be the one helping you while we’re both away.’

      Kelli let out a faux groan. ‘I’ll soon have her working efficiently.’

      ‘She is efficient, just a little excitable sometimes.’

      ‘A little excitable? A hardcore Justin Bieber fan finding out they’ve got a meet-and-greet in his bedroom is less excitable than her!’ She laughed. ‘So, the big wedding of the year, huh? On a scale of one to ten, how likely are they to play Kylie and Jason at the evening disco?’

      ‘Hmm, a solid zero I’d say.’

      ‘What no “Especially for You”? What about “Come On Eileen”? If that’s not blasted out and you’re forced to dance with some drunk uncle with bad breath, then the marriage is fair game to be legally annulled,’ she said sagely.

      ‘Shelley’s already said she doesn’t want anything super cheesy; she was vetting the DJ’s collection a few weeks ago to make sure.’

      ‘What! But it’s a wedding! That’s like saying you don’t want to say any vows because they’re a bit old-fashioned. I mean I’m all for making it “your day, your way”, but there are some things you don’t mess with, and doing “YMCA” with wedding cake crumbs in your hair and some bloke’s tie around your head is one of them.’ Kelli shook her head in disbelief. ‘I’m guessing she’s gone all bridezilla then?’

      ‘If you call a daily updated WhatsApp group with me and her cousin Cara, who’s the other bridesmaid, slightly over-the-top, then yeah. Every morning I wake up to at least fifty unread messages from the pair of them. Photos of table centrepieces, links to wedding blogs where there was a real-life shaman performing the ceremony, and conversations back and forth over the preferred height of heels the bridesmaids should wear. The worst thing is they live together, so why there needs to be a text group, I don’t know. I mean, I’m happy to be involved, but I’m just too busy to be as into it as they are.’

      ‘Not to mention what happened to you with your own wedding.’ Kelli winced.

      ‘Yeah, that too, I guess.’ I absent-mindedly picked at my nail. It had felt like it had been constant wedding chatter since Shelley had sent out her ‘save the date’ cards.

      ‘Seriously though, a shaman?!’ Kelli struggled to hold herself together; even the receptionist kept looking over to see what was so funny. ‘A shaman! Oh, I’ve heard it all now!’ she said through chokes of laughter.

      ‘Don’t, it’s not a joke!’ I flashed the receptionist a nothing-to-see-here-type smile.

      ‘Sorry. Okay, game face on.’ She tried to straighten her mouth and wafted her hands at her eyes to compose herself. ‘God, you poor thing, going all that way down under to spend time with this marital monster. Tell her from me she needs to get a grip. It doesn’t sound like it’s going to be much of a holiday for you and Ben.’

      I was about to say that I’d given up trying to remind Shelley that it was for one day, ONE DAY, and instead was making sure not to tip her over the edge when she was so fraught with nerves and constantly consumed by stress. I also secretly hoped that once I got over there she would be a lot calmer and on top of things, but I was pulled from sticking up for her as we were beckoned over to head into the lions’ den.

      ‘Miss Green? They’re ready to see you now.’

       Here goes.

      *

      We’re nailing this. It literally could not be going any better. They’re eating out of our hands, loving what we have to offer, and quite rightly so.

      ‘So, ladies and gentlemen, if you turn to page fifteen in your packs, you will see our year-on-year growth, which I’m sure you’ll agree is pretty impressive in this current market.’ I beamed proudly at the corporate faces spread around the mahogany desk in front of me as a rustle of papers filled the pine-scented room.

      The past twenty minutes had flown by in what felt like a whirl of PowerPoint presentations, marketing stats and business buzzwords. Kelli had given a breakdown of our figures and projected financial targets, all of which had been met with subtle eyebrow raises and the slightest of smiles.

      I confidently stepped forward, enjoying the spotlight and opportunity to talk about how unique my business was.

      ‘I wanted to tell you a little about how Lonely Hearts Travels came about. I only discovered the joy that comes from booking a flight and jetting off after I was jilted, and found the courage to turn my devastating break-up into a whole new life, thanks to the opportunities that travel gave me.’ I paused for effect. ‘I now get to work with broken-hearted singles who, just like I was, are looking to find themselves by changing their scene and embracing a sense of adventure. After being dumped it can be all too easy to sit back and feel like the weight of the world is against you, that your hand has been dealt and there’s nothing you can do about it. Well, travel is something you can do. Go to that country you’ve dreamt about visiting, hang out with like-minded people, taste new food and take envy-inducing photos showing how you are having the best life. By getting out there you get a new perspective on the world; it can even show you that your ex wasn’t this perfect person you’d built them up to be. No one’s perfect, after all, and don’t get me started on the pedestal that I’d put my ex-fiancé on.’ A weak laugh floated from the room, spurring me on.

      ‘They say that travel is pure escapism, which is why it makes sense to turn to your backpack when you’re at a time in your life that you want to escape from. On the tours we run, we encourage guests to talk about their break-ups in a healthy way, so that they don’t return home still carrying the weight of their sadness with them. It’s like shedding a skin, a heavy fur coat that you didn’t realise you were lugging around, and that’s the most refreshing and amazing feeling there is.’

      Kelli was smiling at me to continue.

      ‘At Lonely Hearts Travels we believe that—’

      I was cut off by the shrill ringing of someone’s mobile phone. The suits shifted in their seats as I paused and waited for the culprit to turn it off. I was half tempted to remind them that the sign in reception said all phones were expected to be placed on silent when in the presentation room. Nobody moved. I let out a little laugh as the tune rang on, increasing in pitch. The awkwardness grew as they exchanged confused glances as to who was being so ignorant as to let their phone ring for this long.

      ‘Anyone СКАЧАТЬ