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Meryl's Commitment
Meryl Chamblee, an aspiring intern at an architectural design firm in Atlanta, receives a disturbing call from her cousin in St. Clair, a small town in southeastern Georgia where her treasured family home sits along the Satilla River. Meryl is a “gutsy” young woman determined to succeed in her chosen field. Though burdened by the demands of her office and her self-imposed work ethic, Meryl travels home to investigate the rumor that someone is acquiring large tracts of land in the area and now may be targeting her property. Meryl had vowed never to surrender the home she inherited, not wanting to see the natural beauty of the area spoiled nor the peaceful, unhurried life she holds dear disappear. She encounters the much-talked-about developer though he is far from what she had envisioned. Riccardo Aldi’s gentlemanly manners and soft, Italian-accented voice tantalize her but also leave her slightly puzzled. She has never before felt the emotions she experiences now. A call from Atlanta summons Meryl back to work temporarily interrupting her plans to learn more.
He is a successful real estate businessman and one of the founding partners of Aldi and Markham. Riccardo is soon surprised to find his mind wandering repeatedly to the lovely young woman with whom he has recently crossed paths. He has had mere glimpses of her, but he is attracted nonetheless. He invites her to tea at Great Moss, the estate he purchased in southeastern Georgia. Meryl justifies accepting the invitation as a means to discover Riccardo’s interests in St. Clair real estate and her property in particular. At heart, she knows, she also intends to explore his interests, if any, in her. Over tea, she gathers Riccardo intends to make Great Moss a second, or third, home, but nothing more about other property he has acquired or his interest in her own property. The excitement she feels at the slightest brush of his hand on her bare shoulders and the surprising light kiss on her lips as she leaves his home, leave her even more perplexed. She cannot shake the fear that he is manipulating her. Later that weekend, Meryl learns the last property on Great Moss has sold. Now Riccardo’s holdings surround Meryl’s property on all sides.
Meryl is fired from her job unexpectedly and fears that her relationship with Riccardo contributed to the unfortunate turn of events. Meryl returns to St. Clair, hoping to find time to explore her thoughts and regroup but soon learns that construction has begun on Great Moss. There, again, she finds Riccardo who invites her to New York to meet some of his contacts and to help him with redesigning his office there.
Meryl adds the offer to her growing tally of favors and gifts Riccardo showers on her, becoming more concerned about the price Riccardo may eventually extract. Meryl's personal insecurity pervades her thoughts and actions. She cannot shake an uneasy feeling about Riccardo's true intentions. Riccardo only reveals the surprise he has in store for Meryl when he realizes it is the only way to gain her confidence and trust.
He is a successful real estate businessman and one of the founding partners of Aldi and Markham. Riccardo is soon surprised to find his mind wandering repeatedly to the lovely young woman with whom he has recently crossed paths. He has had mere glimpses of her, but he is attracted nonetheless. He invites her to tea at Great Moss, the estate he purchased in southeastern Georgia. Meryl justifies accepting the invitation as a means to discover Riccardo’s interests in St. Clair real estate and her property in particular. At heart, she knows, she also intends to explore his interests, if any, in her. Over tea, she gathers Riccardo intends to make Great Moss a second, or third, home, but nothing more about other property he has acquired or his interest in her own property. The excitement she feels at the slightest brush of his hand on her bare shoulders and the surprising light kiss on her lips as she leaves his home, leave her even more perplexed. She cannot shake the fear that he is manipulating her. Later that weekend, Meryl learns the last property on Great Moss has sold. Now Riccardo’s holdings surround Meryl’s property on all sides.
Meryl is fired from her job unexpectedly and fears that her relationship with Riccardo contributed to the unfortunate turn of events. Meryl returns to St. Clair, hoping to find time to explore her thoughts and regroup but soon learns that construction has begun on Great Moss. There, again, she finds Riccardo who invites her to New York to meet some of his contacts and to help him with redesigning his office there.
Meryl adds the offer to her growing tally of favors and gifts Riccardo showers on her, becoming more concerned about the price Riccardo may eventually extract. Meryl's personal insecurity pervades her thoughts and actions. She cannot shake an uneasy feeling about Riccardo's true intentions. Riccardo only reveals the surprise he has in store for Meryl when he realizes it is the only way to gain her confidence and trust.
139 pages, ebook
First published March 1, 2012
7 people want to read
About the author
Rona Simmons
11 books50 followersRona Simmons is an award winning author of historical fiction and nonfiction. For the last several years, she has focused on untold and often overlooked stories from World War II, “The sweep of events, from the First World War, to the Great Depression, to World War II, had momentous impact on our lives,” Simmons says. She adds, “the era is a period we can still almost touch with our fingertips,” as she demonstrated successfully in her writing. Her latest work, No Average Day will be released in October 2024, bringing new stories to light.
Simmons has also written for literary journals and online and print magazines and newspapers and is active in her local writing community
Simmons has also written for literary journals and online and print magazines and newspapers and is active in her local writing community
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
August 31, 2012
Meryl is a 20 something intern at a design firm in Atlanta. She has the country home, Little Moss, she grew up in and inherited from her parents, and when time allows she heads there on the weekends. Some big city fellow is buying up all the properties on her road. Little Moss is the only one remaining and she has no intention of selling. But Meryl is finding the current owner of the rest of the properties, Riccardo, extremely charming.
First the positive: I really loved the premise; the book summary is just the sort of thing I like to read. It sounded like a Harlequin romance to me and sometimes that is just the kind of book I am in the mood for. A short, sweet trip down the road to the guaranteed Happily Ever After!
The negative: The book is all over the place. It bounces back and forth, quite awkwardly, from present to past. It was an unnecessary transition and I don’t know why the author chose to write the book this way. For example Meryl and Riccardo go on a date. You get treated to very little of the date in the present tense, just the very beginning. Then it’s the next day and Meryl’s co-workers are grilling her about the date, she gives them basically the same Cliff’s Notes version we read then later when Meryl is at her desk she is day dreaming about the date. The daydream is the date in its entirety. Pages take us back to the night before and we are reading a detailed lengthy version of the date. Why didn’t those pages happen when the date was taking place? It was so long for a day dream I got to thinking that maybe I misread and they were on another date. So I backtracked, nope, just a daydream. There are several examples of past creeping into the present, the story opens with one. It really ruined the flow of the story.
The changing of points of view wasn’t seamless or necessary either. Not only do you get Meryl’s first person account of things, but then Riccardo’s, the co-workers and I think her cousins have a turn in there, too. It was just another bump in the road for me. There are a lot of words underlined throughout the story. I am sure it is meant to put emphasis on those words, but I just found it another distraction breaking into my reading enjoyment.
Riccardo was hot and cold throughout the story. They essentially have one date and he pretty much ignores her after that… Then suddenly they are in love? They haven’t had any real conversations. Meryl doesn’t trust him up till the very end. I wish the author would have made them connect a little more before the ending.
The makings of a good story are here, they just need a better editor and some serious polish.
Cherise Everhard, August 2012
First the positive: I really loved the premise; the book summary is just the sort of thing I like to read. It sounded like a Harlequin romance to me and sometimes that is just the kind of book I am in the mood for. A short, sweet trip down the road to the guaranteed Happily Ever After!
The negative: The book is all over the place. It bounces back and forth, quite awkwardly, from present to past. It was an unnecessary transition and I don’t know why the author chose to write the book this way. For example Meryl and Riccardo go on a date. You get treated to very little of the date in the present tense, just the very beginning. Then it’s the next day and Meryl’s co-workers are grilling her about the date, she gives them basically the same Cliff’s Notes version we read then later when Meryl is at her desk she is day dreaming about the date. The daydream is the date in its entirety. Pages take us back to the night before and we are reading a detailed lengthy version of the date. Why didn’t those pages happen when the date was taking place? It was so long for a day dream I got to thinking that maybe I misread and they were on another date. So I backtracked, nope, just a daydream. There are several examples of past creeping into the present, the story opens with one. It really ruined the flow of the story.
The changing of points of view wasn’t seamless or necessary either. Not only do you get Meryl’s first person account of things, but then Riccardo’s, the co-workers and I think her cousins have a turn in there, too. It was just another bump in the road for me. There are a lot of words underlined throughout the story. I am sure it is meant to put emphasis on those words, but I just found it another distraction breaking into my reading enjoyment.
Riccardo was hot and cold throughout the story. They essentially have one date and he pretty much ignores her after that… Then suddenly they are in love? They haven’t had any real conversations. Meryl doesn’t trust him up till the very end. I wish the author would have made them connect a little more before the ending.
The makings of a good story are here, they just need a better editor and some serious polish.
Cherise Everhard, August 2012
December 30, 2012
I received a review copy in exchange for my honest review.
This was an interesting book. I wouldn't classify it as a romance as there really wasn't any. It was more or less about a woman who works her butt off as an intern at an architectural firm in Atlanta to help pay the upkeep on her beloved family home in a small town hours away from the city hoping to be hired on in a full-time position. She finds out that there's a man who's buying up property all around her, but she refuses to sell.
Meryl is a bright young woman with what looks to be a solid future. She's not overly worried about marriage or children; she's very career-oriented. As the book goes along she learns a lot about herself and the world around her.
Lisa and Kim were great secondary characters that made me giggle. Riccardo, I'm still not sure if I liked him or not. In fact, you really don't get to know much about him as he's very secretive.
Other than some editing and grammar mistakes, I really enjoyed this book and hope there is a sequel.
This was an interesting book. I wouldn't classify it as a romance as there really wasn't any. It was more or less about a woman who works her butt off as an intern at an architectural firm in Atlanta to help pay the upkeep on her beloved family home in a small town hours away from the city hoping to be hired on in a full-time position. She finds out that there's a man who's buying up property all around her, but she refuses to sell.
Meryl is a bright young woman with what looks to be a solid future. She's not overly worried about marriage or children; she's very career-oriented. As the book goes along she learns a lot about herself and the world around her.
Lisa and Kim were great secondary characters that made me giggle. Riccardo, I'm still not sure if I liked him or not. In fact, you really don't get to know much about him as he's very secretive.
Other than some editing and grammar mistakes, I really enjoyed this book and hope there is a sequel.
March 25, 2013
This was a delightful story. The author skillfully interweaves career, romance and family ties to a beautiful southern coastal property called Little Moss. I loved the descriptions of the beach and the city, and I wanted to know more about architecture and design, not to mention a very intriguing Italian man who appears in Meryl's life at an interesting moment.
March 20, 2015
Well, of course, I have rated this book with five stars, after all I am the author. I have received other favorable reviews and hope that the Goodreads community will be supplying additional "good" reads going forward.
December 23, 2012
This book was given me on Goodreads. I made a podcast about it on http://soundcloud.com/anthrofashion
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews