No Groom at the Inn — Kathleen Lawless

Meredith is horrified when her family arrives to meet her non-existent  fiancé. Creatively inspired by one of her coworkers. Hawaii is touted as the most romantic place on earth, and Meredith's job as Event Planner at the posh Four Seasons Kona-Kohala Resort backs that claim with the number of weddings that take place at the resort each year.  She only wishes her family was not so anxious to hear about her own, non-existent wedding plans. Meredith has dodged Christmas back home and her interfering family's good intentions for years, inventing a fake boyfriend who works with her at the Resort.  Her faux-fiancée is loosely based on Asher, the lethally good-looking and charming Outdoor Activities Director, whose number one activity appears to be dating any and all attractive women, on and off the resort. He's not the type to interest her a bit in real life.  But this is make-believe.  Until her family surprises her with a Christmas visit and he steps into his role with far too much enthusiasm.Asher knows he has a reputation as a player, which comes in handy to rebuff the guests' overtures, but makes it hard to be taken seriously.  He enjoys his easy friendship with Meredith and the better he gets to know her, the more intriguing he finds her. Is Meredith really that impossible-to-get, or is it all an act?   Then her family shows up believing he's her fiancée; the perfect opportunity to break down Meredith's defenses once and for all.  But with the family expecting a wedding date soon, Meredith tells him he has to dump her in front of everyone.  What if he doesn't want to?