“Nothing wrong with a bit of enthusiasm.” Andie grinned. “I say if you’re going to do something, might as well go all in.”

“Ooh, I like that.” The older woman clasped her hands.

“Truth is, we don’t get out much,” Harry admitted. “This is the first time in years we’ve had a chance to let our hair down. Well, I don’t have any hair to let down.” He chuckled and rubbed his bald head, warm brown skin gleaming in the light of the banquet hall’s chandeliers. “But you know what I mean.”

Julia laughed. “I do.” She liked these two and was glad they’d ended up sitting together.

“Our youngest will be going off to college this fall,” Sally explained. “And we’ll be empty nesters.”

“For years, all we seemed to focus on was the kids,” Harry chimed in. “And now, it’s like we have nothing to talk about.”

“We’ve always enjoyed watching romantic comedies together, so we thought this might be fun.” Sally squeezed her husband’s arm. “A way to rediscover each other.”

“That’s so sweet,” Julia gushed. “What a great reason to come here.” She fought the urge to take out her notepad and launch into a full interview on the spot. From newlywed couples just starting out to those looking to rekindle the spark, there was so much more to this experience than she’d ever imagined.

“May I have everyone’s attention for a moment, please,” Penelope, the game master, announced from the front of the room. Once the conversations had died down, she continued. “I hope you’ve all enjoyed your first full day at Notting Hill. Now that everyone has had a chance to tour the resort and itineraries have been filled out and schedules assigned, we’re ready to shift into full swing! It’s time to experience what it’s like to become a part of the blissful, sometimes bananas fantasy world of romantic comedies!”

A smattering of laughter and applause filled the room. “With that in mind, we thought it would be fun to start things out with a bang. So how about a little rom-com-related contest?”

More cheers.

“Do you think she means a trivia game?” Sally wondered.

Andie clapped her hands. “Bring it on.”

“Now then, for this contest, you simply have to do something that—and this is a direct quote—‘most women at one time or another’ have done.”

“Oh,” Andie breathed, eyes widening.

“Oh, indeed.” Kat leered. “A very big O.”

“Wait.” Julia glanced uneasily between her friends. “You don’t think we’re supposed to…”

“However, faking it is not relegated to any one gender, so I want to clarify that this contest is open to all players.”

Appreciative chuckles mixed with another round of applause.

“Does that answer your question?” Andie asked, dark eyes twinkling. “Yeah, I think that’s exactly what we’re supposed to do.”