Message+in+a+Bottle+-+Summary

The story begins with Theresa Osborne running on the beach in the morning. She comes across a glass bottle laying on the beach, and notices that there’s something inside. When she opens it, she finds a letter addressed to “Catherine” and signed from “Garrett.” Theresa finds the message intriguing because it is a beautiful love note, and she wonders about the man who wrote it. She shows it to her boss and friend, Deanna, and she suggests that they publish it, as they work at the Boston newspaper.

People begin to write in to Theresa about the bottle’s letter. One phone call that she got from a woman asked her about specific details of the letter, and they determine that the woman has another letter from the same man. She sends it to her, and Theresa begins to really think about “Garrett.” Only when she comes across another letter published in a different paper does she realize that there’s something significant there. Her and Deanna do some research and determine that there is a Garrett Blake at Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina who owns a scuba shop called “Island Diving.” Deanna convinces Theresa to travel down there in an attempt to meet the man named Garrett who wrote the beautiful letters.

Theresa ends up meeting Garrett on the docks near his sailboat, //Happenstance//. They talk a bit, and he feels some connection to her so he asks her to go out sailing with him that evening. She agrees. They meet that evening on the sailboat, and they enjoy each other’s company. Theresa really likes him, so she leaves her jacket on the boat on purpose.

The next day, she calls him and asks him if she can come down and get her coat from him. He ends up asking her to dinner at his place. She is quite pleased, and they have a nice steak dinner out on his deck. After dinner, they walk on the beach and she asks him why he seems to be holding back. He opens up to her and tells her about his late wife, Catherine, who died during childbirth. He is still not over her death, and although he made a promise to her once that if anything ever happened to her, he would move on with his life, he can’t find the willpower to do it. They talk some more before they go back to his place for the night.

The rest of the time Theresa was there, she and Garrett spend as much time together as they can. When it comes time for Theresa to fly back home, she asks him if he wants to see her again someday. He feels conflicted about her and Catherine, but in the end decides that he does want to see her again. They plan for Theresa to bring her son, Kevin, down with her next time so Garrett can meet him.

When they next come down, Kevin really likes Garrett. They spend time on the beach, and Garrett gives them scuba diving lessons. They try to figure out what will happen between them with the long distance relationship.

The next time they see each other, Garrett flies up to Boston to visit them. He loves Theresa, but he doesn’t like the city. Theresa’s job has just taken off, and she doesn’t want Kevin to have to switch schools, so she isn’t willing to move. Garrett also is unwilling to move because he doesn’t like Boston and he owns his own store and his father lives in Wrightsville.

One night, Garrett finds the letters that he wrote to Catherine in Theresa’s drawer and loses it. He screams and questions her as to why she has them and if it hasn’t been a lie the whole time. She tells him that she just wanted to meet him and she never intended for anything to come of it, but he doesn’t believe her and catches the next plane home.

Theresa shows up at his house a couple days later. She tells him that she’s sorry for the letters, and he forgives her. She stays for the afternoon before telling him that she doesn’t think they can be together because he still loves Catherine, and he’s not ready to move into a new relationship. She leaves in tears, and he tries to chase after her but she says it’s for the best for both of them.

Garrett and Theresa are both having a rough time coping without the other. Garrett considers flying up to Boston multiple times, but decides against it because he knows that she’s right and he still loves Catherine. Then, one day, Theresa gets a phone call from Garrett’s father. He says that he’s worried about Garrett; he went out on //Happenstance// and hasn’t come back. When Theresa arrives there, he tells her that //Happenstance// had sunk and Garrett was gone.

Theresa is devastated. She flies back to Boston wondering the whole time what he was doing out in that storm. Then, a package arrives in the mail from Garrett. It was a message enclosed in a glass bottle. He says that he’s realized that she’s right, and that he’s sailing out to send one last goodbye letter to Catherine, and then he’s flying up to Boston. He wants to get married and live with her for good.

The novel ends with Theresa writing a message in a bottle and throwing it out to Garrett. She knows that somehow, he’ll get her message.