AllFreeNovel
Share Us
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
CHARLOTTE
The next morning, when Brooke didn’t come downstairs for breakfast, Charlotte went to check on her. She was curled up on the bed.
“Brooke? Are you okay?” Charlotte asked.
“I’ve got one of my migraines,” Brooke said in a soft voice.
“I’m sorry. Can I do anything for you?” asked Charlotte.
“Yes, you can fill in for me on Eric’s boat. I promised I’d help him sail it down here from Tampa. We’re supposed to leave at ten to go get it.”
“Okay, I can do that. I’ll ask Livy to take care of any guests having a late breakfast. The crew of six couples should be through eating by then.”
Brooke took hold of her hand. “Thanks. You’re a sweetheart. I didn’t want to disappoint him.”
“I’m happy to do it. I haven’t sailed in years, but I remember how much I used to love it,” said Charlotte, excited about the idea.
She left Brooke and went to the Inn to talk to Livy, checking her watch as she walked.
She’d found she liked greeting guests, chatting with them. It was a pleasant way to begin the day.
Livy looked up at her. “Glad you’re here. One of the couples decided to get an early start. I’m fixing their breakfast now.”
“Okay. I’ll go in and talk to them. Brooke has a bad migraine and is in bed. I promised I’d take her place on Eric’s boat today. He’s bringing her down from Tampa. We’re leaving here at ten. Will you take over for me then?”
“Sure. I’m going to need a morning off next week. We’ll discuss it later. As soon as the last guest leaves this morning, Austin will start his project working on the new wi-fi network.”
“I’m glad we don’t have other guests coming in until next weekend,” said Charlotte. “I don’t want to begin advertising until the website is up and other printed materials are ready. We can’t do that until we finalize the shopping list and I’m able to purchase some upgrades to the rooms and public areas.”
“Okay, tomorrow we’ll meet to discuss it,” said Livy. “Hopefully, Brooke will feel better by then. Migraines are so awful.”
“Yes, she was really hurting. I’ll text Eric to let him know of the changes.” Charlotte left the kitchen and went to the dining room to talk to their guests.
“Hello. I understand you’re leaving this morning. I hope you had a nice stay.”
“Oh, yes.” Margie Nichols said. “It’s a lovely place, and I liked the feeling that this was our private home with service from you as we requested it.”
“I’m so glad,” said Charlotte making a mental note to add this to her advertising campaign. Something like “No place like home away from home.”
Margie and her husband talked about their life in Alpharetta and what it was like living in the Atlanta area, and then Livy came in carrying a tray of food. Charlotte helped serve it and offered more coffee and juice.
Once they were settled, Charlotte went into the office to check for phone messages and scanned the reservations chart. Looking over the calendar, she wanted to see more advertising coincide with holidays both big and small. Little things like Donut Day or Love Your Sister Day could be made into cute ads for the Inn. She’d work with Brooke on vacation package prices. Summer days full of possibilities lay ahead.
She heard the ping on her phone indicating a message and picked it up.
“Thanks for letting me know about Brooke. I’ll pick you up at ten and we’ll head to Tampa to my boat. Eric.”
Shortly after that, the rest of the guests entered the dining room in a group, laughing and chatting, their voices high with excitement and full of travel plans.
As soon as she could gracefully do so, Charlotte left the Inn and hurried to Gran’s house to get ready for Eric. She knew from past experience to take plenty of suntan lotion, a sun hat, bottles of water, and a light coverup. The sun’s rays reflected off the water could be surprisingly hot, a real danger to an unprotected body.
She changed into a bathing suit, pulled on a pair of shorts over it, gathered her beach bag, and went to check on Brooke.
The room was dark when she walked inside. “Hey, hon, how are you doing?”
“Not so well. I’ll be fine tomorrow, but today is a lost cause. If I try to hurry it, the pain will only get worse.”
