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Sarah’s expression softened slightly, and Ellie didn’t miss the flicker of relief that passed over her face, like a shadow, when she realized Ellie wasn’t going to ask any more questions. “Coffee, please, thanks.”
Ben and Owen had gone to play football outside, Ben leaving his bowl of sodden Shreddies barely touched by the sink, despite his insistence he’d been starving, and Mairi and Jess had already slipped out of the room, as well. Ellie could hear their giggles as they disappeared upstairs. She was grateful the cousins had learned to get along; at the beginning, as with so much else about their move, it had been difficult. Mairi had seemed standoffish and Jess had been insecure, but they’d managed to sort out their differences and were now close friends.
She focused on making Sarah a cup of coffee, and not asking about Nathan. “Gwen and Matthew should be down any sec,” she said. “And we can call the kids all back—”
“Do you really want them to be involved?” Sarah cut across her. “It might create a certain amount of chaos.”
“This has always been a family effort,” Ellie replied firmly. “And they might have some good ideas. They have before.”
A few minutes later, Gwen and Matthew both made an appearance, and then Ava came skipping in, followed by Josh. Ellie hollered for the girls upstairs, and Matthew went to get the boys from outside, and after another few minutes of cheerful chaos, chairs being scraped across the floor, all ten of them were gathered around the kitchen table with cups of tea or coffee, the plate of blueberry muffins in the middle.
“So, I’ve called this meeting,” Ellie began, “because we need to figure out a way to make the Bluebell Inn survive financially. And Iknowwe can do it,” she continued quickly, before anyone could make a protest or ask a question, “because we already know the idea is sound and the people who have come here on holiday have absolutely loved it. We have the reviews in the guest book to prove it, along with a great rating on Tripadvisor.”
“Except for that family who said they didn’t realize they’d be put to work like skivvies, and left after the first day, asking for a full refund,” Ben chimed in helpfully as he grabbed a muffin.
“Except them,” Ellie agreed, holding onto her determined smile. “But they were definitely an aberration.”
“What’s an aberration, Mummy?” Ava asked, her blond curls bouncing as she cocked her head, her face screwed up in concentration.
“Something different from anything else,” Jess supplied, with a questioning glance for Ellie. “Right?”
“Yes, pretty much,” Ellie agreed.
Gwen asked, wrinkling her nose, “Were they the couple with that little chihuahua? He was absolutelyfrightful—”
“No, that was another family.” The inn had always operated a friendly dog policy, although it had caused a bit of stress every so often. “Anyway.” It was amazing, Ellie thought, how quickly the conversation could spin off into a tangent. She supposed that was par for the course when you had ten people involved, and six of them were children. Maybe they should have kept it to adults, but she’d been hoping for an all-together-now vibe that wasn’t happening quite yet. But it would.
“Is the inn really in trouble?” Josh asked in concern, his dark eyes narrowed, his silky hair sliding into his face. “Because you never said anything.”
“It’s not introuble,” Matthew replied kindly. “Notper se. It just needs a little help.”
Josh did not seem particularly reassured. “But Mum said something aboutsurviving, and you only say you need to survive if you mightdieor something—”
“Is the inndead?” Ava asked in a tone of excited interest.
Ellie felt the conversation slipping away from her again. “Look,” she interjected, “let’s not worry too much about all that. Yes, we need to make ends meet a bit better than they are currently, but the point is, theycan. They will.”
“How?” Sarah asked, rather pointedly.
“Well, I’ve got an idea,” Ellie replied, glad to get to the crux of it. She reached for the sheets she’d printed out earlier—mood boards cribbed from Pinterest, online articles about other bed and breakfasts and hotels, and her own attempts at creative brainstorming. Hopefully it would be enough to inspire her crew. “Christmas,” she exclaimed, injecting her voice with an overdose of enthusiasm. “A very special holiday week for very special guests, giving them the kind of Christmas we all dream of—a huge tree, decorations, carols, mince pies, presents, snowmen—”
“We can’t exactly provide snow on demand…” Matthew interjected mildly.
“I know, but it’s themood,” Ellie persisted. “Look at what I’ve printed out—some other hotels have done a similar kind of thing, and they’ve been really successful.” She’d fallen in love with the photos of cozy sitting rooms with Christmas trees and roaring log fires; dining room tables laden with fine linen and china, and, of course, a massive, gleaming roast turkey. Personal touches in every bedroom, mince pies and hot toddies in the evening, parlor games straight out of Dickens, Christmas-themed crafts for children, carol singing around the piano…
It would beamazing. It had to be.
“It does look nice,” Gwen said slowly, a smile softening her features as she gazed down at one of the photos Ellie had printed out. “And I’ve always loved decorating for Christmas. It would be nice to do it up properly…”
“What’s the ultimate aim, though, really?” Sarah interjected. She held up her hand, palm facing outward. “I’m not trying to rain on your parade, Ellie, really, I’m not, but one week’s extra booking isn’t going to transform the inn’s prospects, I’m afraid. The situation is more serious than that.”
“It is?” Josh exclaimed, looking properly alarmed.
“It might,” Ellie replied calmly, even though her heart was starting to hammer, “because I’ve managed to get the interest of a national Sunday supplement, and they’re willing to do a feature on the inn’s Christmas week!” She couldn’t keep the triumph from her voice; it had felt like a major coup, and had taken her hours of calling, cajoling, and downright begging. Plus, the newspaper had had a spot they needed to fill at the last minute. Ellie had decided it was providential.
“Really?” Matthew looked impressed. “You’ve been keeping that quiet!”
“I was waiting for the right moment,” Ellie replied with, admittedly, rather false modesty. She glanced at Sarah, who looked surprised but not nearly as impressed as Matthew.
