Chapter 20
20
Ingrid and Peter were in the sitting room when Penny arrived back at the chateau, paperwork and a monthly planner open in front of them. Both looking thoughtful and stressed.
‘What’s up?’ she asked.
‘We’ve each had a phone call this afternoon,’ Ingrid said. ‘Mine was from a woman who wants to hold a wedding reception for approximately thirty people here after their civil marriage in the mairie. I told her I’d get back to her; I didn’t feel I could turn her away instantly.’
‘Mine was from the chairman of the church fundraising committee,’ Peter said. ‘Would we hold a village fete in the grounds later this year when the tourists are around, to help raise some much-needed money. I said yes, no problem, but your mum thinks there could be.’
‘I don’t see the problem with either of those two events,’ Penny said, looking at them. ‘You’re planning on doing wedding receptions, so you’ve got your first booking.’
‘The problem with this particular booking is that it is in two and a bit weeks. We are simply not ready. We don’t have half the equipment we need. And with me not being able to even move properly, it’s out of the question.’ Ingrid gave a deep sigh. ‘But your father can’t see that. He says we should just say yes and get on with it.’
‘Why is it such short notice? Shotgun wedding?’
‘Apparently the venue they wanted to use has had a major flood in both the room booked for the reception and in the kitchen. It’s going to be at least a month before they’re up and running again. The bride doesn’t want to have to cancel guests or move the wedding date.’
‘Okay. And why is the village fete a problem later in the year?’ Penny asked.
‘The committee want us to arrange the fete on their behalf,’ Ingrid said. ‘If they were doing all the organising and just wanted to use the grounds, it would be fine. But a) we know nothing about running an outdoor event in France, and you can be sure there will be mountains of bureaucracy to deal with. And b) we have no contacts for fete entertainment like… like, oh I don’t know, a bouncy castle for the children, or ice cream vendors, balloon sellers, or anybody in fact,’ and Ingrid threw her arms up in despair. ‘And yet, knowing all of this, your father stubbornly refuses to ring the chairman back and say sorry, no can do.’
Penny took a deep breath. ‘Right. Here’s what I think. You, Mum, ring the woman back and confirm you will let them have the wedding reception here. She will need to come and talk to you – us – within twenty-four hours about the menu and how they would like the room decorated, and anything else they would like to make the day special. Also tell her she will need to pay us a non-refundable deposit when she comes. Once we know whether it’s a sit-down meal or a buffet, we can start to organise things.’
‘We? I hope you’re saying what I think you’re saying?’ Ingrid looked hopefully at her daughter.
‘I’m here and will stay for long enough to cook and help you sort out everything for the wedding. Happy?’
‘Deliriously so,’ Ingrid said, sniffing and trying to surreptitiously wipe a tear away. ‘Does this mean you might stay on longer afterwards?’
‘Mum, I have no idea what I’m doing long term yet. Let’s just deal with the wedding first. As for running the village fete,’ Penny said, ‘think of the brownie points you’d earn from locals, so I think you should do it. I have an idea, but I need to talk to someone first, but I’m fairly hopeful you won’t have to ring and say no can do, Dad. Give me twenty-four hours, okay?’
Peter gave her a thumbs up. ‘Thanks, love.’
‘Right, hope you don’t mind, but I’m going out tonight. I know it’s my first night home, but Colette has invited Sasha and me to join her and Alice for a drink in the village bar. I did promise to cook dinner, so I’d better get to the kitchen.’
‘Don’t worry, I’d planned a simple meal for tonight. New potatoes, fresh asparagus and salmon steaks,’ Peter said.
‘Want me to make a hollandaise sauce?’ Penny asked.
‘Yes please,’ Ingrid said. ‘Love your hollandaise sauce. And we can have a glass of the champagne you brought before you go out. We need to celebrate you being here.’
When Penny and Sasha walked into the busy bar later that evening, Alice and Colette were already there with a bottle of red wine and four glasses on a table tucked away in the corner. Lucas, standing at the bar with Jean-Paul and another couple of men, gave them both a cheery wave. Jean-Paul smiled and nodded, and Sasha smiled back.
Colette introduced Alice to Sasha before pouring the wine. ‘ Santé! à nos nouveaux amis .’ They all clicked glasses and took sips.
‘Mum loved that sketch of Starlight. She was wondering whether she could commission you to do a painting for her?’ Colette looked questioningly at Sasha.
‘Yes, of course, but I need a couple of weeks to get my studio up and running. If she looks at my Etsy shop, she’ll get an idea of the things I can do.’
Alice turned to Penny. ‘Your mum recovered from the shock of you turning up unexpectedly?’
‘Think so. She and Dad got a couple of phone calls this afternoon that diverted attention from me instantly,’ Penny said. ‘The chairman of the church-fund committee rang Dad, asking him to organise a fete in the chateau grounds sometime this summer. Which he agreed to do.’
‘Growing up, there was always a fete in the chateau on the first Saturday in August,’ Alice said. ‘Would be good to see the tradition started again. Why are you looking at me like that?’
‘The thing is, as Mum pointed out to Dad after he’d agreed, they want him to sort out everything on their behalf. She says he has to ring them back and tell them no because they’ve never run an event like that in their lives before and have no French contacts. So, before he rings and cancels and the village hate us forever, I thought I’d see if you, as an experienced events plan…’ Penny’s voice trailed away as a wide-eyed Alice looked at her. ‘But I… I guess not. Forget I mentioned It. It was just a thought.’
‘No, it’s fine. I’ll help your dad with the paperwork and the organising. I’ll quite enjoy it. Grand-maman will more than likely have some contacts from the old days.’
‘Are you sure? You looked terrified at the prospect.’
‘Not terrified, but I’ve never planned an event in France before either,’ Alice said. ‘And the other thing is I can’t promise to still be here for the actual event. I have to start job-hunting at some stage. Depends on whether the traditional Saturday date is chosen or not.’
‘Shall I get Dad to ring you? Or will you wander up and have a chat with him?’
‘I’ll wander up,’ Alice said. ‘I haven’t been up to the chateau since Grand-maman moved out of her cottage. I’ll enjoy seeing what your parents have done around the place.’
‘You said Ingrid received a phone call too,’ Sasha reminded Penny.
‘This one is definitely going to keep the three of us busy. An intimate wedding reception for thirty people. The woman is coming to the chateau tomorrow to discuss what they want. Doing a reception is not a problem; the short notice, though, could be. The wedding is just under three weeks away.’
‘Crikey, you’re going to have your work cut out,’ Sasha said. ‘If I can do anything to help, don’t hesitate to ask.’
Both Alice and Colette offered their help, Colette with the proviso that she was at work most days in Quimper.
‘Thanks,’ Penny said. ‘I might take you all up on that. How are you at waiting on tables?’