Chapter 3 #2
Veronica folded her hands and leaned close, keeping her voice low. “Jess is having Nash trim things up today and then she’ll write up a contract to keep the cameras operational. We tossed around several ideas and, if we can afford it, I’d like to hire some extra protection.”
“We can afford it,” Celeste said. When her sisters expressed doubt, she asked, “Do either of you ever look at the month-end reports I send out?”
“Only a little,” Natalie confessed, sheepishly. “You pay us, that’s what I look at.”
True. Each of them pulled a salary, according to the way they’d set up the business, on the advice of Reed and their accountant.
At the start it hadn’t even been close to a living wage, but things had changed rapidly.
The B&B had a good reputation and excellent reviews.
Lately the only days they didn’t have guests were the days Veronica blocked out ahead of time.
“Well, we can afford it,” Celeste repeated.
“Good.” Veronica bobbed her chin.
“Wait a hot minute,” Natalie protested. “I don’t want burly guys in suits scowling and stomping around the property. Our guests aren’t going to like that. We want them to feel safe while they’re on vacation.”
“Jess’s people won’t scowl and stomp,” Veronica said. “You’re being ridiculous.” She caught Natalie’s elbow before it dug into her ribs. “You’ll regret it.”
Natalie sniffed, clearly annoyed.
“And they’d pass out from heat exhaustion in suits,” Celeste quipped. Maybe the pain meds were finally kicking in.
“If you’re sure.” Natalie curled her lip. “I don’t like it.”
“Big picture,” Veronica pressed. “It’s worth the extra expense. Especially since the fire extinguisher was missing.”
“What?” Natalie frowned at Veronica.
Celeste explained the whole ordeal to their sister, making sure to stick with the facts and keep her fear out of it.
Natalie rubbed her arms. “That’s creepy. And more than a little scary.”
“Exactly,” Veronica agreed. “And Celeste was there alone.”
“Okay, okay.” Natalie raised her hands in surrender. “I’m done protesting security. I trust they won’t make our guests feel unwelcome.”
“They’ll only be there until we discover who set the fire,” Celeste said. “And why. It bugs me that our house was targeted.”
“Between Chief Miller and Jess’s company, we’ll get answers.” Veronica cracked her knuckles. “The outdoor kitchen was gorgeous. We used it for hosting, but it could prove a big selling point for whole-house bookings.”
“I’ve only seen a couple of photos,” Natalie said. “It looks like an ugly scar on the back of the house right now. Who’s going to clean it up? Who can rebuild it for us?”
“The investigation has to finish first. Then the insurance settlement,” Celeste said. “We should talk to Nash about cleanup—after we get the all clear from the fire department.”
With the lunch rush over, Reed brought refills for their drinks along with a plate of chocolate chip cookies and pulled up a chair to join them. “Since you’re still here, I’m assuming you’re feeling good,” he said to Celeste.
She smiled, fighting a wave of drowsiness. “Veronica insisted on half a pain pill.”
“Already cutting her back?”
“She wanted to be clear-headed while we were out,” Veronica explained. “I didn’t want her pushing too hard too soon.”
“Which is what she’s doing,” Reed observed.
“Preach,” Veronica muttered. “But we’ll wrap this up soon.”
“Then I suggest whatever business you’re conducting, you don’t make any final decisions today,” he said with a smile.
“The biggest decision we need to make is an adjustment to the scheduling portal. How much time should we block out?” Veronica asked. “We’ve never had a problem like this.”
“You don’t have anyone coming in this weekend, do you?” he asked.
“No,” she explained. “We had some scheduled maintenance for this week. The next reservation doesn’t arrive for another four days.”
“Can we ask Chief Miller to hustle the investigation along?” Natalie asked.
Reed shook his head. “He’ll need time to ensure he has all the evidence before y’all clean up, but he won’t drag his feet.”
“From your lips,” Veronica murmured. “We’d really like you to weigh in on this next issue though.”
That surprised Celeste. It sounded as if Veronica was on her side about the changes. Not just on her side, but ready to put things in action.
“I’m all ears.” Reed kicked back and sipped on a glass of sweet tea.
Celeste listened to Veronica explain the pros and cons of moving away from their initial B&B business plan. “We’re just brainstorming,” she finished. “What do you think?”
“Definitely a market for the whole house rental,” Reed mused. “You said you’d redecorate and turn Celeste’s place into a fifth suite.”
“That’s right,” Veronica confirmed.
“Hm. Two things.” He tapped his empty glass against his knee. “First up, where will Celeste live? And secondly, if you do this, you’d separate yourselves from the house that was so important to your family.”
“Right.” Veronica’s gaze fell to her notebook as she drummed her pen on the paper.
Celeste hadn’t thought of it like that. She could see, despite her weariness, that her sisters hadn’t considered that either. “We’ll need to think about that for sure,” she agreed. “But since we’re brainstorming, we need to remember nothing is forever or final.”
“True. And in that vein, if you have the fifth suite, you’re sleeping ten. Easily.”
Natalie chimed in, “Couldn’t we raise the rate and add a four-day minimum or something?”
Veronica made more notes.
“Y’know, if we added bunk beds to one of the bedrooms upstairs,” Nat continued, “maybe even put a sofa bed or daybed in Mom and Dad’s room…I’m sure we have the floor space. Then we could bump that nightly rate a bit more.”
“Furniture is an expense,” Celeste said. Though Natalie’s suggestions wouldn’t put much of a dent in the maintenance and contingency fund she’d built up. “But we’d be smart to change the dining room situation if we’re targeting bigger groups.”
“Surely the furniture isn’t as much as private security,” Natalie quipped with a sassy smile.
“I’m not giving that up right now.” That was the hill she’d die on. Today. “Talk to me once they have the arsonist in custody.”
Reed tutted, diffusing what might’ve blown up into an argument. “Another thing is parking. It’s not like y’all have public access anywhere close. You might be able to put all kinds of people in that house, but you’ve got to think of your occupancy rating too.”
“And the general clientele,” Celeste added. “We’re consistently booked as we are right now. Changing our approach removes that high-end, luxury, pampered feeling we’ve cultivated from the start.”
“But it leans into the privacy angle with our exclusive beach access,” Natalie pointed out.
“More to think about.” Veronica pursed her lips. “Celeste can live with me. Until she doesn’t want to anymore.”
“Our maximum occupancy is sixteen,” Celeste blurted out.
“How do you remember that?” Natalie asked.
“The certificate is posted in the kitchen.” She caught the glance between her sisters and knew they would double check. No problem there. She was sure she was right. “There might be a few other things to line up if we switch to a whole house rental. We’d want to double check the insurance stuff.”
“Factor for a cleaning crew.” Natalie wrinkled her nose. “I don’t want to clean up after a week of fishing buddies or golf bros.”
Reed laughed. “Are you proposing a women-only retreat?”
Natalie gave him a side-eye. “If only we could get away with that.”
“No, we couldn’t be so blatant,” Veronica mused. “But we could decorate in a way that’s less appealing to the fishing-trip type. Ideally, we want to be the irresistible family vacation spot, right?”
Celeste nodded absently. Her mind was stuck on relinquishing the entire house to strangers.
Yes, she could live with Veronica. It wasn’t as if her social life required a great deal of privacy.
She enjoyed her quiet time just as much—if not more so—than Roni.
Being roommates until she found her own house wasn’t the issue.
Could they still consider their childhood summer house as theirs if none of them called it home? Did that matter at all? Sure, they’d always be the owners, but would they make time to enjoy the legacy of it if they went this route?
Nothing is forever.
As much as she enjoyed the hands-on, day-to-day service, it was a full-time routine and required an open mind.
Feeling the resistance in her heart was confusing, mainly because she could see the Hideaway becoming wildly popular and highly profitable, which would make it harder to shift the business model down the road.
Then again, she was way ahead of herself. If the Hargrave sisters knew anything, it was how quickly life could force you down different path.
“What else do we need to think about?” Celeste asked Reed. Maybe he would mention the nostalgia issues weighing on her heart so she wouldn’t have to bring it up.
With a sigh, Reed stood, leaning on the chair back. “Y’all are on the right track. I’d only advise you not to underestimate the value of that private beach. You can always up your rates on the location alone. People want luxury and privacy to go with it.
“If you want to grow without adding furnishings other than Celeste’s suite, I recommend adding to the rental package itself.”
“How?” Natalie stared up at him.
“You’ve got location. What about collaborations? There are ways to team up with other Brookwell businesses for experiences or excursions. Isn’t that all the rage these days?”
Natalie eyed him skeptically. “You know this how?”
“I pay attention.”
Natalie snorted. “Kirsten fills him in.”
“Of course.” Veronica’s relief was clear. “Thought I was in an alternate universe or something.”
Reed wagged his finger at them. “Stop acting like I’m an old man. Didn’t you like the bands who played at the festival this year?”
“We did,” Celeste confirmed.
Veronica’s cheeks went pink and she cleared her throat. “You’re suggesting something like baking lessons from someone at the Bread Basket or private paddle board lessons there in the cove with Miles or one of the other instructors from the sailing school.”
“Now you’re thinking.” Reed gave her his best proud-dad smile. “Upsell. It’s the fastest way to profit.”
The girls laughed as he went back to work.
“When I’m feeling better, I can talk to Lila about the baking stuff,” Celeste offered.
“Yeah, I want to run these numbers a little bit more,” Veronica said. “Then we’ll know the best time to block reservations if we choose to reset.”
“Anything that gives us more freedom is important. Essential,” Natalie added. “Celeste is an amazing hostess and I actually enjoy pitching in, but—” She stopped short, as if she’d finally realized she was about to offend one of her older sisters.
“Just say it,” Veronica urged.
Natalie reached for Celeste’s uninjured hand. “I know you love our B&B, but I don’t want it to be everything for you.”
“Same,” Veronica agreed, closing her notebook with a snap.
Celeste wasn’t brave enough, even with half a painkiller taking the edge off, to ask what her sisters did want for her.
Any concerns either of them expressed came from a place of love. Just like she always wanted the best for them. They weren’t trying to undermine her goals or sugarcoat the heartache she was putting behind her.
“Let’s get you home,” Veronica said. “She’ll be ready for sister night after a nap,” she assured Natalie.
Natalie dashed off to pay the bill as Veronica stood by, ready to assist Celeste. “I’m doing okay,” she murmured.
“You are,” Veronica agreed. “And you’ll feel more like yourself after some rest.”
Celeste was exhausted enough between her body aches and wobbling emotions to not protest over the kid-gloves treatment.
“Thanks,” she murmured at the Jeep as they buckled her seatbelt. “You’re both the best sisters ever.”