Chapter 5
It was already growing dark when Gaby stepped outside the Riverford Hotel after finishing her impromptu shift managing the special birthday party booking.
The event had gone smoothly and she’d enjoyed helping out.
An eightieth birthday was a huge milestone and deserved to be celebrated with the flair and style that the client expected and for which they’d paid.
She liked knowing she’d helped Harry Goodwin and his family’s business avoid potential disaster because of their unfortunate staffing crisis.
The crew who had staffed the birthday party had been excellent and hard-working but Gaby’s event management skills had been crucial in navigating the inevitable snags and unexpected problems that came with the territory.
She stayed until the end of the birthday party booking slot to make sure the guests were happy and taken care of as they departed the hotel, and then she pitched in for an extra hour to help set up another dinner function that was booked for the evening and which needed a little oversight to manage the workflows until the new shift arrived to take over.
Now, Gaby waited outside the hotel entrance, admiring the gorgeous landscaping that surrounded the lovely hotel and breathing in the cool evening air which was laced with the autumn scents of the surrounding South Downs countryside.
Harry Goodwin appeared, hurrying out of the hotel towards her, a huge smile on his face. He’d promised to give her a lift home.
“You went above and beyond this afternoon, Gaby,” he said as they walked to where he’d parked his car. “I can’t thank you enough.”
“I’m happy I could help,” she said. “This is a beautiful hotel, Harry. To be honest, it was a pleasure to come and work here and spend the afternoon in these amazing surroundings.”
“We’re very proud of the place,” he said as he unlocked the car.
“But no matter how amazing the surroundings or how good the hotel looks, it’s nothing without staff to deliver great service.
You helped us out of a really tough spot today and I want you to know we all appreciate it.
Did you leave your details with the front desk staff so we can pay you like we agreed? ”
“I did.” They’d tussled about the payment.
Gaby felt uncomfortable agreeing to be paid when she’d offered to help on account of overhearing a conversation she wasn’t supposed to be listening to in the first place, but she also understood that Harry wasn’t about to let her go without being compensated for her time.
“I’m hoping to hear from our hotel events manager, Kim, in the next few hours about how her mother is doing after surgery and whether she’ll need more time off,” Harry said.
“If she does need more time and we can’t easily cover for her, would you be interested in jumping back in to cover a few more events and functions for us? ”
“I’d be happy to, but only if it doesn’t get in the way of anything I need to do to help my aunt while she’s recovering from her knee operation. That’s why I came here in the first place and it wouldn’t be fair to leave her in the lurch if she needs me.”
“Of course not. We might not even need any help. But if we do, it’d be great to have you back. You’re brilliant, Gaby. No wonder you have your pick of jobs all over the world.”
Gaby laughed. She’d given Harry a brief summary of her recent work history when he’d driven her to the hotel earlier, just to make sure he had all the information he needed before letting her loose in his family business.
It was a fifteen-minute drive from the hotel to Foxglove Street.
Harry pulled up outside Gaby’s aunt’s house and promised to be in touch about whether the hotel’s staffing problems were likely to continue.
She waved him off and hurried to the front door, keen to check on her aunt after abandoning her all afternoon.
The bird feeders in the cherry tree were still waiting to be refilled, a task she’d completely forgotten about after volunteering her management services to Harry Goodwin.
She made another mental note to come back outside with the bag of bird seed just as soon as she’d checked on her Aunt Jill.
Warm light spilled from the front windows, where the blinds and heavy curtains hadn’t yet been closed against the darkening evening. Gaby saw through the blind slats that Jill had company, and when she opened the front door the sound of animated conversation filled the house.
In the living room, Gaby found her aunt chatting with three other women who all looked around the same age as Jill. There was a tea tray on the coffee table along with a cake plate and the women were clutching mugs as they talked. They all looked up as Gaby came through the door.
“Gaby, you’re home!” Jill said. “We were talking so much, I didn’t even hear the front door opening. How was your busy afternoon?”
“It was fine and everything went brilliantly,” Gaby replied, taking off her jacket. “More importantly, how are you feeling?”
“I’m feeling absolutely fine,” Jill said and waved her hand towards her guests. “I’ve had company almost non-stop since you left and so I haven’t had time to feel sorry for myself.”
“You’ve never felt sorry for yourself in your life, Jill,” said one of the guests seated on the sofa. “You’re hardly likely to start now.”
“Ladies, I don’t know if any of you ever met my niece, Gaby, when she came and stayed here years ago?”
The women shook their heads.
“Then let me introduce you,” Jill said. “Gaby, these are some friends of mine who I know through the local lunch club, which I join from time to time. This is Olive Nimmo, who lives down the street, Claire Thomas who lives on the next street over, and Maggie Clarke, who lives on the other side of the town near the allotments. Ladies, this is my lovely niece, Gaby.”
They all exchanged greetings and smiles.
“Now, these women might look like friends, but they brought dangerously delicious cakes with them which will do untold damage to my waistline considering I can’t get out and about as much as I usually do,” Jill said with an arched grin for the women.
“Nonsense,” said Olive. “You need to keep your strength up. And you need to keep your spirits up too while you’re recovering. Nothing does that better than good old-fashioned homemade cake.”
“Olive made a chocolate cake for me,” Jill explained to Gaby as she gestured to the cake plate on the table.
“I told her you’d stopped off at the Sweet Treats bakery café this morning and stocked up on enough goodies to last for days, but she still insisted we cut the chocolate cake she’d baked and also insisted I have a slice big enough to cause palpitations. ”
“We just want to make sure you’re doing okay,” Olive said warmly. “And that you know we are all thinking of you.”
“I’m lucky to have you all,” Jill said. “You’ve helped pass a lovely afternoon and stopped me thinking about my sore stitches.”
“Hopefully the nurse will agree to take them out when she comes on Monday,” said Maggie. “That will make things feel much better.”
“And now that your niece is home, we’ll get out of your way and leave you in peace,” said Claire as the three women got to their feet.
“Please don’t rush off on my account,” Gaby said.
“We’ve been here for ages already, talking your aunt’s ear off,” Olive assured her. “And when we arrived, she had another couple of visitors already here. I’m sure it’s been a tiring afternoon listening to us all chattering away and I have no doubt Jill is ready for a bit of peace and quiet.”
Jill got to her feet and grabbed her crutches for balance and the three guests embraced her and said goodbye. Gaby accompanied the ladies to the door to see them off to save her aunt the trip through the hallway.
“It’s very good of you to come and look after your aunt while she’s on the mend,” Olive said to Gaby as the women left the house.
“I’m happy to be here,” Gaby said. “Jill hasn’t needed much help, though. She’s determined to get through the recovery as quickly as possible.”
“Naturally, but she told us how touched she is that you’re here with her and keeping her company,” Olive said. “You’re a good girl.”
Gaby blushed and laughed a little at the touching words.
“Now, if you need any help, we’re all here for you and for Jill,” Olive said as the three women exited the front gate. “Don’t you hesitate to call on us, okay?”
“Thank you. And thanks for visiting.”
The women waved and walked off along Foxglove Street. Back inside the house, Gaby shooed her aunt away from the tea tray she was loading with dirty cups and plates.
“Let me do that,” she said and carried it through to the kitchen where she found two wrapped bouquets of flowers sitting in jugs on the counter.
“Oh, I forgot all about these flowers that are waiting to be dealt with,” Jill said, shuffling towards them.
“My first visitors, who arrived an hour or so after you left, brought these glorious mixed roses for me. And my lunch ladies brought this wonderful autumn bouquet. Aren’t those yellow daisies so cheerful? ”
“They’re lovely, Aunt Jill. You have good friends who love you.”
“I’m very lucky.”
“Would you like me to unwrap the bouquets for you?”
“No, I’d like to do it. I’ve been sitting down for too long this afternoon gossiping with my visitors and I’d like to stay on my feet for a while. I’ll arrange the flowers if you deal with the tea mugs and plates and so on.”
Gaby got to work clearing the tray and loading things into the dishwasher. At her aunt’s insistence, she filled her in on the afternoon she’d spent at the Riverford Hotel managing the birthday party function.
“You must be hungry after working so hard,” Jill said. “Perhaps we could have the quiche slices you brought home from the delicatessen for our meal tonight? Although after all the cake I ate this afternoon, I’m not sure I’m hungry enough for a full meal.”
“I’ll warm it up in a while. I’m sure you’ll be hungry soon.”