Chapter 53
Her entire time here felt like a complete blur.
It still seemed as if Erin was spending every waking moment at work putting out fires …
a guest’s missing pet dog, damaged beachside seating and an unexpected power outage that left the entire resort in darkness, which, save for a quick response from the electrical company, could well have entirely hung the fate of tonight’s sunset party in the balance.
Now, as she worked putting final touches to the beach area for the bonfire, Erin yawned despite all the caffeine coursing through her veins.
She’d picked up a takeout at the lobby coffee dock and saw Mack enjoying a chat with Trevor of all people, and was pleased to see the two men had continued their friendship after the tour that time.
Now that he’d officially rubber-stamped a partnership with the hotel, Mack seemed content to simply relax and enjoy the rest of his stay.
While on the one hand Erin was glad he hadn’t checked out yet, she was also aware that now her task to win him over was accomplished, their time together would also be at an end.
And she was surprised by how bereft the very notion made her feel.
‘Over there,’ she instructed the maintenance crew as they continued setting up large pieces of driftwood around empty wooden crates.
The nearby entertainment stage was complete, with speakers and a microphone for Derek, the head of animation, to host The Palms inaugural Hula contest – a genius idea by Lily to make up for the traditional dance company supplier cancelling on them that time.
Many of their guests, and indeed some of the staff, had already expressed an interest in participating.
Which had the potential of being a lot more fun than simply watching professionals.
‘There you are,’ she greeted Lily now as the events manager wandered slowly onto the beach. ‘What do you think?’ she asked, motioning proudly around.
‘It’s …’ Lily looked blearily around her, her expression strained and her eyes devoid of their usual sparkle, Erin thought. ‘Amazing.’
‘I strung those up myself,’ she told her, smiling, as her colleague went over and touched a string of gold fairy lights circling a nearby palm tree. ‘Once the sun sets, torches are lit, and you get the moonlight reflecting off the ocean, it’s going to be breathtaking down here.’
‘Definitely,’ Lily agreed simply.
‘So Derek is going to start the Hula lessons backstage at eight. We’ll take a break for the fireworks and then maybe the contest can begin around nine?’
The other girl merely nodded, and Erin frowned. She seemed very distracted and dare she say it, disinterested?
‘Everything OK? You seem tired. I get it though, believe me. I had no idea how much work went into organising this thing. But it’ll be worth it and I can’t wait to attend my very first Palms sunset party. First of many too, I hope.’
‘Yes, a little tired. As you say, lots to think about. But I think we’re ready.’
Erin agreed. Nothing more to do now, but light the tiki torches, fire up the barbecue, pop open the champagne and wait for the fun to begin.
For the very first time since she’d arrived at The Palms, Erin started to feel herself relax, and she was really looking forward to letting her hair down a little tonight.
Ultimately, there was still no way of knowing whether Eugenie Cooke’s warning was legit and whether some elusive guest at the hotel had been trying to take them down. Erin figured that with the help of The Palms’ staff, she’d pretty much done what was possible to keep the hotel afloat.
But it was really only tonight, once the famed sunset party went off without a hitch, that she could truly count all their efforts as a success.
Her mother was frustratingly chipper as later Lily sat glumly at Sea Shells kitchen island watching Barbara tidy up after dinner, before they headed out to the party.
While Lily was over the moon that her mother felt up to coming along, it was also bittersweet since this would be the first year her dad would be absent from the big community occasion.
Plus she felt childishly annoyed that Barbara hadn’t queried her own melancholy. ‘Mum, haven’t you noticed?’
‘Noticed what?’ her mother replied, as she began to wash the dishes.
‘That I feel like hell …’ Lily muttered.
‘Of course I did,’ Barbara said gently. ‘I was waiting for you to say something. Now that you have, we can talk about it. And before you say it, I’m not going to ask you what happened,’ her mother continued as she scrubbed a frying pan. ‘Because I already know.’
Once again, Lily was taken aback and immediately suspicious. ‘Did Dee call you?’
‘No, Shay did. He was here earlier.’
At this, her mother could have knocked Lily over with a feather. She’d spoken to Shay? First Dee and then her mum? What on earth did he think he was doing?
Now Lily’s temper flared unbidden. ‘I can’t believe he did that. He shouldn’t involve you. He barely knows you. You met him only once,’ she ranted.
Her mother watched her but didn’t stop what she was doing.
‘You’re right,’ she replied calmly as she rinsed off a glass.
Lily knew she was right, her mother didn’t have to tell her. Still she was curious.
‘What did he say?’ she asked and again got a reply she didn’t like.
‘That’s not important right now,’ her mother stated. ‘What is important is how you respond to it.’
Lily couldn’t believe what she was hearing. ‘Mum, you don’t know what you’re talking about,’ she argued.
‘You mean about Shay’s fiancée being here and wanting him back?’
Her face slackened. ‘He told you that?’
‘Yes, he did. Plus some other things, but I won’t speak about them. If you want to know then you’re going to have to face him.’
‘Mother—’
‘Lily, what do you think your father would say about all this?’
Why did she have to bring her dad into this?
It wasn’t fair. Lily knew what he’d say and that he definitely wouldn’t be at all happy with her sulking around and avoiding things.
Richard firmly believed in taking risks and owning your own actions.
He’d told Lily that her entire life. But she was sure that whatever Shay had to say wasn’t going to leave her singing choruses afterwards.
Now, she could feel her mother watching her closely, but didn’t want to meet her gaze. ‘I know what he’d say.’ She sighed resignedly.
‘Do you have feelings for Shay, sweetheart?’
‘It doesn’t matter—’
‘I didn’t ask that. I asked whether you had feelings for him or not.’ Her mother was looking at her squarely, waiting for her reply. She couldn’t ignore her and Lily knew that if she tried, her mother would never let it go.
‘Yes,’ she barely whispered.
‘I thought so.’ Barbara stepped out from behind the sink. She pulled Lily into her arms and hugged her soundly. ‘Then talk to him before he leaves,’ she whispered into her ear. ‘Stop torturing yourself and clear the air once and for all. Good or bad, you can’t be haunted by “what if”.’
Lily’s heart ached at her mother’s words because she knew they were true.
Barbara was insistent. ‘Just talk to him.’