Chapter 18
Ben was a little surprised to find himself blurting out the truth about the future of the hotel. Especially to Lily, of all people, after all of her secrecy and lies.
And yet he had found himself touched when she had confessed about her lonely childhood to him. It had touched a nerve, certainly in stark contrast to the large family environment that he had grown up in. Whenever there had been a problem, his family had always gathered around.
Until now, of course. Since coming back after his father’s death, it had felt different. He was so unhappy fighting Walter when they should be uniting under the shared goal of trying to save the hotel. He had been closed off instead, not telling them the truth.
Just like Lily, he found himself thinking. Everything that he had accused her of, he realised he was equally guilty of acting that way.
‘The hotel’s in that much trouble?’ she asked, breaking into his thoughts.
He nodded, the reality hitting home.
‘I can’t believe it,’ she said, getting up and walking across to look out of the open window at the lake beyond. ‘I mean, I knew that with the renovations bookings were down but I thought it would be OK when it was all finished.’
‘We didn’t have any guests to begin with,’ he told her. ‘Well, not enough, anyhow.’
She spun around. ‘But your grandad always spoke about how busy the place had been.’
‘Maybe in the early days but that was an awful long time ago,’ he replied. ‘Before I can remember.’
‘I see.’ She puffed out a sigh. ‘Do they know? The family? How bad it is?’
He shook his head. ‘You’re not the only one who’s been keeping secrets from them.’
She frowned. ‘But why not tell them the truth?’ she asked.
‘I needed to see if I could save the place first,’ he told her. ‘Before the worst-case scenario plays out. You see, we’ve received a very large offer from a firm that wants to buy us out. They want to turn us into yet another chain hotel.’
He was mollified to see her grimace. ‘You can’t!’ she stammered. ‘Maple Tree Lodge is unique, special, a one-off.’
He nodded. ‘I agree, which is why I’m trying to think of every reason not to sell.’
‘So that’s why Hannah says you’ve been so stressed,’ said Lily, running a hand through her long red hair. ‘It’s not just the grief.’
‘I had to close myself off from all the family stuff,’ he said. ‘I’ve been trying to think logically, trying to treat it like a business.’
‘Yes, but it’s also a home,’ she told him. ‘Your home. Your family’s home.’
‘Which makes it a thousand times worse,’ he replied, with a heavy sigh. ‘Especially after losing Dad. But what do I know about the hotel business? All I know is architecture and even then…’
His voice trailed off.
‘Even then?’ she prompted after a short silence.
He figured, what the hell, and decided that it was a time for confessions. The fact that it was to Lily of all people amazed him.
‘My dream never worked out either,’ he told her, with a wry smile. ‘I ended up designing these dull box-like structures for shopping malls and offices. Never what I wanted to design. Never anything from the heart.’
She looked at him for a long moment before asking, ‘What was it you liked about architecture in the first place?’
He picked up a nearby block of wood and held it in his hands.
‘I guess I’ve always liked building and designing things that can last, ever since those early days messing around with Dad and Grandad in the workshop.
I thought that I would be creating buildings that would be around for generations to come. ’
‘You mean, like Maple Tree Lodge?’
He felt startled. ‘Yeah, I guess,’ he said, frowning in thought. He had never thought of it like that.
‘So you’ve got more in common with your grandad than you thought you had,’ she said softly.
He smiled ruefully. ‘Not sure he’d see it that way.’
‘Don’t sell yourself short,’ she told him. ‘He’s proud of what you achieved by qualifying as an architect. I know he is because he’s told me so.’
‘Much use that will be if the place goes bankrupt,’ he muttered.
But even so, a small part of him felt touched that his grandad might just be proud of him.
‘I should have come home sooner,’ he said out loud. ‘Dad was a great father but not a good businessman.’
‘You’re here now,’ she told him. ‘That’s all that matters. And you could still have your dream if the hotel makes it.’
He looked up at her. ‘How?’
‘Look at all the land you’ve got around here,’ she said, pointing out of the window. ‘Why can’t you design and build something amazing right here on the lakeside?’
‘I did have this one idea,’ he began to say.
‘What was it?’ she asked, leaning forward and looking interested.
‘Lodges. Private accommodation,’ he told her. ‘Oak-framed cottages dotted about on the edge of the lake.’
‘That sounds wonderful.’ She paused before carrying on. ‘And not very minimalistic.’
He looked at her and saw a smile in her eyes.
‘I got sidetracked,’ he confessed. ‘I thought we should turn into this bland place, just like the competition. I thought if we completely changed it from top to bottom then it would survive. That my family could keep their home.’ He gulped before carrying on.
‘I also wondered whether I should stick to what I already know, in other words modern buildings. I think I was trying to prove to myself that I wasn’t my dad.
That if I was completely different then the place might make it. ’
He knew deep down that was true. He didn’t actually like the minimal look. It wasn’t him. He had just been proving a point.
He looked at Lily.
‘I’ll let you into a secret,’ she said, in a soft tone.
‘The first rule of design is that there are no mistakes. Sometimes it’s a lucky accident and the thing that really shouldn’t work is the thing that’s actually really cool.
Look, you could have something special here,’ she told him.
‘Stop pretending to be what you’re not and embrace what you are, what you’ve always been.
This place has a charm. Use it. Don’t decorate for your guests. Decorate for your family and for you.’
‘You were right,’ he told her. ‘You are right. Your design in that bedroom was great, by the way. I admit I was totally wrong.’
She smiled. ‘If we decorate the whole place like that, people will want to check in, cosy up, unplug and enjoy the seasons. Snuggle up in front of the fire or look at the amazing view. They want peaceful afternoons with a book on a comfy chair in front of the fire. They want bracing walks around the lake before coming back to warm up. Hot chocolate. Fairy lights. A big piece of cake. Back to basics but make them luxurious.’
He tried to imagine how that would look. ‘And you think redecorating can do all that?’ he wondered aloud.
‘Of course,’ Lily told him, sounding certain. ‘Choose décor that exudes cosy charm. Guests want to get away from all the dreadful daily news, busy lives and relax. Your ideas for the bland and corporate weren’t relaxing. It just felt as if I should be on a Zoom call at some awful online meeting.’
He smiled ruefully to himself.
‘This place needs to reflect you and your family,’ she carried on.
‘It’s not just a hotel, it’s your home. Along with the lake and the woods too.
It doesn’t need to be expensive either. We can add a lot of texture with all the stuff your grandmother’s bought over the years.
There’s loads of stuff in there. There’s even a few things in here too. ’
He looked around and saw that she was pointing at some old crates and lamps.
‘Your ideas were better than mine,’ he finally said.
‘I know,’ she said with a soft smile. ‘I might be rubbish at relationships but I’m a very good interior designer.’
But he found he couldn’t smile back. ‘I really don’t want to have to sell up,’ he confessed. ‘This is our home. I think it would break Grandad’s heart to leave here. Mine too, if I’m honest.’
‘I understand.’
He looked into her green eyes and found that he believed her. But the reality was still burrowing its way through to his heart.
‘Yes, but will it be enough?’ he wondered out loud.
She reached out to take his hand in hers. ‘I think so but we’ll make sure of it.’
He stared down, feeling the warmth of her hand on his. ‘We?’ he repeated, staring at her.
She nodded. ‘If you want me to stay.’
He looked down at their hands and she let go, as if a little embarrassed.
‘I’d very much like you to stay and help us. Please.’ He gulped. ‘And help me too.’
She smiled at him. ‘Thank you. I can’t think of a more beautiful place to spend the winter.’
‘What, stuck here in this boathouse?’ he said, rolling his eyes.
She laughed. ‘Well, I was thinking about the view of the lake, to be honest.’
He found that he liked it when she laughed and smiled. It lit up her pretty green eyes and he had to tear his thoughts back to the present problem.
‘So I guess it’s time for us both to be honest with everyone,’ he told her.
‘I guess so,’ she replied, nodding.
The fact that he wasn’t going through it alone any more took some of the pressure from him, he found. And the fact that it was Lily pleased him even more.
It was going to be tough, that much he knew. But even so, confessing his ideas about the lodges made him feel as if his creative well was filling up again. He felt inspired. The hotel might just come together with her design ideas and a touch of his modernisation. There was hope at last.
Lily was right. The hotel was special. It always had been. And, if they worked together, it might just be enough to save it.