Chapter 38
All around me, people are clapping and cheering, but I don’t care. I know this can’t possibly be happening – and, if it is, it’s only because of that stupid video of me on the beach.
That video is the only reason I got enough likes to win; and it’s a video that should never have been posted.
That means that, as far as I’m concerned, there’s only one true winner here, and it’s not me.
‘Where’s Bex?’ I yell, pushing my way through the crowd of people who’re all gathering to congratulate me. ‘She’s the person who should’ve won the stupid competition, not me.’
‘Oh, no,’ Sabrina assures me, the crowds parting to allow her and Luna to get to me. Luna’s smiling at me too, as if this was their plan all along.
This is obviously some strange kind of fever dream I’m having; and I really need to figure out how to wake up from it now.
I need to find Bex.
I need to speak to Hunter.
Oh, God, I really, really need to speak to Hunter.
‘No, Rosie,’ Sabrina goes on, reaching me, ‘you’re the winner. Oh, Bex’s content was amazing, obviously; everyone knows that.’ She waves a hand dismissively. ‘But Bex was already a butterfly. So were the rest. You were the one who changed, Rosie, and that’s what we were looking for.’
I stare at them, nonplussed – and not particularly convinced this is the compliment Sabrina seems to think it is.
‘We all changed, though,’ I protest, frantically scanning the room for Bex, who’s nowhere to be seen. ‘Yasmin became more confident; Bex stopped being horrible to everyone. Even you, Sabrina, you changed, too. And you.’ I turn towards Luna, who pats me comfortingly on the shoulder.
‘Your journey is the one our followers responded to the most,’ she explains. ‘And I don’t know if you’ve looked at your Instagram page lately, but I think you’ll be surprised by how many new followers you’ve gained in the last twenty-four hours.’
I shake my head, overwhelmed. I don’t care about Instagram. Not anymore.
‘I need to find Bex,’ I say firmly. ‘She’s going to be devastated by this. Where is she? Daniel?’
I spot him lurking behind Sabrina, but he just shrugs, still looking painfully hungover.
‘I’ve been looking for her too,’ he says, croakily. ‘But I can’t find her. I think she must be—’
‘I’m here.’
Everyone falls silent at the sound of Bex’s voice.
She’s standing in the doorway of the room, her eyes wild.
‘I’m here,’ she says again, sounding faintly hysterical.
‘And I don’t give a crap about who won the stupid competition – oh, congratulations Rosie, by the way.
I’m being serious, Daniel,’ she repeats, addressing her husband, who looks every bit as confused as the rest of us.
‘It doesn’t matter. We don’t need the money anymore. ’
She holds a small plastic stick in the air, her eyes swimming with tears. It takes me a hot minute and a collective ‘Oooh!’ of appreciation from the assembled crowd to understand what’s happening.
And then my heart is beaming for Bex.
She’s pregnant.
‘Has she peed on that?’ says Millie, spoiling the moment somewhat.
Bex doesn’t even register the comment. Her face is shining with joy, her eyes locked on her husband.
‘Daniel, we’re going to have a baby!’
Daniel picks her up and swings her around, his face buried in her dark hair. Then he puts her back down and starts sobbing.
‘It’s OK,’ he assures us, as a hush falls on the room again. ‘They’re happy tears. I know no one ever cares what the man in the relationship thinks, but I’m just . . . I’m just so happy.’
He starts sobbing again, and I catch sight of Sabrina dabbing at her eyes with a napkin and then looking at it if she can’t quite understand what’s happening.
Within seconds, the party atmosphere is restored; champagne corks pop (‘Did none of you notice I was on the non-alcoholic stuff, just as a precaution?’ says Bex gleefully.
‘It tastes like cat’s piss, but who cares, right?
’), the music starts back up and the dancing recommences, everyone chatting and laughing as if nothing particularly important has happened.
But it did.
I just somehow won a competition that could change my entire life. That could let me clear my debt, and start over, with a brand-new career as an influencer. If Luna’s right, I might even already be well on my way to that, with all the new followers I’ve apparently picked up.
Oh, and as the face of the Chrysalis, I’ll be coming here for one weekend of every month to create my content, too. Wasn’t that part of the prize?
I asked the magic sweater for more time, and it looks like the sweater has delivered.
This thing was definitely worth way more than I paid for it.
‘Ahem!’
The sound of a knife against glass tings through the air again, and a collective groan goes up at the prospect of yet another speech. This time, however, it’s Hunter who’s standing at the front of the room, holding a glass of whisky as if it’s a prop.
Around me, people nudge and hush each other. ‘That’s my daddy,’ Hannah can be heard saying to Rowan, who high-fives her in excitement.
‘I wonder how Bex knows what cat’s piss tastes like?’ Millie whispers loudly, a few steps behind everyone else, as usual.
‘I’m not a man known for his way with words,’ Hunter begins – somewhat inaccurately, given the speech he made to Sabrina just a few minutes ago. ‘So I’m going to get straight to the point.’
He clears his throat, nervously.
‘I’ve just got off a phone call with the person I’ve been dealing at WanderNest,’ he says, ignoring the gasp of horror that goes up at the mention of the dreaded name. ‘I’ve told them we’re pulling out of the proposed deal. I’m not selling the hotel – not to them, and not to anyone.’
‘I knew it,’ yells Izzie. ‘I saw it in the cards!’
Ian shushes her, his eyes fixed firmly on Hunter, who isn’t done yet.
‘One thing the last couple of days have shown me is how much we all need each other,’ he says.
‘And how much this place has come to mean to me. So, Hannah and I will be staying on in the castle. I’ve already agreed to sit down with Ian – and Izzie, and anyone else who feels they have something to contribute – and talk about how we can better support each other; how the hotel can help the village, and vice versa.
It’s not going to be easy; there’s a lot of work ahead of us all, in fact.
But I know no one here’s afraid of hard work, and neither am I.
So, I suppose what I’m trying to say is that I’m willing to give it a go if you are. ’
There’s a short pause, during which the air in the room seems to hum with tension. Then Ian gets to his feet.
‘I’ll drink to that,’ he says simply, holding up his glass.
Hunter raises his in response, and then everyone’s on their feet, glasses clinking in a toast that goes on for so long I start to worry they’ll still be at it by the time my train leaves tomorrow, and I’ll never get the chance to talk to Hunter.
‘Ten minutes to go until midnight,’ Dante yells, as the noise finally dies down. ‘Which means there’s just ten minutes until the Chrysalis is officially open for business. Charge your glasses, everyone.’
I frantically scan the room for Hunter, finding him at last, his tall shape almost hidden by all the people around me, who’re hurrying to refill glasses and find the person they want to be standing next to when the clock strikes midnight, and this new era of the Chrysalis begins.
For me, it’s definitely him.
So let’s just hope he feels the same.
‘Hunter!’ I call, my voice lost in the general buzz of the crowd. ‘Hunter! Over here!’
His eyes swivel towards me, and he smiles, his face lighting up in a way that suggests he might just have been looking for me too.
We swim towards each other through the packed room, carried on the sea of people, none of whom have even the slightest clue how incredibly important it is that we reach each other.
‘Hi,’ I say shyly, when I’m standing in front of him at last. ‘Nice speech.’
‘I’m glad you liked it,’ he replies, grinning down at me.
‘Because I’d never have said any of it if it wasn’t for you.
You were the one who made me see what was right in front of my face.
You were the one who persuaded me to stay here and try to make a go of this place, rather than selling up and running away. ’
‘Oh, I’m sure you’d have got there in the end,’ I reply. ‘In fact, I know you would have. I just gave you a tiny little push.’
‘It was you who messaged me about the power being out, wasn’t it?
’ he says, smiling to show he’s not angry with me.
‘I thought there was something odd about that, but Ian told me he called one of his farmhands not long ago to find out how they’ve been coping without power, and they said it’s been back on for ages now.
You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you? ’
‘Sorry.’ I grin, not feeling remotely sorry at all. ‘I know I shouldn’t have done it, but I knew if you just had a bit of time to get to know them all, you’d be able to put aside your differences. I just wanted to give you that extra time. I could do with some myself, to be honest.’
We look into each other’s eyes, both of us tongue-tied now that we finally have the opportunity to speak.
‘I think I want to move to the Highlands,’ I blurt out, surprising even myself.
‘I think you should come and work for the—’ Hunter starts to say, almost at the same time.
We stare at each other, both of us red in the face, neither one of us wanting to break the fragile spell that feels like it’s been cast over us.
‘You first,’ I say quietly. ‘What were you going to say?’
‘I, um, I was just saying that I think you should consider coming to work for the hotel,’ Hunter replies, scratching his head bashfully. ‘I know you’ve won this influencer contest thing, so you’ll be up here anyway sometimes, but—’