Chapter 4
Chapter Four
L isa Hodges surveyed the breakfast offerings and debated what to add to her plate. She knew that fresh fruit and oatmeal would be the sensible choice, but the ham and cheddar quiche she’d made smelled so amazing and the tray of brown-sugar crusted crispy bacon was tempting, too. She compromised by adding a sliver of quiche, two slices of bacon and a big bowl of cut cantaloupe and honeydew melon. She added a splash of coffee to her mug and headed to the table where Angela and Kay had just sat down with their breakfasts.
As she did every morning, Lisa rose early, usually by five, and started preparing the meal that was included for guests of The Beach Plum Cove Inn. Several years ago, her son Chase had helped her to transform her waterfront home into a bed-and-breakfast. That income allowed her to remain on Nantucket, close to her four adult children and friends.
Her quiches were so popular that she’d expanded and started an ecommerce company to initially sell the lobster quiches and other items online. It grew so fast that she quickly outgrew her home kitchen and hired a commercial one off-island to help produce and ship. It all kept her very busy, but she still had time to have breakfast occasionally with friends.
And this morning she had two visitors. Angela was a young woman in her thirties that had once stayed at the inn after inheriting her grandmother’s cottage. Her initial plan had been to fix it up and sell, but Angela, who was alone in the world, grew to love Nantucket and the sense of family and community she’d found. She’d also fallen in love with one of the many island celebrities. She’d married Philippe, a bestselling local author, who also spent time on the West Coast as many of his books had been turned into film or TV series.
Since moving to the island, Angela continued to grow her cleaning business. She’d started out cleaning houses while in college and found she enjoyed the work. Now she mostly managed a busy team, but also pitched in as needed if someone was out. The regular cleaner for the inn sprained her ankle, so Angela would be taking over for the next week or so. Lisa adored her and was eager to catch up over coffee.
She’d already invited Kay to stop in as well. They saw each other often, as Kay had been a family friend for years. She was in her early seventies and had been a dear friend of Lisa’s mother. She hadn’t been able to make it to Lisa and Rhett’s wedding, as she’d been traveling in Europe with friends. But she came for an extended visit, initially meant to be two months, but Kay was at a crossroads in her life and found what she didn’t know she was looking for when she met Lisa’s neighbor Walter, who was also recently widowed. They clicked instantly, but first as friends, and it slowly turned to more. Now they were inseparable.
“Walter and I sat outside yesterday for an hour or so, having our coffee and watching the cars come and go at the house next door. We’re not really sure what’s going on over there. Have you heard anything?” Kay asked.
Lisa nodded at Angela. “Do you want to explain about the show they are filming?” Lisa knew Angela could explain it to Kay far better than she could.
Angela smiled and set her coffee cup down. “They are filming a reality show. My friend Lauren is a producer on the show and is on her way to Nantucket. Nine influencers will be spending two months together, working from the house and enjoying the island.”
“What is an influencer?” Kay looked thoroughly confused, and Lisa knew it was a strange concept, one she was just learning about herself.
“These people have turned themselves into a brand. They post content on social media—could be TikTok or Instagram or YouTube or all of the above. They have hundreds of thousands of followers—some even have millions—of people that watch everything they post. When these influencers mention a product, their followers rush out and buy it. They get paid a lot of money to promote products.”
“Like a commercial?” Kay asked, trying to make sense of it.
“Sort of. So, to give you an example, there are lots of beauty and makeup influencers. They post videos where they are putting on makeup and trying different products and then their followers will often want to buy those products.”
“Videos on makeup? And these people make money from that? How interesting,” Kay said.
Angela nodded. “They also make money from people watching their videos. Some just put up really entertaining content that people watch until the end and they sometimes sell products directly from shops online. It’s all a pretty big business, actually.”
“Is it all young people?” Kay asked.
Angela thought for a moment. “Not necessarily. It started out that way, but all ages are on social media and watch videos now, so there are some really popular older creators, too.”
“I’ll have to watch some of these videos and see what all the fuss is about,” Kay said.
Lisa thought about what Angela had said and what Lauren briefly mentioned when she booked a room at the inn. “So a bunch of these young influencers will be staying in the house next to Walter? How does that become a TV show? Especially if they don’t know each other?”
“The magic happens in production and editing. From what I understand, the whole house will be wired with cameras so they will be filmed around the clock. Which means they will quickly become comfortable being filmed and we’ll get more authentic content.”
“I still don’t see how that will be all that interesting.” It didn’t sound appealing to Lisa.
Angela smiled. “There’s always drama that comes from these situations. These people will be in close quarters and there will be catered parties and alcohol, which will lower inhibitions and these influencers aren’t shy to begin with. There will likely be friendships that form and possibly romances and rivalries. Possibly jealousy and love triangles and other drama.”
And now Lisa understood. “That sounds messy.”
“But very interesting,” Kay said.
“Exactly,” Angela agreed. “It’s like a train wreck. You know it’s going to be a disaster but it’s hard not to watch.”