Chapter Three
CHAPTER THREE
Riley and Lily slept soundly in Riley’s old room. Her mother’s house was a classic Cape Cod–style with gray wooden shingles along the side of the house. Riley’s bedroom was on the top floor and had slanted ceilings and a small window that looked out over Main Street and in the distance, the ocean. It was a cozy room and it always felt good to be home.
She made her way downstairs, fed Lily, and made a pot of coffee. She’d just taken her first sip when her mother slowly came into the kitchen, on her crutches. Her hair was still damp from the shower. Riley got her a coffee and they sat at the kitchen table and split a blueberry muffin.
Her mother had two bites, and said she didn’t want more. She’d never been a big eater at breakfast. Riley always woke up starving. She finished the muffin, refilled her mother’s coffee mug, and took a quick shower while her mother read the paper.
“Do we need to cook anything?” Riley asked as they drove the short distance to the inn.
“No, your sister stocked the kitchen yesterday for us. We don’t have to go grocery shopping for a few days. There’s a quiche defrosting in the refrigerator. It’s fully cooked, we just need to heat it up in the oven and set it on a hot plate to keep warm.”
It was seven thirty when they pulled into the driveway and made their way inside. Breakfast service started at eight and went until ten. The inn was silent as they walked through the living room to the kitchen. The living room was lovely. Her mother had all the rooms painted when she bought it. It had a big gas fireplace and creamy white ceiling moldings. The walls were a deep cranberry shade and the rich color popped against the moldings. With the fire glowing merrily, it already felt ready for the holidays. All it needed was a green Christmas tree in the corner and a few other holiday decorations.
The kitchen was small but efficient and after insisting that her mother sit and prop her leg up on a stool, Riley got to work. She put the quiche in the oven to warm up and made two pots of coffee, one regular and one decaf, and put both in thermoses to stay warm. She also filled an electric teakettle so if anyone wanted hot water, it would be ready in a minute or two.
Breakfast was served in the adjoining dining room and Riley brought everything out to an antique wooden side table. In addition to the coffee and teakettle, she filled several carafes with milk, cream, and orange and cranberry juice, and set them in a tray of ice to keep cool. She cut up fresh cantaloupe and sliced strawberries and added them to a platter with blueberries. She brought out an assortment of cold cereals, bagels, and bread, as well as butter and cream cheese. There were also blueberry muffins. Her mother liked guests to have a choice of something healthy or more of a treat like the muffin. And she also liked to always have one hot item.
As soon as the quiche was ready, Riley put it on the heated warmer in the dining room. Her mother sat at the kitchen table, writing out checks and paying bills. She smiled when Riley returned to the kitchen.
“That’s the last of them. Would you mind popping these in the mailbox so they go out with today’s mail?” She handed Riley a stack of stamped envelopes and she went to drop them in the mailbox at the door. On her way back to the kitchen, she paused at the sight of a familiar face coming down the stairs. It was Aidan, followed by a young boy that she assumed must be his son, Luke. Aidan stopped short when he saw her. Aidan had once been everything to her. It was surreal to see him again after so long. He looked the same and yet very different.
“Riley. This is a surprise. It’s good to see you,” he said warmly. He still had the same dark brown hair, brown eyes, and easy smile. Riley glanced at the boy beside him. He really was like a mini-Aidan.
“This must be Luke?”
“Yes!” Aidan turned to his son. “Luke, this is Riley. She’s… an old friend. We went to school together.”
“Cool. Dad, can I have a muffin?”
“Sure, buddy, help yourself.” Luke ran ahead of them into the dining room.
Riley’s mother had relocated to the dining room and was sitting at a corner table with her coffee and a slice of quiche. She looked pleased to see Riley and Aidan walk in together. Aidan said hello to her.
“You’re welcome to join us,” her mother invited. “The quiche is excellent. It’s ham and cheese, from a local bakery.”
“That sounds good to me.” Aidan headed over to help himself to a slice and Riley did the same. Luke sat next to Riley’s mother and the two of them were deep in conversation when Riley and Aidan joined them. Her mother always liked to eat her breakfast with the guests. They liked the attention and she enjoyed meeting everyone.
“My mother told me about the water heater breaking. I’m so sorry,” Riley said.
Aidan cut into his quiche. “Thanks. The timing is pretty bad. Though I don’t suppose there is a good time for this sort of thing. Hopefully they will get it resolved and cleaned up soon.”
“How are your parents doing?” Riley wondered why Aidan and Luke didn’t stay with them.
“They’re good. They’re in Arizona now. They moved there two years ago when my mother’s arthritis got really bad. The warm, dry air is better for her.”
“Did your father retire already?” Riley guessed he was only in his late fifties or maybe early sixties.
Aidan shook his head. “No. I’m taking over more of the business here, but he still works with his clients remotely. I miss having them around, but they still get back for a few weeks every summer. They sold their house and just stay with us now.”
So, there was no house here for them to go to. Now it made sense why they’d chosen to stay at the inn. In the summer months, there were plenty of short-term rentals, but not in the winter.
“It definitely is warmer there. I bet they appreciate it this time of year,” Riley said. There was a damp chill in the air that promised snow soon. It was in the forecast for later that day.
Aidan smiled. “They are liking it, though of course they miss seeing us as often. What brings you back here? Are you just visiting?” He glanced at Riley’s mother’s leg in its cast.
“I’m just back for a few weeks to help out and to enjoy the holidays. I also just got laid off unexpectedly,” she admitted. “But the silver lining is that I don’t have to rush back.”
He frowned. “I’m sorry to hear that. Layoffs are rough anytime, but especially just before the holidays. I don’t know why companies do that.”
“I don’t either. But if it was going to happen anyway, at least the timing worked out. I’m sure I’ll find something after the holidays,” she said cheerfully. She’d checked online and it seemed like there were plenty of job opportunities. She planned to update her resume over the next few days and start applying for positions. She knew hiring typically slowed this time of year, but she could still get the ball rolling and hopefully get something lined up for early January. She was looking forward to relaxing a bit and helping out her mother, but she was also anxious to get settled into a new job and back to her life in the city.
“Are you still in New York City?” Aidan asked.
“Yes. I live right in Manhattan.”
There was a long moment of quiet before Aidan simply said, “Just like you always wanted.” There was no edge to his tone, but Riley still felt a twinge of sadness.
“Where are you two off to today?” her mother asked.
“We’re heading over to the house to check on progress and after that we’re off to Hyannis to run some errands,” Aidan said.
“Do you think you might be back later this afternoon? If so, I could use your help.”
“Sure, we’ll be back early afternoon. What do you need?”
“Would you mind giving us a hand getting a tree in here? Riley and I both have small cars and your truck would be perfect. If it’s not too much trouble?”
Aidan didn’t hesitate. “Of course. Just let me know where and when.”
“Why don’t you and Luke meet us at the tree lot at four? It’s about a mile from here, in the church parking lot.”
“I know the one you mean. We’ll see you there.”
“Dad, can we get a tree, too?” Luke asked hopefully.
But Aidan shook his head. “We don’t have room, buddy. We’ll have to enjoy the one in the lobby.”
“You can hang a stocking by the fire here, honey,” Riley’s mother said.
Luke stared at the fireplace. “Okay. I wish we were going to be in our own house for Christmas. With our own tree!” He looked miserable and Riley didn’t blame him. It couldn’t be fun to be a kid stuck in a bed-and-breakfast over the holidays.
“You and me both,” Aidan said. “We’ll just have to make the best of it.” He grinned. “Santa will still be able to find you.”
That made Luke laugh. “Very funny, Dad. Are you ready to go?” Luke stood by his seat hopping from one leg to the other, anxious to get going.
Riley smiled. At nine, Luke clearly knew the truth about Santa. He was at that age where he wanted to be a grown-up but was still very much a kid.
Aidan took his last bite of quiche and swallowed the rest of his coffee in one sip. “Okay, let’s go.” He glanced at Riley and her mother. “I’ll see you two at the tree lot at four.”
Once Aidan and Luke left, the room felt oddly quiet. Riley took the empty dishes to the kitchen, rinsed them, and put them in the dishwasher. Once that was done, she topped off her coffee and her mother’s as well.
“So, what did you think of Aidan? It’s been a long time since you’ve seen him,” Beth asked. Riley was unusually quiet and she wondered what was going through her daughter’s mind.
Riley smiled. “He looked good and Luke is his spitting image. It was a little strange seeing him. I’ve run into him a few times over the years, but not in a long time. He looks exactly the same. Almost like time has stopped.”
“Except for the wife and child,” Beth said.
Riley laughed. “Right. It is so sad about his wife. How long has it been now?”
“Three years, I think. Luke seems to be doing well, though. I’m sure the holidays are hard for both of them. We’ll have to make it as festive as possible. It might be good for both of them to be around people.”
“It might be, actually. I imagine it must be lonely this time of year with just the two of them left in the house.”
Beth thought the same. “Aidan doesn’t seem very into the holiday but Luke, like all kids his age, is excited about it. I thought that asking for their help with the tree might be good for both of them.”
Riley laughed. “I wondered about that request. I probably could have managed getting it onto the top of my car, using bungee cords or something.”
“I wouldn’t want to risk you scratching your rental. This will be easier. I suspect Luke might enjoy helping us decorate the tree. Can you get the decorations out of the basement before we leave?”
“Of course. I’ll bring them right into the living room, so we are ready to go when the tree arrives. And we can make hot chocolate for after.”
“Perfect,” Beth agreed.
Riley pulled her laptop out of her tote bag and set it on the table. She opened it and they were both quiet for a few minutes as Riley checked email and was typing away on her keyboard. She paused for a moment and looked up with a smile. “The stroll starts next weekend, doesn’t it?”
“Yes, it kicks off Friday night with a tree lighting downtown.”
“And how many rooms do we have rented?”
“At the moment it’s just Franny and Aidan and another couple that is checking out tomorrow. I have one more room booked for stroll weekend, but that leaves five available.”
Riley bit her lower lip, thinking. Beth smiled as she watched her daughter trying to work out a solution to their lack of guests. After a long moment, she smiled and looked excited.
“I think I can get those rooms rented. Chatham’s stroll isn’t as well known as the Nantucket one. It also sells out and is more expensive to go there. I can get some blog posts up today and for the next few days and maybe we can offer some kind of special?”
“What did you have in mind? I’ve already dropped the rates as low as I can go,” Beth said with concern.
Riley smiled big. “Yes, I’ve been thinking about that and I actually think we should raise the room rates in general, but especially for that weekend. If we position the inn as a bit more exclusive we can charge more and it could make it more in demand. We can price it a bit above the other inns in town, kind of reposition it. People often equate price with quality and in this case I think they are right.”
“You do?” Beth wasn’t sure about this idea at all. It worried her that if she raised prices, her bookings could decrease even further.
“Trust me, Mom. We can make some little tweaks that will add value. Now that I’m here, I can make the quiches from scratch, for instance, and the muffins, too. We could do a chocolate turndown service. That won’t cost much, and people love it. All we have to do is leave a little chocolate for each person in the room.”
“I like it when places leave chocolate,” Beth agreed.
“And I thought for stroll weekend, we could experiment with having wine and cheese before the dinner hour in the living room or cookies and hot chocolate.”
Beth liked that idea, too. “That could be interesting.”
Riley’s eyes lit up. “I love the concept. It will bring the guests together and everyone can enjoy the warmth of the fire and the beautiful tree all decorated for Christmas. By including these extras, we can bump our rates a bit. And after the holiday maybe we keep the wine and cheese going—depending on how people like it?”
“And then we could keep the rates up, too?” Beth asked.
Riley nodded. “Yes, exactly. I will post all over social media about the special stroll package. What do you think?”
“I think it’s a great idea. I hope others do, too.”
Riley grinned. “I think they will.”