The Christmas Inn

by Stella MacLean

  “Well, that’s settled. Welcome to the staff of The Mirabel,” he said, his disarming smile doing strange and awesome things to her.

  “I’d better eat my breakfast. I see you’ve already finished.” She wasn’t the least bit hungry, but a piece of toast might be a good idea.

  He waved his hand, and a server appeared. “My assistant would like…” He arched his eyebrows at her.

  “Toast. Whole wheat toast.”

  After the server left, Marnie smoothed her napkin over her lap while all sorts of thoughts swam through her head. “Running a place like this must have its challenges,” she said. They made small talk as she sipped her coffee, and the pretty, young server returned with her toast.

  Once she’d finished it, she wiped her lips on her napkin and placed it beside her plate. “So, I have to get to my manicure appointment, only I don’t know where the spa is.”

  He pointed toward an archway leading from the dining room to a back corridor. “Straight through there, and to the right. Can’t miss it.”

  “Thank you.”

  “See you in my office when you’re finished.”

  * * *

  THE DOOR TO THE SPA was a deep mahogany-red with gold letters announcing Spa Delights. Marnie eased the door open and a woman with a mass of long red hair and a welcoming smile greeted her. “I’m Francine, and you must be Marnie McLaughlan. Love your name, by the way. Not a common name in these parts.”

  “Probably not anywhere else, either,” Marnie responded, instantly liking this woman.

  “You’re booked for hair and nails first, so I’m going to take you to Lucy, who’ll do your nails, and then to Eileen for your hair. Your massage will be with me. How does that sound?”

  “Wonderful.” She followed Francine to where Lucy waited at the manicure table.

  “Enjoy yourself. I’ll see you later.”

  Marnie studied her half-chewed nails and torn cuticles before holding them out to Lucy. She’d been so preoccupied with selling her salon that she hadn’t bothered to have her nails done. Not a great advertisement for someone in the business…well, not in the business much longer. “Looks like you’ve got your work cut out for you,” she said.

  Lucy grinned and put a bowl of warm, soapy water in front of her. “Let’s start with your cuticles.”

  The woman worked away on Marnie’s nails, and although she was friendly, her technique was lacking. She didn’t get out a new emery board for the nail filing, and she smeared the polish remover over Marnie’s fingers instead of just on the nail beds. Because this spa would have few repeat clients, it ought to be using disposable tools or putting those nondisposable tools through a thorough cleaning process. Fungal infections were easily spread by lack of proper clean technique and hard to get rid of once a nail was infected. As for the nail polish remover, the drying effects of the solution would dry the cuticles even more.

  She made a mental note of deficiencies she’d experienced with the manicurist. The selection of hair products Eileen used on her was professional with lots of client choice. She didn’t have her hair cut or trimmed, so she’d have to leave those questions unanswered. Once Eileen had finished blow-drying her hair, Francine appeared and led Marnie to a room where muted light and soft music created a restful space.

  Once she had positioned herself on the state-of-the-art massage table, Francine began her massage, putting Marnie instantly at ease. “So, you’re going to be Luke’s new assistant.”

  “Wow! News travels fast.”

  “This is a very close-knit group of people, and we all care about Luke. He’s been through so much.”

  Marnie couldn’t resist the subject of Luke. “I was told his wife died.”

  “In a car accident just before Christmas three years ago. You can’t imagine what a sad place the inn was that year. He wanted to cancel all the reservations, but everyone pitched in and took over for him. He was incapable of anything other than tending to Ethan. We were all afraid he might have a nervous breakdown.”

  “He loved his wife a lot,” Marnie said, wishing that someone might love her that much some day.

  “He did. And she loved him, but Anna was headstrong and determined about everything. If she’d listened to him when he told her to stay in Boston that night, maybe she’d still be alive today. And that’s the part Luke struggled with for months after she died, and still does.”

  “She probably just wanted to get home to her husband and child.”

  “That’s true, but I don’t know if Luke saw it that way. And how could he when what she did destroyed his life, and left his son without a mother?”

  “But surely he can’t believe his life is over. A man like Luke shouldn’t have any trouble finding someone to love.”

  Francine sighed. “He’s shut himself off. It’s as if he can’t bring himself to care for another woman. His whole life is Ethan and this inn.”

  “How different his life must be now.”

  “Luke’s been lucky to have Mary Cunningham. She’s been like a grandmother to Ethan, and Luke couldn’t have managed without her. We all take turns babysitting Ethan when we’re needed.”

  “It does sound like one big family.”

  “Even more so since Anna died. Luke passed up a promotion five years ago because he wanted to stay here. With Ethan in his life now, he’s even more determined to stay put.”

  Angus McAndrew and his management team probably wouldn’t understand a man who wouldn’t take a promotion because of his attachment to a community. They’d want to know if the manager was operating the inn with the intention of supporting his staff, rather than supporting their profit goals. “What if the manager’s job here wasn’t available?”

  “He’d look for a job in the area,” Francine said with certainty.

  “You have to admire someone who knows what he wants.”

  “Well, you’ll find out soon enough, Luke can be a very demanding boss.”

  Francine finished the massage, and Marnie regretted that she couldn’t simply stay and have a nap. “That felt so good.”

  “I’m pleased, and I hope you like your job here at The Mirabel Inn. I don’t know if anyone told you this, but Anna was Luke’s assistant before he proposed to her. He hasn’t had an assistant since they were married, so you must be pretty good at what you do.”

  It was so weird to feel flattered over something that wasn’t really true. Luke hadn’t picked her to be his assistant because she was good at it. He picked her because he felt sorry for her. “Thank you for the massage.”

  “You’re welcome, and I’m sure we’ll see you around.”

  Marnie signed the bill to her room and left. Her cell phone was buzzing where she’d left it on the top of the dresser when she unlocked the door. She checked the call display.

  “Scott, what do you want now?”

  “Is that any way to greet your dear brother?”

  “Skip the chitchat. What do you want?”

  A moment of silence was followed by an exaggerated sigh from Scott. “I guess I want to know why you’re in such a bad mood.”

  “You told Luke Harrison that you’d arranged a trip to this inn as a surprise for me, your beloved wife, and then you said that business had called you away.”

  “Whoa! You and this Luke guy must be getting pretty friendly for him to have shared that information with you.”

  “Friendly or not, you had no business lying…again.”

  “I’m sorry, Marnie. I wanted to fix things, to make your stay there as easy for you as possible. I had no idea that you and he were close enough to discuss such things.”

  Did her brother have no scruples? “What do you want?”

  “Mom is calling me wanting to know when you’ll be back. I told her three days, but now she wants to talk to you. It seems your Mrs. Claus suit arrived today.”

  Because she was the only one in the family who was single it was assumed she would be available for whatever anyone in the family needed, and she was
sick of it. She wanted to enjoy her time here with Luke, she didn’t want to be here under false pretenses, and what she wanted mattered. “I’ll worry about Mom later. And I’m not going to do your mystery-guest thing.”

  “You what?” Scott yelled.

  Scott never yelled. He had too many other techniques for getting what he wanted. She held the phone away from her ear for a moment. “You heard me.”

  “Listen, you promised you’d do it, and I need it done. In case you’ve forgotten, you’ll have a great vacation on me afterward, along with a friend. This isn’t fair. I can’t go back to Advantage and tell them that my little sister chickened out, can I?”

  “You tell them anything you want. I quit.”

  “Then I’ll cancel your trip to Hawaii, and bill you for your room.”

  “You wouldn’t.”

  “A deal’s a deal.”

  “I’ll pay my own bill.”

  “And sit in a strange inn for the next few days at your own expense? Why would you do that?”

  So that she could simply enjoy her time with Luke, her conscience clear while she got to know the man. But what if there was no relationship to pursue with Luke? What if it turned out that she’d wasted all her money, and made her mother upset, simply to chase a dream?

  Besides, she couldn’t tell Scott her real reason for wanting to stay, especially if it turned out like so many of her relationships. The questions weren’t difficult, and the forms shouldn’t take long to complete, and if it meant so much to Scott that he was willing to lie to get a booking here, it had to be important. “Okay. I’ll finish your survey.”

  “That’s my sister,” he whooped.

  “It means that much to you?”

  He didn’t answer right away. “Yeah, it does. Thanks. And I’m sorry for lying to get a booking.”

  Her brother actually sounded sincere. Could he be going through some sort of seismic personality shift? No. Not Scott. “I’ve got to go.”

  “Stay in touch,” he ordered, the old Scott back in charge.

  * * *

  LUKE SAT IN HIS OFFICE, staring out at the back lawn that swooped up the hill to a line of spruce and fir trees. Winter had been late in arriving this year, but if the weather report he’d just read was correct, Mother Nature was about to make up for it by dumping eight inches of snow on the region. The storm was slowly making its way up the eastern seaboard and had already brought traffic to a halt in parts of Delaware.

  But with Christmas Eve two days away, he had bigger issues on his mind. He’d reviewed the menus for the entire week, remembering to keep the season festive while meeting the whims of his guests and the constraints of the impending weather. He loved the Christmas Eve dinner they held for the guests. Some of the recipes on the menu were from a local cookbook that his mother had given him when she and Dad had sold their beachfront condo on Kiawah Island, South Carolina.

  “Hope I’m not late,” Max Anderson said, coming into the office and closing the door behind him, a sheaf of printouts in his hand.

  “No, not at all. I’ve just been going over our menus for the next week, and checking on the weather report.”

  “Me, too. I hope Jack’s baby doesn’t decide to arrive in the middle of a snowstorm.”

  “I’ve offered Lindsay and Jack the Hummer if they need it. I tried to convince him to stay home, but he said he’d wait and see what the weather was like.” Luke remembered the day Ethan was born, how overjoyed he and Anna felt.

  Max pulled up a chair next to the desk. “Well, we need to go over our menu contingency plan in case the storm causes delivery problems. “

  They worked on how they’d manage in the event of a storm, should the weather make the roads impassable. Max was like a brother to Luke, and when Luke had taken the job at The Mirabel Inn, he’d convinced his friend to move up with him, leaving a hotel job he had in Virginia.

  After three cups of coffee, Luke felt they were prepared for anything. Max had agreed to order additional essentials right away, just in case.

  When they were finished Max leaned forward with a quizzical look on his face. “By the way, I just had a strange experience. I was walking past the library when I spotted a woman sitting near the window. She was running her fingers over the windowsill, and then she got up and walked around the room, checking the tabletops and the fireplace mantel.” Max rubbed his head. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say she was checking for dust. Thank God Mary was nowhere in sight. She’s got little tolerance for anyone who dares to imply that the cleaning isn’t up to par.”

  “That’s odd. What did the woman look like?”

  “She was around five foot five, with short dark hair, and she was wearing a pair of jeans and a bright orange T-shirt. The couples taking part in the Christmas Getaway event must be younger than I thought.”

  Luke had a pretty good idea who was loitering in the library. She should have been in his office with him, not out there drawing attention to herself. “I’ll look into it,” he said, getting out of his chair and heading for the library.

  He didn’t want it to be Marnie. He’d explained to her that it would be best if she didn’t wander around too much by herself, and raise questions in the minds of the other guests. And what was she doing in the library checking for dust? Unease rose through him, followed by annoyance. Last night she’d been asking questions about the bar and now she’d been inspecting the library when she was supposed to find him after she finished up at the spa.

  When he first reached the library the room appeared to be empty. Then he saw her over by the windows that overlooked the side lawn. The morning light caught the blue and crystal ornaments on the Christmas tree a few feet from where Marnie sat. The whole room glowed with a magical light, the air filled with the scent of pine and cinnamon.

  She hadn’t noticed him yet, her attention focused on the cell phone in her lap. She seemed so alone, her expression sad. He had a sudden urge to protect her from whatever made her feel so bad.

  She turned, her eyes aimed directly at his. “I went looking for you, but Amanda said you were in a meeting.”

  “And I was looking for you earlier so you could attend the meeting. All part of you being my assistant,” he said, hoping she’d explain what she’d been doing in this room.

  “Well, we’re together now.” She closed her cell phone, a hint of amusement capturing her eyes as she continued to look at him. Was she teasing him? The idea had its appeal.

  What he wouldn’t give to be able to sit down beside her and talk about anything and everything except work. How long had it been since he’d had a conversation that wasn’t about the inn, its operation or its guests? And why did it suddenly matter to him?

  That odd, totally unexpected feeling he’d experienced when she’d agreed to stay and be his assistant had left him perplexed by how easily she’d slipped into his life, his thoughts—and now she was making him want for things he hadn’t missed before.

  When she’d told him she wasn’t married, that her brother had made up the story to get her a reservation, he’d been so damned glad he’d wanted to get up and dance. Marnie had turned his life on its end, and he was thankful for the distraction.

  “This is an awesome room,” she said, her gaze sweeping over the dazzlingly lit space, and coming to rest on the silver-and-blue tree.

  “It is. Someone told me you were checking the windowsills for dust. Is there a problem? Or did Mary enlist your help?”

  “No. I…I thought that while I was waiting I’d come in here and check it out. When you run a hair-and-aesthetics salon, checking for dust and dirt, straightening piles of magazines becomes automatic. Sorry if I caused you concern.”

  Her answer made sense and she seemed perfectly sincere. She was here, and she was trying to be helpful, and he could use her knowledge to improve the operation. “Forget it.”

  “I have a few notes from my visit to the spa. I’ve been checking email on my cell phone while you finished your meeting.”

/>   “Why don’t we go to my office and you can fill me in on your spa experience?”

  “I’d love that, but I need to make a call first. Do you mind? I’ll just be a couple of minutes.”

  “Not at all,” he said as he got up and started for the door. “I’ll be in my office.”

  As he left the room, he spotted Brad Parker coming down the hall. Brad wasn’t one of his favorite guests, too much of a bragger, but Luke appreciated the repeat business. “Hello, I hope your stay is going well.”

  “It is. My wife and I are just about to go into Wakesfield for a little lunch and shopping.”

  Brad looked distracted, and wanting to offer assistance, Luke said, “Can I help you with anything?”

  “No, I thought I’d look for a book in the library, something to read,” he said. Brad Parker didn’t strike Luke as the kind of man who read anything beyond the sports section of the newspaper.

  “You’ve come to the right place. The library has lots of reading material.”

  Brad glanced past him, a preoccupied look on his face. “Thanks.”

  Luke turned and watched him go down the hall toward the library, Jack’s words playing through his mind. Had Marnie and Brad arranged to meet in the library? Was Marnie’s excuse about making a phone call simply a cover while she waited for Brad? Rolling his shoulders to ease the sudden tension he felt there, he went to his office and closed the door.

  * * *

  MARNIE COULD FEEL THE HEAT rising through her body as she sat glued to the chair in the library, surrounded by the breathtaking Christmas decorations. Luke suspected her of something, and she’d nearly been tripped up over the dust business.

  He must have spies everywhere because she’d only checked a couple of surfaces before sitting down near the tree to take in the sheer beauty of the room. She loved all the decorating and baking that came with the Christmas season. No wonder her mother was bugging Scott to know where she was. This time of year she normally spent all her free time at her parents’ house or out Christmas shopping with her mother.