or break the Inn’s future, and as one of two people coordinating the event, some of that responsibility fell on Tia’s shoulders.
Her mother’s words echoed in her head. You’ve never been the responsible type. Was she right? Could Tia handle this much pressure?
Celia smiled sadly and shook her head, drawing Tia’s attention back to the present. “No, the Olsens didn’t have any children, which is why they left the Inn to me. They knew I’d take care of it for them.” She glanced back at the hectic scene on the lawn. “I may have let them down in that regard after Charlie died, but I think I’ve redeemed myself now.”
Tia wrapped an arm around Celia’s shoulders. “I think they would be very happy with how everything has turned out.” A movement caught Tia’s eye. Zoe was beckoning for her. “I’ve got to get to work, but I’ll see you later, okay?”
Celia nodded, then gestured to her walker. “I may not be able to buzz around here anymore as quickly as you girls do, but if there’s anything I can help with, please let me know.”
Tia laughed. “You’ve got the most important job at all. We need someone to greet the guests as they arrive to keep things from getting too chaotic. Make sure they sign the memory book too.”
“This isn’t my first rodeo.” Celia grinned. “I’ll make sure all of the guests are taken care of.” Celia, who would continue to reside in the owner’s suite of the Inn, was tasked with putting her engaging personality and true love for the business to work as a guest liaison once the Inn opened for overnight stays.
“I know you will.” Tia looked over at Zoe. “I’d better go before Zoe has a conniption fit.”
“Me too,” Celia snickered. “I love that girl, but she can be scarily efficient at times.” She pointed her walker at the gently sloped ramp leading to the lawn, where a table and chair waited for her near the entrance.
Tia watched her for a few seconds, then hurried down the short flight of stairs and over to where Zoe was waiting for her at the gazebo.
“Hey.” Zoe looked up from her iPad. Unlike Tia and Celia, she was still dressed casually, wearing a pair of blue jeans and a sleeveless button-down blouse that tied just below the waist. Not exactly a vision of the 1920s. “How are you doing?”
Tia smiled. “I’m doing fine.” She may have been a bundle of nerves inside, but she wasn’t going to let her boss know that. This event was too important to everyone involved with the Inn to let a little self-doubt get in her way. “What’s up?”
“I need you to supervise the setup while I change into my dress. I left it in one of the guest rooms so I could save a few minutes by getting dressed there rather than running back to my cottage to change.” Zoe scanned the grounds, her expression imperceptible behind the dark lenses of her sunglasses. “Everything seems to be on track here, so I think this is a good time for me to slip away.”
Tia checked her watch. “The guests are due to arrive in thirty minutes and there are always early birds. You’d better get going. I’ve got this.” Her nerves were starting to subside and the negative thoughts in her head had cleared. Managing events put her into a state of calm focus that she hadn’t experienced in school or any other part of her life.
Zoe removed her sunglasses and rubbed her eyes, revealing dark circles under them. “Okay.” She replaced her sunglasses and looked directly at Tia. “There’s so much riding on today.” Her voice wobbled uncharacteristically, and Tia feared her boss was about to break into tears.
She looked at Zoe more closely. “Did you sleep at all last night?”
Zoe shrugged. “Maybe an hour?” Her shoulders slumped. “I couldn’t fall asleep. All of these scenarios of things that could go wrong kept running through my head.”
Tia touched her arm to make sure she had Zoe’s attention. “You’ve got this. The Inn is amazing, and everyone is going to absolutely love it. Now go get dressed!”
Zoe swallowed hard, then nodded. “Okay.” She walked a few steps toward the Inn, then rushed back to hand Tia the iPad. “I forgot to give you this.” She paused, and her voice wavered again. “And Tia?”
“Yeah?”
“Thank you.” She smiled at Tia. “I don’t know if I could have managed all of this without you.”
“No problem.” As her