as well as the restaurant. On Christmas Eve, she held her traditional open house and all her children came, as well as her friends, Paige and Sue. The only person missing was Abby’s husband Jeff, and it seemed strange that he wasn’t there, but Lisa was hopeful that it was the only year he’d miss.
Abby seemed to be in good spirits, aside from the near constant morning sickness that often came with the first trimester. Lisa had it with all of her pregnancies but assured Abby that once she was into her fourth month, it was so much easier.
Kate had helped her to get ready and made a delicious light hummus from white beans, garlic, lemon and parsley. They served it with fresh-cut veggies and pita chips. Sue brought baked scallops wrapped in bacon and Paige brought several bottles of Prosecco, their traditional Christmas Eve bubbly wine. The star of the show was the fresh lobster casserole topped with crushed Ritz crackers and lots of butter. They also had shrimp cocktail and Chase brought a tenderloin that he’d grilled.
They ate and drank and the conversation centered on the plans for the bed and breakfast. Everyone was excited about it now. And though they didn’t usually exchange gifts on Christmas Eve, after they ate, Chase went to the Christmas tree where they’d all dropped off their gifts earlier and picked up a large box with a bright red ribbon. He brought it over to Lisa and set it on an empty stool.
“Mom, this is for you, from all of us, and we’re excited for you to open it tonight.”
“Are you sure?” Everyone stared at her expectantly.
“Just open it.” Chase grinned as she carefully tore off the wrapping paper. She had no idea what it was. And the bare cardboard box didn’t give any clues. She carefully lifted the top of the box and then her eyes immediately welled up.
“Oh, Chase it’s beautiful. You made this?” It was a wooden sign, painted pale blue with white nautical rope trim and white letters that said The Beach Plum Inn.
“It was actually a group effort. I cut the wood, Kate found the rope trim, Abby glued it on and Kristen did the painting.”
Lisa looked around at all four of her children. “Thank you. It’s the best gift you could have possibly given me.”
“Now, let’s just hope you get approved,” Chase joked.
“They’d better approve you,” Paige said. “I’ll be at that meeting.”
“I will too,” Sue added.
“We’ll all be there to support you, Mom,” Kate said.
“When are you heading to Florida, Paige?” Lisa asked. Paige spent several months in Miami’s South Beach every winter.
“A few days after the meeting. I can’t wait. It’s already getting much too cold here for my liking.” Paige was originally from Florida and her parents still lived there. She hated the cold.
“Kate, I heard you might be staying here for a while. Your mom said you’re going to be writing about the film festival. That sounds exciting,” Sue said.
“I’ll be here for at least a few months, maybe longer depending on if more work comes my way.”
Paige looked thoughtful for a moment. “Do you have somewhere lined up to stay, once your mom opens for business?”
Kate laughed. “I’ll probably be couch surfing, either on her living room sofa or crashing at Abby’s. I’ll figure something out.”
Paige set her nearly empty champagne glass down and smiled. “Well, I have a better idea. Why don’t you stay at my place? It’s going to be empty until the end of April and I’d love to have someone there to check the mail and keep an eye on the place.”
“Really? That would be perfect!” Kate looked thrilled and Lisa thought it was a great idea too. Paige lived just a mile away.
“Great, it’s a done deal! Let’s toast to it!” Paige lifted her glass of Prosecco, and they all did the same. “Merry Christmas everyone!”
Chapter 5
Kate felt a sense of childlike wonder when she woke Christmas morning to see a thin blanket of fluffy white snow on the ground and snow swirling and twirling outside her window. The weather reports had predicted flurries, and it wasn’t supposed to amount to much, but it was fun and festive to watch.
She slowly made her way downstairs. Her mother was already in the kitchen, baking the cinnamon walnut coffee cake that they had every Christmas morning. The rich smell of butter and sugar was in the air when Kate walked into the room. She made herself a cup