Shelly leaned over their shoulder and read. “Alone for the holidays? Be a part of Seabreeze Inn’s holiday celebrations, where our family is your family.” Shelly grinned and gave Poppy a tall, fresh drink. “How about my idea of Christmas for one?”
“That’s a good headline.” Poppy squeezed lime into her drink and took a sip. “How’s this? ‘Now through New Year’s Day. Single rooms and suites. Ask about our affordable share-a-room holiday program.’”
Ivy raised her eyebrows. “Do you think people will respond to that idea?”
“We’ll see,” Poppy said. “Can’t hurt, right?”
Ivy leaned toward the computer screen. “Let’s add our activities. Yoga, beach walks, painting classes…”
“How about Christmas cookie baking?” Poppy asked. “Or a gingerbread workshop?”
“I vote for gingerbread,” Shelly said. “And we need more holiday activities. How about Christmas carols in the library? I bet some of Celia’s students would like to practice and pick up tips during the winter school break.”
“Bennett said there’s a holiday boat parade,” Ivy said. “Owners decorate their boats with lights and cruise the coast. Guests can gather on the beach to watch.”
“Or by the fire pit,” Poppy said, typing as they spoke. “They could roast marshmallows, and we could serve Grandma’s Mexican hot chocolate. Made with cinnamon and a little ancho chili powder.”
Shelly snapped her fingers. “We can also serve our traditional Ponche Navideño for Christmas. Guests can help slice fruit for the hot punch.”
“You just don’t want to do that part,” Ivy said, laughing. She loved sharing their mother’s traditional Christmas recipes.
“Do we want to serve a Christmas feast?” Poppy asked.
Ivy and Shelly looked at each other. “I think we’re going to have to feed our guests,” Ivy said. “Restaurants in Summer Beach are probably closed for Christmas.”
Shelly nodded. “I can ask Mitch to cater it. He could prepare dishes ahead of time, and we can serve it buffet-style. Turkey and all the trimmings. Mom always likes to make tamales—we can serve those, too.”
“I’ll take pie duty,” Poppy said. “I’ve gotten pretty good at pies.”
“You could sell those at the farmers market,” Shelly said.
Poppy chuckled. “I think I’ll be busy enough here.”
Ivy ticked off points on her notepad. “Since we celebrate on Christmas Eve with family, let’s plan a Christmas Day brunch. An open house for anyone from Summer Beach.” She paused. “But I don’t think we can serve the entire community. Much as I like Mitch, that would be too expensive.”
“Guests would probably be stuffed by the time they get here,” Shelly said. “Or, you could make it a potluck day, and residents could share their holiday specialties.”
“Now, that would be fabulous,” Ivy said, adding a note on her list.
The three women continued to work, putting together a plan of special events for the holiday season and determining what they would need.
“With all the food, supplies, and extra electricity, we might have to charge a little more per room,” Poppy said.
Ivy tapped her pencil. “I’ll add up all these supplies, but let’s try to keep it reasonable.”
“We need merch,” Shelly said.
Ivy frowned. “What?”
“Merchandise,” Shelly said. “You know, T-shirts, caps, and beach towels. We could create a little boutique in the parlor.”
Poppy’s eyes brightened. “How about hand-painted Christmas ornaments? Aunt Ivy, I bet you could do that. If you teach me how, I could help.”
Ivy smiled. “Poppy, you’re a genius. I can paint T-shirts and teach guests how to make keepsake ornaments, too.”
“Kind of like summer camp,” Shelly added. “Only it’s Christmas camp.”
“Poppy, could you pull up the calendar?” Ivy asked. “I want to see when Hanukkah is this year.” Poppy did, and Ivy made a few more notes. “We’ll make latkes and all the trimmings, too. Maybe Mitch can make jelly doughnuts.” She smiled at the thought. “This is going to be great. Winter at the Seabreeze Inn—who knew it could be so much fun?”
“What could possibly go wrong?” Shelly said.
“Shh!” Ivy swatted Shelly’s arm. “Remember Halloween? Don’t jinx it.”
Ivy recalled the Halloween sleepover they’d hosted for a local girl’s club, complete with ghost stories, popcorn, and bobbing for apples. The girls had slept in the attic rooms, while Ivy insisted that the parents stay in guest rooms downstairs. She offered a pay-what-you-like option and welcomed parents who otherwise couldn’t afford to stay. One brought fresh-baked bread, and another gave her one of the beautiful hand-poured candles they made and sold at the farmers market.
The girls had laughed and giggled and screamed. They were so excited that they couldn’t settle down. In the middle of the night, Ivy and Shelly moved Gilda to an outdoor sunset suite because Pixie was barking and howling at the girls. They also relocated Imani and Jamir so they could get some rest, too. Still, it was a special event those girls would never forget, and everyone laughed about it the next morning. Thank goodness.
“I’ll create some short video clips,” Shelly said. “If I start now, I can have a couple ready for Poppy to post ads this afternoon before our tree trimming party. Who’s dressing up for this?”
“Sounds like fun,” Poppy said. “Fianna insisted I take a couple of sample outfits from her new collection. Aunt Ivy, you should dress up, too. And there’s another surprise—Elena is driving down for the night. She said she has a client in town that she’s going to see tomorrow.”
“I just love you guys,” Ivy said, feeling relieved at how her ideas were coalescing into a solid plan. However, she’d feel better once a few reservations came in.
By the time the sun was low in the sky, Ivy had completed her cost estimates, and Poppy had turned on their ads and sent news to the bloggers and nearby media on her list.
Ivy hurried upstairs to change. She hadn’t given a thought to what she would wear as Poppy and Shelly had, but for the first Christmas here, Ivy wanted to look festive, too. After a quick bath in the large claw-foot tub, she toweled off and pinned up her hair, leaving soft tendrils around her face.
In the adjoining dressing room with mirrored closet doors, Ivy chose a soft crimson blouse. The loose silk top skimmed her waist, camouflaging her muffin-top middle, which persisted even though she enjoyed walking and yoga. Staying healthy and building her business were her priorities now. She pulled on a pair of flowing black palazzo pants with an elastic waist that she’d bought on a trip to Paris years ago when she and Jeremy had visited his parents.
She slipped on black heels, Amelia’s modest ruby ring, and dangly garnet earrings. Not bad, she thought, appraising her outfit in the mirror.
As she came downstairs, she saw Bennett in the foyer talking to Poppy. His gaze rose to meet her, and his expression was all the approval she needed—not that she needed any, she quickly reminded herself. Still, she felt good, and it was nice to know that he thought she looked good—even if she was still perturbed.