The Albright Hotel (A Frosty Season #4)

Chapter 4

Chapter Four

I t had been decided early on that seventy-five percent of the Albright House would be reserved for the hotel, while the remaining twenty-five percent would be kept for the family. The Albrights even had a different entrance—through the back—divided by a fence so they didn’t have to chat with guests or visit the public if they didn’t want to. It was important to Maya and Olivia that they could retain a feeling of privacy, even as they opened their big doors to the entire world.

Olivia went downstairs for a cup of coffee in the home-side kitchen and found Maya already up and bright-eyed, hovering at the counter with her pen poised on a pad of paper. She wore a beautiful black two-piece suit, and her hair was styled big and curly. When she heard Olivia come through the door, she didn’t bother to turn around; she knew who it was, so she just started talking. “The kitchen staff are already over there, prepping for lunch. I can’t believe how many people we hired. They’re all dressed in chef whites, and their knives are so sharp. It’s like looking into a real restaurant.”

Olivia laughed and poured herself a mug of coffee. “It is a real restaurant,” she reminded her.

Maya drew her fingers together, gazing out the back window. They’d gotten several inches of snow in the night, and the forest looked magical, like a snow-capped fairy tale. It was the perfect display for a grand opening photograph. Olivia knew it was up to her to make the rounds and take pictures of the day for social media and their website. It was funny, in a way. The first time she’d ever come to the Albright House, she’d pretended to want to take photographs for a magazine. In reality, she’d snuck around, trying to con Maya out of her inheritance. I was in a dark place.

Olivia didn’t like thinking about that part of her life. Although it was just a year ago, it felt like she and Maya had leaped forward to different stories and trials. Olivia apologized so many times that Maya ordered her to stop. I’m getting tired of it, Maya had said. I never wanted that silly necklace to begin with. I’m just glad we’re together.

Olivia and Maya carried their cups of coffee to the hotel side of the Albright, where a fully decorated Christmas tree stood in the three-story foyer. It looked like it belonged in Manhattan, decorated for the parade. Olivia and Maya had watched a crew set it up the day before yesterday. They’d required massive ladders and even a pulley system to put the angel on the top. So early in the morning, Olivia’s eyes filled with tears at the sight.

That was when the smell of croissants came through the foyer.

“My gosh,” Maya breathed. “What is that heavenly smell?”

But suddenly, another crew arrived to set the tables in the dining room for the elaborate feast to be held that afternoon to welcome the first guests at the Albright Hotel. An additional dinnertime feast would have a completely different course. Maya and Olivia had decided to pull out all the stops. They wanted to be featured in every magazine as the best of the best in Upstate New York.

“Go on,” Maya urged Olivia as they parted ways. “Go look at those croissants! Meet the kitchen staff! They need to know you, too.”

Olivia bowed her head and left Maya with the dining room staff and servers, all dressed in black and white. She sped back to the hotel kitchen, where the croissant smell originated. She was suddenly hungry and thought she might faint.

Olivia hadn’t been privy to Maya’s hiring of the kitchen staff. She knew they hired a few chefs—a pastry chef, sous chefs, and so on—but she hadn’t actually met them yet. So when she opened the double-wide doors and saw a staggeringly handsome man hovering over a countertop of golden and crispy croissants, Olivia thought she might become weak in the knees. Am I in heaven?

The man had just pulled the croissants out of the oven. He inspected them with squinty eyes that brought his thick eyebrows low on his face. He then muttered something to a sous chef beside him, clapping his hands together. His face broke open with a smile that sent wonderful wrinkles up the sides of his cheeks and eyes. He was probably around Olivia’s age, maybe slightly older. Perfect, Olivia thought. And then she thought, Stop! This is no time for a holiday romance. This is time for business.

The sous chef noticed Olivia and gestured with his head to indicate she was there. The croissant-maker turned to look at her, but he didn’t bother to knock the smile off his face.

“Ah. The other boss,” he said.

Olivia felt her soul float out of her body. This is my Hallmark movie, she thought.

No!

The man strode forward with his hand extended. Behind him was the chaos of the kitchen, prepping for the afternoon feast.

“Harry,” he said. “Harry Pathfinder.”

“Pathfinder,” she repeated. She loved the way it sounded. It was as though he was taken directly from a storybook.

“The old joke my dad used to say was, ‘stick with me, lads. I know the way.’” Harry laughed. “My father was Irish. It’s an old name.”

After she shook his hand, Olivia touched her hair and tucked a curl behind her ear. “I’m Olivia.”

“Of course,” Harry said. “I heard you’re the long-lost sister.”

“We both were.” A smile played across Olivia’s lips.

“How romantic,” Harry said.

Olivia laughed again, then felt foolish. Wasn’t she supposed to be the boss? She couldn’t carry on like this. She stepped around Harry and introduced herself to the rest of the kitchen staff. But each time she turned around, Harry seemed to be watching her. Was she imagining it?

As she breezed out of the kitchen, a hand found her elbow. She stopped. Her heart slammed against her rib cage. When she turned, she found Harry there with a croissant—warm and buttery and gooey. The way to a woman’s heart is through her stomach.

Nobody had ever baked for her before.

“Try this,” he urged. “I want to make sure it’s up to the Albright Hotel standards.”

Olivia filled her mouth with a bite of croissant and closed her eyes. It was sensational. She wanted to dig her way to the center of the croissant and sleep there for a thousand years. Instead, she opened her eyes and smiled. “It’s really the best croissant I’ve ever had.”

“I take it you’ve never been to Paris.”

“Never,” Olivia said.

“Maybe you’ll make it there someday,” Harry said. He winked in a way that implied he wanted to take her there one day.

She thought she was going to cry.

Today is the day we open the Albright Hotel, she thought.

It’s also the day I fall in love all over again.

But I can’t.

It’s too scary.

It’s too much.

Olivia forced her way through the rest of her morning tasks. Despite their year of preparation, there was still so much to do. She and Maya frequently passed one another, squeezing each other’s hands and saying, “We got this! It’s okay!” They didn’t have this, and it wasn’t okay. But it had to be, eventually.

Olivia flung herself into the office. It was an hour before the feast was set to begin, and guests were already arriving, taking glasses of champagne and regarding the beautiful and refurbished ballroom and dining hall. It’s sensational. It’s beautiful. It’s really so glorious. Olivia felt jolts of pride, followed by moments of absolute sorrow. But she didn’t want to think about that now.

Brad was in the office. He wore a panicked expression. She wanted to tell him, You’re on Thanksgiving break from school! You shouldn’t let our stress get you down! But of course, his stress was related to something else. It was Maya.

“I practiced it in my head over and over,” he said with a soft laugh. “I even practiced how I would tell my students I was going to get married!”

Olivia hugged him from the side. “It will happen. Give it a few weeks. Maybe Christmas?”

Brad laughed and shuffled a few papers across Maya’s desk. “I better get these out to her. It’s filling up out there!”

Olivia laughed nervously. “Why did we decide to do this the day after Thanksgiving?”

“Because we’re nuts!” he called as he disappeared through the door.

Olivia pulled her hair back and let it fall across her ears. She could hear the din of the crowd down the hall. They were probably eating croissants and amazed at their decadence. Olivia wanted to make every excuse to return to the kitchen and grab another one—and see Harry again. But too much was going on.

Olivia was soon needed at the opening feast. Because Maya was better with speeches, she addressed the crowd about the beautiful Albright House, her aunt Veronica, and the elaborate game Veronica had set up for her last year to “help her understand Hollygrove better.”

“I feel like I’ve lived here all my life,” Maya said. “I love the people. I love the streets and the sounds of the water and the forest. I love the snow and the air. I love that nobody is ever too busy for anyone and that we always pause and say hello and ask questions.” Maya’s eyes spilled tears.

Olivia stood on a makeshift stage beside her sister, watching the crowd. More than one hundred and fifty guests attended the feast, and more than seventy-five percent planned to stay the night. There were activities after this—a horse-drawn carriage, a wine tasting, and card games followed by a dance in the ballroom with a real orchestra. Olivia and Maya would hang back during the horse-drawn carriage and oversee the next era of setup. There would always be stuff to do.

Olivia began to feel overwhelmed. But she tried to engage with the happy faces before her, the tremendous platters of food, and the glistening glasses of wine. She tried to remember, This is going to be a brilliant life. We’re going to figure this out.

Forty-five minutes after the guests left for their horse-drawn carriage ride, Olivia hurried back into the dining hall to find Maya. Instead, she nearly stumbled directly into Robby Goodwin.

Olivia’s heart dropped into her stomach. She nearly lost her nerve.

There he was: Robby Goodwin. He held a hammer in one hand and had several nails pressed between his lips. His eyes showed too much of their whites.

Why should my presence scare him? Doesn’t he remember what happened?

Olivia decided to play it cool.

“Oh. Hi.” Olivia’s heart pounded like a drum.

Robby looked nervous. He removed the nails from his mouth and said, “Olivia. Hey.”

The air around them felt thick with tension. Olivia wanted to run out the door and across the hills and into the snowy forest.

“Maya texted,” he said, gesturing with his hammer toward the window. “There’s a broken window. She needs it fixed before the guests return from their carriage ride.”

Olivia set her jaw. “She told me. Thanks.”

Maya had not told her. But Olivia had to play it cool.

Robby’s eyes remained on hers. Olivia struggled to remember how long it had been.

“How are you?” Robby asked. His voice was soft, gentle. She wanted to scream.

“I’m fine. Busy. I have to run,” Olivia said. She turned on her heel and dashed out of there, feeling Robby’s eyes upon her.

She ran to the office and slammed the door behind her. Once safe inside, she got a text from Maya.

MAYA: Just so you know, I had to call a handyman to fix the window in the dining hall. Robby was the only one available the day after Thanksgiving. So - don’t go in the dining hall! I’m sorry!

OLIVIA: Too late.

Olivia braced herself, her hands in fists, and reminded herself not to cry. She couldn’t mess up her makeup. Not during the grand opening of the Albright Hotel.