The Lakeside Inn, Leeanna Morgan [rosie project TXT] 📗

“I’m not good with crowds.”

Katie rearranged the cushions on the sofa. “Just pretend everyone’s related to us. It’s not difficult—we know most of the people outside, anyway.”

It was easy for Katie. She’d moved to Los Angeles when she was barely out of high school. Dealing with large groups of people was an everyday occurrence for her, but not for Diana.

“Oh. For goodness’ sake,” Katie huffed. “Come with me.”

Grabbing hold of Diana’s hand, she pulled her toward the kitchen. “We’ll circle around the back and sneak in behind everyone else.”

“Did you see Charlie when you were outside?” Diana’s lovable, but slightly crazy Golden Labrador had abandoned her when their first guests walked onto their property. She had no idea what he’d be like when their paying customers arrived.

“The last time I saw him, he was eating a sandwich Jack had given him.”

As well as being a bouncy, cuddly dog, he was a sucker for anything resembling food. “I’d better find him before he eats more than a sandwich.” Thinking about Charlie made her feel less anxious, but it didn’t make her nerves completely disappear.

On their way through the kitchen, Diana smiled at her mom and dad.

“Thank goodness Katie found you,” Mabel said as she took a sheet of cookies out of the oven. “I thought you must have gotten lost. Has anyone seen Penny?”

Katie frowned. “She was in the attic when I last saw her. I thought she would be outside by now.”

Allan, their dad, took a cookie off the baking sheet. “She could be there for a while. Wyatt’s in the attic with her.”

Mabel’s mouth dropped open. “When did he arrive back from Berlin?”

“About an hour ago.” Allan blew on his cookie. “This is hot.”

His wife swatted his arm with a dishtowel. “That’s what you get for helping yourself. I’ll have to go and see Wyatt and ask him how long he’s staying.”

Allan turned her toward the back door. “No, you won’t. Penny and Wyatt have some talking to do, and we need to go outside.”

“But—”

“Whatever you need to say can wait. Come on. There are plenty of people who want to ask you about The Lakeside Inn.”

Diana was grateful her dad was here. Their mom had a generous heart and loved each of her daughters dearly. But she also liked to know exactly what was going on in their lives.

When their parents were halfway across the room, Katie tapped her on the shoulder. “You don’t seem surprised that Wyatt’s here,” she whispered. “Did you know he was coming back to Sapphire Bay?”

“He called me last week. He wanted to make sure we were still having the opening of the Bed and Breakfast today.”

“And you didn’t say anything?”

“He asked me not to.” Diana looked around the kitchen. Apart from the sheet of cookies, everything was clean and tidy. “I can’t wait to welcome our first guests.”

“They’ll be here soon enough. In the meantime, we have lots of excited people waiting for us to officially open The Lakeside Inn. Let’s go.”

With no other option, Diana straightened her shoulders and followed Katie.

Today was about new beginnings, new opportunities, and living a happy life.

Ethan looked at the crowd of people waiting outside The Lakeside Inn for its grand opening. Mabel had kept everyone up to date with the remodeling that was going on inside, but it was the discovery of a letter potentially written by Abraham Lincoln that had caused the most excitement.

He still couldn’t believe that a dresser stored in the old steamboat museum had contained one of the most anticipated discoveries of the year. No one, including the Terry family who owned the dresser, knew how it had ended up there. But, with the help of the Smithsonian Institute, they were finding out whether it was authentic.

“I didn’t think you’d be here today.”

Ethan looked over his shoulder at Theo, his friend and the owner of the only local radio station in Sapphire Bay. “Mabel’s Facebook posts made it impossible not to come. Are you here to do an interview about the letter?”

“If only. I’ve been trying to talk to Mabel for the last week, but she’s been too busy to see me. I’m hoping I can interview her or her daughters after the opening of the Inn. Do you know where they are?”

Ethan looked across the crowded front yard. He pointed to their left. “There’s Mabel. I only know two of her daughters, and I haven’t seen Penny or Barbara anywhere.”

Theo followed where Ethan was pointing. “Thanks. Mabel’s other two daughters, Katie and Diana, are walking around the side of the house toward them. Katie has red hair and Diana’s wearing a bright blue scarf.”

Ethan shifted his gaze. Katie’s shoulder-length red hair was easy to see, but it was her sister who drew his attention. Diana’s curly blond hair caught the sunshine and turned it into a halo around her face. Even from this distance, she was stunning. But, unlike Katie, she looked worried as a group of people moved toward them.

Theo frowned. “I’d better talk to them before they get swamped with people asking about the letter. Remember to give me a call. You haven’t been to my place for dinner in a while.”

“I’ll call you tomorrow.” Ethan watched Diana push a stray lock of hair off her face and glance at her parents. A look that could only be described as panic crossed her face.

Instead of standing here, watching her feel more uncomfortable by the second, he decided to do something about it.

“Theo! Wait.”

His friend turned and raised his eyebrows. “What did I forget?”

“Nothing. I’m coming with you.”

“Sounds good to me. If you want to make yourself useful, you can record any conversations about the letter on your cell phone. I might hear enough to piece together a discussion segment.”

Ethan looked across the yard. The number of people surrounding Diana and Katie had grown. “We’d better hurry. You aren’t the only person who wants to talk to them.”

Theo