“Hmm. Well, I don’t want to be cheaper necessarily.”
“No, I think on Nantucket, it might be better to go the opposite way and position your bed and breakfast as more high end. Though, you could still use Airbnb to fill in gaps when you aren’t rented.”
“Oh, that’s an interesting idea.”
“Have you thought about a name for it?”
Lisa smiled. “I have actually. I was thinking of The Beach Plum Cove Inn.”
Kate looked enthused. “Oh, that’s perfect! And it tells visitors where you’re located, that’s always good for a business. And as far as I know, there are no other bed and breakfasts in Beach Plum Cove. They are mostly all downtown or out in ‘Sconset.”
“So, that’s a good thing, right?” Lisa thought it should be, but she also worried a bit that maybe there was a reason that there were no competing businesses in the area.
Kate looked a bit concerned too. “It could be awesome, as long as there are no restrictions against it. Nantucket can be funny like that.”
“I need to look into the process for getting a business license.” Lisa knew that some new business licenses, such as restaurants or liquor stores needed to be approved by a board of selectmen. She had a feeling that a bed and breakfast might fall into that category and mentioned it to Kate.
“Well, if they say no, you could still Airbnb it, but it wouldn’t be as lucrative. You wouldn’t be able to have a website or put a sign up advertising The Beach Plum Inn. How often does the board of selectmen meet?” Kate asked.
“The first Monday of every month. So, the next meeting will be right after the New Year.”
“Oh, that’s good. We should be ready to go by then. I’m sure they’ll approve you,” Kate was so confident. Lisa hoped that she was right.
Kate had tried her best not to think about anything since she’d been back on Nantucket. She didn’t want to think about Dylan or the job that she’d loved that had been yanked away from her. She knew that she had to think about what she was going to do next eventually, but for now she just wanted to sink into the familiar comfort of home—to walk along the beach, listen to the waves crash on the shore and drink in the clean salt air.
She was enjoying spending time with her mother and helping her get ready for her new adventure. Kate had been skeptical at first, but the more she researched, the more excited she got about the idea. There was nothing else in the area, and it was one of the more desired spots on the island. Beach Plum Cove had the nicest beaches, and it was only a short drive or bike ride to downtown.
And she’d had fun working on a website for her mother. Kate’s technical skills weren’t strong, but there were so many programs now that made building a website fairly easy. She made a simple one with lots of white space and pictures of the beach and the front of the house with its white shutters and inviting wrap around farmer’s porch.
Over glasses of wine one night, she and her mother discussed their ideas for how to present The Beach Plum Cove Inn and what they wanted potential visitors to know. They shared unique facts about the island and highlighted different events that happened through the year such as the now famous film festival, wine events, Daffodil weekend, and the Christmas Stroll.
Kate suggested talking up how peaceful and relaxing Nantucket was in the off-season when you didn’t have to fight the crowds. And Lisa came up with the idea to name all the rooms and to have a theme for each, based on the decor. Kate’s favorite room, which had been her own, was the Piping Plover, named after the tiny birds with toothpick thin legs and cute, round bodies. They were endangered birds, and the beaches were often closed or access restricted when the birds were nesting.
The biggest room was the ACK room, named after the Nantucket airport and had several antique model planes and photos on the walls. It also had a leather arm chair and a bit more of a masculine feel.
Then there was the Figawi room, named after the world famous race that happened every Memorial Day weekend, when sleek expensive sailboats with full crews raced from Hyannis to Nantucket and back. Photos in this room were all boat related and there were also several wooden model boats that Kate’s grandfather had painstakingly made and had cased in Plexiglass to protect them. He’d loved boating and always owned a boat and built models as a hobby.
Lastly, there was the Daffodil room, which was a beautiful cozy room that was designed to make a woman feel pampered. The colors were soft shades of yellow and pale blue accented with white and there was a gorgeous painting of Daffodil weekend, with its array of yellow flowers and the famous parade of vintage vehicles and people enjoying their fancy tailgate picnics with champagne and filet mignon.
Her mother had wanted to hold off on renting out Kate’s room, but Kate wouldn’t hear of it.
“Don’t be silly. If someone wants to rent it, do it. I can crash on the sofa or go bother Kristen or even Abby. She might like the company, actually.” Both Kate and her mother were worried about Abby.
“We’ll see. I’ll rent the other rooms first. If anyone wants to rent them, that is. What if no one does?” She looked dismayed at the thought.
“Of course they will. We can run some Facebook ads too. I learned a little about that at the magazine. We can get really targeted with who we want to reach.”
Her mother looked both intrigued and intimidated by the idea.
“That sounds lovely, but I wouldn’t know where to begin with that.”
“I can look into it for you. And if you sign on with Airbnb, they get a small percentage but in return they send traffic your way.”
“Okay. I still need to figure out pricing. Chase made some suggestions, but they seemed much too high to me.”
Kate laughed. “Mom, Nantucket is ridiculously overpriced. If you don’t price high, people will think there’s something wrong. High pricing is part of the exclusivity factor.”
“Hmm. I suppose you’re right, but I don’t want to price nice people out of coming either.”
Her mother was so not a business person.
“Why don’t you do some searching and see what some of the other bed and breakfasts are charging? The rates are going to vary quite a bit depending on location and time of the year, but you’ll get an idea of what the going market rates are.”
“Right. I’ll do that. I looked initially and was encouraged by what seemed possible, but I’ll be more thorough about it.”
“And I’ll go with you to the board of selectmen meeting. Hopefully that’s just a formality,” Kate said. Her mother had found out that an official bed and breakfast business would need to be approved by the board of selectmen. They were considering approval of another business that night too, a new restaurant that would be opening in Beach Plum Cove, which Kate was excited about.
From what she read in the local paper, it was pretty much a done deal as the new owner of the property was an experienced restaurateur and he was taking over a location that had been sitting empty for several years. It would be nice to have a good restaurant in their neighborhood again, and it would be a draw for the bed and breakfast too as it was within walking distance.
Kate was about to head over to Abby’s for coffee when she noticed her phone lighting up with several text messages in a row. The first two were from Dylan, begging her to call him. He’d left voice messages too, apologizing profusely and asking her to give him another chance. She’d deleted the messages and had ignored the texts, but it was getting ridiculous. Ignoring him only seemed to make him more persistent. She sighed heavily and texted him back.
Dylan I can’t go back. I’m sorry, but this is a deal breaker for me. It’s over. Please stop calling and texting. She clicked send and then read the next text message, from Amanda.
Hope you’re well. Merry Christmas! If you’re interested, I have an intriguing feature I’d love to assign to you. Say the word and I’ll email you all the details.
Kate’s first reaction was irritation as she remembered how awful it had felt to be laid off.
But curiosity won out, and she typed back, I might be interested. Tell me more.
The text back came almost immediately. Sent. Check your email.
Kate checked her email and was surprisingly impressed. The assignment seemed tailor made for her. Amanda wanted her to do a feature on the coming year’s Nantucket Film Festival, covering who would be there, how the event originated and interviews with some of the founders and presenters, which included some famous filmmakers.
Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard, the other island off the Cape, both attracted their share of celebrities that visited and owned properties. And the flat fee for the feature was more than generous. She didn’t know how often Amanda might send freelance work like this her way, but if it was often enough or if she was able to generate other freelance assignments, maybe she’d be able to stay longer on Nantucket.
She quickly texted back to Amanda. “I’m in. Thanks for thinking of me. I’m actually here on Nantucket for a while.”
And the almost immediate reply back. “Great. I thought you might be.”
Lisa was caught up in the Christmas spirt and felt optimistic about the upcoming board of selectmen’s meeting. She agreed with Kate that it just made sense that they’d be approved 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 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 of coffee and settled at the island, watching her mother work. She felt a little guilty just sitting there.
“Can I do anything to help?” she asked. Though she already knew what her mother’s answer would be.
“I think I’m all set honey. The cake is almost done and there’s really not much else to do. I made the green beans yesterday, the roast just needs to go into the oven along with the baked potatoes. The only thing I have left is to make the popovers, and I’ll do that right before the roast is done.” Every Christmas they always had the same meal, prime rib, though Kate’s favorite thing was the Yorkshire pudding popovers. They were light and airy and melted in her mouth.
“Why don’t you sit down and join me then? Have a cup of coffee and relax.”
“I think I will.”
While her mother was making a cup of coffee, Kate opened her laptop and brought up the Airbnb listing she was finalizing. When her mother sat down, she turned the laptop so that she could see.
“Tell me what you think of this?”
“Oh, you put the listing up already?”
“No, it’s not live yet. Not until you give me the okay.”
“Oh, good. You scared me there for a minute.”
Kate waited while her mother looked over the ad. Kate thought she’d done a good job on it. She’d taken pictures of all the rooms, fully decorated and with their new bedding. She’d waited until the light was just right, to capture the beauty of the ocean views and sunshine. The rooms looked elegant and inviting.
“You’ve done a wonderful job, thank you. We should wait until after the board of selectmen’s meeting though, shouldn’t we?” The meeting was just over a week away.
“I say we put it up now, with the first date available a week from yesterday, so you might get some last minute visitors for New Year’s Eve weekend.”
Her mother looked hesitant. And Kate knew what was worrying her.
“It won’t affect your chances with the board of selectmen. As long as you don’t put the sign up until you get approval, you’re fine. Anyone can use Airbnb to rent out rooms. It might even help, if you can say you’ve rented some already.”
“I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to see if there’s any interest.”
Kate smiled. “Great, then all that’s left to do is to hit the button.” She pressed submit. “And now it’s done. You’re officially in business!”
Her mother
took a slow sip of coffee. She looked thoughtful as she set her cup down. “Wouldn’t it be something if I’m able to rent out a room before then? It’s probably doubtful this time of the year, I would imagine.”
“You never know. Lots of people on the Cape might want to get away for a long weekend but not go too far. Nantucket is perfect.”
Chase, Kristen and Abby arrived around ten, and they all had coffee cake before exchanging gifts. They’d agreed to not go overboard this year and to just get one gift each as no one really needed anything. Everyone laughed when Kate and Kristen opened the gifts they’d gotten each other and saw that it was the exact same sweater—Kate had bought a white one for Kristen and she’d bought it in black for Kate. They had similar taste in clothes, but usually Kate would buy a sweater for Kristen and get one for herself too. It was kind of a running joke in the family.
They had a lovely, relaxing day and after eating their big meal, and helping their mother to clean up, Kate, Kristen and Abby decided to go for a walk on the beach. The snow flurries had finally stopped and the ocean breezes had blown the light dusting of snow off the beach.
“Mom, are you sure you don’t want to come with us?” Abby asked as they put on their coats and boots.
“No, I’m going to make a cup of tea and watch It’s a Wonderful Life with Chase.” Another of their holiday traditions.
“We won’t be gone long, we’ll join you when we get back,” Kate said.
It was cold, but the air had stilled and the sun was shining as they walked down the long boardwalk to the beach. They decided to walk along the beach to the lighthouse which was about a mile away. It was a good walk, and Kate figured it would give them time to talk. She was worried about Abby. She’d been quiet and withdrawn since telling them that she was pregnant and thinking of getting divorced.
“How are you really doing?” Kate asked her as they walked.
“I’m okay. Hanging in there. It’s harder than I thought it would be, not having Jeff in the house, especially at Christmas. He called this morning, and I agreed to see him tonight. He’s going to stop by after he has dinner with his family.”
The Nantucket Inn Page 5
