Copyright © 2017 by Sophie Love. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior permission of the author. This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return it and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictionally. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Jacket image Copyright Ioana Catalina E, used under license from Shutterstock.com.

Sophie Love

#1 bestselling author Sophie Love is author of the romantic comedy series THE INN AT SUNSET HARBOR, which includes eight books, and which begins with FOR NOW AND FOREVER (THE INN AT SUNSET HARBOR – BOOK 1).

Sophie Love is also the author of the debut romantic comedy series, THE ROMANCE CHRONICLES, which begins with LOVE LIKE THIS (THE ROMANCE CHRONICLES – BOOK 1).

Sophie would love to hear from you, so please visit www.sophieloveauthor.com to email her, to join the mailing list, to receive free ebooks, to hear the latest news, and to stay in touch!

BOOKS BY SOPHIE LOVE

THE INN AT SUNSET HARBOR

FOR NOW AND FOREVER (Book #1)

FOREVER AND FOR ALWAYS (Book #2)

FOREVER, WITH YOU (Book #3)

IF ONLY FOREVER (Book #4)

FOREVER AND A DAY (Book #5)

FOREVER, PLUS ONE (Book #6)

FOR YOU, FOREVER (Book #7)

CHRISTMAS FOREVER (Book #8)

THE ROMANCE CHRONICLES

LOVE LIKE THIS (Book #1)

LOVE LIKE THAT (Book #2)

LOVE LIKE OURS (Book #3)

LOVE LIKE THEIRS (Book #4)

Chapter One

Doctor Arkwright smiled at Emily and removed the measuring tape from around her belly. “I can confirm your due date will be December 13th,” she said. “You’re 37 weeks now, and officially full term.”

Emily looked at Daniel and grinned. It was so exciting to know that in just three weeks Baby Charlotte would be joining them.

They all sat back down in their seats, and Doctor Arkwright continued.

“No more flying,” she told Emily. “So if you were planning a babymoon, I’m afraid you won’t be able to do so abroad.”

“Babymoon?” Emily laughed. “I’ve never even heard of that.”

The Doctor chuckled back. “It’s all the rage these days. I have mom’s and dad’s to be planning lavish babymoon’s because they know it’s their last chance.”

Emily found the idea amusing. With everything going on at the inn, it was very unlikely they’d even be able to find the time (not to mention the money) should they even want to go on vacation!

The Doctor clapped her hands. “We’re all done here.”

“Great,” Emily said, hopping down from the seat. “Oh, I almost forgot. I have something for you.” She reached in her purse and pulled out Roman’s latest album. He’d been delighted to sign it for the Doctor, though thoroughly amused at that same time.

Doctor Arkwright saw what Emily was holding and turned a shade of crimson. She took it hurriedly. “Thanks so much,” she whispered.

Emily and Daniel left her surgery and headed out to the parking lot. For the Monday after Thanksgiving, the weather was remarkably warm.

“What are the chances of us missing snow this year?” Emily asked Daniel as she reached the pickup truck.

“Honestly, I can’t imagine a Christmas without it,” he said. “I’m sure the weather will turn soon enough.”

They both got into the truck.

“It’s been kinda useful,” Emily added. “Think how much more work we’ve been able to get done at the island thanks to the weather!”

Daniel turned his key in the ignition and the old truck juddered to life. “I know,” he said, as he began reversing out of his parking space. “We’re ahead of schedule. And considering we need everything done by April, that is a very good thing.”

Emily thought about how the island had already been booked up, months in advance, before even the roof was on the cabins!

“How are Stu, Clyde and Evan getting along?” she asked him.

“Absolutely fine,” he told her. “I didn’t know they had it in them. I always thought they were lazy.”

Emily laughed but kept her own thoughts about Daniel’s friends to herself. She’d grown fond of them over the weeks they’d been working for board and food but that initial impression of them was going to be hard to shake!

“Well I’m glad they’re working hard,” she told Daniel. “We desperately need the income from the island if things carry on the way they’re going.”

Daniel glanced across to her in the passenger seat. “Is it really that bad?”

Emily grimaced. “Yes. Unfortunately. We’ve not had any reservations come in for the winter. In fact, there’s no one coming until March. Not in the carriage house, Trevor’s house, or the main inn. I’ve had to cut everyone’s shifts as well. It’s just Lois and Parker doing some select shifts. Vanessa and Marnie have agreed to take the whole winter off but Matthew’s not thrilled by the cut backs. He’s trying to save up for a new car. I feel awful. Luckily the restaurant’s still getting a lot of bookings so Harry’s giving him some work there. The spa’s still popular so between the tw of them, they should tide us over. But it’s going to be a tight few months.”

The timing was either a blessing or a curse. A blessing because it would give Emily the time to spend with her newborn, but a curse because newborns were expensive and the last thing she wanted to be doing was worrying about money!

“It won’t,” Daniel told her with determination. “I’ll get my woodshop up and running before the new year if I have to. You and Baby Charlotte will get everything you need. I promise you.”

Emily smiled, and rubbed her round stomach. Daniel was so focused on providing them with the best life possible. It made her so happy. She was so lucky to have him in her life. She just hoped he didn’t burn himself out working too hard. It was always a balancing act with Daniel, and he often came down on the wrong side!

“Maybe we should try to get Amy to have her wedding at the inn, like she was planning on with Fraser?” Emily suggested.

Daniel barked out his laughter, as if he’d never heard anything so ludicrous. “I highly doubt she’ll want to after last time. It would surely bring up some unpleasant memories? And why would Harry want to get married in the place he worked?” He shook his head, thoroughly amused. “It’s a shame though. Maybe you can convince another one of your rich friends to get married this year. What about Jane?”

“Absolutely not!” Emily replied. “Jane is not the marrying type.”

But his suggestion did get her thinking. As they settled into a comfortable silence, Emily tried to imagine some more creative ways to market the inn over the winter. They’d put so much focus on the island, spa, restaurant and speakeasy that they’d neglected to advertize the inn and everything it had to offer properly. Winter weddings could be a good approach, especially with the ballroom for ceremonies and every bedroom in the inn spare for the guests! She’d have to book in a meeting with Bryony, their web-whizz and marketing-extraordinaire.

Daniel turned off the high street then, heading down the smaller road in the direction of Chantelle’s school. Their appointment with the doctor had overrun and there wasn’t time now to go home first before picking her up.

“Have you heard anymore from Raven Kingsley?” he asked as he drove. “When’s the next town meeting to decide on whether her inn can go ahead?”

“I don’t know yet,” Emily said. “I’m waiting to hear. They’ll post a bulletin once the zoning board’s had its meeting. I’m sure it won’t be for a while yet.”

“Aren’t you worried?” Daniel asked.

“Of course. Competition, especially from someone like Raven, is always a scary prospect. We’ve had it easy so far. The market was ours.”

“That was easy?” Daniel joked, referring to the years and months of work they’d put into making the inn a success.

“You know what I mean,” Emily said. “We never really had to worry about bankruptcy before.”

“And we do now?” Daniel asked, his jokey expression from before having entirely disappeared.

Emily bit her lip. “Maybe a little,” she told him. “If things don’t pick up soon. But don’t worry, I’ll come up with something. A Christmas ball. With Roman singing. For a hundred dollars a ticket!”

She was only joking. Using Roman’s celebrity status for her own gain was not something she would ever do. But a Christmas ball for the town might be a nice idea.

Daniel still looked concerned.

“Hun,” Emily told him, firmly. “I’ve got this. Don’t worry. Nothing, not even Raven Kingsley’s new inn, will stop us. I promise. We’re too determined to fail now.”

She spoke confidently, but there was also doubt in the back of her mind. What if this was the winter they couldn’t weather? What if her perfect life was about to come crashing down around her?

* * *

Daniel pulled into the school lot. The day was already out and all the kids were playing in the large playground, supervised by their teachers. Emily caught sight of Chantelle, playing with Bailey and Laverne. It was such a relief the girls were friends again.

She got out the pickup truck and waved at Chantelle’s teacher on the steps outside the school. She also waved at Tilly, the school’s receptionist Emily had recently bonded with. Tilly was having her afternoon coffee break out on the steps with the rest of the faculty. She waved warmly at Emily.

Chantelle must have noticed her parents because she came running over.

“Guess what!” she cried. “We’re doing A Seussified Christmas Carol for our concert this year!

“What is that?” Emily asked.

“It’s Charles Dicken’s A Christmas Carol but all in rhymes like Doctor Seuss,” Chantelle told her. “And I’m playing The Ghost of Christmas Past!”

Emily knew enough to know that was one of the central parts to the play. After Ebenezer Scrooge, the ghost would surely have the most lines.

“Well done sweetheart!” she said, hugging Chantelle tightly.

Once she’d released her, Daniel swept her up into the air.

“What a cool part!” he exclaimed. “I’m so proud of you!”

He placed her back on her feet, and Chantelle reached for something from her satchel.

“These are my lines,” she said, holding up a thick booklet with a recognizable Seuss-style illustration on the front of it. “The play will be on Friday 18th December.”

Emily looked at Daniel, her eyebrows raised. Baby Charlotte would be born by then! Suddenly it all felt incredibly real. And so, so exciting.

“That’s not very long to learn all your lines,” Daniel said to Chantelle. “Three weeks?”

“I know,” she told him, looking suddenly very serious. “But I can do it.”

“Of course you can,” Emily told her.

They all climbed into the truck and Daniel turned the ignition. It juddered to life with a spluttering noise.

“When I get home, can I start decorating the inn for Christmas?” Chantelle asked from the back seat.

Emily laughed and glanced over her shoulder at her. “We’ve only just had Thanksgiving.”

“I know,” Chantelle replied. “But I love Christmas so much. I just can’t wait to swap my fall leaves bunting for snowflake bunting.”

Daniel started to chuckle. His gaze flicked up to Chantelle in the rear view mirror.

“You can decorate the inn however you want,” he said.

Emily smiled to herself. She loved Chantelle’s creativity, and she loved the way her home was transformed for every festivity, every season, by the child’s hand. She wouldn’t swap it for the world – not the plastic spiders she kept finding down the back of furniture from Halloween or the tiny American flags between the floorboards from July 4th. Her life was perfect. Fingers crossed, it would stay that way.

* * *

A few minutes later they returned home, and Daniel parked up outside the inn. The vast drive was completely empty now. With no guest cars filling the outside space, the drive looked suddenly enormous.

They went up the porch steps and in through the large door of the inn. As they stepped inside, Emily discovered, to her surprise, that the fall decorations were already gone. She’d only been out the house for a couple of hours, but someone had turned the inn back into a blank canvas. Who could have done so?

She thought of Lois and Marnie using some of their extra time during their slow shift to tidy up, or maybe Vanessa had done it during her cleaning. But then she heard voices coming from the living room and instantly realized who had instigated the tidy up.