‘Again?’
‘Yeah, you know what I’m like. Why don’t you make yourself useful and put that on the door while I make the drinks?’
Tom followed her down into the basement and went to the maintenance cupboard while she headed into the kitchen. Before long, he’d finished and shaken off his coat, and Nell had returned with the tea. They were back in the dining room as a weak and watery sun shone between the bare branches of the trees. For a second, Nell admired the twisting beauty of the boughs, tapering from thick stems to small reaching fingers, naked and bereft of leaves. Strong winds had left them stark and empty. Empty. The word rang around her head like an alarm going off and for a second, she reflected on how that was how she felt at times lately. Empty. Maybe that was why she was disappearing into her own world more and more. She’d been prone to it since sitting her exams at uni. It was a coping mechanism and one she’d at first thought she’d grow out of, but she hadn’t. Sometimes she wished she could and at other times it helped more than anything else.
‘So, what’s the deal?’ Tom sipped his tea and grimaced. Nell liked hers super strong, like builder’s tea. She let it brew until weird bits started floating on the top. Tom liked his the colour of wheat. The trouble was Nell tended to get side-tracked doing or thinking about other things and both cups ended up exactly how she liked them. She pulled her chair in a little closer to the table.
‘I’ve lost another booking, and another bad review has come up on HotelRater—’
‘Really? Who? Was it that couple who wanted an ergonomic mattress because he put his back out shagging?’
Nell rested her chin in her hands. ‘I don’t know who it was and honestly, I have no recollection of the things they’re moaning about.’
‘Like what?’
‘They say there was a lack of free toiletries in the room when they arrived, but no one’s ever mentioned that to me, and I always check the rooms before people check in making sure everything’s perfect. I don’t think I’d have forgotten that.’
Tom gazed over the top of his cup. ‘That’s not really a reason to complain either. You just come down and ask for them, don’t you?’
‘Yeah and no one’s ever done that. I always check they’re there. And that’s just the start. They talk about rudeness from staff, ignoring requests for extra pillows and the place being dirty and dusty.’
‘This place is spotless. Mrs Palmer would be mortified if she heard that.’
‘I know.’
Mrs Palmer was Nell’s cleaner and a more disciplined, thorough woman had never been seen. She had a system and it was thanks to that system nothing was ever missed. She regularly cleared the cobwebs, cleaned the skirting boards, wiped the paintwork and door handles, and did all those jobs Nell wouldn’t even think of.
‘I’m going to email HotelRater to see if it’s possible these people tagged the wrong hotel, but I don’t think it’ll do anything. Anyway, I need to come up with some more ideas. The dining room thing is going to take a while to sort out and though I hope Cat’s wedding will help get some bookings, not many people get married this time of year so even with the wedding fair, I’m really looking at next year – summer, more likely, or even the year after – before I get any returns on that. I thought I could use some Valentine’s decorations in the rooms for that romance touch and with some Christmassy bits it should work well. Actually, could you do some small wreaths for the room doors? I’ll pay for them of course. I’m costing out everything else and I think it’ll work. I thought about what you said and I’m not going to go overboard on the gifts. I’m going to have a budget that I stick to, but I can still make things personal and special.’
‘Sounds good to me.’ Tom took another mouthful of tea and pulled a face.
‘You don’t have to drink it if it’s that bad.’
‘It’s fine.’
‘No, it’s not,’ she laughed. ‘You look like I’m pouring vinegar down your throat. I’ll make you another one in a minute and I promise I won’t get side-tracked.’
Tom laughed. ‘I really don’t know how you manage to forget you’re making tea. It’s the most important drink in this country. What were you thinking about this time?’
‘Nothing.’ Nell could feel herself blushing. She didn’t want to admit that once she’d poured the hot water onto the teabag, she’d thought about kissing Tom on the cheek and his delivery of the wreath. Her romantic brain had turned it into a wonderful scenario for her and a vague version of Harry, but it had been strange. While the face was a weird mix of Harry and Tom, the personality she felt was most definitely Tom’s. It had made her feel a bit … odd. ‘I went looking for biscuits and got distracted.’
‘Okay. Oh, listen. I wanted to ask you something about Cat.’ Tom’s voice now carried a serious tone. ‘I had a call from Kieran the other day and he said she seemed different. You know, really, really stressed. He wondered if she’d said anything to you. I know you told me about the dress, but do you think things have got worse? They seemed happy enough the other night but … I don’t know.’
Nell shifted uncomfortably.
