‘He only came with one other man.’
‘You’re joking? You better hope the women of Ireland don’t get wind of that! There will be a full-on siege! They’ll be bashing the castle door in before the day is done. There will be zero regard that it’s an original wrought-iron door from the early eighteenth century and one of Daddy’s favourite features!’ Though she jokes, a fondness taints her tone at the memory of our father. He really did love that front door.
I’m not fond of it at all, but I can’t bring myself to change a thing they loved, so keen to keep their memory alive.
‘Chloe, I better go and sort this mess out before they scare all the other paying patrons away.’ I grab my favourite fleece dressing gown from the back of my bedroom door and cross the varnished cherrywood flooring to my ensuite.
‘You’ve got to be joking? No one’s going to be scared away. This is the best thing to happen to the castle in years. Up the prices for the month of December. Ryan Cooper is the biggest tourist attraction you’ll ever have. You may as well cash in on it.’
Though I hate to admit it, she might be right. The prospect of overcharging people makes my skin crawl, but Megan’s been telling me we’ve been under-pricing for years. Some of our competitors are charging twice our standard bed and breakfast rate. I suppose it’s no wonder the castle hasn’t been turning a profit.
‘I’ll call you tomorrow.’ I blow a kiss across the room to where Victoria sits on my bed, holding up the phone.
‘You’ll call me later you mean! With a full update! And we still need to talk about the Christmas ball!’
Damn. Annually hosted on the 23rd, I’d hoped it was the one tradition our parents started that she might forget. Even if I wanted to, there’s no way the castle can afford to host a lavish ball this year. We couldn’t last year and I did it anyway, racking up further debt.
I seriously need to reconsider the pricing.
‘I’m so excited, I’ve tried on like three hundred dresses in the mall! Which band did you book this year? Are we going jazz? Or something more modern? Did Conor come up with a menu yet?’
I haven’t so much as thought about it.
Shit.
Less than a week ago, I promised I’d make this the most fabulous Christmas ever.
It’s a promise I need to make good on, no matter how much it costs. Hung for a sheep as a lamb, right? If it’s going to be our last one here, we might as well go out with a bang, I suppose.
‘I’m on it. Chat later.’ Disappearing into the privacy of my bathroom, I switch on the shower, pondering how I’m going to pull it all off.
The extra income from the rental of the presidential suite should cover the initial cost of a ball. I hate doing it, but the ticket prices are going to have to soar this year. After all, if Huxley Castle is good enough for one of America’s biggest rockstars, it’s got to be worth every penny.
Maybe Ryan’s arrival will prove beneficial after all.
Huh. Tell that to my bleeding heart. It hasn’t got the memo yet.
CHAPTEREIGHT
RYAN
‘Looks like you’ve been busted.’ Pierce pulls back the curtain, nodding to the infuriating source of noise below.
Huxley Castle has always been a place of sanctuary. It’s one of the reasons my father was so desperate to rent a cabin here. After our mother left, he wanted his sons to be raised in peace and privacy, safely away from whatever illegitimate business he dabbled in.
I’ve barely been here a day and the place has transformed into a paparazzi-fuelled circus. I can only imagine Sasha’s displeasure.
‘It’s inconvenient to say the least.’ I suppose it was inevitable, but I’d hoped to get at least a few days grace.
Celebrity status has its perks, but you can’t just switch it off. People I’ve never laid eyes on feel like they know everything about me. Like they own me. Like I’m public property.
I don’t want to relocate, and not simply because I managed to bang out three new songs last night. Songs which flew effortlessly from my soul, straight to the strings of my guitar.
Jayden will finally be able to tell Diamond Records I have some new material, but even if I’m able to keep up this rate of production, which is unlikely, I’ll need more than a couple of nights here to fill an album, let alone two.
‘Either we move on, or we’re going to have to do something drastic about the security around here.’ Pierce gazes out the window, assessing the situation below.
‘I’d prefer not to leave.’
