Page 42 of Christmas All the Way

Keeley ran a shaky hand across her eyes. ‘I’m as certain as I can be that it’s her work. But I still think we should wait until it’s confirmed. You must remember what happened with the Wilkie manuscript a few years ago.’

Malcolm let out an especially loud harrumph. ‘That was entirely different. You discovered the manuscript in situ, as it were, and there’s no doubt it’s Eliza’s work.’ He paused, and Keeley opened her mouth to renew her objections, but Malcolm was speaking again. ‘I think we’ll push on. I’ll ask Xander to prepare a press release, for distribution this evening to catch the weekend editions. Obviously, we can’t tell how much of a splash the news will make initially but you’ll probably experience an increase in visitor numbers at the cottage once word gets out. Do you have some extra volunteers you can call in?’

There was no point in arguing, Keeley realised. The horse had well and truly bolted and she took little consolation from knowing she’d been right to suspect Malcolm would ignore the more cautious approach. ‘Maybe,’ she said, puffing out her cheeks as she mentally ran through the available volunteers. ‘But we’re not really set up for large crowds – there will be bottlenecks, especially around the entrance. And the cafe won’t be open. It closed for the winter at the end of September.’

‘We’ll make sure that’s clear on the website,’ he said briskly. ‘And I suggest we switch to online tickets only, to manage visitor numbers. No walk-ins.’

It was a change in policy that would almost certainly result in some disgruntled visitors, Keeley thought with an inward sigh. She’d need to update the signs and ensure she was nearby to deal with any fallout.

‘Oh, and you might be contacted by journalists but don’t worry about answering their questions,’ Malcolm continued briskly. ‘Refer them to us for now – Xander will know how to handle them.’

A sense of overwhelm was roaring through her, causing her heart to thump uncomfortably fast. ‘Wouldn’t it make more sense to wait?’ she said again, cursing Xander’s inability to keep the manuscript under wraps. ‘That way we can make a proper plan and be better prepared for the increase in interest.’

‘We do have a plan,’ Malcolm assured her. ‘And the trustees feel we should make the most of this staggering opportunity to raise Eliza’s profile. As do I.’

The determination in his voice told her it was a lost cause. ‘I see.’

‘I’m sure Xander will be in touch later but I imagine he’ll want a quote from you for the press release, as the foremost expert on Eliza Norton, so perhaps you could start thinking of what you’d like to say,’ Malcolm went on. ‘Something upbeat about how incredible it is to have a previously unknown book by such an esteemed yet undervalued writer, you know the kind of thing.’

‘Yes,’ Keeley said dryly. ‘I do know the kind of thing.’

‘And perhaps you’d be good enough to email over a brief outline of the plot, so we’re prepared to field questions. It might be an idea to copy Xander in too. I don’t suppose you know why it was never published?’

‘Not yet,’ she said. ‘I’ve checked everything we have and it isn’t mentioned anywhere.’

‘Keep looking,’ Malcolm urged. ‘The more we have, the bigger the buzz Xander can whip up.’

She resisted the urge to clench her jaw. ‘Of course. Anything else?’

‘No, I think that’s all. It goes without saying that we are tremendously excited about this, Keeley. Once the manuscript has been properly verified as Eliza’s work, we’ll see about finding a publisher for it. Imagine, a new Eliza Norton novel on sale in bookshops!’

‘I know. It’s a wonderful opportunity,’ she said, because it was. She just wished Xander had thought to warn her before telling the trustees about their find and turning her world on its head.

She stood still for several minutes after Malcolm had rung off, staring blindly at the faded swirls of colour on the carpet while her mind worked. When Sylvie arrived to relieve her a short while later, she managed a brief smile of thanks before escaping to the gardens, where the autumn sunshine did little to soothe her troubled spirits. Her phone showed no notifications – no missed calls and no unread messages. Xander hadn’t tried to let her know what was coming, had left it to Malcolm to reveal how he’d undermined her, and that made things even worse. But it didn’t take long for her practical nature to kick in. The trustees were well within their rights to decide on the best way to proceed and, as their employee, Keeley had no choice but to agree. What was worse was the ache in her chest; by reneging on their pact to keep the manuscript between them, Xander had also thrown a grenade into whatever had been blossoming between them and that hurt. The only saving grace was that he’d shown she couldn’t trust him with Eliza’s manuscript before she’d been foolish enough to let him into her heart.

Her phone rang again thirty minutes later, when she had taken herself for a walk to Eliza’s Pantry for an Autumn Spiced Latte, and this time, it was Xander’s name on the screen. Briefly, she considered rejecting the call; she was still angry and the betrayal was too fresh, meaning she couldn’t think of anyone she’d like to talk to less, despite the need to demand an explanation. She also suspected he’d be confused by her anger, which would only infuriate her more. Unfortunately, she didn’t have the luxury of allowing her bruised feelings to heal before she faced him. The trustees’ determination to announce the discovery meant she and Xander had to talk, and she was damned if she’d let his lack of professionalism affect her own. ‘Hello, Xander,’ she said coolly.

‘Hi,’ he said, his tone as tight as her own. ‘I gather you’ve spoken to Malcolm this morning.’

‘I have,’ she said, determined to keep a lid on her temper. ‘Has he explained the plan?’

He let out a long breath. ‘He’s asked me to draft a press release about the manuscript. I have to say, the request came totally out of left field. I wish you’d warned me you were going to tell them about finding it.’

Keeley felt her jaw drop. ‘Me? I’m not the one who couldn’t my mouth shut. Malcolm said you were the one who told him.’

‘That’s not what happened,’ Xander insisted. ‘You must have misunderstood.’

The absolute certainty in his voice made her pause. While Malcolm had strongly implied Xander had been the one to reveal the manuscript’s existence, he’d stopped short at actually naming him. But did that matter when there was no other possible explanation? ‘I can assure you I didn’t,’ she fired back. ‘Only the two of us knew about it and you were the one who suggested we take it to the trustees. I wanted to wait for the results of the authentication, remember?’

‘And I agreed to that,’ he ground out, sounding frustrated. ‘So if you didn’t tell them, and I didn’t, how did they find out?’

Keeley let out an incredulous huff. ‘You told them! I don’t know why you’re pretending you didn’t. If you think it’s going to make me feel any less betrayed, then you’re wrong.’

Now it was Xander’s turn to huff. ‘Betrayed? Come on, Keeley, can you hear yourself? It’s an old manuscript, not a declaration of war.’

‘It’s not about the bloody manuscript,’ she growled, aware her raised voice was attracting the attention of those passing by. ‘Not really. It’s about you deciding you know better than me and doubling down on that decision now. I’d prefer it if you were honest with me and admitted you went over my head.’

‘I went over your head?’ he snapped. ‘How about you decided to cut me out of the loop?’