Sophie Love - Christmas Forever

“I…” Emily began, feeling her throat becoming dry.

She looked over at Raven sitting on the stage beside Marcella. For only the second time since she’d met her, Emily saw a genuine smile on her face. Like Emily when she’d first arrived, Raven had encountered hostility and suspicion from the locals. Emily was probably the one person she counted as a friendly acquaintance.

“I’m for,” Emily suddenly blurted. “I think there’s a market that Raven’s inn could capture. She caters for the business and corporate end of the market, with conferences and the like. I cater more towards familie, weddings and festivities. There’s room for the both of us.”

She spoke very quickly, trying to get her explanation out before her voice was entirely swallowed by the uproar. But it was useless. Everyone was speaking loudly over one another, directing frustration towards her, as if she were the one who’d come up with the plan in the first place, rather than the person who was going to be the most affected by it should it come to fruition!

And even worse were the thunderous expressions on Harry and Amy’s faces. They looked like she’d just said the worst thing in the world, like she’d let them down terribly. But it just wouldn’t be right or fair to sway everyone to her side, to tell Raven no. It would be downright mean spirited.

All she could do now was hope that enough other people voted no so she wouldn’t have to deal with the outcome of her generosity.

Emily stepped back, seeking the shadows. But in a small town like Sunset Harbor there was no hiding. She’d made her bed, now she would have to lie in it.

“What the Hell was that, Emily?” Amy demanded once the town meeting was over. “Anyone would think you wanted to go bankrupt and ruin the town!”

Her friend had let her go less than five paces from the town hall before launching her attack, stopping her on the first step. The weather had grown colder since they’d been inside and Emily shivered from the sudden drop in temperature.

But despite the cold, her cheeks were warm with embarrassment. Emily hated making a public scene, especially since half of the town were filling out of the hall behind them.

“Can we talk about this later?” Emily said under her breath.

“No!” Amy exclaimed. “I want to know what’s gotten into you. Why are you lying down like a lapdog for Raven Kingsley?”

“That’s hardly what’s happening,” Emily refuted, stung by the ferocity of Amy’s words. “Just because I don’t want to trash her dreams doesn’t mean I’m bending over backwards to accommodate her.”

Amy placed her hands on her hips. “Funny, ‘cos it’s certainly coming across that way. I mean just the other day you were telling me all your woes about laying off staff over winter and not having any bookings. What do you really think will happen when you have a competitor like Raven Kinsgley offering cheaper rooms, cheaper food, a better location? You may as well just fire Harry now.”

“Ames, please calm down,” Emily said, softly. She tried to reach for her friend, but Amy pulled away. She wasn’t a crier, never had been, but Emily noticed that her face was red from the strain of holding it together.

“I just don’t understand you,” Amy said, turning her face away. “I don’t understand what you’re doing.”

Emily had no words. It was hard to explain herself, beyond the fact that she wanted to be a decent human being and spread kindness. She’d seen the way Chantelle had resolved her issue with Laverne over Halloween and had been humbled by the child’s capacity for care and forgiveness. The only may she could make sense of it now was that dragging someone wasn’t right, no matter what.

“Even the Raven Kingsley’s of the world deserve a chance,” Emily said. “I’m sorry if you feel like I’ve betrayed Harry, or even that I’m letting myself and my family down, but I simply cannot stoop to that level, to trash someone’s dream like that.”

Amy stared at her, still incredulous, like her words just weren’t registering. “I think you’re going to regret that. Once Raven drives you out of business.”

“How about when that happens, you can say ‘I told you so,’” Emily said, the comment halfway between a joke and a dismissal.

Amy shook her head, looking beyond disappointed. It was painful for Emily to have her best friend so mad at her, but she wasn’t going to back down under the pressure. She knew what was right in her heart and that was the only thing was going to let that guide her actions.

“I’m going home,” Amy said.

“No, Ames,” Emily said, reaching for. “It’s the tree lighting ceremony. Your first one in Sunset Harbor. Come on, let’s just put this behind us for the rest of the night, okay?”

Amy shook her head again. “I can’t. I’m sorry. I don’t feel like watching a stupid tree ceremony when our livelihoods are in danger. Doesn’t feel like much to celebrate.” She looked around her, searching for Harry.

Emily felt crushed. She and Amy had had their fair share of spats during their years of friendship but this particular one felt very raw and painful. Amy’s rejection hurt.

Harry appeared then, moving away from a very solemn looking conversation with the Bradshaw’s who owned a restaurant in town. He came over, his usual boyish grin completely absent, and placed his arm around Amy.

“Shall we go home?” he asked her, his tone morose.

Emily’s heart sank. “Harry, come on,” she said. “It’s the tree lighting. Come over to the Inn for mulled wine, then we can all go together.”

But Harry shook his head. He was hardly looking at her. “I think we want a quiet night in.”

Amy didn’t raise her eyes again either. Instead, the two of them shuffled off, heads bowed, leaving Emily alone on the steps, watching them go with a downturned mouth.

After her spat with Amy, Emily couldn’t help but approach the town tree lighting celebration with an air of trepidation. What if everyone decide to give her a piece of them mind as Amy had? The thought of the tense atmosphere that had built during the meeting spilling onto the streets and poisoning the joyful celebration was a real concern.

But when they arrived and climbed out of Daniel’s truck – Chantelle clipping leashes onto the dogs before hopping down from the back seat – Emily quickly realized she needn’t have worried. All she saw were the same old friendly faces, smiles and greetings. Whatever feelings the locals felt about her speech at the meeting, it appeared as if they were going to put them aside for the rest of the evening. Unlike Amy, they seemed willing to leave their animosity towards her within the four walls of the town hall.

In typical Sunset Harbor tradition, the tree lighting wasn’t just a tree lighting, but instead a street party, an excuse to celebrate. Emily looked around at all the stalls that had been set up, selling an assortments of winter-themed items from Christmas decorations to candles, flavored liquors and ugly Christmas sweaters. Chantelle, of course, was immediately drawn to the sparkly, garish sweater stall.

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