The Cornish Cream Tea Christmas by Cressida McLaughlin

Author:Cressida McLaughlin [McLaughlin, Cressida]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Published: 2020-09-04T17:00:00+00:00

Chapter Six

Coming into close contact with a ghost was bound to make sleep more difficult to come by, Hannah reasoned as she stared at the ceiling, shapes morphing out of the darkness as her eyes struggled to adjust. It also made her feel incredibly emotional about the prospect of Audrey’s cleansing spell. She didn’t understand why a waft of air – that any sceptic would explain away in a heartbeat – had made more of an impression on her than Audrey’s retelling of the tragic love story.

When she made it upstairs the next morning Daniel and Audrey were standing close to the front desk, deep in conversation.

‘Good morning,’ she said.

‘Hi Hannah,’ Daniel looked up briefly then turned back to Audrey. His dark eyes were serious.

‘Oh Hannah, I was just telling Daniel that I’m ready to cleanse the hotel. I’ve had a long, enlightening discussion with my friend, and everything’s in place. We’ve agreed to do it this evening.’

‘Before your meal, Hannah, if that’s OK?’ Daniel said.

‘Sure.’ Hannah was proud of the menu she had planned, and felt a thrill of excitement at the day stretching ahead of her in the kitchen, getting everything prepared.

‘We can go outside as it gets dark,’ Audrey said. ‘At the liminal time.’

Hannah pictured a small procession of them, slinking out of the snug, through the winding paths of the gardens and down to the outdoor swimming pool, all holding candles. They would look like a cult, or a witches’ coven. They only needed a couple of velvet cloaks for the effect to be complete – even a hoody might give the wrong impression. She could see why Daniel didn’t exactly look over the moon.

‘Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help,’ Hannah said. Once Audrey had gone, she asked Daniel if he was OK.

‘I will be,’ he said. ‘Once this little chapter is finished and I can put all my effort into Christmas. I can’t have anything going wrong on Christmas Day, not this year. Not phantom guests or wily dogs or storms that threaten to take out all the power. It sounds myopic, but that’s my focus right now.’

‘If karma has anything to do with it, you should be all right,’ Hannah replied. ‘You’ve had enough disruption to last you the next five years, at least.’ She realized now was not the time to tell him about her experience the night before.

‘I’m not taking anything for granted. It has to be perfect.’ He was staring at his phone, full of nervous energy. It was so different to how he’d been when she first arrived – the coolest of cats, all charm and unwavering confidence. This wasn’t just about Christmas. A thought struck her then, and it seemed so obvious that she couldn’t help grinning.

‘If there’s anything I can do, Daniel, anything at all, please let me know.’

He narrowed his eyes. ‘You’re going to be busy enough in the kitchen today.’

She nodded. ‘It was so kind of Charlie to ask me to stay, and of you to let me take over your professional kitchen.

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