The Mills & Boon Christmas Wishes Collection. Maisey Yates

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      “Yep, and then we really need to double-check the chapel and make sure it’s ready for the brides. We need to arrange the furniture and the fairy lights and make sure we haven’t forgotten anything else.”

      My heart stopped. The chapel!

      “Our brides will fall helplessly in love with the idea of marrying in such a beautiful little church. What is it?” Amory asked. “You look like you’ve swallowed a fly?”

      “Oh, God!” I slapped a hand to my forehead. “The plans! Kai submitted the plans to the council for the chapel and I was supposed to follow up and make sure they were approved! We’re not allowed to use it until then because the building was deemed unsafe and it hasn’t been recertified yet.”

      I flew down the stairs two at a time, my heart racing. Micah had taken over managing the renovations after Kai left, so I could focus on building the business and touting for guests, but I still had to oversee the paperwork and the…

      Amory half-tumbled down the stairs after me, trying hard not to fall in her heels. “Clio, wait. Don’t panic, it will be fine. All we need to do is ring them and ask how it’s going, right?”

      “I can’t believe I forgot! Kai told me to hassle them or else things get lost in the system and take longer than necessary. And I’ve left it until now!” I couldn’t catch my breath; this one little slip-up could derail the whole expo.

      This would never have happened when I worked at the agency. I’d taken my eye off the ball, and damn well dropped it. Kai had given me express instructions and I’d been all doe-eyed like a teenager, too busy worrying about him leaving the lodge for good to remember something crucial like the approval process. I skidded into my office and begun searching the desk for the plans and Amory clattered in behind me.

      “OK, don’t panic, darling,” she said, huffing and puffing from the dash downstairs. “You can fix anything you put your mind to! Why don’t you call them and use that sweet and innocent voice of yours? Rave about your plans for the local economy, how your guests will inject some much-needed funds. Invite them over and we can schmooze them if all else fails.”

      With a hand to my chest, I paused, contemplating what she was saying. “Yeah, it’s not like they’ll have a stack of pending approvals. There’s only five hundred and three people in Evergreen!” Surely it was only a routine process, read, stamp, sign. My shoulders relaxed. I breathed in and out on the count of five. Stress is an illusion, a Kai mantra, popped into my mind.

      “Yes,” I said, feeling more confident. “OK, I’ll phone up now.” Amory nodded and slipped out of the room.

      I turned back to the desk and flicked through the paperwork. I found a bunch of notes in Kai’s handwriting and tried to make sense of them. From what I could tell he had everything in order and Micah had checked off the work orders one by one until the chapel was finished. I dialed the direct number of the planning officer Kai had been speaking to and sank back in the chair, focusing on the positives. I’d remembered now, and surely could fix this mess with a phone call. There was no need to panic.

      “Ned speaking.”

      I took a deep breath and began. “Ned, how are you?” I didn’t wait for a response. “It’s Clio from Cedarwood Lodge. I’m calling about some planning paperwork that was sent in…” I pored over the notes again. “Back in October.”

      There was a sound, as though he was sucking his gums. “Yes?”

      “You know the planning application in question? The one for the chapel on the Cedarwood property”

      “I do.”

      Golly, at this rate the conversation would take all day. “Great!” I smiled as Amory tiptoed into the room and put a glass of water on the desk before sneaking off again, presumably to finish the last suite. “I was hoping we could get it signed off and approved so we can go forward with our plans. We’re hoping the influx of tourists arriving at Cedarwood will filter down to the other businesses in town, giving them a boost, especially over the winter. So… we’re really quite excited.”

      “Right, right.” There was a shuffling of paperwork. “The thing is, Claire…”

      I coughed. “Clio.”

      “Clio, the thing is, I can’t hurry these decisions. It would be remiss of me not to take into consideration variables about the property and what it could mean for Evergreen and its population.”

      I held in a groan. This did not sound like approval was pending any time soon.

      This is your own fault, Clio! “I understand. But you see, you’ve approved the lodge itself, so guests are able to stay, right?” I didn’t want the lodge closed down on a technicality. I rued the day Kai left. He was so much better at this side of things than me. The facts and figures of the planning and approval process were a nightmare.

      “Right. However. What you’re not allowed to do is use the chapel for guests. No weddings, no church services, no parties. The structure is a hundred years old, it’s weathered, full of rising damp, and I have to know for certain it’s safe before I can say yes.”

      “I totally understand. And you’ll see if you do an inspection that it’s had an overhaul and is safe for guests. I have a bridal expo planned. No one is actually hosting a wedding, but they’d obviously like to see inside the chapel…”

      “No, they are not permitted.”

      Argh! I took a calming breath. Panic had never helped any situation before, so I really needed to get some perspective. “Why not? I can fax over reports about the work that’s been done. The rising damp has been fixed, the beams have been raised, the electricals have been completely replaced including extra safety precautions…”

      “Clio…” He said my name quickly, like a parent trying to get their child’s attention. “Your builder promised me the same things last time, and then a fire broke out… You can understand my worry, surely? I’m not being malicious, trust me, I’m being cautious.”

      The fire. Now his hesitation made sense. I closed my eyes. “The fire was extinguished promptly and we added a ton more safety procedures after that. And the fire was in the main lodge building, which is nowhere near the chapel. It wasn’t actually our fault; the fire report outlines it in detail. And we were well equipped with extinguishers and other preventative measures, which stopped the entire lodge going up in flames.” And when I said other preventative measures I meant Micah, ever the hero, racing toward the fire while the others raced away from it. Just thinking of that horrible day sent shivers down my spine.

      He let out a weary sigh. “There’s a process to these applications, Clio, and I have to follow them meticulously. If you check out our website you’ll see the approvals process can take up to six months. Sometimes more.”

      Six months! “I don’t have six months.” Panic crept into my voice so I did my best to disguise it with calm. “Surely we can come to some agreement? I wouldn’t push for this if it wasn’t safe. I wouldn’t put my guests at risk, ever.”

      Another phone rang in the background as Ned sighed for the third time in one very short conversation. “Look, send me the paperwork on your trades and I’ll see what I can do. Better yet, send Kai over. You’re still using your registered builder, aren’t you?”

      I gulped. Where did it say that in the fine print? This was exactly why I’d hired Kai for all the loopholes that cropped up.

      “Yes, yes, Kai is still here, he’s right beside me, actually. He can’t hear me, what with all the safety gear he’s wearing, ear muffs, and… and…” Oh God, Clio, stop talking! “It might be a few days, or a week or so, because he’s in the middle of something. Something big.” Stop, just stop, already!

      “Do that, Clio, and we’ll see what can be done.”

      “Sure,