Page 57 of Christmas at the Inn on Bluebell Lane

“Okay,” Jess finally said, sounding nonplussed. “Whatever.”

“Does this mean you won’t be around at the inn?” Josh asked, a note of anxiety creeping into his voice. “Because you’ll be at an office?”

“There aren’t any offices around here, Daddy,” Ava told him, rather kindly. “I think you’ll have to drive in your car.”

Which provided the perfect, if rather poignant, opening.

“You’re right, Ava,” Matthew said with a crooked smile. “There aren’t many offices in little Llandrigg. But the job I’m talking about is a little farther away than I could get to in my car.” Matthew paused and Ellie saw Jess’s eyes narrow as understanding began to dawn. “It’s in New York City.”

“New York!” The words exploded out of Jess, and Ben frowned.

“Would you fly there?” he asked. “And come back on weekends or something?”

Matthew let out a soft huff of laughter. “That would be rather a long way to go, don’t you think?”

“So, what are you saying?” Jess demanded.

“We could all move back to the US, to New York,” Matthew stated, his tone turning gentle. “The company I’d be working for would offer a very generous package. We could live in the city proper, rather than the suburbs, maybe right by Central Park! It would be pretty different from Llandrigg, I know, but it could be kind of an adventure, don’t you think? How many kids get to say they’ve lived in a little village in Wales as well as the Big Apple?”

“About four, I’d say,” Jess replied in such a dry voice that Ellie couldn’t help but let out a laugh.

“Yes,” she agreed, entering into the conversation for the first time. “You might be right there, Jess. Certainly not that many, if any—other than you.”

“We’re going to move…” Josh stated slowly, his forehead screwed up into a frown, “to New York?”

“Yes, Josh.” Matthew smiled at his youngest son. “That’s the idea.”

“But… what about Granny?” Ava asked. She sounded more practical than worried. “Would she come with us?”

“Well, no, I don’t think so.” Matthew exchanged a worried glance with Ellie; they hadn’t really discussed this aspect of their move yet. “I think she’d stay here in Llandrigg. But we could visit her, and she could visit us, the way she used to, more than before, even. And we’d see Grandma and Grandpa in America a lot more, the way we did before.” He paused, glancing around at them all, with their varying expressions of confusion, worry, thoughtfulness, and alarm. It was, Ellie knew, a lot to take in. “What do you guys think?” Matthew said after a few moments when no one had spoken. “I know you need to think about it for a while, but… initial thoughts?”

“I want to go,” Jess stated baldly, surprising Ellie completely.

“You… do?” she asked, a bit stupidly, as she stared at her daughter.

“Yes, New York is, like,socool. And I’ve liked living here, and I love Granny, but…” Jess bit her lip. “I miss America. And I miss Grandma and Grandpa. And the whole inn thing has been fun, but… it’s a lot, Mom, having guests around, especially little kids. One of the kids snuck up into my room during half-term and got into all my makeup. To be honest, I’m kind of tired of stuff like that.”

“I’m sorry, Jess. I didn’t know.” Her daughter had, Ellie thought with bemusement, slipped into calling herMomrather thanMumwithout even realizing it.

“I’m glad you’re excited, Jess.” Matthew looked thrilled by the fact; Ellie suspected he’d been expecting a lot more resistance. “What about the rest of you?”

Ben shrugged. “I dunno. I like it here. Could I play football—I mean soccer—in New York?”

“I’m sure you could,” Matthew assured him. “There’s a soccer club that meets at the 92ndStreet Y… maybe we could try to live near there.”

He’d clearly been doing some research, Ellie thought. She was grateful Matthew was thinking about the children’s needs, but… it still felt overwhelming.

“What about you, Josh?” Matthew asked. “How do you feel about it?”

Josh shrugged. “I don’t know.” His voice sounded small. “I was moving schools anyway, but… I don’t like things changing.”

And he never had, Ellie acknowledged with a rush of love. When Josh had been three, he’d grown out of his winter coat, a red one with yellow lightning bolts on the sleeves, and he’d been absolutely disconsolate at having to wear a new one. Moving to Llandrigg had been challenging, too, but he’d adapted so well. It made her heart ache to think of him having to do it again.

“Change can be hard,” Matthew agreed. “But it can be exciting, too. And, like I said, this isn’t for definite. Your mum and I will be heading to New York in January, to have a look around. We’ll know more then.”

“You’re going to New York already?” Jess looked startled. “Can we go, too? This involves us, as well, you know.”

“I know it does. I… I suppose you could. We’d have to pay for your airline tickets ourselves, but you could visit Grandma and Grandpa… it might be worth it?” Matthew glanced questioningly at Ellie.

---