The Inn at Holiday Bay: Trouble in the Turkey Truck

Book 36: The Inn at Holiday Bay

by Kathi Daley

Genres: Animal Cozy Mysteries

Synopsis

Holiday Bay is a charming seaside town where every season brings a celebration—and healing comes when you least expect it.

After a heartbreaking loss, Abby Sullivan never imagined she'd find solace in a quaint seaside inn in Holiday Bay, Maine. But surrounded by new friends, cozy traditions, and an endless parade of mysteries, Abby has discovered that sometimes the best way to heal is to start fresh.

In Book 36 of this heartwarming series, Abby joins Mackenzie Cole—niece of her boyfriend, Colt Wilder—and Colt's father, Hank, for the town's first-ever Holiday Bay Turkey Olympics. The trio arrives early to get settled, only to discover something far more surprising than turkeys inside the turkey truck...

As the Holiday Bay family prepares for the season's first snowfall, familiar faces are navigating their own challenges: Georgia is overwhelmed by the pressure of choosing a name for baby Peyton, Hazel's mysterious cough has everyone concerned, Anna is adjusting to her new life at the inn with cautious optimism, and Lacy is struggling with mixed emotions after letting her triplets travel for the Thanksgiving holiday.

Full of heart, humor, and seasonal charm, this cozy mystery is perfect for fans of feel-good fiction, small-town camaraderie, and the warm magic of the holidays.

Read more

Release date: October 28, 2025

Publisher: Kathi Daley Books

Reader says this book is...: entertaining story (1) escapist/easy read (1)

Sample

Chapter 1

Even though we’d changed the date for Georgia and Tanner Peyton’s baby shower twice and
location once in an effort to ensure that everyone Georgia wanted to be there was able to attend,
it seemed like half the town had turned out. So far, Georgia’s pregnancy and the emotions
associated with said pregnancy have suffered the hills and valleys one might expect from a first-
time mom. Now that she was entering the home stretch and things had become even more
stressful, I really wanted to give Georgia at least one perfect stress-free day.
“It was nice of Shelby to let us use her home at the last minute,” my good friend, surrogate
mom, and advice guru, Velma Crawford, said to me, referring to Shelby Morris, a good friend
and the owner of the Bistro at Holiday Bay.
“Shelby was a real lifesaver,” I agreed as Velma and I helped set out the food provided by
Amy Hogan, another good friend and the Bistro’s head chef. “Lacy offered to have the baby
shower at her house.” I referred to Lacy Parker, my best friend, second only to Georgia. “But the
weather turned, and it ended up being too cold to utilize her outdoor space. We weren’t sure her
living area was large enough for everyone Georgia wanted to include, so Lacy and I talked it
over and decided that Shelby really did have the best indoor space for such a large gathering.
Since the Bistro’s closed on Sundays, in addition to a change in location, we decided to move the
shower from Saturday to Sunday to accommodate her schedule.”
“Well, despite all the changes, everything has turned out lovely. The decorations are just
right. Festive but understated. And the flowers Marnie and Cricket brought are simply
magnificent.” Marnie and Cricket Abernathy owned All About Bluebells, a flower shop that
shared a courtyard with Firehouse Books, the bookstore and coffee and pastry bar co-owned by
Velma and her good friend, Lou Prescott.
“The flowers really do add a festive and colorful feel to the place,” I agreed. “And they
complement the colors Lacy and I decided on once we began planning the shower.” I looked
around. “Have you seen the sisters? I want to thank them personally.”

“Marnie and Cricket were outside talking to a group that gathered around the firepit the last
time I saw them.” Velma picked up a large serving platter, turned, and looked toward Amy, who
was stirring something on the stove. “What had you planned to serve on these platters?”
“The pastries Paisley offered to bring.” She turned and looked out the window toward the
side drive that led up to the kitchen door. “It looks as if she just pulled up with Kyle. We’ll get
her unloaded and then arrange the pastries on the trays.”
I turned toward the kitchen window, which looked out onto the side yard, as an SUV parked
near the entrance to the kitchen. Paisley Bradford was new to Holiday Bay. She’d joined our
community and our family after opening the bakeshop in the courtyard with her best friend, an
event planner who recently moved to Holiday Bay, Piper Fairchild. Although I’d only known
Paisley and Piper for a few months, I was already very fond of both.
“I’m afraid I haven’t had the opportunity to meet Kyle,” I said. “Is he the new helper at the
bakeshop that I’ve heard so much about?”
“He is.” Velma took my hand and pulled me toward the doorway. “I’ll introduce you.”
I followed Velma across the room and out the door. She paused when we neared the SUV.
“Kyle Davidson, this is Abby Sullivan. Abby, Kyle.”
“I’m so happy to finally meet you,” Kyle said, offering his hand in greeting. “Paisley and
Piper talk about you all the time. It’s nice to put a face with the legend.”
I laughed. “I’m just a regular person and not a legend, but I appreciate the compliment. Have
you been in Holiday Bay long?”
“Less than a month, actually. I’ve known Amy since culinary school, so when I needed a
change of scenery, she invited me to visit her. I loved it here and decided I wanted to stay, so
Amy and Cambria have been nice enough to let me bunk with them while I’m looking for a place
of my own.” He nodded toward Paisley, who was organizing the boxes that would need to be
carried in. “Paisley’s assistant is still out of town helping her mother, who you may have heard is
very ill, so I offered to help and she gave me a temporary job at the bakeshop.”
“And how has that worked out for you?”
“Really well. Paisley and Piper are both very nice and easy to work with, and the regulars
who come in each morning are beginning to feel like family. All in all, I’ve very much enjoyed
my time at Courtyard Bakery.”
I was happy to hear that. Paisley and Piper had already become members of my extended
family, and I could see that Kyle would fit right in as well.
Velma and I each picked up one of the pastry boxes filled with what, I was sure, were
delicious treats for the baby shower, and followed Paisley and Kyle inside. Amy had cleared a
place on the countertop to stack the boxes and instructed us to do just that.
“Hey, Kyle, can you go out and grab the last box from my van?” Piper, who’d come in from
the front of the house, called out to Kyle after she walked into the kitchen with a stack of three
boxes in her arms. “I parked in the front, but I guess the two of you had a better idea coming
around to the side.”

“On my way,” Kyle called back. He returned his attention to me. “It was nice meeting you.
We’ll talk more later.” With that, he headed toward the door that led into the dining room, which
connected to the living room, and the other rooms at the front of the house.
“Kyle seems like a nice young man,” I said to Velma after he left.
“He is nice. Very nice. And he’s a fantastic chef. I really think he’ll be an asset to our
community once he settles in a bit.”
“Speaking of chefs, did you hear that Haven decided to take some cooking classes at the
community college?” Haven Hanson was one of my two daughters by choice and an employee at
the inn.
“I heard that she was taking classes at the college, but I hadn’t heard that she was interested
in cooking.”
“She’s been helping Jeremy in the kitchen for a while.” I referred to Jeremy Slater, my
second-in-command at the inn behind Georgia. “With Georgia working limited hours until she
goes on maternity leave, Haven’s been put in charge of the dinner service on a few occasions.
She’s done an excellent job and seems to enjoy her time in the kitchen, so when she signed up for
classes this year, she decided to add a cooking class to her schedule. So far, she loves it and is
talking about taking a few other culinary classes next semester.”
“Well, good for her,” Velma smiled. “I always knew that girl would do something special,
and what’s more special than feeding folks.”
“She’s been working hard to carve out her own niche while keeping up with Bailey.” Bailey
Sullivan was my second daughter by choice, a single mom with a private school education, who
started taking college classes online through the University of Edinburgh.
“Speaking of Bailey, she brought Hazel into the bookstore yesterday, and I noticed she had a
cough. I realize that kids get coughs, but I was still concerned, so I suggested to Bailey that she
call her pediatrician.”
Hazel was Bailey’s thirteen-month-old daughter.
“I’ve been concerned about the cough as well,” I had to admit. “It doesn’t seem to be getting
worse, but it does seem to be hanging on. Bailey told me this morning that she has an early
appointment with the pediatrician tomorrow to get it checked out.”
“I’m happy to hear that. I hate to see the little one sick for the holidays.”
Lacy came in looking for Velma right about then, so I headed to the living room to find Colt
and Mackey. Police Chief Colt Wilder, my longtime boyfriend, had recently moved to the inn
with me after being injured in a work-related incident that landed him on medical leave. Mackey
Hudson, Colt’s niece, was a sweet young thing who currently lived with Colt and me.
“Hey, Abby,” Mackey said after jogging across the room and hugging me. “Annabelle and
her friend, Hannah, are going outside to play on the tree swing. Can I go along with them?”
Annabelle Cole was Jeremy’s niece, and Hannah Danson was her best friend.
“I guess that would be okay, but I thought you were hanging out with Mary and Meghan.” I
referred to Mary and Meghan Parker, Lonnie and Lacy’s twin daughters, who were in the same
grade as Mackey.

“I was, but they don’t want to go outside.”
“And Anna?” I referred to a member of the U12 soccer team that Lacy and I coached, who
had been staying with Colt and me while her mom was in rehab.
“Anna wanted to stay with Mary and Meghan. They’re watching TV in the den.”
“Okay. I guess that’s fine then. Take your jacket. It’s cold out there.”
I smiled as Mackey trotted away. We’d had a rocky start, the two of us, but now that Mackey
was living with Colt and me, she really did feel like a daughter. In the beginning, I was nervous
about the arrangement, but it seemed that Mackey had learned to love me as much as I’d learned
to love her, and our rocky relationship had become a thing of the past.
After Mackey left with Annabelle and Hannah, I continued my search for Colt. I spotted him
chatting with Lacy’s husband, Lonnie, and Georgia’s husband, Tanner, and was on my way
across the room to join them when Jeremy’s wife, Mylie, stopped me.
“What did we decide about the gifts?” Mylie asked me. “Is Georgia going to open them here
or take them home?”
“I think we’ll just have her open them at home,” I answered. “There are so many people here
and so many gifts that I’m afraid it will take hours for her to open them all.”
“I’ve been stacking them in the parlor at the front of the house. Sully is helping me get them
organized, but maybe we should start packing them into whichever vehicles will be transporting
them to Georgia and Tanner’s house.”
Sully, the temporary principal at the elementary school, just happened to share my last name,
Sullivan, although as far as I knew, he wasn’t related to my deceased husband, Ben Sullivan,
whose name I still carried, in any way. Sully was a writer like me, and while I hadn’t read his
work yet, I understood that he was very talented. He’d made quite the splash with the Holiday
Bay community after showing up with his cat, Poe, whom he seemed to take everywhere. He’d
recently struck up a friendship with Piper, who I was pretty sure was the one who’d invited him
to attend today.
“Just leave the gifts in the parlor for now,” I replied. “They’re out of the way, yet accessible
if Georgia changes her mind about when to open them.”
“Okay. That makes sense. Once the baby shower is over, I guess we can recruit the guys to
help transport everything to Georgia and Tanner’s house.”
Mylie hurried off to fill Sully in on the plan, and I continued across the room where the guys
seemed to be holding court.
“Hey, guys,” I said after joining the group. “What are we talking about?”
“Dakota Jack’s recent return to town,” Lonnie answered.
“Dakota Jack? The name doesn’t ring a bell.”
Lonnie explained. “Dakota Jack lived next door to Lacy and me, with his parents, Nick and
Talia Jack, after we were first married. It was a tiny house on a dead-end street with only one
really tiny bedroom, but it was perfect for the two of us.”
“How old was Dakota when you moved in?” I asked.

“I guess he was six or seven years old. Cute kid. He was fairly quiet and not the sort of
person to have many friends, but the two of us got along just fine. He was the tinkering sort and
liked to hang out with me in my garage while I worked on the car or serviced the lawn mower.”
I set the half-empty punch glass I’d been carrying around on the coffee table and sat down on
the footstool next to Colt’s chair. It was easy to imagine a young Lonnie striking up a friendship
with the kid next door. Lonnie genuinely seemed to love kids and not just his own. “And
Dakota’s parents? Did you get along with them as well?”
“We did,” Lonnie confirmed. “Nick and Talia were an outgoing couple. Very energetic with a
lot of friends. Nick was the intellectual sort who was mainly interested in finance and politics,
which really weren’t my thing at the time, so we didn’t have a lot in common, but we got along
okay.”
“Did the four of you socialize outside your role as neighbors?”
“We did. Lacy and Talia used to plan outdoor cookouts on the weekends, and Nick and I
would occasionally watch a football game on TV while the girls were out shopping. Since Nick
didn’t share any of my passions, such as woodworking, music, or tinkering with my old car, I’m
not sure Nick and I would have been friends had we not been neighbors, but, as I said earlier, we
got along okay. It was Lacy and Talia who especially hit it off, and it was their friendship that
fueled the couple thing.”
“So Lacy and Talia had a lot of shared interests?” I asked.
“I wouldn’t say a lot, but Lacy and Talia both liked to sew, and they both seemed to enjoy
antiquing. I think the real draw for Lacy, however, was that Talia had more experience as a wife
and was already a mother, while Lacy was still settling in as a wife and had only just begun to
dream about children. When Lacy had questions about either marriage or future parenting, Talia
was right next door.”
I tried to picture Lacy as a newlywed, but my mind came up blank. By the time I met her, she
was a community leader, an active volunteer, a wife to Lonnie, and the mother of six children.
She exuded confidence and self-assurance, making it hard for me to picture her ever needing
help or support.
“Nick and Talia sound like nice neighbors to have when you’re just getting started. Did you
and Lacy stay in touch with them even after the triplets were born and you moved into a larger
place?”
“Nick and Talia were killed in an auto accident when Dakota was ten.”
My hand flew to my chest. “I’m so sorry to hear that. That poor child. What happened to him
after his parents died?”
“Dakota went to live with Talia’s sister, a woman named Cicely Tisdale.”
“Are you talking about the woman who lived in that big old house at the end of Elm Street
until her passing last year?”
Lonnie confirmed that Cicely from Elm Street had been Dakota’s aunt.
“That poor boy,” I said for the second time, yet my heart really did go out to him.

Lonnie continued. “The entire town mourned the loss of Dakota’s family. Nick and Talia
were active in the community, leading lives full of compassion, and were dedicated to helping
others. When they died, the heart of the town died with them. The outpouring of love from
neighbors wanting to do what they could for Dakota was bountiful. The problem was that Dakota
was a quiet kid who really just wanted to be left alone with his grief and hated all the attention.
I’m afraid his hatred of the attention he received seemed to generalize to a hatred of people.”
“I guess I can understand that,” I said. “I remember that Cicely was the introverted sort as
well, so I imagine the two of them got along okay.”
“They seemed to. Not that I really stayed in touch with Dakota after he moved in with his
aunt. About a year after the accident, Lacy and I found out we were having triplets and moved
into a larger home. Dakota had already settled in with his aunt by this point, and even though
everyone tends to know everything about everyone in a town the size of Holiday Bay, I was busy
with my new family and really didn’t check up on Dakota the way I should have.”
“So what happened? Why has Dakota been away so long if he grew up here?” I asked.
Colt, who had been letting Lonnie tell the story, jumped into the conversation at this point.
“When Dakota was fifteen, a man who presented himself as a private investigator showed up at
the house on Elm Street claiming that he’d been hired to look into the accident that killed
Dakota’s family. Cicely wanted nothing to do with the stranger poking around in her business, so
she ran him off. Less than twenty-four hours later, he was dead.”
“Dead how?” I asked. “Was he murdered?”
Colt answered. “Officially, no. An autopsy was performed on the man who was found face
down on the bank of the creek that runs behind Elm Street, and the official cause of death was
listed as a heart attack, but some people had their doubts. My team and I conducted a thorough
investigation, but there was nothing to indicate that anything other than a natural death had
occurred, so the case was closed.”
“I guess it could have been a heart attack.”
“It could have been, but the man was only in his mid-forties, and he didn’t have any known
risk factors for a heart attack.”
“Did you have any suspects with motives which would support the idea that the man died by
a means other than natural causes?” I asked Colt.
“We identified a few people of interest early on, but nothing panned out. Unfortunately, for
Cicely and Dakota, the amateur sleuths in the community decided that since the guy was last
seen at the home on Elm Street, Cicely must have had something to do with the man’s death. The
rumor mill ramped up big time.”
“So folks thought Cicely killed the man to keep him from snooping around,” I said. “Why
would she do that? And why would the man be in town anyway? I thought Dakota’s parents died
in an accident.”
“There was no evidence to suggest that anything more than a horrific accident occurred on
the day Nick and Talia died, but there were those in the community who wondered if someone
might have run the young couple off the road.”
“But there was no evidence to support that theory.”

“There was no evidence to support the theory, but there wasn’t any evidence to disprove it
either. One of the problems was that there were no witnesses to what occurred, and another was
that since the car exploded on impact after going over the embankment and crashing into the
ravine, there was no way to look for a cause associated with the vehicle, such as bad brakes.”
“So without an explanation, folks just came up with their own.”
Colt nodded. “The whole thing was gut-wrenching, and the community wanted answers, but
there simply weren’t any.”
“But there was an investigation,” I confirmed.
“There was. I wasn’t the chief when the accident occurred, but I was a member of the force,
and I can assure you that a thorough investigation was conducted. We wanted to find something
that would explain why Nick and Talia would drop Dakota off at a friend’s house even though a
play date hadn’t been prearranged, drive twenty miles north, swerve sharply, drive up and over
the embankment and into the ravine on a clear sunny day with dry roads. Many theories about
the actual cause of the accident were considered. Had Nick swerved to avoid hitting a deer or
possibly even a bear or moose? Had he swerved to avoid hitting another vehicle? Had the brakes
failed, or had Nick simply been driving too fast to make the turn? We evaluated all these
scenarios, but we were unable to find any evidence that would provide an explanation for what
had happened. The investigation went cold after a few weeks, Dakota moved in with Cicely, and
people moved on to other things. Nick and Talia weren’t forgotten, but everyone had lives to get
back to, so once Dakota was settled with Cicely, the community mostly did just that.”
As a parent who lost a child, my heart bled for the child who’d lost his parents.
“So tell me more about Cicely. I’m sure I never met her, but I do remember that she was
reclusive and somewhat mysterious in a creepy sort of way. By the time I moved to town, she
was just the reclusive old lady on Elm Street who everyone talked about, but few had spoken to.”
Lonnie smiled. “I think Cicely enjoyed the mystery that surrounded her isolation in that big
old house. While I didn’t know her well enough to state with any level of confidence that she
actually nurtured her reputation, she certainly didn’t do anything to put a stop to the stories that
seemed to grow and evolve over the years.”
“What sort of stories?” I asked.
Lonnie responded. “I’m not sure how much of what was said about her was true, but there
were a lot of rumors circulating about secrets hidden in that spooky old house. There were even
those who thought Cicely practiced black magic, although, as far as I know, there was no proof
of that. What I do know is that anytime anything bad happened, it was common for folks to think
that it was Cicely’s fault.”
“Like the great frog infestation of ninety-nine,” Colt offered.
“Frog infestation?” I asked.
“Hundreds of thousands of frogs suddenly appeared one day. They made a real mess and
terrorized most of the women in town, and then, as quickly as they came, they left. Most folks
blamed the frogs on Cicely. If there was a big storm, it was all on her. Excessive summertime
heat, all on Cicely. I guess it was nice for most folks to have someone to blame everything on.”

“Was Cicely living alone in that big house back in nineteen ninety-nine?” I asked. “That
would be twenty-six years ago.”
“Cicely was living in the house, but she wasn’t alone. Cicely’s parents, Art and June Tisdale,
were alive back then, and while Talia was still around, she had just turned eighteen and had
moved out.”
“It must have been hard on Cicely when Talia moved out if she was as isolated then as she
was later in life. Talia was likely her only companion.”
“The sisters were close, and it did seem that Cicely took her leaving hard,” Colt responded.
“There were those who claimed that Cicely, who never left the house, conjured up the frogs out
of anger when Talia left.”
I frowned but didn’t reply.
Lonnie jumped back in. “I think the main takeaway here is that Cicely already had a
reputation for sitting in her attic cursing the town, so when the PI died for no apparent reason, a
lot of folks just assumed she was responsible.”
“So what happened? Was Cicely ever charged with the man’s death?”
“No,” Colt answered my question. “While there were folks who blamed Cicely, I, for one,
never bought that explanation, and since no one could prove that she had anything to do with it,
she was never charged.”
“And Dakota?”
“It was shortly after the death of the PI that social services stepped in,” Colt answered. “After
a brief investigation, they determined that the house on Elm Street wasn’t the best place for a
teenager to grow up, so he was put into foster care. I completely lost touch with him at that point,
but I do know that he joined the military as soon as he was eighteen.”
“What about Dakota’s grandparents? Cicely and Talia’s mother and father. Couldn’t they
help?”
“Art and June had already passed away by the time Dakota went to live with Cicely,” Lonnie
informed me. “They were old parents and even older grandparents. If I remember correctly,
Talia’s mother was in her late forties or maybe even early fifties when Talia was born.”
“Wow. That is rather old to be giving birth. I wonder why June waited so long.”
Lonnie shrugged. “I think most assume Talia’s birth had been a gift from God rather than a
planned event. If I remember correctly, June was in her mid-thirties when Cicely was born, and
Talia didn’t come along until fourteen years after that.”
“That’s quite the gap,” I admitted. “So Dakota never came back to Holiday Bay once he was
taken from his aunt?”
“Not until now,” Lonnie answered. “Cicely died about a year ago, and the old house on Elm
Street has sat vacant ever since. Dakota inherited the house, but he was overseas at the time of
his aunt’s death, so he never got around to doing anything with the place. Dakota decided not to
re-up with the Army and has returned to the States. He decided to settle his aunt’s estate, so he’s
in town to clear out the house and get it ready to sell. I just happened to run into him when I was
at the grocery store picking up a few things for Lacy, and we chatted for a minute. We didn’t chat

long, but he did say that he’d found some interesting paperwork amongst his aunt’s belongings
and wanted to meet with Colt and me to talk things over. He wants to meet this week if
possible.”
“Are you going to try to get together with him?” I asked.
“We are. Colt and I were discussing the best time to do so when you walked up.”
I was glad that things turned out okay for the little boy who had suffered so many losses, and
said as much. How horrible it must have been to lose your entire family and not have a safe
haven in which to heal. I thought about all my little birds, Haven, Bailey, and Anna, and the safe
haven I’d tried to provide for each of them.
“I’m glad you’re going to meet with the guy,” I said. “Welcome him back. Let him know
there’s more to Holiday Bay than the pain and suffering that he likely remembers.”
Both Colt and Lonnie agreed with me, and Lonnie assured me he’d reach out. The
conversation between the men segued into a discussion of recent football trades, so I made my
excuses and walked away. Not only was Georgia a popular resident of Holiday Bay, but she was
also a local celebrity, so when word of the baby shower got out, it seemed that anyone who was
anyone decided to show up. There were so many people crammed into Shelby’s mansion that I
found myself hoping we had enough food, although we had a ton of it.
It occurred to me that I hadn’t seen Georgia since I first arrived, so I decided to go and look
for her. Georgia hadn’t wanted the sort of baby shower where she spent her time opening gifts or
playing silly games, so we’d decided on a casual event with good food, good friends, and good
conversation. Given the number of people who’d shown up, I suspected it would take Georgia all
day just to say hi to everyone.
“Have you seen Georgia?” I asked Nikki Peyton, Tanner’s half-sister and Georgia’s sister-in-
law, who I found chatting with her friend, Eden Halliwell. Tanner’s father had divorced Tanner’s
mother when Tanner was a child and then married Nikki’s mother. Tanner was sixteen when
Nikki was born. When Nikki was six, her mother moved them from Holiday Bay to Texas. Nikki
returned to Holiday Bay to live with the father she shared with Tanner when she was fifteen, but
Tanner had already moved out and was living on the West Coast by then. Nikki completed her
last two years of high school in Holiday Bay and then attended college in Dallas, where she lived
with her mother once again. After college, she needed a change of pace, so she decided to come
back to Holiday Bay. At first, she lived with Tanner, who had moved back to Holiday Bay and
opened Peyton Academy, a training facility for search and rescue and service dogs, by that point.
Nikki eventually rented her own apartment for a while, but was currently living with her long-
term boyfriend, Nick Jorgenson.
“Not for a while.” She looked around the room.
“I saw her talking to Dawson a little while ago,” Eden offered, referring to Shelby’s live-in
boyfriend, Dawson Westwood. “I noticed Dawson head outside to talk to Alex and Leo when
they stopped by, but I’m not sure where Georgia went after Dawson headed outdoors.”
Officer Alex Weston was acting Police Chief while Colt was out on medical leave, and Leo
Atwood was her boyfriend.
“Did it appear that Alex was on duty today?” I asked.

Eden shrugged. “She was dressed casually and not wearing her uniform, so I’m going to
guess that she’s off today. Alex and Leo had Coop and Fisher with them.” Eden referred to
Alex’s dog, Coop, who had been trained to comfort trauma victims, and Leo’s dog, Fisher. “I
think they were planning to let the dogs run around with Goliath.” Goliath was Dawson’s dog.
“Okay. Maybe I’ll check upstairs.”
Eden agreed that the upstairs rooms were a good place to check, so I said goodbye to Nikki
and Eden and headed toward the staircase. The mansion Shelby and Dawson shared with
Shelby’s two half-sisters, Sage Wilson and Sierra Danielson, was huge, and I suspected that if
Georgia had gone upstairs looking for a moment to herself, she’d head to the library or the
upstairs parlor rather than one of the bedrooms. It took a bit of searching, but eventually, I found
Georgia sitting in one of the large comfy chairs in front of the library fireplace. She was talking
on her cell phone, and I didn’t want to interrupt, but I wanted to make sure everything was okay,
so I hung back a bit until she completed her call.
“Hey,” I said after she hung up, and I entered the room and sat down in the chair next to her.
“Is everything okay?”
“Everything’s fine. That was Tanner’s mother.”
Since Tanner’s mother had moved away after she divorced his father, I’d personally never
met the woman. But I knew that Georgia had accompanied Tanner when he visited her on at least
one occasion.
“It was nice that she called. Did she want to wish you well on the day of your shower?”
Georgia laughed. “She did, but I think the call had more to do with the baby’s name than the
shower.”
“Name?” I asked.
“Mother Peyton has decided that she should be involved in the naming of our child, and
seems to be dead set on a nice southern name. I’m not sure why. She isn’t from the south. And
while I have a southern-sounding name, I’m not from the south, nor is Tanner. And yet the idea
has taken hold in her mind, and she calls me every few days with suggestions.”
“I guess it’s nice that she wants to be involved,” I could tell by the expression on Georgia’s
face that she didn’t necessarily agree with that. “Has she come up with anything you like?”
Georgia paused and then answered. “Actually, she’s come up with a few names I’m
considering, although she was stuck on Delilah for over a week, which I wasn’t all that fond of
since my archrival in elementary school was named Delilah.”
Delilah was a pretty name, but I knew that Georgia wanted a name that she and Tanner felt
was just right, and I understood the whole name association thing.
“She’s also suggested Scarlett, which I actually liked, but Tanner didn’t, and Tallulah, which
Tanner liked and I didn’t. Yesterday, she had simpler names to offer, Alice and Lily, and today
she went more traditional with Savannah and Whitney.”
“Do any of those names ring true for you?” I asked.
She rubbed her stomach, which appeared to have grown significantly larger in just the last
couple of weeks. “I really like Savannah, but it seems like such a big name for a baby. The name

also makes me think of Savannah Garrison, which isn’t a bad thing since Savannah is a lovely
woman, but I’d still like my baby to have her own name, or if she shares a name, to share it with
someone who will be significant in her life.” Savannah Garrison was a friend of Lou’s and an
active participant in the Murder on Tuesdays group. “Mother Peyton reminded me that even
though the name is a lot for a newborn, my little princess will only be a baby for a short time,
and we should choose a name that will serve her well in life. Despite my concern that my baby
would have to share a name with Savannah Garrison, Savannah Peyton is a strong name. An
important name. I guess giving my baby a strong name makes sense. I haven’t had a chance to
run it past Tanner, but if he likes it, I think I’ll definitely add it to the list, along with Alice and
Lily, both of which have really grown on me, even though I likewise know people named Alice
and Lily.”
“You know a lot of people, so it’s going to be hard to find a name that no one else in your
inner circle is currently using, but I do like all the names you just suggested.”
“Nikki suggested Charlotte, only we call her Charlee after Aunt Charlee. I adore Aunt
Charlee and would be happy to name my baby after her, since I like the name. As a baby and a
child, she can go by Charlee, and if she ends up having an important future as an attorney or
CEO, she will have a strong name like Charlotte to present to the world.”
“I love both Charlotte and Charlee.”
She smiled. “Yeah, me too, and as an extra added bonus, it will irk Tanner’s mom that we’re
thinking about naming our baby after Aunt Charlee since the two of them never really got
along.”
I raised a brow. “You want to irk Tanner’s mother?”
She shrugged. “She has been irking me since I started dating Tanner, so yes, I guess there is a
part of me that wants to choose a name that Tanner and I work out and not one she suggests.”
Given that Tanner hadn’t taken an active role in making decisions related to the baby at first,
I was happy to hear that he was now, but I hoped the baby name dilemma wouldn’t cause a rift
between Tanner and his mother.
I decided to change the subject. “Personally, I like all the names on your list so far, and I
know it’s an important decision, but there are a couple of hundred people downstairs waiting to
rub your belly and give you a hug.”
Georgia groaned. “I really should have had a t-shirt made that warned people away from
belly rubs. When my bump was small, no one really bothered with it, but now that my bump is
the size of the Goodyear Blimp, everyone wants to rub it.”
I offered her a sympathetic look. “I remember the belly rubs when I was pregnant with
Johnathan. I guess they’re part of the pregnancy package.”
“I guess so.” Georgia winced as she started to get up.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
“It’s just a slight twinge. I’ve been feeling these twinges more often lately. When I asked my
doctor about it, she said that everything is fine and what I’m feeling is normal, but there are
times when it doesn’t feel normal.”

“Doctor Chan is an excellent doctor. If she says you’re fine, chances are that you are, but if
you’re really concerned, talk to her. Insist on additional tests. You know your body better than
anyone. When it speaks to you, you should listen.”
Georgia reached out a hand, and I pulled her to her feet. “Thanks, Abby. I needed to hear
that. The twinges are getting stronger and becoming more frequent. I think I’ll call Doctor Chan
tomorrow and let her know that I want to talk to her about what’s going on in more depth.”
“I think that’s a good idea. Do you need to use the bathroom before we head downstairs?”
She laughed. “It’s getting to the point that I always have to use the bathroom.”
Ah, the joys of pregnancy. I remembered them well. At the time, I fully engaged in my fair
share of grumbling over each and every inconvenience, but once I held my baby in my arms, I
knew that all the inconvenience and discomfort was more than worth it. Of course, fate dictated
that I’d only have a few weeks with my baby before he was taken from me forever, but looking
back, those few weeks, while hard, were some of the happiest of my life. In all honesty, after
Johnathan died and the pain of losing him had dulled a bit, I’d begun to imagine a second
chance, but as it turned out, another baby hadn’t been on my path. Not that having one now was
impossible. I was only forty-one, but Colt was raising his niece and nephew and wasn’t
interested in a baby, so since I was committed to my relationship with this remarkable man, I
supposed that a baby was an idea I’d need to tuck away in the file of unmet hopes and unfulfilled
dreams.

Chapter 2

Suppressing a groan, I rolled out of bed the following morning. One of the drawbacks of
having the baby shower on a Sunday evening was that you didn’t have Sunday to recover before
you had to return to your weekday life.
Turning my head, I looked at the bed next to me. It was empty, but I could hear water
running, so I assumed that Colt was in the shower. Colt had been shot in the line of duty this past
spring, and the road to recovery had been a long one. While Colt had worked hard and regained
much of his strength and mobility, he still hadn’t been cleared to drive, which meant that I was
the one who needed to drive Mackey to and from school every day.
“Time to get up,” I called out after knocking on Mackey’s bedroom door.
“We’re up,” Anna called back.
I wandered back into the kitchen to make a pot of coffee, and found that Colt had already
made some. Sitting on the counter next to the coffee pot was a tray of breakfast sandwiches and a
note from Haven letting us know that her homework had been to make a breakfast that could be
eaten on the road and that she’d made plenty to share. Since we didn’t have guests at the inn this
morning, she didn’t have people to feed, so she dropped a tray off with us and a tray in the
carriage house for Jeremy and his family.
“Thank you, Haven,” I said aloud, even though I was alone in the room with my dog, Molly,
Colt’s dog, Cody, and the family cat, Rufus. Realizing that Colt likely hadn’t taken the dogs out
before he jumped into the shower, I headed to the bedroom to pull on a pair of sweats just as Colt
came out of the bathroom dressed only in a towel.
“Do you have physical therapy today?” I asked him as he dug around the closet for
something to wear.

“I do, but not until this afternoon. Haven stopped by to drop off the breakfast sandwiches as I
was taking the dogs out, and she told me that Bailey was taking Hazel in to see her pediatrician
this morning. Since she needs to go into town early anyway, she offered to take Mackey and
Anna to school.”
“So the dogs have been out, and the girls have a ride to school?”
Colt kissed me on the cheek. “It looks as if you have the morning to yourself for once. If I
were you, I’d curl up next to the fire and enjoy your coffee.”
I smiled. “I think I’ll do just that. It’ll be nice to have time to ease into my day without
feeling as if I need to jump right into the first task on my impossibly long list.”
“You have had a lot on your plate, taking care of Mackey and me since the shooting, in
addition to all your other obligations. I’m hoping to be cleared to drive in the next few weeks,
and then I can really be of help around here.”
I really didn’t mind being the taxi service for Colt and Mackey, but I would be happy when
he was cleared to drive and could help a bit.
“It looks like we might get some snow,” Colt said as he draped a cozy fall throw across my
lap and tucked me onto the sofa.
“I heard there might be flurries in the forecast this week. I’m not ready for a heavy snow, and
honestly hope the major storms wait until after we get through the holidays, but a few flurries
would add atmosphere.”
“I agree. A few flakes of snow to cover the landscape would be nice.”
I looked at Colt, who by this point was fully dressed. “Are you going somewhere?”
“I have a meeting with Alex, so I called Bailey and she agreed to drop Cody and me off in
town after she drops the girls off at school. I’ve already arranged for a ride home, so you don’t
need to worry about me.” He nodded at my coffee. “Would you like a refill before I leave?”
I smiled at him and held out my mug as Bailey came breezing in with Hazel in her arms and
a diaper bag over her shoulder.
“I’m running a few minutes late, so let’s go,” Bailey called out to the group.
Mackey and Anna came running out of the bedroom with coats and bookbags, while Colt
slipped into his jacket.
“Bye,” the group as a whole shouted out to me after grabbing one of Haven’s breakfast
sandwiches and funneling out the door. It took me a minute to really appreciate the fact that
everyone was gone, and I would have a few minutes to myself. Even though I was pretty cozy
after Colt had tucked me in, I was also hungry, so I got up and heated one of the breakfast
sandwiches. I then topped off my coffee and returned to the sofa to snuggle up with Rufus and
Molly.
I glanced at the clock on the mantel. It was only seven-thirty, and I didn’t have anything on
my schedule until Georgia came by later in the morning for our weekly catch-up session. Since I
needed to be at soccer practice at three, and would need to leave by two-thirty, I was totally free
until then. This week would wrap up what had been a truly challenging season after Lacy and I
had agreed to take on a ragtag group of girls who had never played soccer before. While I

supposed that, in general, I was glad to see the season end, there was a part of me that would
miss the brave girls who showed up and played their hearts out every week, even though they
hadn’t won a single game.
Pulling the warm throw I’d discarded when I’d gotten up to get my breakfast sandwich and
top off my coffee over my lap, I settled in to enjoy the orange lights on the mantel and the
dancing flames in the fireplace. The cottage was always cozy and warm, which was one of the
things I loved most about it, but it was particularly cozy when it was cold and blustery outside.
I’d read the weather report and knew that the snow flurries Colt and I had discussed were equally
as likely not to happen as to actually happen, but even if we didn’t get snow, the gray sky and
winter chill had me longing for the quiet and slower pace of winter.
After staring at the fire for a good thirty minutes, I was debating whether to refill my coffee
and drag the peaceful morning out a bit longer or take a shower and get dressed when Haven
poked her head in to let me know that she was on her way to school and wanted to collect the
empty tray she’d brought the breakfast sandwiches over on.
“It’s on the counter, and the breakfast sandwiches were delicious. The biscuits were slightly
sweet.”
“I wanted something to make my breakfast sandwiches stand out since there are only so
many ways to doctor up bacon and eggs on biscuits, so I added a bit of syrup to the biscuits and
some honey-glazed bacon to the eggs. They weren’t too sweet, were they?”
“No, they were just right. I’m sure you’ll get an A.”
She grinned. “I hope so. I really want to do well in that class. Some of the advanced classes
require a teacher recommendation, so I really need to impress my teacher this semester.”
“I’m sure you’re one of the top students in the class.”
“So far, I seem to be. Working with Georgia and Jeremy has really given me a leg up. My
teacher seems to think I have a career as a chef in front of me if cooking for a living is a path I’m
interested in pursuing.”
“Are you interested in pursuing a career as a chef?”
She frowned. “I’m not sure. I love to cook, but I’m not sure I want to work in a restaurant. At
this point in my life, I’m feeling happy and content with the way things are. Not that I may not
want to chase dreams at some point, but for now, being happy, content, safe, and settled are so
important to me after the rough road I had to travel to get here.”
“I totally understand, and you know that as far as I’m concerned, you can stay here for as
long as it feels right to you.”
She smiled. “I know. And that means so much to me. Losing my family was really difficult,
and honestly, there were a lot of years when I didn’t think I’d ever have that again. But now that
I’ve found all of you, I’m not in a hurry to leave.”
I reached my arms out. Haven leaned in, and I hugged her.
“I should get going. I have a busy day ahead. I’ll be back to help around here after my last
class. Do you know if we’ll have guests to feed this evening?”

“I don’t think so,” I answered. “But I’m meeting with Georgia today for an update, so I’ll
text you to let you know what to expect after I talk with her. I know Jeremy wanted to take some
time off this week since we were going to be slow, so it’ll be up to you and Bailey to keep things
running.”
“You can count on us,” She assured me. “Bailey has finals this week, but then she’s off until
January, and I only have one final this week and one final next week, so we’ll both be around to
pick up the slack so Jeremy can have some time off even with Georgia being out.”
“I appreciate that, and I know Jeremy and Georgia do as well.”
Haven grabbed the tray. “Speaking of Georgia, is she okay? I noticed that she seemed to be
experiencing pain of some sort yesterday.”
“She did say that she was having twinges, but that her doctor had assured her that they were
normal.”
“I hope so. Georgia works so hard, even when she should be resting. I worry about her.”
“Yeah,” I sighed. “Me too. Let’s keep an eye on her, and if it seems that the twinges are
getting worse, I’ll make her go to the doctor, even if I have to drag her down there and sit with
her while she has additional tests.”
Haven smiled at me. “I love how you take care of everyone. Whenever anyone asks me what
I want to be when I grow up, I always tell them I want to be you.”
“Aw,” I said as I hugged her one more time before she scurried out the door.
Once Haven left, I headed into my bedroom suite to get ready for the day ahead. It had really
been nice to have a slow morning, particularly since I knew I wouldn’t have many more like this
for the next month and a half. The last time I’d spoken to Georgia, we’d been fully booked from
the weekend before Thanksgiving to the weekend after New Year’s. Of course, once we got past
the holiday rush, things would slow down to a crawl until mid-February and Valentine’s Day.
Initially, I thought about doing something relaxing with Colt once we made it through the
holiday crunch; however, if Colt got the detective position everyone was sure he was a shoo-in
for, he’d be starting his new job just about the same time our last holiday guest checked out.
After I showered and dressed, I texted Georgia and suggested that she meet me in the cottage.
No one was around to bother us this morning, and the cottage was a lot cozier than the inn for a
meeting place for only two people. Georgia texted back and let me know that she’d be by around
eleven. She’d been experimenting with recipes for a new cookbook she’d been contracted to
write after the first cookbook she’d written had done so well, and she had a fun new casserole
she wanted me to try. Part of me thought that Georgia should be resting rather than cooking as
her due date grew closer, but Georgia found cooking relaxing, and it wasn’t like it was physically
taxing, so maybe working on some of her recipes when she was on leave from Cooking with
Georgia and only working part-time at the inn really wasn’t the worst idea.
Since it was a gray and blustery sort of day, I decided to set the mood for my visit with
Georgia by putting a crock pot of spiced apple cider on to heat, lighting my pumpkin and
cinnamon scented candles, and lighting the orange twinkle lights and colorful leaf garland
Mackey and I had strung over the mantel and around the windows.
“It smells so good in here,” Georgia said the minute she walked in through the front door.

“I have hot spiced apple cider in the crock pot. Let me help you with that casserole.”
“I’ll just slip it in the oven on warm. We can talk first and eat after.”
That sounded good to me, so I set the oven on warm and opened the door for Georgia to slide
her casserole inside.
“What sort of casserole did you make?”
“It’s one of the dishes that I’m experimenting with for the autumn section of Cooking
Through the Seasons with Georgia and features maple sausage, apple slices, sweet potatoes, and
a few other ingredients, all cooked up in a rich apple cider sauce.”
“It sounds delicious.”
“I hope so. Creating new recipes has been fun, but most of the time, I find that I need three or
four tries at an idea before I’m able to work out all the kinks. This is only my first attempt at this
specific recipe, so I’m not sure how it will taste. If it’s a bust, there are ingredients for
sandwiches at the inn.”
“Between the food heating in the oven, the hot spiced apple cider, and my candles, the place
is going to smell heavenly.”
“There really is no better scent than spiced apple cider warming in the crock pot,” Georgia
agreed.
“How about I ladle us each a mug full of the cider, and we’ll get started with the meeting.
Would you be more comfortable at the dining table or on the sofa in front of the fire?”
“The sofa. I may need to get up and move to a different seat halfway through our meeting,
but the sofa seems like a good place to start.”
Once we were settled, I asked Georgia about the guests we had checking in for Thanksgiving
week. Since we’re always completely booked for Thanksgiving week, we decided to require a
five-night minimum stay to minimize turnover, but most guests who booked chose to stay the
entire week.
Georgia went through the arrival and departure dates for each guest in each of the six suites
in the inn, plus the three cottages we had available now that Haven, Bailey, and Hazel had moved
into one of the two-bedroom cottages. Not only did having an overview of Thanksgiving week
help the rest of the staff plan meals and activities, but Georgia usually had the inside scoop on
the guests, including the reason for their visit and any interpersonal issues they might be dealing
with. She was only at the inn part-time now that her due date was near, and I knew she planned
to take some time off once the baby came, but I hoped the two of us would continue to make
time to talk because I really needed this one-on-one time with her.
“So what about the Thanksgiving meal?” I asked.
“Traditional, all the way. Jeremy will run point, but Haven and Bailey have both offered to
help while Mylie watches both babies.”
“If you need Mylie in the kitchen, I can watch Danny and Hazel,” I offered.
“I can’t speak for Jeremy, but I’m sure he’ll appreciate the offer.”
“I’m always happy to babysit. The kids and I can eat sticky buns and watch the parade.”

Georgia’s expression softened. “And next year, Charlee and I can join you for the parade.”
“Charlee? Have you decided to go with Charlotte?”
“I think so. Since Tanner likes it, but is having a hard time committing, we’re trying out a
few names this week, but I’d love it if we could settle on a name before the community dinner
next week. It’d be fun to reveal it there.”
“If we have the community dinner,” I said.
Georgia’s smile faded. “What do you mean, ‘if we have the community dinner?’ Of course,
we’ll have the community dinner. It’s a Holiday Bay tradition.”
“I know that, but when I spoke to Piper, she told me that there’s a turkey shortage this year,
and that the butcher she ordered the turkeys from for the community dinner is waffling over both
the price he quoted her and the number of turkeys he can provide.”
She frowned. “That makes no sense. How can there be a turkey shortage?”
I shrugged. “I’m just telling you what I heard. Piper was quite irked when I spoke to her
about the situation, but she assured me that she was doing everything possible to both provide
the agreed-upon menu and stay within the budget. She’s a smart girl, so I’m sure she’ll figure it
out. And if she can’t, we’ll go to plan B. If she can’t find enough turkeys for the town’s
community dinner, maybe we can supplement the meal with another protein. Ham, perhaps.”
Georgia made a face. I knew how she felt about having turkey at Thanksgiving.
“So, what does our guest outlook look like for this week?” I asked, changing the subject. “I
know the guests we had last weekend have checked out, and that the majority of the
Thanksgiving week guests will be checking in on Friday or Saturday of this week, but do we
have anyone here in the meantime?”
“Initially, we didn’t, but I had a last-minute booking from a reporter. I guess he’s been
working on a story north of here and had a few days free while he waits for lab results. He had
the idea of coming to Holiday Bay to start researching another story he’s been considering while
he waits for his reports from the lab. I wanted to use this week to get some cleaning done, but he
assured me that he just needed privacy and a quiet place to work for a few days, and won’t need
meals or maid service while he’s here. I suggested a cottage, and he was good with that, so
eventually, I agreed. He’ll be checking in this afternoon and checking out Friday morning. The
couple staying in the cottage I’m planning to book him into won’t arrive for their weeklong stay
until Saturday, so we’ll have time to clean it between guests.”
“Did the guy give you any indication as to the subject matter of either of his stories?”
“He didn’t say. I asked, but he just changed the subject. I don’t suppose it really matters. It
sounds like he plans to keep to himself, so I doubt we’ll even have the chance to chat with him.
Since we have such a busy week, I figured that was just as well.”
“I suppose so. While we’re on the subject of last-minute guests, Anna’s mom, Loreli, called
and spoke to Alex about allowing her sister, Frannie, to come to Holiday Bay and spend time
with her niece. Alex then called me to ask how I felt about the idea. I said I thought that would
be fine, and Alex asked if we had any open rooms she might use during her stay.”

“I wasn’t aware that Loreli had any family members, let alone anyone interested in being part
of Anna’s life,” Georgia responded. “Wasn’t that part of the reason Anna came here to stay with
you while her mom is in rehab rather than going to stay with a relative?”
“Loreli and Frannie have been estranged for a long time. Apparently, their current
estrangement started when Loreli was drinking heavily and stole money from her sister long
before Anna was born. Even though the sisters hadn’t spoken in a decade, Frannie went to visit
Loreli in rehab, and it appears that Loreli was able to convince Frannie that she’s serious about
putting her life back together. When they spoke, Frannie indicated to Alex that she was willing to
give her sister another chance for Anna’s sake.”
“That all sounds great. What do we need to do?” Georgia asked.
“According to Alex, Anna doesn’t know Frannie, and Frannie was concerned about offering
Anna and her mother a place to live once Loreli gets out of rehab, until she meets Anna and the
two have the opportunity to see how they get along. As I said, Frannie indicated to Alex that she
hoped we’d have a room for her over Thanksgiving. Frannie is a teacher and has time off from
work that week, which is why she wanted to make the trip then.”
“Does she need a room for the entire week?” Georgia asked.
“Frannie is hoping to check in on the twenty-first and check out on the thirtieth. She hopes
that will give her and Anna a chance to get to know each other and time to talk about what might
come next for both Loreli and Anna.”
Georgia paused, it appeared to give it some thought, and then she responded. “We’ve been
booked up solid for months, but when I last spoke to the Ferris family, they seemed to be
wavering about their decision to come over Thanksgiving rather than Christmas, as they
normally do. I called Marlene when the family who had reserved the two-bedroom cottage over
Christmas postponed and asked if she wanted to switch weeks. She was uncertain about making
the change and indicated that she needed to discuss it with her family before making a decision.
Let me call her back and talk to her again. If the Ferris family wants to switch, then I can put
Frannie in the two-bedroom cottage.”
“Okay, that sounds like a good plan. Let me know as soon as you hear. Alex has been
speaking to Frannie about this, so I figured I’d let Alex know where we’re at and then she can
call and work out the details with Anna’s aunt.”
“Loreli is going to need a lot of help when she gets out of rehab,” Georgia pointed out. “If
Loreli and Frannie have worked things out, and Frannie is willing to take in both her sister and
her niece, I think that might work out best for everyone in the long run.”
“It will,” I agreed. “I’m sure Anna will be sad about moving again, but despite how much she
loves us and the friends she’s made here, I think the biggest hope in her little heart is that she and
her mom can be a real family.”
“I agree. And Anna deserves that. The family has become so fractured that a new start in a
new location may be just the thing they need.” ...