Page 10 of A Bright Winter Season

She stepped to the side to wait for her purchases while Judd made his order. Just as he finished, she was handed her latte and a white paper bag with her breakfast burrito in it. She decided that the best thing to do would be to just leave. It was silly to let Judd upset her. He was wrong about The Lighthouse Grill not being a professional business and she knew it, and he probably knew it too, deep down.

“Have a nice day, Judd,” she said politely, and he smiled almost gleefully as if he was sure that he’d convinced her that his was the better business.

She swallowed her frustration and stepped outside into the cold. She hurried along the sidewalk, feeling irked and conflicted, and starting to wonder if she should have let herself be confrontational after all.

I don’t understand why he’s being so smug, she thought as she got back into her car with a sigh.Doesn’t he realize that we are as successful of a business as they are? Because we’re meeting our goals.

She realized that Judd probably couldn’t understand that the Owens were perfectly content with the success of their business, because the McCormick family was all about money, while the Owens were all about community. They hadn’t felt the need to expand or change their business in years because it was serving its purpose—being a center of the Rosewood Beach community.

She continued to mull over the issue as she started to drive to work. Even though her eyes were on the road, her mind was whirring with thoughts about everything Judd had said. She didn’t like his outlook on how to run a business, it bothered her. She didn’t think that the sole purpose of having a business should be to create more profit. She felt that any good business would offer genuinely good things to its customers, and she felt that The Lighthouse Grill offered wonderful food, a gathering place, tradition, and a sense of belonging to their hometown.

The reality was, she felt sure that the Owens had both business sense and a wholesome outlook on their side. They weren’t greedy for money, and that was what allowed them to be such a treasured part of the community. And now that Julia had taken over the management of the pub’s finances, they were especially stable business-wise.

All at once, Hazel got an idea. Her mouth popped open into an “o” for a moment, and then a grin spread across her face. She glanced at the clock, calculating how many minutes she had left before she needed to be at work.

“This would be perfect for Julia,” she whispered excitedly. “It would be exactly the kind of important, valuable event she was just saying she missed getting to organize.”

She turned her car in the direction of Cooper’s house, where she guessed her sister would be since she knew Julia liked to go there to eat breakfast. She quickly realized that her detour was going to make her late for work, but she didn’t turn around. She was suddenly filled with excitement, and she felt she had to talk to Julia right away.

She reached Cooper’s house and sure enough, Julia’s car was parked in the driveway. Hazel parked on the street in front of the house and hurried up the driveway toward the back door. Without wasting any time on ceremony, she burst into the kitchen, where Julia and Cooper were eating breakfast with Macey.

“Hazel!” Julia said, looking up in surprise. She was in the middle of helping Macey eat her oatmeal. “Is everything okay?”

“Yes.” Hazel grinned, taking a moment to catch her breath. “Hi, Cooper. Good morning. Sorry.”

Cooper laughed. “No, it’s okay. What’s going on?”

“I had an idea.” Hazel sat down in an empty chair at the kitchen table. “About the pub.”

“Yeah?” Julia’s eyebrows lifted curiously. “Is this because of the conversation we all had at family dinner night?”

“Partially. And partially because I just ran into Judd McCormick at Ocean Breeze Café.”

“Ugh.” Julia made a sympathetic grimace.

“He was even ruder than I would have expected,” Hazel said. “He was talking about how they’re better at business than we are, and that business is all about expanding and becoming better.”

“Oh, and I suppose he thinks they’re better at expanding and becoming better than we are?” Julia said, sounding indignant.

“He does.” Hazel shook her head. “But I’m glad I had to put up with him saying all that because then I had a revelation. Judd and his sons approach their business through a money-mindedapproach. They’re basing their success on profit alone. But we think about our success in terms of the impact we have on the community. Yes, we care about making enough money to pay our bills, but the purpose of The Lighthouse Grill has always been more about community than profit. And I think it’s high time we showed the McCormicks that.”

“Go on.” Julia set Macey’s oatmeal spoon down, looking interested.

“The Lighthouse Grill needs to hold a community event. That will show everyone what we’re really all about. It’ll be a contrast to the McCormicks’ money-minded approach to business.” Hazel was talking rapidly, glancing at the clock as she spoke. She knew she was going to be a little late for work, but she felt she couldn’t leave yet. She needed to share her idea with Julia. “I think we should have a Christmas-themed event at The Lighthouse Grill. A community Christmas celebration would be perfect.”

“Slow down.” Julia laughed. “I’m having trouble tracking all the ideas you’re laying out—I feel like I have whiplash. You want the pub to host a Christmas party?”

“Yes! Alexis already wants to redecorate the dining room at the pub. Why not have a party to commemorate the new look? It’ll bring the town together and remind us all that community is what really matters.”

“A Christmas party.” Julia stared into space, her eyes gleaming with excitement. “That could be a fantastic boost for business. And it would be a wonderful way to celebrate the season.”

“And show the McCormicks that you’re made of love, not money.” Cooper winked.

“This could be just the kind of event I’ve been missing!” Julia said, grinning at her sister. “I would love to organize something like this.”

“I know!” Hazel nodded enthusiastically. “I thought of that. It seems like a win-win for everyone.” She smiled at her sister, glad that the Christmas event idea was giving Julia a feeling of purpose. “So you’re in?”

“Yes. I absolutely love the idea. I’ll get to work on it right away.”

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