She supposed that at least one good thing had come out of her sister’s return, though; she could now ask Elle to come with her to Galway on Saturday to meet that guy. She just hoped Elle would understand her reasoning and her desire to restore Ned’s collection. Though she would probably think she was mad. Much like Colin did, despite his kindness in helping her so far. Though of course Penny now knew that this had more to do with finding inspiration for his novel than any true desire to help. Which also disappointed her more than she was willing to admit.

Deep down Penny knew that in a way, replacing Ned’s collection had supplanted her worries and fears about the hotel, and had given her something to concentrate on since Elle left and all hope seemed lost.

She didn’t know if she could allow herself to hope again. For the hotel or . . . anything else.

And she wasn’t sure if her quest was futile either, and if she was just wasting her time running around and spending a small fortune trying to restore Ned’s prized possession. Thinking about it, it was over thirty years ago since he’d given it up, so there was also the chance that her dad had forgotten all about the records and couldn’t give a hoot about them now.

Penny sighed, her mind a mass of confusion. If only there was a fortune-teller in town, she would almost be tempted to go and ask a few questions.

At breakfast, Ned was more than surprised to see his eldest daughter walk into the kitchen.

‘Elle,’ he said. ‘What on earth are you doing here?’

‘I’m not exactly sure,’ she replied, shakily. ‘Well no, that’s not true. I’ve come to give things another shot with trying to save the hotel. I know it’s almost too late. But while there’s still even the tiniest amount of hope, I need to do this.’

‘Well, I’m glad you want to help. But I just don’t see what else is to be done. I don’t want you to set yourself up for another disappointment.’ He shook his head. ‘I know we put too much on you last time. We asked too much, and it was all our responsibility. You shouldn’t feel like all of this is down to you.’

‘I don’t,’ she said. ‘I’ve had an idea, a bit of a revelation, really, but it’s not just that.’ She took a deep breath. ‘When I got back to London, it was as if nothing fit there any more. My whole life seemed . . . out of sorts. It was exactly the same, but I felt so constrained suddenly. Sounds melodramatic, I know, but I felt as if the life was being sucked out of me.’