Once she’d gone and I had a moment to think about it, I realised there were far more opportunities to open up the place than were currently being used. Easter could potentially be as busy as Christmas with the right marketing and stargazing events would be great too. I knew Ned had been on the ball about Halloween and probably had all this in his head already, but it might be worth mentioning just in case.

I could already imagine the advertising headline – Wynter’s – not just for Christmas – displayed on the website homepage and perhaps even in the press again. The plantation might be of interest to the local Brownies and Cubs groups too, assuming they were still running.

I sat and took a minute to assimilate just how much my opinion about the place, and what it should be used for, had changed over the last few weeks. I had initially been rather reluctant to embrace the beach huts the week I arrived, but Ned had been right about both opening the place up for longer and what Dad would have made of it all.

In an unexpected twist of fate, I found myself beginning to wonder if there was anything I’d missed about Wynter’s Trees that could suit me and what I wanted. Was there some opportunity here that could somehow work in my favour too?

Once the minute was up, I set the thoughts aside. It was far too late to be daydreaming about anything like that. I’d told Ned and David I wanted to sell my stake twice now, and I’d set Maya and Ned on the path towards a happy ever after. The Wynter’s Trees ship had, at last, well and truly sailed and that, I purposefully reminded myself, was exactly what I had wanted it to do.

As the afternoon rushed by and the customers kept coming, I had begun to worry that I wouldn’t have enough stock to see me through the evening. Theo had messaged earlier to let me know he would drop more things in the next day, but I was keen to make the most of every opportunity to sell on his and Wren’s behalf and had quickly devised a plan.

‘Special delivery!’ shouted Liam, when he and Chelsea arrived at the hut weighed down with boxes.

‘Well, well, well,’ I laughed, when I spotted Chelsea. ‘Who’s the elf now?’

She was sportingly wearing a striped green and red elf hat, complete with bells, and her face was lit by a minxy smile.

‘I thought it was too good an opportunity to miss,’ she laughed. ‘And I know now more than ever that I should have had more sympathy for you, Liza,’ she added, carefully putting down her stack of boxes. ‘It’s hard work being Santa’s little helper.’

Liam rolled his eyes.