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As she pulled into the drive of the quaint Scottish inn she thought to herself, "finally". Nothing else came to her at that moment other than that single word. Thirty years she had waited for this day and now it was here. Katherine was 44 and had already raised four children and was ready to start a new life. After her divorce she had worked two or three jobs to save up for this move. She knew that this was going to be her last chance to start over.
"You must be Katherine." She looked up and saw a young man with red hair and freckles staring at her. He could not have been more than 16 and had an open and friendly look on his face as he waited for her to answer.
"Yes, I am but how did you know?" She finally replied.
"Och, weel it isna like we get many visitors to these parts this time of year, too hot for most ya ken?" He dropped her a cheeky wink after this little tid bit of information and made her laugh.
"Weel, come on in, Mrs. Graham will have everything ready for you and a hot cup of tea besides." He told her this as he grabbed her bags and turned to go in. She climbed out of the car where she had (for some reason unknown to her) been sitting throughout this exchange and followed him in.
She looked around in awe at the lobby of the inn. She had never seen anything so comfortable and inviting that still managed to exude an atmosphere of efficiency and organization. This was perfect for her and played to her need for order around her. She had found long ago that if there was disorganization in her vicinity then she could not function properly. This was frequently a point of contention between her children and her, although it did resolve itself as they got older.
She walked across the lobby toward the kind, elderly looking woman that was standing behind the long counter at the back of the room.
"Mrs. Graham I presume" Katherine said politely as the woman smiled warmly at her.
"Aye lass that would be me. I am the owner of this here place, along with the cook and housekeeper and anything else that needs doing. Welcome to the Highlands!"
"Thank you so much. I have dreamed about moving here for the longest time and honestly cannot believe that I am actually here! I am still trying to wrap my mind around it." Katherine told her.
"Weel, let's get you some hot tea and then settled into your room, oh and dinna worry aboot your bags, wee Hamish will bring them up for ye." As Katherine followed Mrs. Graham up the stairs she took the time to survey her surroundings. She really did feel like she was in an earlier time. There were gas lights lining the stairway and everything looked hand carved and was dark with age and repeated polishing. There were also old paintings on the wall of various people in 18th and 19th century dress. "Who are the people in the paintings Mrs. Graham? They all look like they are related. Are they your family perhaps?"
"Oh aye, these are my people. We have been running this inn for the last 300 or so years, a bit of a "family business" you could say."
"That explains it then. Why this place feels so old. It looks loved though, and I feel so comfortable here!"
