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strings woven into the ivy, as well, and at night they twinkled and lit up the porches to amazing effect.
    The exterior had been painted a dark lavender color, and the columns were white, the sign done in both colors that proclaimed the name of her inn in script.
    She walked up the stairs, sensible heels clacking on the wood as she made her way to the door and let herself in.
    It was the fall, and apple season was just a few days away. The apple picking in this part of the state was amazing, so they were anticipating having a full house by the time October rolled around. People who wanted to get out of the city for a while and remember how fresh air smelled.
    “Good morning, Katia,” said Harley, one of the housekeepers. She wheeled her cart out from the utility closet and made her way across the lobby with it.
    “Morning, Harley,” Katia replied with a smile. There was something about this time of morning that just made everything seem softer, friendlier. She watched Harley go on her way and then made her own way to the front desk.
    Ava was leaning against the wood, phone pressed to her ear and a bored expression on her face. She was the assistant manager of The Lily, so to speak. Basically everything Katia did during the day, Ava did at night, making sure that there was always someone on call to handle any emergencies or needs the guests had, even at night.
    “I understand that, Mr. Moseley,” she was saying into the phone. “And it’s a terrible thing she did, but when you finalized your reservation, you agreed to our terms and conditions, which clearly state that if you cancel less than twenty four hours before your stay, you don’t get a refund. And according to my records, you’re due to check in at four this afternoon.”
    Katia covered her mouth to stifle a laugh. Ava was not what she’d call a ‘people person’. A fact that made some people wonder why she’d been hired for a job in the hospitality industry. But she had a mind for organization and putting out fires, so Katia had been working with her on dealing with the guests and people on the phone. There was always one potential guest that would get her fired up, though, and Katia decided to spare her, since she’d been behind the desk for almost twelve hours.
    She plucked the phone from Ava’s hand with a kind smile, laughing and shooing her off when Ava mimed bowing.
    “Good morning, Mr. Moseley,” she said, in her most chipper voice. “Let’s see how we can help you today.”
     
    “You’re too soft on them,” Ava said as they both sat in the kitchen with cups of coffee and scones made by the chef. “What’s the point of having the conditions, if you’re just going to bend them to make people happy?”
    Katia buttered her scone, breaking a piece off and popping it into her mouth. “Delicious as always, Jerry!” she called to the harassed man in the back who was frantically stirring something. “Because it keeps them coming back, Ava,” she said to her friend. “Think about it like this. Say you wanted to return a shirt to the mall, but the store had a no refunds policy. If you talked to someone on the phone and were just told that they didn’t take refunds, no matter the situation, even if the shirt didn’t fit, even if it was ripped when you bought it, would you shop there again?”
    “No,” Ava said, as if it should be obvious. She sipped at her coffee.
    “Exactly. Now say the same store had a no refunds policy, but you decided to call anyway and someone decided to work with you. Maybe they couldn’t give you your money back because of the policy, but they offered you store credit. Or maybe they got you a percentage of your money back, even though the policy stated they didn’t have to. How would you feel, then?”
    Ava rolled her eyes, clearly catching on to what Katia was trying to say to her. “Yeah, alright, I get it. That would make me feel better about shopping there again.”
    “And that’s how we want the guests