Dinner at the Beach House Hotel

by Judith Keim

  Vaughn opened his eyes and smiled. “Penny for your thoughts.”

  I grinned. “With inflation and all, you’ll not get much. I...”

  Vaughn grabbed my hand. “Playing games are we?”

  I laughed.

  “Where is everyone else?” he asked, sitting up.

  “The girls took Robbie to see Angela’s house.”

  “Ahhh. We’re alone?”

  “For the moment.”

  He stood. “How about a swim in the pool?” A pool had always been a place for us to romp.

  Smiling, I got to my feet and adjusted my raspberry-colored bikini. It had replaced the lime-green one Rhonda had insisted I buy when I’d first met her.

  Vaughn dove into the water and turned to me with a devilish grin.

  “Don’t you dare splash me, Vaughn Sanders!” I normally had to go in slowly, step by step. Only for an emergency would I jump in.

  I was halfway immersed in the water when Vaughn swam up to me and tugged on my foot.

  Laughing, I slid into the water, and then I took off, swimming as fast as I could. Vaughn stayed right behind me. When I reached the end of the pool and turned around, Vaughn was waiting to draw me into his arms. I glanced around to make sure we were free of paparazzi.

  “We’re safe,” said Vaughn. “They expect us to be on hotel property at your house.”

  “Good. I don’t want them to know about Robbie. Who knows what stories they’d come up with. We have to be sure nothing goes wrong with his adoption.”

  “Don’t worry. It’s going to be all right.”

  More relaxed now, I snuggled up next to Vaughn. He encircled me with his legs and arms. I felt his reaction to my closeness and loved that he was exceptionally virile for a man in his mid-forties.

  “Let’s go inside,” he murmured with a throaty tone that promised of many things.

  I hesitated. “I don’t know when the girls and Robbie will be back.”

  Vaughn gave me one of his lazy, sexy grins. “Then we’d better hurry.”

  We exchanged conspiring looks and raced for the steps at the far end of the pool.

  Later, I lay in bed next to Vaughn, pleasantly surprised how satisfying a “quickie” could be. Sated, I checked the bedside clock and rose. “I’ll beat you to the shower.”

  “Go ahead. I’ll join you in a minute. I need to get the message from the call I ignored earlier.

  I was drying off when Vaughn came into the bathroom. “The call was from Sam Nichols, the show’s director. He invited me to go on a fishing trip in Alaska in mid-May. Apparently fishing for king salmon is good at that time of year. I accepted. That doesn’t mess up anything with our wedding does it?”

  “It better not,” I teased. It was going to be such a small affair that nothing much was being planned ahead of time.

  “I won’t let anything stand in the way of our being married. I promise.” Vaughn patted my bare behind.

  “Okay, that’s a deal.” I gave him a kiss that proved how serious we both were.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  All too soon it came time for Vaughn to leave. As I saw him off at the airport, I couldn’t help feeling blue. I didn’t know if he’d have time for another short trip home before his fishing expedition in Alaska, and though it was only two months away, our wedding suddenly seemed a long way off.

  Two days later, Liz left for Boston in her SUV for the final months of the school year with a promise to call me from the road at regular intervals. With both Vaughn and Liz gone, I was glad for Robbie and Elena’s company in what now seemed a too-big house.

  Elena and I worked out a schedule so that, in exchange for covering for me when I was detained by unpredictably long days at the hotel, she was given evenings and days off as often as my schedule allowed. I was trying to arrange more-regular hours at the hotel, but the nature of the business made it difficult. When Rhonda and I had hired Bernie as general manager, neither one of us had envisioned our family situations coinciding quite the way or as quickly as they had.

  The weekend approached quickly as we prepared for the governor’s visit. Daniel and Carlotta Horne were popular figures in the state, and we wanted to give them VIP service with the hope that he’d spread the news throughout the South.

  It was becoming more and more difficult to coordinate events with Rhonda, but the two of us stood on the front steps of the hotel to welcome their arrival late Friday afternoon.

  Carlotta was the first to emerge from their private car—a large black sedan. Standing next to it, her diminutive height made her appear fragile, but every voter in the state knew of her strength, her determination to protect her husband from naysayers. Pretty, she smiled at us as she waited for her husband to unfold himself from the backseat and come around the car to join her. Two security people stood on either side, automatically surveying the area. We’d managed to eke out accommodations for them in a converted storage room that we’d set aside for such purposes.

  Daniel Horne was every PR person’s dream—tall and good-looking, he had a natural friendliness that drew people to him. Even those who didn’t share his political views admitted they liked the man.

  As Rhonda and I approached him, his smile was heartwarming. “So glad to finally see this place for myself. I’ve heard nothing but good reports about The Beach House Hotel and the two of you.”

  Rhonda and I recited our standard, “Welcome to The Beach House Hotel,” grinning at the sound of our voices matching syllable by syllable.

  He smiled. “Guess you’ve said this a few times, huh?”

  “A few,” I answered, and held my hand out. “I’m Ann Rutherford.”

  “And I’m Rhonda DelMonte Grayson,” said Rhonda, shaking hands with Carlotta and turning to him. “We’re sure glad to have you here.”

  “Are our rooms ready?” the governor asked me.

  “Yes,” I said, smiling at him. I knew he was asking if we’d taken care of his special requests. “We’ve made sure everything is in order, as always.”

  “Thanks,” he said. “I really appreciate it.”

  Bernie approached, Trudy at his heels.

  “Bernhard Bruner is our general manager,” I said. “He will ensure that your stay is every bit as wonderful as you wish.”

  Bernie shook hands and exchanged greetings with Daniel and Carlotta.

  “And who is this adorable dog?” Carlotta said, bending over to pat Trudy’s head. She laughed when Trudy looked up at her and wagged her tail. She smiled at Bernie. “I’ve always wanted a dog like this. What’s her name?”

  “Gertrude von Bruner,” said Bernie. “But I call her Trudy.”

  “Perfect,” Carlotta said, laughing when Trudy rolled onto her back for a tummy rub.

  “Please come in,” said Rhonda. “We’ve arranged a short tour. Then some refreshments will be delivered to your suite.”

  “Ahhh. Thank you,” said Daniel. He took hold of Carlotta’s elbow, and they followed Bernie inside. Rhonda and I stayed outside to talk to one of the security men to explain our privacy policy and to make sure they’d be as unobtrusive as possible.

  Paul and Manny handled the suitcases, and one of the men traveling with the governor parked the car in the garage.

  Rhonda and I hurried inside and up to the Presidential Suite, arriving moments before the governor and his wife were led there by Bernie.

  I checked the floral arrangement we’d placed earlier on the center table in the small foyer. The small box wrapped in light blue paper and adorned with silver ribbon sat beside it, as the governor had requested.

  They entered the suite. “Again, welcome to The Beach House Hotel. We’re honored to have you here,” I said.

  “Yes,” agreed Rhonda.

  I moved toward the door. “We’ll leave you now. Enjoy your stay.”

  “We will,” said Carlotta, glancing with surprise at the flowers and the present sitting on the table.

  As we noticed the loving looks exchanged between the two of
them, Rhonda, Bernie, and I quickly left.

  “Wow,” said Rhonda as we descended the stairway. “Looks like the governor is in for a great weekend.”

  I laughed, and even Bernie grinned.

  “So, Bernie,” Rhonda continued in her not-so-subtle way when we reached the bottom of the stairs and stood in the back hallway, “when is Annette coming back to the hotel?”

  “She’s going to arrive a few days ahead of the wedding to relax a bit before the festivities. I’ve put her in the bridal suite for that stay.”

  “Good idea,” I said. “You’re coordinating all the details of the wedding with Sabine?”

  “Yes. It’s going to be beautiful. Annette and her daughter are thrilled. Max Hoffman will act as father of the bride and will return the day before the wedding, along with a few of the other wedding guests. Some will stay here. Others, especially the younger people, are staying at a motel in town. A matter of cost.”

  “Perfect. We can’t afford to give our rooms away.”

  “Yeah, we’re giving them a lot for almost nothing, all for the sake of the new brochure,” said Rhonda. “That’s why it’s so important for you, Bernie, to make sure Annette is happy with everything.”

  I reminded myself not to roll my eyes at Rhonda’s continued efforts at matchmaking.

  “Yes, of course,” said Bernie.

  Our conversation was interrupted by Tim.

  “Bernie, I need to talk to you. There’s a problem with the room for the governor’s security people.”

  Rhonda started to follow Tim and Bernie. I held her back. “That’s why we hired him. Remember?”

  She grinned. “Oh, yeah. We’ve got to learn to let go of the smaller stuff. Right?”

  I nodded. The hotel was our baby, but we now had new, real babies of our own—babies that needed our attention. My thoughts turned to Angela. “How are Angela and Reggie doing?”

  “Good,” said Rhonda. “Reggie is holding off on going back to school until the baby comes. He’s able to do a lot of his school work from home. He’ll have to go back for a couple of weeks toward the end.”

  “I’m so happy for you that they’re going to be living here in town,” I said, giving her a big smile. “I have no idea where Liz will end up after school.”

  “Reggie’s parents sure aren’t happy about the kids moving to Florida. I can’t imagine how things are going to work out between them and Reggie, but he seems determined to go ahead with the idea of working with Will.” She shot me a worried look. “Angela tried talking to Katherine about visiting them after the baby is born, but Katherine told her they’d probably be traveling. Angela doesn’t want Reggie to know how hurt she is by Katherine, but she tells me.”

  I gave Rhonda a steady look. “Give all of them a chance to settle their emotions. It’s been a very trying few months. Reggie loves Angela. He’ll protect her. You can’t.”

  Rhonda’s face tightened with worry. “That’s just it. I want to.”

  “What does Will say?”

  “He told me to back off, to let Reggie handle it. But it isn’t easy, especially now with Angela’s baby due any day. I hope it’s easy for her. Not like me having a baby on your kitchen floor.”

  “Willow is a very determined child,” I said, unable to keep from grinning at the memory of the surprise she gave all of us.

  “Tell me!” said Rhonda. She checked her watch. “Guess I’d better get back to her. See you later. I’ll be back for the governor’s surprise birthday party for his wife.”

  She left, and I went into the office to check the reservations schedule. Annette could share the bridal suite with her daughter until the day of the wedding, then other arrangements would have to be made.

  I’d just finished moving a few guests around for that weekend when Jean-Luc knocked on the door and entered. He stood stiffly in front of me, obviously working to remain calm.

  “Hi! What can I do for you?”

  “You can tell Bernie that I’m in charge of the kitchen,” he grumbled. “I will decide how I want the menu to read for the Bauer wedding.”

  “Is there a problem?”

  “Oui. He wants to tell me how I should do things. Always. I won’t take orders from anyone but you and Rhonda.”

  “Okay. I’ll settle any misunderstanding. Thank you.”

  “Merci.” He turned to go.

  “Jean-Luc?”

  He faced me.

  “We really appreciate all you do. Merci.”

  At his smile, I relaxed. He was a valued member of our team and I would do anything to keep from losing him. Even if it upset Bernie.

  Later, after talking to Bernie, I left the hotel to have a couple of hours with Robbie before returning to the hotel for the governor’s dinner.

  As I walked into my house, I could hear Robbie crying. I hurried through the kitchen and onto the porch to see what was happening.

  Robbie was lying on the floor, kicking and screaming.

  “What’s going on?” I asked Elena.

  She grimaced. “He wants to go into the pool. I told him no. It’s almost time for his nap.”

  Robbie noticed me and let out a louder wail.

  I knelt beside him. “Hi, Robbie.”

  He looked up at me. “Candy?”

  I shook my head. “No, honey. No candy.”

  Robbie let out a high-pitched scream and kicked his feet, pounding the carpet in sturdy, steady beats.

  I rose to my feet. “Guess we’d better let him work it out,” I said calmly.

  “I think he’s pretty used to having his temper tantrums end with a bribe of candy.”

  “Well, that’s not how we’re going to work it here. Let him cry. As long as he’s not hurt and he doesn’t hurt anything around him, we’ll let him get it out of his system.”

  A few minutes later, Robbie stopped crying and sat up. Seeing Elena and me sitting on one of the couches, he studied us.

  “Are you done?” I asked quietly.

  He got to his feet.

  “Come here, honey. I’ll give you a little hug.”

  He ran over to me and climbed onto my lap. Wrapping my arms around him, I drew him close to me. He rested his head against my chest.

  “When Elena says no, she means it,” I said quietly. “And me, too.”

  Robbie’s body stiffened, and then, as I rubbed his back, he relaxed. “I love you, Robbie,” I murmured, thinking back to the time he’d fallen into the pool. I’d been terrified of losing him.

  He lifted his head. “Mommy?” He patted my arm, and I waited to hear what he’d say.

  “Mine.”

  I chuckled quietly and exchanged smiles with Elena. He was a two-year-old all right.

  “Elena? Want some time to yourself? I think I’ll take Robbie with me to visit Angela. It might be good for both of us to spend time together away from the house.”

  “I’d love to be able to see my sister at Rhonda’s. What time do you want me back here?”

  “How about five o’clock? I’ll need time to get ready for the dinner at the hotel.”

  Elena got to her feet. “Great. See you then.”

  She left, and I continued to hold Robbie on my lap until he finally wiggled to get down. We’d added another link to our growing relationship, but I realized I needed to spend more time with him.

  ###

  When Reggie answered the door, a frown marred his youthful brow. “Hi, Ann. I’m glad you called. I’m worried about Angela.”

  “What’s wrong?” I asked.

  He shook his head. “She’s going crazy unpacking and cleaning. I told her to slow down, but she says she wants everything ready for the baby. I can’t get her to stop. Maybe you can.”

  He opened the door wider and indicated for Robbie and me to come inside.

  The interior had changed a lot since I’d last seen it. The purple wall color was gone, replaced by a soft, warm écru. A beige couch stretched across an expanse of the living room, flanked by two soft-cushioned chai
rs covered in a beige and green tweed that reflected colors in the large Oriental rug that lay on the tile floor.

  “She’s in the kitchen,” said Reggie.

  Holding onto Robbie’s hand, I followed Reggie into the kitchen, where we found Angela unpacking a box filled with kitchenware. “Hi, Ann! Hi, Robbie! It’s starting to look like a home.” She held up a frying pan. “I keep telling Reggie we need to have everything settled, because I’m not sure how much longer this baby is going to wait. The baby’s dropped.”

  I studied her shape and realized how close to delivering she must be. Several boxes lay by her feet, and several more were stacked by the bookcase in the family room. “Why don’t you take a rest while I help you?”

  “Would you? We have a bunch of books that need to be placed on the bookshelf.”

  I held up an empty box. “Sure. Let’s try it. Robbie can play with the box while I unpack the books.”

  “Thanks, Ann,” said Reggie. “Now you sit down for a while, Ange, and take a break.”

  I set to work removing books from boxes and placing them on the bookshelf. Robbie crawled in and out of the box like a playful puppy. I’d just put the last of the books away when Robbie started fussing. I turned to pick him up and noticed the wide-eyed expression on Angela’s face.

  I shot to my feet. “What’s wrong?”

  “I think I had my first contraction,” she said. “Reggie?”

  He hurried to her side. “What? Is it the baby?”

  “I think I’d better sit down.”

  I lifted Robbie into my arms. “Do you need me to do anything for you?” I asked Angela, unsure whether to stay or go.

  “No, thanks. Reggie and I want to do this alone. Right, Reg?”

  “I’ve got everything under control,” said Reggie, looking a little green as he ushered Angela to a kitchen chair.

  “Okay, call me if you need me. I’ll leave the two of you to take care of things.”

  ###

  At home, I turned Robbie over to Elena, before heading back to the hotel.