Just This Once
Page 14
———
Paula returned quickly to her desk, her fingers fumbling anxiously as she called up the guest register on her terminal. Scanning the details, she confirmed that her imagination wasn’t at play.
K. Wynne Connelly, two-nights. Room 2117, billed to Eldon-Markoff.
So she hung onto her job after all, Paula thought. “And of all the hotels in Denver, she had to walk into mine,” she murmured, understanding how Humphrey Bogart must have felt when Ingrid Bergman entered his club in Morocco.
There had been whole days of late when Paula hadn’t thought of the beautiful woman from Baltimore, but it didn’t take much to conjure the image. Anytime she saw an elegant woman traveling alone, she remembered Wynne Connelly. And if one of those women spoke to her in a friendly way, she automatically invoked her most professional demeanor, a wall of resistance to familiarity. Even after almost a year, the wariness lingered, leaving her more isolated than she had ever felt. Thank goodness she had a job that she loved.
And tonight, Wynne Connelly was staying in her hotel.
Like a moth to the flame, she needed to see Wynne, to talk to her again, if only to snipe a bit and let her know that she had risen above it. People shouldn’t be allowed to treat others like that and get off scot free. But she wanted Wynne to know that she was over it…even if her own shaking hands were telling her otherwise.
———
Wynne turned back to her notes for tomorrow’s meeting, reading the paragraph for the third time, still not comprehending the words. She was situated in the corner of the Concierge lounge, looking up from time to time to admire the sunset over the Rockies.
She’d held this vigil for over two hours, hoping — but doubting — that Paula would once again stop by to say hello.
It was almost nine as she finished her second glass of red wine. Paula would know where to find her, she knew, if the hotel manager would even consider speaking to her. Her last words — on the phone at the Hyatt — hadn’t been harsh, but there was definitely finality in her tone.
There was so much Wynne wanted to say about what had happened. She needed to apologize not only for what she’d done, but for the way she had run away from the mess she’d made. Mostly, she wanted to tell Paula that her feelings had been real.
Suddenly, she felt more than saw the familiar face was coming her way; a fixed expression not giving away the blonde woman’s mood. As it had in the elevator, Wynne’s heart rate increased and her stomach fluttered in anticipation.
“Hello, Wynne,” the hotel manager said formally.
“Paula…it’s good to see you.”
“I’m glad to see that things worked out for you with Eldon-Markoff.” Paula tried to sound casual, fighting hard to conceal the emotions that the sight of this woman called up.
“Thank you,” Wynne answered meekly. It was difficult not to feel as though she was under judgment. Spotting the nametag above the pocket of the black blazer, she returned the sentiment. “And I see you’ve made Senior Shift Manager. Congratulations.”
“Yeah, I decided that I was ready to relocate.” She didn’t add that the circumstances of their parting had made it easier to leave Orlando. No, Paula wasn’t about to say anything to suggest that their relationship had been anything more than spontaneous.
“It must have been a difficult decision, leaving your family and a hotel you liked so much.”
“I like this hotel, and I’m enjoying the new job. How about you?”
“Things are good. I….” She decided against telling Paula that she too had relocated. It wasn’t important now that the other woman was no longer there, and Wynne really didn’t want to underscore the irony. “I really like what I’m doing now. They keep me pretty busy.”
Paula wanted to say more; actually, she wanted Wynne to say more, but she didn’t want to be the one to press it. “Well, I hope things keep working out for you.”
“Have dinner with me,” the brunette suddenly blurted.
“You’ve got to be kidding.” Paula looked around awkwardly to see if others were within earshot.
“I’m not. Paula, I have so many things I want to tell you. Please.”
“No,” she answered adamantly. “It isn’t necessary, Wynne. It wasn’t a big deal. We got carried away and did something we shouldn’t have. End of story.”
Despite the words of denial, Wynne could feel the anger and hurt emanating from the woman before her. She looked away and shook her head sadly. Turning back, she held Paula’s eyes with her own. “Would it help at all to tell you that I’m sorry?”
Paula could see the sadness for herself in the shining blue eyes, but she was determined not to respond to it. It didn’t matter now anyway, and there was no way she was going to show how naïve she’d been. “There’s nothing to be sorry for. I didn’t have any expectations. When people let things happen too fast, it’s easy to make mistakes.”
To Wynne, the words sounded cold and calculated, but who was she to argue that it had been more than just getting “carried away” for her. The voice that started in her head the moment she met Paula McKenzie had warned her not to let it happen, but she had chosen to ignore it and like Paula said, she made a mistake. And perhaps the woman standing before her was the price of her poor judgment, and Wynne just had to let her know that she realized that.
“Paula, it was my mistake, not yours,” she offered, “and what I regret the most is that I screwed things up with you.”
“That you did.” She hadn’t meant to sound so flippant, but 11 months of stewing about it had left her bitter. Still, the sad blue eyes made her want to soften, made her want to forgive, and made her want to say that it was alright. “Look, I…need to go. It was good to see you again.”
Wynne nodded. “Thanks for coming by.” Soon afterwards, she retreated to her room, still wound up at having seen Paula, and deeply saddened at where they’d left things. Despite everything that had transpired, she knew without a doubt that if Paula were still in Orlando, she’d find a way to be with her. No one had ever made her feel this way.
In her office on the second floor, the blonde woman pushed her hands through her hair.
The encounter had left her nearly drained. That woman upstairs made her feel things, and after this time, it still hurt.
Chapter 14
“Paula, over here!” the graying-blonde woman shouted as she spotted her daughter coming through the terminal exit.
“Mom!” Rushing the final few steps, Paula dropped her shoulder bag and wrapped her mother in a hug. “I’ve missed you guys so much!”
“We’ve missed you too. Josh and Jordan talked about you all through breakfast.”
“Are they here?”
“No, I came by myself. I was being selfish because I wanted you all to myself for an hour.”
“Fine by me.” The two women lingered in baggage claim as they waited for the carousel to deposit her luggage.
“So are you still liking Denver, honey?”
“I’m not sure I ever actually said that I liked Denver, but I really love my hotel.”
“You don’t like it there?”
“It’s okay, I guess. It was awfully cold all winter. And those two blizzards we got in April didn’t help matters. But it’s actually quite pleasant right now.”
“Have you had a chance to get out much?” Once again, Maxine found herself worrying about her daughter, knowing that she was giving too much of herself to the Weller Regent at the expense of finding even a modicum of personal happiness.
“A little. The Rockies are gorgeous and I’ve taken a few drives.”
“By yourself, I suppose.”
Paula shrugged. “Yeah, it’s hard to find someone who’s free to do something on a Tuesday or Wednesday.” The red rollerboard appeared on the carousel. “Here’s my bag.”
Moments later, they were getting into Maxine’s white Accord, bound for Cocoa Beach.
Paula reveled in the warm humidity of Orlando in June.
“Of course,” Paula answered tentatively. She and her mom rarely talked about personal matters but the tone of the older woman’s voice suggested that it was going to be that kind of question.
“Do you…date anyone? I don’t mean to pry, and you can tell me that it’s none of my business if you want, but honey, sometimes I just can’t bear to think about you being alone all the time.”
Paula chuckled. If her mother only knew…. Why not? “Actually, there was someone not too long ago, but things didn’t work out.”
“Oh? Someone in Denver?”
“No, it was here in Orlando actually, just before I left. I met her at the hotel. She was a guest.”
This revelation surprised Maxine, not only because Paula had never mentioned it to anyone, but also because it was important enough to her to bring it up here and now, over a year later. “Was it serious?”
“It could have been, at least to me,” she answered honestly.
“What happened?”
“She wasn’t…single. She had a girlfriend back in Baltimore…one that she forgot to mention.” Paula surprised herself by tearing up at the memory.
“Oh, Paula, I’m so sorry. Why didn’t you talk to us about it?” Maxine already knew the answer to that: Ever since they’d sat in judgment the day their daughter had left for Europe 15 years ago, the subject of her love life was one they all avoided. Paula had been so quiet when she brought that one girlfriend around — Susan something or other, and Maxine and Ray took that to mean that their daughter wasn’t comfortable sharing her personal life.
“I just had to deal with it on my own, I guess.”
“Is that why you took the job in Denver?”
“Maybe a little. It seemed like a good time to put some distance between myself and this place. But the main reason was the job. Of course, if I had known the one here was going to open up….”
Approaching the ramp to the Beeline Expressway, Maxine briefly changed the subject.
“Do you want to go check on your place?” Paula had turned her condo over to a management company to rent, hoping that someday she’d find her way back to Orlando.
The tenants’ lease had expired in May and the agency was doubtful they would get another renter until fall.
“Sure, we can do that. No one’s living there right now, so I doubt the lights are even on.”
Paula started groping in her purse for the key.
Maxine turned northwest toward her daughter’s condo. “Do you want to talk about that woman some more?” Whoever this woman from Baltimore was, she obviously meant a lot to Paula, or it wouldn’t still prompt the tears in her daughter’s eyes.
“Not really.” The last thing Paula wanted to do was waste her weekend in Florida with sad thoughts. “Tell me about Josh and Jordan, and what’s new with Dad.”
———
“So what do you think? Are people going to hide their eyes when they see this?” Kitty Connelly stopped and turned to model her dark blue swimsuit. At 62 years old, she bore the slightly plump physique of one who had lived a sedentary life after having two children.
“I don’t think anyone will run screaming, but they may have to reach for their sunglasses.” Her mom’s alabaster legs hadn’t seen the sun in over 30 years.
“Very funny,” the elder woman scoffed. “I’m giving myself a half-hour, then it’s under the umbrella.”
“I think that’s a good idea.” Wynne, on the other hand, was eager to work on her tan, which made the scars on her legs and abdomen less visible. She’d been out a few times in her back yard and was already sporting a golden glow. With a darker tan, her eyes seemed bluer and her hair shone with deep auburn highlights. She absolutely loved the feel of the sun on her skin.
The Connellys walked in the stifling heat to the fenced-in pool area, already crowded with others who had the same idea for escaping the summer heat. Spotting two chaise lounges in the corner by an umbrella, Wynne spread out their towels as she and her mom settled in. It was fun being able to spend time with her mom just relaxing together. The move to Orlando had turned out to be good for both of them, and Janelle was already talking about coming to Florida when she finished school.
“Did I tell you that I’m having dinner tonight with the Shumachers and one of their friends from New York? They’re such nice people. She used to be a….”
Wynne was already absorbed in her book, stretched out on her stomach with the clasp of her top hanging unfastened at her sides. As she became more aware that her mother was speaking, she raised up to listen. A white sedan in the distance stole her attention as it pulled to a stop in front of the unit that used to belong to the woman she knew. She watched in utter amazement as two women exited and disappeared inside the upstairs condo. One of the women looked like Paula McKenzie!
“Uh, hello there,” Kitty spoke up anxiously to get her daughter’s attention. Wynne seemed completely oblivious to the fact that she had lifted up so far that her bare breasts were now visible to anyone who cared to look.
“Oops!” Wynne lowered herself and snapped her top into place. Now sitting up, she stared at the end unit to confirm what she’d seen. After only a few minutes, the two women came out and returned to the car. The petite blonde definitely looked like Paula, but Wynne couldn’t make out the features of the other woman from this distance.
Whoever she was, she and Paula were certainly familiar, apparent from the casual way their arms hooked together.
The uncomfortable feeling of watching Paula McKenzie walking arm in arm with another woman gave way to curiosity. Why would Paula be in Orlando? And why would she visit her former home? Was she moving back to Florida?
“…so anyway, after dinner, we might play a few hands of bridge and see if we all hit it off. It might become a regular thing.”
“That’s nice, Mom.”
———
“Paula, you look fabulous!” Jolene gushed as she eyed her former boss, decked out today in a light blue sleeveless cocktail dress with ivory shoes.
“Wow, so do you!” She beamed at her protégé, glad at once to see a familiar face.
“We miss you so much! I mean, Belinda’s okay, but she’s sort of…I don’t know…unbending, if you know what I mean. Stephanie had to pull rank so we could all get the day off today.”
“It’s a tough job sometimes, Jolene. I’m sure she’s trying to do what’s best for the hotel,”
Paula cajoled. “Speaking of Stephanie, is she here?”
“I haven’t seen her yet, but I’m sure she’s coming.”
No one who knew Rusty Wilburn would miss this day, the day Juliana became his bride.
Following their honeymoon, the couple would hastily pack for a move to Philadelphia, where Rusty would take over as the Manager of Hotel Operations for the day shift — a great job in the Weller Regent chain, and one he roundly deserved, Paula thought.
She had read in the WR newsletter about her friend’s promotion, and couldn’t help but feel a pang of regret about her move to Denver, especially since Rusty’s job of Senior Manager for the night shift — the same post she now held in Denver — was temporarily empty. Though she was tempted to ask Stephanie about it, a parallel move in the company after such a short stint wouldn’t look good for future considerations. She was happy for Rusty, but envious of the one who would fill his vacant slot.
“Well, if it isn’t the Prodigal Daughter!”
Paula immediately turned to the familiar voice and reached out to hug her mentor.
“Stephanie!”
“How are you, hon? I’ve been hearing great things about you in Denver. Did I ever tell you that Vince Tolliver sent me flowers a month after you got there?”
“You’re kidding!” Paula laughed. She knew Vince liked her work, but this information was pretty good leverage for the next time she wanted something from her hotel director.
“No, he’s crazy about you.”
; “Well, I’m pretty happy there. It’s a great hotel, and the people are wonderful.”
“Happier than you were here?” the director asked.
Not even close, Paula thought, but Stephanie didn’t want to hear that. “It’s different. You know how much I love the WR here, and how much I enjoyed all the people that work there…and how much I respected my boss,” she winked at that last remark.
“I figured as much. When Rusty told me he got the Philly job, I almost picked up the phone then to ask you to come back, but pulling you out of Denver so soon like that wouldn’t have been good for your career.”
Paula nodded. Those had been her thoughts exactly.
“But if it were a different position, a promotion to operations, perhaps….”
The blonde woman froze as she absorbed her former boss’s words. Was she saying…?
“We better go grab our seats. Why don’t you see me at the reception and we’ll talk more?” Stephanie suggested with a sly wink. She could see by the look on her former employee’s face that she was more than intrigued.
For the next hour, Paula tried valiantly to concentrate on her dear friend, whose wedding going on at the front of the small church. In the back of her mind, her thoughts were on what Stephanie had hinted. If there was any chance at all that she could come back to Orlando without risking her future at Weller Regent, she’d do it.
———
Two weeks passed after the mysterious “Paula sighting” at her mother’s condominium complex, and Wynne was unable to get the pretty blonde out of her mind. On a hunch that her friend was headed back this way, Wynne called the Weller Regent in Denver, only to learn from a staffer that Paula was off on Wednesdays but was expected in the next afternoon. So that was all it was: just a visit to Orlando, and probably a chance to see her family. Odd, though, that she’d stopped by her old condo.
Each time she drove over to visit her family, Wynne found herself drawn to check out the end unit that had belonged to her friend. Best she could tell, it was empty. But what if Paula still owned the place, expecting someday to return? Maybe the Denver thing was just a temporary assignment.