Nick opened the sliding glass doors that led to his back patio where his grill was. There was also a round glass-topped table and four padded chairs that looked comfortable and well-used. She hoped they’d be eating there tonight.
“So, this is my house. There are two bedrooms and a bath upstairs. It’s small, but it’s all I need.”
“I don’t think it’s small. It seems perfect to me.” Bella loved the feel of the cottage. It was casual and relaxing and cozy all at once.
“I hope you’re hungry. We have a lot of fish. I could freeze some of it, actually. But then you’d have to come back to help me eat it.”
Bella laughed. “I’m very happy to do that. Can I help you do anything?”
Nick thought for a moment. “I could put you on salad duty. You can throw some lettuce in a bowl and cut up a few vegetables.”
“I can do that.”
They went back into the kitchen and Nick showed her where everything was. While she was working on the salad, he put the fish and some asparagus on the grill after adding the fresh dill to the marinade. Once the fish was cooking, he came back inside. “Are you ready for some wine? I’m going to have a beer.” She nodded and he poured her a glass while she finished chopping vegetables for the salad.
When everything was ready, they ate outside, and Bella thought it might be the best fish she’d ever had. Nick smiled when he saw her expression after she took her first bite.
“The fish is okay?” he asked.
“It’s amazing. There’s nothing like eating fish you caught yourself, and what you did to it, so good.” He looked pleased by the compliment.
When they finished, she helped him clean up and they went back outside to finish their drinks, but this time, they went to the front porch and sat in the two rockers that faced the ocean. They sipped their drinks and rocked as they watched the sunset, and Bella couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt so relaxed and happy.
“You’re so lucky to live here. This house, it’s perfect. Do you sit out here all the time? I would, if I lived here.”
“Not all the time, but often enough. If I’m up early, sometimes I’ll go for a run and then have my coffee here on the porch.”
“That sounds wonderful.”
Nick looked at her thoughtfully. “Nantucket suits you. Maybe you should think about moving here. Get a cottage and porch of your own?”
“I wish I could. That sounds heavenly. Maybe someday.”
“Well, until then you’re welcome to visit whenever you want. I’d love the company. It’s more fun to sit out here with someone else,” Nick said.
Bella glanced at him. “I bet there’s no shortage of people that would love to sit out here with you.”
Nick looked suddenly serious. “I don’t invite just anyone over. This is a special place to me. I’m tired of dating, to be honest.”
Bella found that hard to believe. “Nick, you’re handsome and charming. You must have plenty of women dying to go out with you.”
“Oh, I’ve done my share of dating. I just want to find someone that I have more of a connection with.”
“You mean you’re ready to settle down?” she teased him.
But he didn’t laugh. “Maybe. If I meet the right person. I wouldn’t mind that at all.”
It felt so natural sitting on Nick’s front porch, rocking back and forth and just being with him. She wished she could be that special person, but she knew it was impossible. Their lives were too different. Her stay on the island was temporary. She wished, not for the first time, that she could put roots down somewhere other than L.A. But she didn’t see how she could. Unless she gave up her career and as stressful as it was at times, she wasn’t ready to do that yet.
They stayed out there until the sun set and the air grew cooler. Finally, Bella yawned and said the words she’d been putting off. “I should probably head back to the hotel.”
Nick nodded and stood. “I’ll walk you back.”
“Oh, you don’t have to. I know where I’m going now.”
“It’s getting dark. I’m walking you. I don’t mind at all.”
“All right.”
Nick walked her back, and it didn’t take long, ten minutes at the most. They chatted easily as they walked, and the time almost went by too fast. Before she knew it, she was at the front entrance of the hotel.
“Thank you so much for dinner. For all day, actually. I had a great time,” Bella said.
Nick smiled—the easy smile that reached his eyes and made tiny laugh lines dance around them. “Thanks for spending it with me. If you want to do it again, just let me know.”
“I will. Goodnight, Nick.”
Chapter 15
“Look who’s here!” Paula’s mother said. Paula had just walked in the door of her parents’ house for Sunday dinner. And sitting around the kitchen table were her parents, her sister and the surprise guest, her Aunt Vivian. Great. Paula hadn’t seen her aunt in over six months. She wondered what kind of new drama had happened. Aunt Vivian was all about the drama. She and Uncle Freddy had been touring Europe, last Paula knew. Uncle Freddy was not at the table.
“Come give your aunt a hug!” Aunt Vivian exclaimed.
Paula did as requested, giving her aunt the briefest of hugs and wiggling away when she tried to pull her in tightly.
“It’s nice to see you. How was Europe?” Paula noticed that everyone had a glass of wine in front of them. It wasn’t quite five o’clock yet, but Paula decided to join them and poured herself a glass before sitting down at the table.
“I was just telling everyone what’s going on. I’ve asked your uncle for a divorce!”
Paula sighed. Her aunt did this every few years and never went through with it.
“I’m sorry to hear that.” She didn’t ask what happened, because she knew her aunt well enough to know she was going to tell them, in great detail.
“So, I was just telling everyone what’s going on. I’ve just had it with Freddy. He was slowing me down. I wanted to see everything, and he wanted to stay put everywhere we went. I just couldn’t take it anymore. Especially when he told me I was being dramatic. Me! Dramatic. He’s the dramatic one.”
Paula couldn’t even look her sister’s way. She knew if she did, she’d break into laughter. Her aunt had no idea how ridiculous she was.
“Where’s Uncle Freddy now?” Paula asked.
“He’s still in Tuscany. Said he needed a break from me. How rude is that? Says he’s coming home next week. I’m thinking about having the locks changed. That will show him.”
“I’d wait on that. See if you calm down,” her mother advised.
“Hm. I’m really done this time,” her aunt insisted.
“We have some news,” her mother began. Paula knew she was trying to change the subject. “Paula is the new general manager. She just started a few weeks ago.”
Her aunt looked confused. “What about Andrea?”
“She’s heading up concierge services now.”
Her aunt processed that for a moment, then smiled. “Well, that sounds like a good thing. Congratulations, Paula!”
“Thank you.”
“I’ll be in my office there tomorrow. Let me know if I can be of any help,” her aunt said. Paula immediately cringed at the thought.
Aunt Vivian had a small office at The Whitley and, while she didn’t have an official title, she popped in from time to time and acted as though she was visiting royalty and had the answers to everyone’s problems. She liked being recognized by the staff, and she attended the manager meetings. Even though she had no idea what was going on day-to-day at the hotel, she always offered her opinion. Usually, after a few weeks, she grew bored of it and took off again. But Paula dreaded the upcoming weeks—her aunt flitting about and butting in was an added stress that she really didn’t need while she was trying to get used to the new role. She was, however, amused thinking of how David would react to her meddling aunt.
Paula smiled. “I�
�ll do that,” she lied.
“So, where’s your brother? Is he working?” Aunt Vivian asked.
“No, today is his day off,” Lucy said. “He said he was going to go fishing.”
“Who did he go with today? I saw him when I was on my way home from the store,” her mother said. “He was driving off with a pretty dark-haired girl.”
“Long hair?” Paula asked. She tried to think of all the girls Nick knew. She wasn’t aware that he was dating anyone at the moment.
“No, she had a chin length bob. She looked vaguely familiar, but I may have confused her with someone else.”
“Oh.” As soon as her mother described Bella’s bob, Paula knew who she was talking about. “I think it’s someone staying at the hotel.”
Lucy’s eyes widened and Paula knew she’d connected the same dots. She wondered if Nick knew who Bella really was. She, David and Lucy were the only ones that were aware of Bella’s true identity. Grandfather, too, since she’d filled him in. They generally tried to limit who knew that kind of thing to ensure as much privacy as possible for their celebrity guests. Once word was out to the whole staff, some people couldn’t help but talk to their families and the next thing they knew, they’d have press arriving. So far, that hadn’t happened. And Paula noticed there had been much speculation in the paper on where Bella might have disappeared to.
“So, girls, tell me everything that’s new in your lives. Any interesting new men?” Aunt Vivian asked.
Another question that Paula dreaded. She wasn’t ready to share that Jason had asked her out. She was preparing to give her usual non-answer when Lucy beat her to it.
“I’ve actually just met someone. His name is Ben, and he seems like a really nice guy. We’re going to dinner later this week.”
“Oh, that’s wonderful,” her mother said.
Her aunt leaned forward and lifted her glass of wine. “Tell us all about him…”
Andrea sipped a glass of champagne on the plane ride to New York and stared out the window, deep in thought. She had mixed feelings about this trip. On one hand, she was excited to go to Manhattan. It was always a fun place to visit. But could she see herself actually living there? Once the plane landed, she caught a cab to the hotel, settled into her room, then ventured out to a nearby restaurant for dinner.
There was almost a sense of excitement in the air when she stepped outside and walked along the busy sidewalk. People were rushing along on their way home from work or out to dinner and there was so much concrete everywhere, not a tree in sight. It was night and day different from Nantucket.
The hotel was a few blocks away from a restaurant she loved and had been to several times, Becco. It was on Restaurant Row in the theater district and Andrea was a big fan of the triple pasta special. Servers kept walking around offering three different kinds of pasta, all delicious, and they varied each night. The pasta was also unlimited, so one could have seconds, or even thirds.
She started her dinner with a simple green salad and a glass of Italian chianti. All around her, people were dressed to go to the theater. It was fun to people-watch while she sipped her wine. The pasta was as good as she remembered and after she ate her fill, she slowly walked back to the hotel.
She took another look at the lobby when she entered the hotel. It was a contrast in black and white, with black marble floors and plush white sofas. The walls were painted a rich black and the reception desk was white. The staff all wore white suits. The overall look was sophisticated and elegant.
There was a bar off to the left in the lobby, and it had sleek dark brown leather chairs. Andrea was tempted to have a second glass of wine but decided instead to head to her room and get a good night’s sleep. Her interview was early in the morning, at nine sharp, and she planned to head straight to the airport after that.
She let herself into her room and happily kicked off her shoes. They were gorgeous black leather, but new and a little snug and her feet were protesting. The hotel room was an oasis of calm. The bedding was all white, with a fluffy down comforter and luxurious Frette sheets.
Andrea slept well and woke early the next day. She took care getting ready for the interview and wore a bit more makeup than she usually did. On a typical day, she often just wore lipstick and maybe mascara. But today she also applied a hint of eyeshadow, concealer, a sweep of blush and a dusting of powder to set it all. She wore her best navy suit, and blew her hair stick straight.
She felt confident as she walked downstairs to the corporate offices. She was meeting with Human Resources first and then with the president of the company. Both meetings went very well. She had a better feeling about this interview than she had at the Lennon. There were no awkward moments and the president, a distinguished man in his early sixties, was interesting to talk to and he seemed to understand her wish to join a hotel that was not owned by family.
“I am impressed with your background, Andrea. I think your experience at The Whitley could be a very good fit for us. We have a few other candidates we are seeing this week and then we’d like to bring two candidates back for a final interview with our board. That might not happen for a few weeks, as several of them are out of the country. Does that work with your timing?”
“That’s fine.” Andrea wasn’t in a hurry. Not for a Manhattan-based role. That gave her a little more time to see if something might turn up in Boston.
“We’ll be in touch early next week with our decision.”
“Thank you.”
Andrea checked out after the interview and caught a cab to the airport. There was a shuttle leaving in an hour for Nantucket, so she didn’t have to wait long. She got herself a coffee and relaxed at the gate, waiting for her plane. She had a good feeling about this interview. She would be surprised if she didn’t get a call back for a final interview. And she’d go and see what happened. Maybe living in New York for a few years could be a fun adventure.
Chapter 16
Paula made her rounds Monday morning, checking in with each area of the hotel and, as she walked down the hall between the catering offices and the lobby, she noticed a woman standing in her doorway holding a towel and looking around, as if she was waiting for someone and she looked irritated.
“Is there something I can help you with?” Paula offered.
“You work here?” The woman did not seem happy at all.
“Yes, I’m the general manager.”
“Well. I’ve been standing here waiting for close to ten minutes for housekeeping to bring me more towels. I asked them yesterday to leave extra and instead they only left one!”
“I’m so sorry. I’ll get you more towels myself. I’ll be right back.” Paula went down the hall, around the corner to the laundry room and grabbed four towels that were still warm from the dryer. She added a handful of chocolates, too, and walked back to the woman as fast as she could. She was still standing in the doorway, glaring at Paula as she approached.
“Here you go. Again, I’m so sorry for the delay.” She handed over the towels and the woman’s expression softened when she saw the chocolates.
“Thank you. And thank you for the chocolates, too. We’ve been coming here for years and nothing like this has ever happened before.”
“I’ll make sure it doesn’t happen again. Please accept my apologies.”
“It’s fine. Thank you for taking care of it yourself.”
Paula reached into her pocket and pulled out a coupon for two free drinks at the outside bar and gave it to the woman. “Please have a drink on us as well.”
That brought a smile to her face. “Thank you very much.”
Paula turned to go and almost bumped into David. She hadn’t heard him walk up behind her. He stayed quiet until the woman shut her door and they were halfway down the hall.
“Housekeeping screwed up?”
“Apparently.”
“So, what will you do about it?”
“I need to go talk to them, of course.”
“Right. Mind if
I tag along?”
“Of course not.”
They walked down another hall and saw two housekeeping trolleys outside rooms. Paula knocked lightly on the doors and asked each cleaner to step into the hall for a moment. One woman, Marie, had been with the hotel for years. The other one, Michelle, was relatively new, and much younger.
“I was just walking down the hall and there was a woman in room 200 that was waiting for extra towels that never came. And she said her room was short on towels. Do either of you know what might have happened?”
“I’m sorry, I don’t. I didn’t have that room,” Marie said.
“I did. I screwed up. I was supposed to get her those towels and totally forgot. I’m sorry.” She didn’t sound sorry, though. She sounded disinterested.
“Okay, well, please be more careful. That’s not supposed to happen in a place like this.”
“Got it,” she said.
Paula smiled at Marie. “I heard you just got a new grandchild?”
Marie’s eyes lit up. “Yes!” She reached into her pocked and pulled out a photo of an adorable baby and handed it to Paula.
“So cute!” Paula handed it back. “Enjoy the rest of your day, ladies.” Marie was still smiling as she put the photo back in her pocket, while Michelle just turned and went back into the room she’d been cleaning.
David was quiet as they walked back to their offices. When they reached them, he turned to Paula. “I suppose this is as good a time as any for our touch base meeting. Do you have a few minutes?”
“Sure.” Paula wasn’t sure what he wanted to touch base about, but she followed him into his office and took a seat across from his desk.
“So, I’ve been working with you for a few weeks now and your grandfather wanted me to give him an assessment when I finish as to how suitable I think you are for the job. I thought it might be good for us to check in and discuss how that’s going and where I see some areas for improvement.”
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