by Judith Keim
Rhonda waved Consuela over to a seat at the kitchen table. “We need to talk with you.”
We tackled the subject of a diet for Tina Marks, as she’d always be discreetly known to our staff and us .
“So we need to come up with plenty of low-calorie options for her,” Rhonda ended.
A look of disapproval crossed Consuela’s face. “Si, but we don’t make food that has no taste.”
“That’s the challenge,” admitted Rhonda. “She’s a fussy eater who doesn’t like so-called ‘rabbit’ food.”
“She’s fussy about everything,” I said. “So if you have any problems with her, please let us know.” We weren’t about to let any guest abuse Consuela or anyone else on the staff.
I left Rhonda and Consuela discussing Tina’s menu for lunch and went back to my house to check on things. I’d left in such a hurry I hadn’t even made the bed. Besides, I wanted privacy when I called Vaughn. After he had resigned from the soap opera he’d starred in, he’d made one small appearance in a film, and now he was undertaking a bigger role in his first major movie. They were filming in Europe, and I hoped to catch up with him between scenes.
As I approached my house, I paused. It was sometimes hard for me to believe this perfect little house was mine. If Rhonda hadn’t offered to sell me what used to be a caretaker’s cottage on the property for a reasonable price, I might still be without a home.
I felt a smile spread across my face. Robert, my ex, had been shocked to see how well I’d landed on my feet. The house, with two bedrooms, an office, nice open living and eating area, and a fabulous little kitchen, was everything I’d dreamed it would be. The small swimming pool off the lanai was an extra I had decided to put in at the last moment.
Hurrying inside, I couldn’t wait to talk to Vaughn. Our love was such a wonderful surprise to me. A well-known soap opera star, I’d met him when the show had done some filming at the hotel. He was the opposite of the egotistical character he played on television. That, and his devotion to the wife he’d loved and lost to an early death, made him more desirable to me than his dark, handsome features did.
Easing myself onto the desk chair in my home office, I settled down to talk to him. This was one time I didn’t let financial worries interfere. My conversation with him was all I’d have for a while. I punched in his cell number, hoping I’d timed it right.
“Hello?”
The sound of his voice sent pleasure rolling through me. “Hi, Vaughn. It’s me.”
“Hi! I’ve been thinking about you. I’ve had to redo a couple of kissing scenes with Alicia, and the only way I could get through them was to pretend it was you.”
I swallowed hard. I’d never get used to all the other women in his life.
“Ann?”
“I’m here. So, uh, she’s not a great kisser?” I hated asking him, but the insecure part of me needed to know. I still couldn’t believe that of all the women he could have, I was the one he’d chosen.
He chuckled. “Honey, she isn’t you. That’s for sure.”
I drew a breath of relief. “Guess I’d better keep in practice. Maybe I’ll have to find a substitute for you until you come back.”
“Better not,” growled Vaughn, and we laughed together.
“So how’s it going?” I asked.
“Other than the constant rain in Ireland?” he said. “Can’t wait for the outdoor shots to be over. The guy I’m playing is an interesting character, though. What’s up with you?”
“We have a new guest, a VIP who’s very demanding. Rhonda’s already called her a brat. It’s someone you’ve worked with. Guess who?”
After a moment of silence, Vaughn said, “You’re not talking about my least favorite person, an actress by the name of Valentina Marquis, are you?”
“Afraid so. She’s known to us as Tina Marks, but it’s the very same young girl you complained about. She’s hiding out here to lose weight for her next movie. Can you imagine? We’re to provide low-calorie meals for her and her trainer.”
“Ann, that sounds like a can of worms. How did she land at The Beach House?”
I filled him in on the story.
“Too bad. You really need the money?”
“Yes. I was even thinking of surprising you with a visit, but I can’t consider it now. I wouldn’t feel right about leaving, especially when we’re starting a new ad campaign for the holidays.”
“Well, I guess I’ll have to make up for lost time when I get back to Florida.” The note of regret in his voice made me feel a little better about not seeing him. I’d already learned what making up for lost time meant to him, and I couldn’t wait to feel his arms around me, his lips on mine.
“I’ve gotta go,” Vaughn said. “I’ll call you as soon as I can. Maybe when you’re in bed.”
I laughed. “Oh?”
“Guess it’s the best we can do,” he said.
At the smile I heard in his voice, I grinned. I’d never had such fun with a man.
We hung up, and taking a chance that Elizabeth was free, I punched in her number. My daughter was so special to me, the child I’d always dreamed of. I’d wanted more children, but it hadn’t happened. Liz, though, was a daughter any mother would treasure.
It was through Liz that I met Rhonda. As freshmen college roommates, Liz and Rhonda’s daughter, Angela, became the best of friends. This year, though, what would have been her junior year in college, Liz was not at school with Angela but working in DC. After her father had admitted he’d used her college fund to build a house for his new wife, Liz decided to take a year off from school. I’d finally agreed to it, but every time I thought of what Robert had done to her, it made me bubble inside with anger.
Liz’s phone rang and rang. When her voicemail came on, I left a message asking her to give me a call. It had been more than a week since I’d heard from her, and we usually talked every six or seven days.
I straightened up the mess I’d left behind earlier and headed back to the hotel.
A small, wiry man crossed the front lawn of the hotel toward me. Beneath a wide-brimmed straw hat, his dark eyes sparkled as he waved. “Buenos Dias, Annie! When is Señor Vaughn coming back?”
I smiled into his pleasant, brown-skinned face. “Hi, Manny! Vaughn won’t be home for a few more weeks. Why?”
Manny shrugged. “I was hoping he’d help me with some new landscape designs around the pool. He and I talked about it before he left.”
“Why don’t I ask him to email you his ideas? Hopefully, I’ll be talking to him again sometime soon.”
“Okay,” said Manny. “Paul is helping me with the new garden Rhonda wanted. We started this morning.”
“Great. She’ll love it.” Rhonda and Jean-Luc Rodin, the French chef who worked for us in the evenings, had come up with the idea of a herb garden. In the Florida heat, it was a bit of a challenge, but having herbs freshly cut from the garden would be an added feature to the gourmet meals we offered our guests.
When I entered the kitchen, the look of fury on Rhonda’s face stopped me. “What’s wrong?”
“Look what Tina did!” Rhonda pointed to a noticeable spot on her caftan. “Annie, I swear I would’ve tackled her if Jerry hadn’t been there.”
I held back a laugh. With a rough and tumble older brother and from a rather rough neighborhood, Rhonda had always been ready to defend herself.
“What happened?”
“Her agent told me Tina doesn’t like ‘rabbit food,’ so Consuela and I made her a very nice gazpacho-type soup, without all the spice. She took one look at it and threw it at me. I ducked out of the way, but some of it splashed on me.” Rhonda’s dark eyes blazed with fury. “I’m tellin’ ya, Annie, if she doesn’t shape up, I’m gonna choke her.”
“What about the other guests? Did they see her or hear anything?”
Rhonda shook her head. “I asked Jerry to take Tina inside. Maria’s cleaning up the mess on the patio.”
“I’m so sorry this happened.
Tina hasn’t been here even a day, and already she’s causing trouble. Maybe.” I said hopefully, “she just needs a little time to settle in.”
“I don’t know about that. Do we really need the money?” Rhonda gave me a worried look.
“I’ve checked our figures. We’re going to have to get through these next eight weeks, Rhonda. Somehow.”
She made a face. “Maybe a little arsenic would do it.”
“Rhonda...”
She winked. “Okay, okay. It was just a thought.”
Following the dinner hour at the hotel, Rhonda and her husband, Will, sat on my patio sharing a bottle of pinot noir. It was a good time to relax.
Though she’d recently turned forty-two, in Will’s presence, Rhonda became like a young woman again. Love did wonderful things for people, I thought, watching the two of them flirt. Will lifted her hand and kissed it. Beneath her tan, Rhonda’s cheeks flushed a pretty pink.
Will, tall, thin, and shy, was the perfect foil for Rhonda’s exuberance. After living for many years with a sickly wife and caring for her to the end, he’d once told me he loved the way Rhonda charged through life with love and laughter.
Rhonda, I knew very well, had a big heart. Nobody would believe how much she did for others. But then she’d had a stroke of luck not many people receive. She’d won one hundred eighty-seven million dollars in the Florida Lottery. She’d kept control of the money. Though most of the winnings were tied up in various trusts, that’s how Rhonda and Sal bought what she’d simply called The Beach House.
“So what are we gonna do about the brat?” Rhonda said. “Earlier, Jerry came to the kitchen to pick up Tina’s food tray, but he returned it, saying she refused to eat stuff like that. She says she’s going on a hunger strike until she gets what she likes.”
“What does she want?” I’d been too busy overseeing a small private business dinner to pay much attention to the drama with Tina.
“She’s asking for a ten-ounce filet and home fries.” Rhonda snorted with disapproval. “I say give ‘em to her. It would serve her right to lose out on the film. After knowing what she’s like, I never want to see a movie of hers.”
“How is Jerry handling things?”
“He doesn’t look happy about the job. Their rooms connect, so they each have privacy, but he doesn’t dare go into his room until he’s sure she won’t run.”
“Hmmm. Maybe there’s a way we can handle her.”
Rhonda leaned forward. “Yeah? What do you have in mind?”
I grinned. “Bribery. It works on two-year-olds. It might work on her.”
Rhonda, Will and I laughed together.
It was worth a try.
CHAPTER THREE
The next morning, I dressed in shorts and a T-shirt, slipped on sandals, and headed over to Tina’s room. I sensed that behind all the antics she was pulling there was a vulnerable girl who was acting out over something that had nothing to do with us.
Outside, thin spokes of sunlight radiated from the ball of light peeking above the horizon like a child playing hide and seek, barely illuminating the sky.
I knocked softly on her door.
As expected, Jerry answered. His frown turned to a smile when he recognized me. “Got food?” he asked hopefully.
I shook my head. “I have a plan to make Tina hungry enough to eat something healthy.”
He grinned and held the door open. “Come on in.”
Wearing a tank top and shorts, Tina was sprawled on the couch sound asleep. Even though we had a “no smoking” policy in the rooms, the place smelled like burnt tobacco. For that alone, I wanted to give her a good spanking.
“Should I wake her?” At my nod, he went over to her and shook her shoulders. “Okay, princess. Time to get up.”
She groaned. “Go away!”
He shook her harder.
She rolled over and stared up at him. “What the fuck! It’s still dark out, you jerk.”
“Get up, Tina,” I said, coming to Jerry’s side. “I’ve got a deal for you.”
She sat up, pushed the hair out of her face and snarled, “Get out of here.”
I forced a smile. “Aren’t you tired of being a prisoner in here?”
She glared at me. “Yeah, so what?”
“I’m here to sneak you out of the room for a while. But it has to be now before any other guests see you. Come on. Let’s go.”
“I have to change, get some makeup on.”
“No, we don’t want anyone to recognize you. Follow me. We’ll take a walk on the beach.”
Frowning, she got to her feet. “This is your big deal? Doesn’t sound so great to me.”
I took her arm, handed her the baseball cap I saw lying on the floor, and walked her to the sliding door by the patio. “After you’ve been inside the room for another couple of days, it will seem like a dream to you to be able to run on the sand.”
We stepped onto the patio.
It was quiet except for the movement of the waves meeting the shore and rolling back again and the cry of seagulls swooping in the sky above the water. I looked around. The pool was empty, and no one else appeared to be up and about.
“All clear.”
Tina smirked at Jerry. “See ya later...maybe.”
“We’ll be back before the sun is fully up,” I assured him.
Holding onto Tina’s arm, I hurried her across the bit of lawn leading to the white sand beach edging the Gulf of Mexico.
I slipped off my shoes and placed them on the lawn.
When I turned around, Tina had already hit the sand and was trotting away from me.
I caught up with her and pulled her to a stop. “We can make this work or not. Stay with me. Understand?”
She made a face and shrugged. “Anything to get away from that guard you hired for me.”
I took hold of her elbow. “C’mon! I want to show you something.”
She jerked her arm out of my grasp. “I’m not a baby.”
At her defiance, I fought to hold onto my temper. “I was only going to introduce you to something I love to do.”
She remained silent but followed me to the water’s edge. Standing on the hard-packed sand where the tide had ebbed, I took several deep, calming breaths.
“Go ahead, try it,” I said to Tina. “Breathe deeply, close your eyes and listen. You’ll hear all sorts of things most people ignore with their activity. It’s a magical moment.”
“What are you? Some kind of yoga instructor?” Tina sneered.
Frustration ate at me. I shook my head in disgust. “Are you always such a jerk?”
She clamped her hands on her hips and glared at me. “Are you always such a fucking freak? Don’t you know who I am? I’m a star, and you’re a nobody. So there.” Eyes full of disdain, she spit at me, missing my face by inches.
My hand reacted before I thought.
“You bitch!” she screamed, fingering her red cheek.
“I’m sorry,” I said, as shocked as she by the slap I’d given her. “But it’s time you learned you aren’t any better than anyone else. If my daughter ever treated people the way you do, she’d get the same reaction from me.”
“Yeah? Has she told the authorities what kind of bad mother you are?”
“Elizabeth and I ...” I stopped. Tina would never understand that my daughter and I were the best of friends. In Liz’s entire lifetime, I’d rarely had to act with force. “C’mon. Let’s take a walk and cool off before it’s time to go back to the hotel.”
She gave me a challenging look. “What if I run away? God knows I could use some real food and I’d like nothing more than to get away from people bossing me around all the time.”
“Do you honestly think that’s going to help your situation?” I didn’t mention that Jerry was ready to bail from the job of keeping tabs on her. He’d told Rhonda last night he didn’t know how long he could last.
Tina gave out a sigh. “Okay. Let’s go.”
Together, we headed dow
n the beach.
The sand felt cool on my bare feet. Knowing how hot it would get later in the day, I enjoyed the cooler sensation on my toes. Walking along in tandem, I studied Tina out of the corner of my eye. Without the amount of makeup she usually wore, her face was attractive. But the pout of her lips ruined the effect of her other pretty features. I couldn’t help wondering about her family. Did her mother allow her to act this way?
“What are you staring at?” Tina snapped at me.
“Nothing,” I said. “It’s a beautiful morning, huh?”
She shrugged. “Like you said, it feels good to be outside, away from Jerry.”
I heard the sound of footsteps behind me and whipped around.
“Hi, Ann.” Brock Goodwin smiled at me.
My insides turned cold. His well-toned body in bathing trunks, his sleek gray hair, and his handsome features did not interest me. I detested the man.
To avoid being churlish, I said, “Hi, Brock.” I took Tina’s arm and started to lead her away from him.
She jerked out of my grasp and turned back to face Brock. “Who are you, handsome?”
His face lit with pleasure. It was exactly the kind of attention he sought.
“My name’s Brock. How about you, sweetheart?”
I pulled Tina away. “She’s a friend of Liz’s and off-limits to you.”
Brock called to me as we walked away. “You and Vaughn Sanders are never going to make it, and when he breaks it off with you, I’ll be here waiting.”
The look of surprise that crossed Tina’s face was laughable. She stared at me as I kept the two of us marching back to the hotel.
“You’re the hot babe Vaughn kept talking about?” Her shock was more than a little insulting.
“Hot babe?” Others might think of me that way, but heaven knew I didn’t. Forty was on the horizon, and I had a twenty-year-old daughter. Liz had once told me I was gorgeous, whatever that meant, but my self-doubts remained. After all, I apparently couldn’t measure up to bosomy, empty-headed Kandie, the bimbo Robert left me for. That, and growing up with a rigid grandmother who thought I never did anything properly had pretty much convinced me I was nothing special.
