by Judith Keim
“Nothing,” Rhonda and I said together, continuing to laugh.
Good-natured as always, Will let it go and gave Rhonda a loving look. “Ready to go home, hon?”
“Remember, Annie; I’ll be in late tomorrow. Angela is coming in at noon, and I want to spend a little time with her.”
“Take as much time as you need.”
Rhonda got to her feet with a groan. “Oh, boy! I’m gonna sleep tonight.”
I rose and gave her a hug. “Nice job, partner.”
Rhonda and Will left, and I went to find Vaughn. He was sitting out on the pool deck. The lights in the pool were lit, giving the water an iridescence that was both beautiful and eerie.
“Come have a seat,” said Vaughn, patting a space next to him on the large lounge chair.
I stretched out beside him, fitting easily into the shape of his body. The glow from the pool washed our faces in blue light. At the sigh of contentment from his lips, I warmed inside.
Enjoying the peace and quiet after the noisy party, we cuddled, satisfied simply to be together.
When our eyelids began to droop, Vaughn tugged me up and out of the chair.
“C’mon, Sleeping Beauty. Time to go home.”
We said goodbye to Dave, who was working on the night audit and headed to my house.
Staring up at the starry sky, I had the deep-seated feeling I was exactly where and with whom I was meant to be.
I whispered my thanks to the skies and gave Vaughn’s hand a squeeze.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
All morning, while I worked at the hotel making sure things were in order for our next wave of guests, my mind was filled with worry over Angela’s arrival. I wished as I had so many times, that I could’ve talked to Rhonda about the situation, but I also knew the importance of keeping trust between Angela and me. With her emotions in such disarray, Angela needed to know she could count on me until she’d figured out what to tell everyone else.
I was in the kitchen discussing Christmas Day menus with Jean-Luc when my cell phone rang. Seeing the caller’s name, I swallowed hard and answered.
“Annie, can you meet me at your house? I need to talk to you.”
“Sure, is everything all right?”
“You know very well that it isn’t.” Rhonda’s voice was as cold as the winter days I’d disliked so much in Boston.
“Rhonda, I ...”
She hung up before I could continue. My heart pounded with dismay. Woodenly, I told Jean-Luc we’d continue the conversation later, to give me a list of what items we needed.
I hurried over to my house, glad that Vaughn and Liz had planned on doing lunch and some Christmas shopping together.
As I drew closer to my house, Rhonda roared up in her red Caddy. I stepped aside and waited for her to get out of the car. Her red eyes and blotchy skin were telling, but it was the angry look she gave me that made my mouth go dry.
Standing in the driveway, she settled her hands on her hips and glared at me. “You knew! You knew! Angela told me you’ve known about her situation for some time, and yet you didn’t tell me! How could you do that to me?”
“I’m sorry, but how could I not do that for Angela?” I said quietly. “I love her like my own daughter. She insisted I not tell you or anyone else until she’d worked things out for herself. I begged her to tell you, and she refused. She loves you so much, Rhonda.”
Rhonda lowered her face in her hands.
I put my arm around her shoulders. “I’m sorry, Rhonda. I really am. You’re my best friend, and I wouldn’t hurt you for the world.”
“Oh, I know that,” she said, lifting her tear-streaked face. “It’s that I’m so disappointed for her. She loves Reggie so much. And me? I could kill him with my bare hands. He and that family of his made it plain she’s not good enough for him.” She sniffed. “All because of me.”
“Whoa!” I said, leading her into my house. “Let’s not even think along those lines. Let’s sit and talk it over.”
I fixed two glasses of blueberry iced tea, and we took them out to my patio.
Rhonda looked around. “Where’s Liz? And Vaughn?”
“Christmas shopping. I don’t know who was more pleased with the plan, Vaughn or Liz.”
“What’s Liz going to think about Angela’s pregnancy?” Rhonda shook her head. “Can you believe it? My daughter and I having babies at about the same time?” Tears filled her eyes once more. “I want Angela to be as happy as I am about having a baby. Ya know?”
I took hold of Rhonda’s hand. “No matter what happens, that baby will be loved. You know that.”
Rhonda’s weak smile was filled with sadness. “It tears me up to see Angela so unhappy, so unsure of herself.”
“What about school? Has she decided what she’s going to do about that?”
“Angela says she’s going to take a semester off and then go back. That’s what she was working on before she came home.” Rhonda wrung her hands. “I never did go to college, so it’s real important to me that she gets her degree.”
“She’s very bright. Perhaps she can take some computer courses for credit during her stay at home.”
“But how can she go to school and raise a baby?” Rhonda gave me a long sigh. “It’s all so complicated.”
“What about Reggie in all this?”
“Angela has refused to see him or talk to him on the phone. But, Annie, he’s gotta know about this. I suggested she call and invite him down here for New Year’s Eve. Once he sees her, he might do the right thing.”
“What is the right thing?” I asked her.
She shrugged her shoulders. “I have no friggin’ idea.”
Her sigh lifted in the air and fell. She got to her feet. “I’d better get back to the house, and then I’ll return to the hotel.”
I stood up and hugged her. “Why don’t you stay home this evening? The staff and I will take care of everything.”
She pulled me to her for a long hug. “What would I do without you, Annie? You’re always there for me.”
“So you’re not mad at me anymore?”
She gave me a sheepish smile. “Naw, it’s only the hormones talking and the shock of it all. I’d do the same thing for Liz if she asked me.”
I walked her out to her car and waited for her to get behind the wheel.
“Guess we’d better get used to having babies around,” I said.
“Oh, my Gawd! I’ve been so worried about Angela it suddenly hit me. Her baby makes me a grandmother. I don’t think I’m ready for that. One kid will call me Mom and the other Grandma? It seems like a bad joke, huh?”
I patted her arm. “We’ll all get used to it. Just give it time.”
“Maybe so. When Liz gets back, will you ask her to give Angela a call? Or send her over. I think Angela needs her more than she needs me right now. I was pretty upset.”
She pulled out of the driveway.
As I watched her go, I wondered what Reggie would do when he got the call from Angela.
I was in the kitchen rinsing the glasses when Vaughn and Liz walked in. They were both smiling.
“Hello there! How’d the shopping go?”
Vaughn grinned. “I’d say that Santa and his helper were very busy. It should be a fun time.”
“Yeah, we got the best stocking stuffers ever.” Liz’s eyes glowed with happiness. Earlier, we’d decided to concentrate on several small gifts rather than one or two expensive ones. Both girls would get much-needed checks but no other gifts except for their Christmas stockings.
“Angela is home,” I said. “Rhonda is wondering if you’d go visit her, Liz.”
Liz’s eyebrows shot up. “What’s going on?”
“The news is out, so you might as well know. She’s pregnant.”
“Wow,” Liz said. “Reggie’s?”
“I’ll let her tell you all about it. Rhonda is pretty upset because Angela has refused to talk to Reggie or to see him. She’s hoping he’ll come down to the hotel this holiday seas
on and help get things sorted out.”
Liz’s expression grew thoughtful. “I wondered what was going on with her. Now I know. Is she going back to school? I was going to room with her.”
“When is the baby due?” Vaughn asked.
“About the same time as Rhonda’s baby. I’m not sure of the exact date.”
Liz gave a low whistle. “I bet Ange is really depressed. That’s why she wouldn’t take my calls. Where are the car keys? I’d better get right over there.”
I handed Liz the keys and turned to Vaughn.
“I’ve got a little while before I have to go back to the hotel to handle a private dinner. Want to take a swim? The pool is heated up to a nice temperature.”
“Sure. Guess it’s me and Liz for dinner, huh?” The disappointment in his voice made me cringe. It wasn’t fair to him, but I didn’t know what else I could do. The dinner was scheduled, and Rhonda was taking the evening off.
“Afraid so. Tomorrow will be a little easier. With two private parties in the house tonight, I have to be there.” The 24/7 commitment to the business was something I sometimes chafed under. But it was reality and my life.
Vaughn and I changed into bathing suits and stared at one another in the middle of my bedroom. He was a few years older than I, and his body was trim and muscular and lean. He worked hard at keeping fit because cameras were cruel to actors. Gazing at him now, I thought he was handsome.
He moved toward me.
I lifted my arms for his embrace.
Snuggled up against me, I was fully aware of his arousal. I wrapped my arms around his neck and sighed with pleasure. Moments like this almost made our time away from one another worth it.
He slipped a hand down the front of my bathing suit. The tip of my breast tingled with his familiar touch.
Smiling, I pulled off my suit. Heart pounding, I watched as he tossed his bathing trunks aside. Confident, he lifted me up onto the bed. I lay there, gazing into those dark eyes of his, drawn in by the passion I saw in them. And then his lips met mine, and we began to move together.
We were up and dressed when Liz came through the front door, calling my name.
My heart pounded with dismay when I noticed her red, swollen eyes.
“Liz! Are you all right? Is Angela okay?”
Tears swam in her eyes. “It’s all so sad. Angela loves Reggie, but she insists she doesn’t want him to know about the baby. Rhonda made her call Reggie to invite him down to the hotel for the New Year celebrations. He told her he couldn’t come, that he had a lot of deb parties to go to, and it was time for them to move on.” Liz swallowed hard. “Angela’s heart is broken, and Rhonda is mad as hell.”
“She’s going to have to tell him the truth. For one thing, it’s the law.” With my divorce from Robert, I’d learned painful lessons about truth, but in the end, having all the facts made things fair—not necessarily easy or fun, but fair.
“Rhonda thinks so too, but Angela said if Rhonda or anyone else tells him, she’ll disappear and we’ll never see the baby.” Liz wiped her eyes. “She’ll do it too. You know how stubborn she can be.”
“Yes, but why does she feel this way?”
“Ange says she knows what she and Reggie had was special, and he’s going to realize it without her trapping him with news of the baby.” Liz shook her head. “I don’t know what to think. They seemed really good together when they visited me in DC.”
I let out a worried sigh. “As much as we might not like it, nobody else can make those decisions for Angela. Give her time. She’ll come around. For the baby, if not for us.”
“I hope you’re right, Mom, because I’ve never seen Rhonda and Angela so angry with each other.”
I didn’t say anything more, but my worry grew.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Rhonda and I took turns supervising the rash of holiday parties at the hotel. Now that we’d become known for our lunches, we found ourselves busy most days hosting both lunches and dinners for outside guests as well as those staying in the hotel.
Jean-Luc and Sabine hung in there—Jean-Luc in the kitchen and Sabine overseeing the service of the delicious food he created. Julie and Tim were working well together, and Dave, bless his heart, stayed around the hotel even after he was relieved of duty as the night desk clerk. As grateful as I was to him for his loyalty, I realized it was time to bring in someone else to handle those duties when he was off.
Staffing the hotel was a little like the accordion effect of dense highway traffic—too many staffers at one moment, too few the next. But with an upscale property like The Beach House Hotel, it was important to have enough help at all times.
As I worked on payroll, I wondered how we’d manage without Rhonda for the early months of motherhood, but then brushed aside my worries, telling myself I’d address those issues after the holidays.
I hurried and finished up my work so I could enjoy a free evening with Vaughn and the girls. Nell had arrived that afternoon, and I’d planned a nice family dinner, just the four of us.
Outside, clouds floated above me in the graying sky like dollops of whipped cream. The first tinges of pink color from the setting sun highlighted their irregular shapes, tempting me to take some time to create cloud pictures in the sky.
Drawing near the house, I heard the giggles of the girls and realized that in spite of the cool air, they were in the pool.
Vaughn looked up at me as I entered the kitchen and grinned. “Ah, the princess returns to her castle.”
Laughing, I went to him. “So how is the prince?”
“Glad to see you.” He drew me into his arms. “Would you like a glass of wine? I bought a nice pinot noir to go with the salmon I’m going to grill.”
“Great. I’ve already got the asparagus all set. Did you get the French bread I wanted?”
He nodded and gave me a pensive look. “Ellen and I used to love cooking together like this. And now I have you. How lucky can a guy get?”
“A lot luckier than this after the girls have left for the evening,” I said, enjoying a flirtation with him.
He laughed. “I love you, Ann. Guess you know that, huh?”
I grinned. “Yeah, I love you too,” I said as our lips drew closer.
“Oh no! Are you guys getting all romantic on us?”
Chuckling, we broke apart.
Nell, wrapped in a beach towel, came over to me and gave me a hug. Her eyes sparkled with pleasure. “Hi, Ann!”
I kissed her, struck as always by her uncanny resemblance to Liz. Two peas in a pod, they called themselves.
“Welcome! I’m so glad you could make it!”
She returned my smile. “Thanks. I’m pleased to be here. Holidays are for family, and I’ve missed being together like this.”
Her words warmed me. She’d been supportive of Vaughn and me from the beginning.
Liz came inside, and after the girls changed into their clothes, the four of us sat on the lanai, sipping drinks, and talking. Studying Liz, I admired her for how she’d survived all we’d been through. That same inner strength would, I hoped, be a help to Angela as she went through becoming a mother alone.
“So, Dad, I’m thinking I’d like Clint to meet you and Ann,” said Nell, drawing me back into the conversation.
Vaughn leaned back and studied his daughter. “So who is this Clint Dawson?”
A dreamy expression filled Nell’s face, adding a glow to her lovely features. “He’s the man I’m going to marry.” At her father’s look of dismay, she held up a hand. “Don’t worry. It’s not going to happen soon. He doesn’t even know it yet.”
I laughed softly, along with the others. But I could tell how serious Nell was about him. She had the look of love about her.
I couldn’t help thinking of Angela. Why, I wondered, couldn’t Reggie have agreed to visit her? Was he already committed to the girl who lived in Palm Beach, the daughter of Katherine Smythe’s friend, the girl Katherine wanted him to accompany to all those fancy
deb parties?
Vaughn got up to start the grill. I went inside to set the table. I put aside my concerns for Angela, intent on enjoying the evening with my family.
Christmas, Hanukkah, and half of the Kwanzaa celebration passed in a blur of unprecedented activity, due to the hotel’s growing reputation for fine dining. Our spring season was already filling up, which was both a joy and a worry to me. That’s when both Rhonda’s and Angela’s babies would be born, leaving me to handle things on my own.
As I sat in the office with Rhonda, we commiserated about the lack of time we had for family. Vaughn had been great about my being unable to spend much time with him, but, genial as he was, he was getting tired of it. And Will was fretting about Rhonda working so hard.
“Who knew it would be so hectic?” said Rhonda, sighing and absently rubbing her growing stomach. “I’ve hardly even seen you. We’ve been like ships passing in the night.”
“I love the success we’re having, but we’re going to have to bring someone in to help manage this place. Tim is wonderful at what he does, but he doesn’t have the experience to handle the entire operation, and we can only do so much. After the wedding, we’ll talk about hiring a general manager. Okay?”
“Yeah, someone who can manage the staff while we do the work behind the scenes.” Her eyebrows drew together with worry. “I want to be there for Angela.”
“Any more word from Reggie?”
Rhonda shook her head. “No, the little prick. I could murder him for what he’s doing to her. Angela needs closure.”
Nell left Florida the next day to celebrate New Year’s Eve with Clint. Liz had already informed me she was going out with Troy, leaving Vaughn and me alone with guests at the hotel.
During a lull between lunch at The Beach House Hotel and the start of our New Year’s Eve party, Vaughn and I were able to spend time alone at my house. I was stretched out on the couch, my head in his lap, talking about what the next year would bring when the jangling of my phone brought me reluctantly to my feet.
Leery, I checked caller ID. Angela.
“Hi, sweetie! What can I do for you?” I asked her.
