Hotel Vendome

by Danielle Steel

  “So, Madame Manager, what do you think?” Jennifer asked her with a warm smile, as Brad and Bruce chatted and helped themselves to lobster that the chef had prepared the way Hugues liked it. Heloise had ordered it for him.

  “You knew, didn’t you?” Heloise accused her with a warm smile. She had seen it on Jennifer’s face earlier. She hadn’t been nearly as surprised as everyone else in the room. She knew everything Hugues did, and thought, even more sometimes than his eldest daughter and wife.

  “He didn’t tell me exactly, but I had an idea. I’m glad he’s doing it. He needs to get out and have some fun while he’s still young. I think it would be great if they go to Paris for a year. And you can go over and visit.” But she also knew that Heloise would be busier than ever, taking over the reins of the hotel, with all that entailed. But she was the right age to do it. Bruce and Brad moved closer to them then, and Heloise saw Bruce and Jennifer exchange a warm smile. She had known for years that they were quietly seeing each other. It had happened sometime along the way, and they made a nice couple. As Heloise was thinking that, Jennifer turned to her with a shy smile.

  “We have an announcement too,” she said, and blushed as the big security man laughed. “We’re getting married. And I’ll probably retire next year.” She looked like a giddy young girl as she said it, and Heloise hugged her, and then wagged a finger at her.

  “You can get married. But you can’t retire till I take over this hotel and know what I’m doing. You probably know more than I do about running it. You’re not going anywhere!” Jennifer laughed in answer, and suddenly Heloise realized that she’d be sitting in her father’s office, at his desk, and it was a strange feeling. She didn’t see how she could ever step into his shoes and do the job he had. She still had so much to learn. It was humbling thinking about taking his place, and it made her sad. She was having so much fun working with him that she didn’t want him to leave, but she realized that it was probably better for him, and he felt ready. She wasn’t sure she did. She needed to get used to the idea.

  Jennifer and Bruce surprised them then and said they were getting married on Thanksgiving when her children could be there. And Bruce had three children too. Heloise was happy for them, although she was upset when Jennifer said she would retire in the next few months too. And Heloise managed to say hello to everyone before the party ended. It was a beautiful night for her father and she enjoyed it too. And they were talking about it when she and Brad went upstairs after the party. She was tired and still overwhelmed by her father making her general manager and passing her the baton. He was the master of surprises. He had done it to her with his marriage to Natalie, then the twins, and now this.

  “What if I can’t do it, or I screw up, or I destroy the hotel in some way?” she said to Brad with a look of panic as they undressed. Her father had always been there with her. She had never run it alone, except briefly when he was sick.

  “You’ll do it even better than he did,” Brad said confidently as he pulled her onto the bed and into his arms. “You already run this place, you just don’t know it yet. Your father would never have passed it on to you, if he didn’t think you could do it. He loves this hotel too much to take that risk. He knows you can do it, and so do I.” She was the only one who wasn’t sure. It was a big responsibility for her at her age. Being general manager of one of the most successful hotels in New York at twenty-seven was a major feat. And he had no doubt that she would do it brilliantly.

  “Will you help me when I screw up?” she asked, as she leaned against him and he held her close.

  “Yes, but you won’t. You’re not going to need a lawyer to help you run it, just the good people you already have.” They had been in business long enough for some of the staff to retire and move on in the past few years, like Ernesta, and now Jennifer, and even her father, although he wasn’t very old, only sixty. She hadn’t expected him to retire for another ten or fifteen years and figured she’d be ready by then. But having young children and a younger wife made him want to enjoy his life and not just work till he dropped. “I’ve been thinking lately, by the way, that we need to make some changes ourselves.” Brad looked serious as he said it, and Heloise looked puzzled. Her father had said that night that when they came back from their year in Europe, he wanted to buy an apartment, and Natalie could decorate it, and they would move out of the hotel. He was going to give Heloise their apartment when they went away. She was ready to move into a bigger space. She had been in the same small suite for years with Brad, and they liked it. It was home to them now. Everything was suddenly changing so fast. She told Brad about her father’s apartment then, and he seemed pleased. Living at the hotel was convenient for both of them, although it meant that she was on call all the time. But he was used to that too. It was her style, and Hugues’s. And maybe Stephanie’s one day too.

  “Those aren’t really the changes I had in mind, although it’ll be nice to have more space. I was thinking of something else,” he said quietly, as she looked into his eyes.

  “Like what?” She hoped he didn’t want them to move out of the hotel. She would never do that, especially now, even though she knew it was intrusive sometimes living where she worked.

  “I think you’ll be much more efficient as a general manager,” he said pensively as though pondering it, “if you have a stable home life.”

  “I do,” she said, smiling at him and realizing that he was teasing her. “We’ve been together for seven years. How much more stable can it get?”

  “Quite a bit,” he said, laughing, as he held her close. “I think what I mean is a respectable home life. You can’t have an important job like general manager and live with a guy.” He grew serious then and stunned her for the second time that night. “Heloise, will you marry me? I’ve been meaning to ask you that for months. I think this might be the right time.” He took her breath away with the question. She had never worried about marrying him, she knew they would one day. She just didn’t know when. She thought they might do it in their thirties if they wanted kids. They weren’t ready for that yet. She hadn’t even thought about marrying him now.

  “Are you serious?” she asked him with a solemn expression, and he nodded with a smile.

  “Very much so. And if your father is retiring, I think we should do it before your life becomes completely crazy when you take over from him. Let’s do it soon.” She looked shocked, and then he kissed her, and she lay in his arms and smiled. “You haven’t answered me,” he reminded her with a slightly worried look. Maybe she was going to turn him down.

  “I’m enjoying the moment,” she said happily. She had gotten a husband that night, and a hotel. It had been a very big night for her, and she smiled happily at Brad. “Yes. Of course I’ll marry you,” she said, beaming at him, “I never realized till right now how much I wanted you to ask.” He grinned broadly at her then and kissed her again. It had been a perfect night for her. Especially now, with Brad.

  Chapter 26

  HELOISE AND BRAD picked a date in September. It was a gorgeous sunny afternoon. Natalie was her matron of honor, and her bridesmaids were three of her friends from the Lycée, and Jan. Stephanie was the flower girl, and Julien was the ring bearer, although he kept misplacing the rings, and his mother was holding on to them for him.

  Her father was going to give her away, and Miriam and Greg Bones had come, which accounted for an army of paparazzi outside. Everyone who had ever mattered in her life was there, the employees she had worked with, the ones she’d grown up with, Ernesta, Jennifer, and Bruce, the friends she’d had in high school, and even one of her friends from the École Hôtelière. And all of Brad’s family and friends were there too.

  Heloise had taken care of all the wedding plans and details herself. And this time Natalie helped her. She had gone with her to shop for the dress and helped her pick out the bridesmaids’ dresses. And Heloise had very definite ideas about how the wedding should look, the flowers, the tables, the decorations in the r
oom. She worked closely with Franco the florist, and had Jan come in to consult with him to get exactly the look Heloise wanted, with garlands and topiary trees, and Jan was making her bouquet of lily of the valley. She and Brad picked the music and the band, and she ordered new table-cloths for the ballroom. Just as Natalie had, and all the brides who had come to the hotel, she wanted her wedding to be perfect for her and Brad.

  She had invited her mother and admitted to Natalie that she didn’t know if she’d come, and wasn’t sure she cared. It was too late for them by then. Her mother had let her down too often. But it felt rude not to ask her, and her father said she should, and at least give her a chance to show up for once.

  “Do you want her to come?” Natalie had asked her honestly. Heloise thought about it for a long moment, sighed, and then nodded.

  “I feel stupid saying it. But I think I do.”

  “Don’t feel stupid. No matter how inadequate and disappointing they are, they’re still our mothers. I actually missed my mother on my wedding day, and she probably would have been mean to me if she was there. She always was.” It was a bond that Natalie and Heloise shared, and had been their first, when Natalie told her about her mother, the day before she married Hugues. It had been the end of Heloise’s campaign against her, and they had been close ever since. And Heloise knew that if her mother didn’t come, Natalie would be enough.

  And much to her amazement, Miriam had accepted, and said she’d be delighted to come, with Greg, Arielle, and Joey, and she asked for two large suites at the hotel, complimentary of course, since she was the mother of the bride. She asked for the presidential suite, but it was occupied, and Hugues wouldn’t move the important guest in it for her. So they gave her two very nice suites on the ninth floor. And the paparazzi went nuts outside because of Greg.

  It had been an insane week, but everything had gotten done, everyone had helped her, especially Jan, Jennifer, and Natalie, and Heloise had worked till the last minute.

  And then finally they had the rehearsal dinner and closed the restaurant to do it there, and the big day came faster than Heloise expected. And the next thing she knew, Natalie and her mother were helping her dress. Predictably, Miriam was wearing an almost-see-through sexy white gown, totally oblivious that she wasn’t supposed to wear white to a wedding, and even less if her daughter was the bride. And Heloise’s half-brother and -sister by her mother were there, Arielle and Joey. They were nineteen and twenty, were wearing jeans and sneakers, and had as many tattoos as Greg and her mother, and Stephanie said they were very rude. Joey had even arrived carrying his own beer bottle into the rehearsal dinner, but Heloise didn’t care.

  She had selected a simple white organdy gown with a huge skirt and full sleeves you could see her arms through that made her look like she was floating in a cloud, with her red hair in a neat bun under her veil. And her father’s eyes filled with tears when he saw her. All he could think of now was what she had looked like at seven as she ran around the hotel. And he looked proud as he walked her down the aisle, to the steps where Brad was waiting. He looked at her as though he had waited for this moment all his life. They both had, and the moment was perfect.

  The ceremony was short and simple, and Julien handed them the rings and didn’t lose them. The minister pronounced them man and wife, and when Brad kissed her, she knew she was in the right place with the right man at the right time. They danced all night and had a terrific time at their wedding.

  Brad looked down at her with a blissful expression as he danced with her and thought he had never seen a more beautiful woman in his life, and Heloise had never been happier. She loved knowing that she was his wife.

  “Was it everything you wanted it to be?” he asked about their wedding, and she nodded, looking peaceful and totally happy.

  “Everything and more. And I feel like a guest at the hotel.” She was trying not to play assistant manager that night and not worry about anything.

  And even her mother had behaved. Her father had danced with her once, and after years of being happily married to Natalie, he realized that he wasn’t angry at Miriam anymore. It was a relief. And she said the hotel was even more beautiful than before. Greg was polite too, and both their children got so drunk, they had to go back to their suite before dinner.

  Julien and Stephanie behaved like angels and took turns dancing with their parents and each other.

  Her whole wedding night felt like a dream to Heloise. It was perfect. And the ballroom had never looked lovelier, with Franco and Jan working on the flowers together.

  They stopped dancing at eleven so the bride and groom could catch the one A.M. flight to Paris. They were going to stay at the Ritz, and then fly on to Nice to stay at the Hotel du Cap in Cap d’Antibes, which was perfect for a honeymoon.

  When Heloise tossed the bouquet Jan had made her for that purpose so she could keep her own, she aimed it straight at her sister Stephanie, who caught it and screamed with glee, as Julien rolled his eyes and wondered how she could be so silly. It was a legacy, for all the bouquets Heloise had wanted to catch as a little girl and hadn’t been allowed to, and in memory of the one Natalie had tossed her seven years before, on the day she met Brad at their wedding. And Stephanie held the bouquet high like a prize. Her father and Natalie and all their friends watched as they got into the Rolls outside the hotel, and Heloise stopped long enough to kiss her father, and then with a last wave they got into the car.

  And as they drove away from the hotel in a flurry of rose petals, her cell phone rang. She glanced at the number and saw that it was the hotel. Her father was babysitting the hotel for her, and when they came back, he was retiring and leaving for Paris. They had just rented an apartment on the Left Bank. These were going to be his last weeks of running the Hotel Vendôme, and after that Heloise would take over. She started to answer her phone, and Brad took it from her hand and kissed her.

  “You’re not on duty,” he reminded her. “You’re all mine for the next two weeks.” But more than that, she was his for the rest of time. And the hotel would be there when they got back. It was hers now. He kissed her again, and she turned her cell phone off and put it in her pocket. For now the hotel could wait. It would all be there when she got back, just as it had been all her life.

  About the Author

  Danielle Steel is one of the world’s most popular and highly acclaimed authors, with nearly 600 million copies of her novels sold. Her many international bestsellers include, Happy Birthday, 44 Charles Street, Family Ties, Legacy and Big Girl. She is also the author of His Bright Light, the story of her son Nick Traina’s life and death. She lives in California and Paris.

  Also by Danielle Steel

  HAPPY BIRTHDAY

  44 CHARLES STREET

  LEGACY

  FAMILY TIES

  BIG GIRL

  SOUTHERN LIGHTS

  MATTERS OF THE HEART

  ONE DAY AT A TIME

  A GOOD WOMAN

  ROGUE

  HONOUR THYSELF

  AMAZING GRACE

  BUNGALOW 2

  SISTERS

  H.R.H.

  COMING OUT

  THE HOUSE

  TOXIC BACHELORS

  MIRACLE

  IMPOSSIBLE

  ECHOES

  SECOND CHANCE

  RANSOM

  SAFE HARBOUR

  JOHNNY ANGEL

  DATING GAME

  ANSWERED PRAYERS

  SUNSET IN ST. TROPEZ

  THE COTTAGE

  THE KISS

  LEAP OF FAITH

  LONE EAGLE

  JOURNEY

  THE HOUSE ON HOPE STREET

  THE WEDDING

  IRRESISTIBLE FORCES

  GRANNY DAN

  BITTERSWEET

  MIRROR IMAGE

  HIS BRIGHT LIGHT:

  The Story of Nick Traina

  THE KLONE AND I

  THE LONG ROAD HOME

  THE GHOST

  SPECIAL DELIVERY

&
nbsp; THE RANCH

  SILENT HONOUR

  MALICE

  FIVE DAYS IN PARIS

  LIGHTNING

  WINGS

  THE GIFT

  ACCIDENT

  VANISHED

  MIXED BLESSINGS

  JEWELS

  NO GREATER LOVE

  HEARTBEAT

  MESSAGE FROM NAM

  DADDY

  STAR

  ZOYA

  KALEIDOSCOPE

  FINE THINGS

  WANDERLUST

  SECRETS

  FAMILY ALBUM

  FULL CIRCLE

  CHANGES

  THURSTON HOUSE

  CROSSINGS

  ONCE IN A LIFETIME

  A PERFECT STRANGER

  REMEMBRANCE

  PALOMINO

  LOVE: POEMS

  THE RING

  LOVING

  TO LOVE AGAIN

  SUMMER’S END

  SEASON OF PASSION

  THE PROMISE

  NOW AND FOREVER

  GOLDEN MOMENTS*

  GOING HOME

  * Published outside the UK under the title PASSION’S PROMISE

  For more information on Danielle Steel and her books, see her website at www.daniellesteel.com

  TRANSWORLD PUBLISHERS

  61–63 Uxbridge Road, London W5 5SA

  A Random House Group Company

  www.transworldbooks.co.uk

  First published in the United States

  in 2011 by Delacorte Press,

  an imprint of The Random House Publishing Group,