CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
That night, lying in bed with Vaugn, I told him about my conversation with Abbie.
“I like them both. Darryl seems like a super guy, not like some other self-absorbed comedians I’ve met,” said Vaughn. “And I admire his decision to quit the show. It takes guts and faith to walk away from a successful career.”
“They’ll be staying with us for a few more days,” I said. “Then they’ll go back to the hotel. Tina should be arriving soon to complete her stay. She had to go home to take care of some personal things.”
“It’s not a problem to have Darryl and Abbie here as guests.”
“While I’m at work, do you mind entertaining them?”
“No problem. Darryl and I have already made plans to go sailing again tomorrow. He wants to learn what he can, and I figure nobody will bother us on the water. Abbie told us she might take time to do a little shopping. I shouldn’t have to worry about her.”
“I’ll talk to her in the morning and ask if she’d like to meet Rhonda and me for lunch.” I nestled up against Vaughn, pleased to have him home. Life always seemed much better with him around.
He wrapped his arms around me and gazed down at me with a tender smile. “This, you, are why I can’t wait to come home.”
He lowered his lips to mine and a familiar longing filled me. Soon, we were able to show each other how important it was for both of us.
###
The next morning at the hotel, Rhonda was already at her desk when I walked into the office. “I can always tell when Vaughn is home,” she said to me. “You look so happy.”
I chuckled. “It makes life better when he’s around. How about a walk on the beach? I want to tell you about a conversation I had with Abbie. And I’ve invited her to have lunch with us today. We need to decide when and where.”
“Okay. I want to tell you something I heard about Brock,” she said. “And the best place to do that is on the beach where no one can hear us.”
We headed out. I loved early morning walks with Rhonda. We did our best thinking there.
After wiggling our toes in the sand, we walked to the edge of the water and stood a moment breathing in the salt air. The soothing sound of the waves kissing the shore and pulling away in a shy dance filled my ears and I couldn’t help smiling. If only running the hotel was as peaceful. But then, the business remained interesting by having different guests arriving and departing like the waves in front of me.
“Feels nice, huh?” said Rhonda, wrapping an arm around me as we stood in the frothy edge of the water.
“It certainly does,” I said, hugging her before stepping away from the water. “I think you’re going to be very pleased when I tell you that Abbie and Darryl are talking about seeing where their relationship will take them. I told Abbie you considered yourself a talented matchmaker, and she said she hopes you’re right.”
“That’s great. I can always tell. Think how right I’ve been about so many couples, Annie. You either got it or you don’t. And, Annie, I’ve got it.”
I looked at Rhonda and didn’t say a word. I couldn’t ruin her moment of triumph.
“I’ve got news for you,” said Rhonda. “I heard from Dorothy that Brock told Everly that if she wanted some action she should go down to the public docks where all the touristy stuff is. How do you like that?”
I blinked in surprise. “Surely, he wouldn’t say something like that.”
“That’s the funny thing. I believe when Brock said ‘action’, he meant some local activities, not drugs. But it doesn’t sound good for him, does it?” Rhonda shook his head. “If he would just learn to mind his own business.”
“But his ego won’t allow him to do just that,” I said. “He’s a nuisance to us, but I don’t wish he’d go to jail or prison for this. Where is he now?”
“Dorothy said he’s at home facing being removed as president of the Neighborhood Association.” Rhonda smiled and I couldn’t help joining her. Having hm lose that position would benefit quite a few people, including us.
We faced the water and stood quietly for a few moments. Brock’s dilemma was a lot to take in.
“There you are,” growled a male voice.
“Speak of the devil,” I said.
We turned to see Brock pounding his feet on the sand as he headed toward us.
“Good morning, Brock,” I said as I normally would. I wasn’t going to accept any blame for the trouble he was in.
“It’s all your fault, this mess of mine,” he said, shaking a finger at us.
“Brock, you know that’s not true,” I said. “We did nothing to make your situation worse than it is by your own doing.”
“It’s your own fuckin’ fault, you know,” said Rhonda. “You try to interfere with our guests even after we’ve asked you not to. In this case, you’ve gotten into trouble for it. When will you learn?”
Brock drew himself up and glared at us. “This is my neighborhood. You’d do best to remember it.”
“I heard it might not be under your influence any longer,” said Rhonda. “I heard the association wants a president who’s not an embarrassment.”
Brock’s face grew bright red. “Nothing will ever come of it. Nobody can do a better job than I can. Everyone knows it.”
Rhonda was about to say something when I sent her a warning look. Arguing with Brock only led to more problems.
“Have a nice walk,” I said, taking Rhonda’s arm and turning away from Brock.
“You two are going to pay for talking to the police about me,” Brock said.
I turned around. “We simply answered questions that we were asked. Nothing more. Don’t make this worse for yourself than it already is. And don’t hang around the hotel.”
“You can’t tell me what to do,” pouted Brock.
I shrugged and walked away.
“I’d like to shut him up once and for all,” said Rhonda, fisting her hands.
I patted her back. “You’re not the only one. Let’s go inside and see what’s happening. Another VIP wedding is about to take place, and I want to make sure Lorraine and Laura are ready to handle it.”
Inside, I spoke to Lorraine, who was sitting in her office going over her checklist for the wedding. A congressman from California was marrying a woman who used to work for him. It was a second marriage for both, and we wanted to make sure it was everything they wanted.
“All is in order,” said Lorraine. “We had a last-minute request for a room. When I told her we were booked, the woman agreed to use the Presidential Suite as long as she got a break in the rate. She said she knew you and Vaughn very well, Ann.”
“Really? Who is she?”
Lorraine looked down at her paperwork and said, “Lily Dorio. Her name sounded familiar, but I couldn’t place it.”
Rhonda looked as surprised as I felt. “That woman is no friend of Ann’s.”
Lorraine gave me an apologetic look. “I’m sorry; I didn’t realize. But what could I have done? She told me she was best friends with the bride.”
“You did nothing wrong,” I said. “It’s just that she was behind bad publicity for Vaughn, claiming they were lovers and that he’d fathered a child with her. It’s a long complicated story, and I detest her. Vaughn isn’t a fan either. But there’s no reason either one of us must deal with her here.”
“I’ll make sure of it,” said Lorraine.
“And I’ll help too,” said Rhonda.
“Thanks,” I said, wondering why our troublesome guests seemed to be the most well-known ones. I was glad Vaughn would be busy with Darryl and away from the hotel. I didn’t want Lily to see either one of them.
We spoke with Lorraine about arrangements and went to our office after a quick stop in the kitchen.
Sitting in a chair facing me, Rhonda looked solemn.
“What’s wrong?” I asked her.
“I don’t like Lily Dorio being here. She causes trouble no matter where she is. We’ve got enough to handle with Darryl and Abbie hiding out here. Tina arrives here today.”
“Tina can take care of herself with Lily, though working with her new husband makes it a bit touchy,” I said. “It’s Darryl I’m worried about. He needs this time to himself to finalize arrangements for leaving the network.”
My cellphone chimed and I saw I had a message from Tina:
‘ Guess who’s on the plane with me? Lily Dorio says she’s coming to The Beach House Hotel for the Brooks wedding and insisted I ride in her limo to the hotel. I thought you’d want to know. Please don’t greet us when we arrive. She wants to get a selfie with you two.’
I sighed and handed the phone to Rhonda.
Rhonda’s eyes widened as she read it. “That bitch! She’s never going to leave you alone.”
“We’ll ask Bernie to meet the limo, but I know there will come a time when I’ll be forced to face her,” I said.
“I’ll take care of being with the guests during the wedding reception,” said Rhonda. “We don’t want anything to disrupt the celebration.”
“Thank you. That would be nice,” I said, wishing I didn’t feel unsettled by the idea of Lily staying at the hotel. More than that, I didn’t want any pictures of me with her. She’d almost destroyed my marriage. Or tried to.
We went over the financials for the wedding, adding staff where we thought we needed, and then we went to see Bernie.
We discussed costs and staffing for the wedding, and then I told him Darryl wanted to stay at the house on the hotel property indefinitely.
“I understand you gave Lily Dorio a special rate for the Presidential Suite.”
“Yes. It’s a good idea to have it rented out again,” said Bernie. “Everything is in excellent condition. We wouldn’t want anyone staying there if it wasn’t so. But if I remember correctly, Ms. Dorio isn’t a favorite of yours.”
I shook my head. “Even though she’s still using her business name, she’s newly married. Some might think that will have changed her, but I doubt it. I want as little to do with her as possible.”
“I’m taking over for the two of us at the wedding reception,” said Rhonda. “And Annette will be there too.”
Bernie bobbed his head. “Oh, yes. I’ll post a note on the VIP board to let the staff know all of Lily Dorio’s needs should be taken care of promptly. She claims she’s a friend of the bride.” In the “back of the house” near the staff room, Bernie had hung a VIP bulletin board with pictures and requirements, if any, of our in-house VIPs. It was helpful for the staff to know who might need extra attention, even though we expected each guest to feel important.
“Thanks,” I said. “I don’t want her to make trouble for the hotel.”
“Anything else we should know about?” Rhonda asked.
“Nothing out of the ordinary. I haven’t seen Brock at the hotel recently, but I suppose he doesn’t want to return to the scene of the crime, so to speak.” Bernie’s eyes twinkled with humor. “I hope he’s learned to stay away from our guests. I’ve spoken to him many times about his intrusions, but this might be the best message of all.”
“He’s made a lot of enemies along the way,” said Rhonda. “We can’t keep him off the beach, but we can make sure he doesn’t intrude upon our guests’ stays.”
“If only,” I muttered, not feeling confident at all.