CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
When I got up the next morning, I went into the kitchen to find Abbie and Darryl sitting at the table sipping coffee.
“Wow! You’re up early,” I said, grabbing a cup for myself. “Where’s Vaughn?”
“Down by the boat,” said Abbie. “Robbie’s still in bed.”
“Have you already had a workout?” I asked Darryl as he wiped the sweat from his brow with a towel.
“Yeah, this beast doesn’t let up,” he teased, grinning at Abbie.
Observing the way, they were smiling at one another, I felt I was watching two people falling in love.
“C’mon. We need to jog around the neighborhood,” said Abbie rising.
Groaning, Darryl got to his feet and followed Abbie out the door.
I sat and reached for my iPad to check for news stories. It was convenient that our local newspaper had online access. I usually started there.
The front page showed Lily Dorio’s photograph directing readers to the social events section. I went directly to that page and stared in dismay at a photo of Lily Dorio, an old fake photo of Lily and Vaughn, and a photo of yesterday’s wedding, showing the bride and groom.
I could feel my face grow hot as I studied them. By the time I got through the article, most of which was a great exaggeration on Lily’s part as to her fame and connections, I was boiling mad.
As I picked up the phone to call Rhonda, my cell pinged.
“Did you see the paper?” Rhonda said. “Lily Dorio and her fake news is all over the social section. We’re going to have to apologize to Robert Anderson and the bridal party. Not only did Lily break our hotel NDA rules, she also broke her pledge to them.”
“What was Terri Thomas thinking? She understands the agreement we made with her about publicity of our guests without their permission.” Terri was the reporter in charge of the social section of the newspaper and usually cooperated with us.
“You’d better call her, Annie,” said Rhonda. “If I even tried to be nice, I’d end up telling her to fuck off.” There was only so much diplomacy Rhonda could manage when she was upset.
“Okay, I’ll do it. You call Bernie and explain the situation to him, and later, before Robert and Brianna leave, we’ll apologize to both of them for the way Lily broke her pledge to all of us.”
“Oh, boy. I knew we’d have trouble with Lily. I wish there was some way we could’ve refused her a room. “
“Me, too, but that wasn’t going to happen. Be sure to ask Bernie to notify us when Lily is ready to check out. I intend to speak to her.”
“Do you want me to join you?” asked Rhonda.
“You bet,” I said, upset at both Lily and Terri. Lily was Lily and Terri knew darn well she should’ve cleared parts of that article with us.
I called Terri, who covered social news for the Sabal Daily News. Soon after we opened the hotel, we’d made an agreement with her. We’d share what news we could without jeopardizing our guests’ confidentiality in return for her respecting our policy.
“Hello. Nice article, huh?” said Terri cheerfully when she answered the call. “I assigned a new young reporter to the interview. I’m hoping he’ll eventually replace me.”
“Didn’t you proof the article?” I asked. “It was full of private information. I certainly didn’t approve the picture of Lily with Vaughn, which you may remember caused an uproar a few years ago. And all wedding guests were asked not to take photographs of the ceremony. Someone must have rushed that through. You’ve broken your arrangement with The Beach House Hotel. How could you? Lily even mentions arriving at the hotel with Tina. That’s confidential information.”
“Hold on, hold on,” said Terri. “My reporter told me that everything was cleared. Lily told him how she was friends with you, Rhonda, and Tina, and everything was okay.”
“That’s not true,” I said. “Why didn’t you check with us directly? We’ve built our business on assuring our guests of privacy. That article will prove otherwise.”
“Oh, Ann, I’m sorry. The article was really about the life of a well-known Hollywood agent. At least that’s how it was supposed to be presented. She just added in a few names and offered us photographs telling of those friendships.”
“It was, in truth, a whole bunch of lies, something you would’ve caught yourself. Now, Rhonda and I are left with a mess because you didn’t check the article before it went to press.”
I drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly, trying to calm myself. “I’m angry and very disappointed. Hold on. Rhonda just walked into my house.”
“Is that Terri?” asked Rhonda loudly. “If so, tell her I’m fucking furious.”
Terri sighed into the phone. “I heard that. If I try to retract anything, it’ll just bring more attention to the issues. I promise that it won’t happen again. I’m trying to get out of the business, but I should’ve checked his work.”
“You’re right. Let’s agree that no more comments about that article will be printed in the paper.”
“Okay,” said Terri and ended the call.
“How’d you do with Bernie?” I asked Rhonda.
“He said he’d be sure to talk to Robert Anderson. He told me that Lily left the hotel early this morning for a flight to New York.”
We studied one another and then I rose. “I’m going to check on the Presidential Suite. Do you want to come?”
“Yes,” said Rhonda. “I want to get there before the hotel staff to make sure nothing is stolen or messed up. At least, Lily paid her bill.”
###
As we stood outside the Presidential Suite, I gathered my nerve to go inside.
“Ready?” asked Rhonda.
I nodded.
Inside the entry, all was quiet and in place.
We walked through the living room, dining room, and kitchen, satisfied things were in order.
“We’d better check the master bedroom suite,” I said.
We walked into the room.
The bed covers were thrown back and onto the floor. An open box of trojans was sitting on the bedside table, A towel stained with something that looked like coffee was thrown on the floor.
Rhonda went to the closet. “Just as I thought, both hotel robes are gone. Lily must have taken them. We’ll charge that to her credit card.”
I checked the bathroom. The beautiful shell-shaped dish that would hold several days’ supplies of toiletries was gone. In addition to the usual amenities by the sinks, we provided a toothbrush, toothpaste, and a comb for emergencies in one of the vanity drawers. They too were gone.
“Guess she took whatever she could,” said Rhonda. She stepped into the bedroom and gazed around. “Funny thing, she’s erased any idea of a ghost here.”
“She took that too,” I said, feeling the same way.
“Let’s put her on a list of people who are banned from the hotel,” said Rhonda. “She was trouble from the beginning. Thank goodness, Vaughn stayed out of her mess.”
“He finally texted Lily and told her he would not deal with her again,” I said. “He’s going to be upset by the photo in the paper. What he does about it is up to him. I’m not going to get involved.”
“Maybe it’s better left alone,” said Rhonda. She walked over to the window in the master bedroom of the suite and looked out at the scene below. “We can’t let one person harm what we’ve accomplished.”
“You’re right,” I said, coming up beside her. “I love sharing the hotel with people who appreciate it.”
We went to the office, and I quickly checked the billing for the wedding party and then rose. “Vaughn told me he’s going to have to return sometime this week and I want to spend as much time with him as possible.”
“I get it. Rita is off, so I need to return home to take care of the kids. Will is stressed from work, and I want him to be able to relax.”
“What about that vacation you had set up? Now is the right time to take it.”
“We’ll see,” said Rhonda. “He’s already grumbling about time away from the office.”
A knock sounded at the door.
I got up to answer it. “Tina! What are you doing here?” I asked, waving her inside.
“It’s the newspaper article this morning. I’m sorry, but I can’t stay here. I’ve already received phone calls from several papers and magazines in the area for interviews. The reason I came here was for privacy while I lost a few pounds and got into shape for my next role.”
I hugged her. “I’m sorry. We’ve already talked to the person responsible at the newspaper. It seems that Lily assured the new reporter that everything was okay. Even so, the reporter’s boss should’ve known she had to call us before releasing private information about any guest here at the hotel.”
“Aw, honey, we wish it hadn’t happened,” Rhonda said to Tina. “What are you going to do?”
“I’ve booked a flight to California for this afternoon. And I’m taking Abbie. She’ll complete her contract with me.”
“Oh, but …” started Rhonda, quieting at a look from me. I knew she wanted to say something about Abbie and Darryl becoming more than friends, and that was none of our business.
“Apparently Darryl’s had some awful news, and he’s thinking of going to New York. So, it wasn’t going to work out for Abbie to stay anyway. She’s happy to come to California with me. The only problem is, I’m being forced to cancel my reservation for the guesthouse here.”
“Don’t worry about that,” I said, privately cursing Lily. “The important thing is for you to have the proper space for you to prepare for your film. I’m sure that Consuela can give you some of the recipes for Abbie’s favorite foods here.”
“That would be wonderful,” said Tina. “I was hoping to be able to spend some time with you both while I was here, but it seems as if this long visit was troubled from the beginning.”
I hugged her. “You’re welcome anytime you want. We just want you to be happy and successful.”
Rhonda hugged Tina. “We love you, Tina.”
Tina gave us a wan smile. “Sorry about all this.”
She left, and Rhonda and I sighed together.
“It’s amazing how everything that seemed perfect is ending so badly,” said Rhonda. “I thought Darryl and Abbie might end up together. But if they’re on a different coast of the country, I doubt it’ll happen.”
“I wonder what’s happening with Darryl,” I said. “If I hear any news, I’ll let you know. I’d better get home.”
###
As I pulled into the driveway, Darryl was saying goodbye to Abbie, who stood with her suitcase outside of Vaughn’s car.
I hurried over to them. “Abbie, I’m very sorry you’re leaving. I want you to know you’re welcome anytime you want. I’m going to miss you.”
“Thanks,” she said. “I’m going to miss you and everyone here.” She gave a meaningful look to Darryl.
“I’ll leave you to yourselves,” I said, understanding.
Inside the house, Vaughn was in the kitchen preparing to leave. “I’ll drive Abbie to the hotel to be with Tina. Darryl is going to stay here to make a few calls. It doesn’t look good for him.”
I blinked with alarm. “What’s the problem?”
“I’ll let him tell you what’s going on,” said Vaughn. “I don’t think it’s my place to say.”
My pulse jumped. I looked out the kitchen window and saw Darryl hugging Abbie.
A moment later Darryl walked inside, and Vaughn left.
“Hi,” I said. “What’s happening?”
“You’d better sit down. My situation has changed. I got a call from my agent. I’m being sued for sexual harassment.”
I frowned. “Even I who’ve known you for a short time find it hard to believe that you would do such a thing.”
“This woman and I went out to dinner once. She invited me to her apartment, and I said no, I wasn’t interested. She’s been angry ever since.”
“Have you called a lawyer? You’ll need an excellent one,” I said.
“Oh, yes. I’m going to New York today to meet with him. I want to get this settled as quickly as possible. People may think by charging me with something like this, I’ll pay them off or make some kind of settlement. I’m not going to throw money at the problem to make it go away. That’s not how I do things. She’s got a fight on her hands.”
“I wish you luck. You’re welcome to use my home office here if you’d like.”
He shook his head. “Thanks. I’m leaving for New York today, but I want to continue to rent the house at the hotel. If this news breaks, I can imagine all the smut that will be put out there, and I’ll need to hide out more than ever.”
“Yes, I’ll make sure it’s still available for you. Do you want to go back there to pack or are you set with the things you have here?”
“I can make do with what I have here, but thank you. I don’t know what I’d do without the support of you and Rhonda. It means a lot.”
“We’re happy to help. I’m sorry Abbie had to leave for California with Tina. It seemed as if you were getting along well, working out, and becoming friends.”
Darryl nodded. “It’s disappointing, but I have to clear my name before I can move forward with any plans I may have.”
Vaughn returned to the house, and the two of us sat on the lanai while Darryl made flight arrangements.
Darryl walked out to us. “It’s arranged. An uber will pick me up in twenty minutes and I’ll be on my way. I can’t thank you enough for all you’ve done for me. Vaughn, I’ll be your First Mate anytime.” He shook hands with Vaughn and gave me a quick hug.
“Hurry and come back to us,” I said, feeling sad at his departure. I’d grown to like him a lot and couldn’t believe any claims of harassment. Not after seeing him in action and knowing he had four older sisters he loved. It didn’t make sense to me.
At the sound of a car horn, Vaughn and I walked Darryl outside and watched him get into the vehicle and leave with a friendly wave.
“The poor guy,” said Vaughn. “He seemed very upset. I don’t blame him. Once a statement is made, it’s hard for the public to forget it.” Vaughn shook his head. “What a day this has been with Lily Dorio’s antics and now this.”
“It’s sometimes difficult when you’re dealing with a lot of different people at the hotel to remember that most are kind and easy to get along with,” I said. “Think of how many wonderful ones we’ve added to our ‘hotel family’.”
“True,” Vaughn agreed. “Let’s hope we enjoy many more occasions with them. Stephanie and Randolph Willis have been fantastic substitute grandparents for Robbie. They attend all his swimming meets to cheer for him. It makes a huge difference in his life.”
“Spending that one Christmas with us changed everything. I’m very grateful to them,” I said. “Speaking of Robbie, where is he?”
“Next door. He and Brett are working on a special computer program they’re putting together. He’s very excited by it.”
“I guess that leaves us alone for a while. Want to go for a swim? It’s turned out to be quite a warm day.”
“Sounds great.” He gave me a leering smile. “Need help getting out of your clothes?”
I chuckled, loving his playfulness. Later, I’d show him a more serious side to his suggestion.