Dinner at the Beach House Hotel by Judith Keim

Author:Judith Keim [Keim, Judith]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Women's Fiction Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Wild Quail Publishing
Published: 2016-12-08T05:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

All too soon it came time for Vaughn to leave. As I saw him off at the airport, I couldn’t help feeling blue. I didn’t know if he’d have time for another short trip home before his fishing expedition in Alaska, and though it was only two months away, our wedding suddenly seemed a long way off.

Two days later, Liz left for Boston in her SUV for the final months of the school year with a promise to call me from the road at regular intervals. With both Vaughn and Liz gone, I was glad for Robbie and Elena’s company in what now seemed a too-big house.

Elena and I worked out a schedule so that, in exchange for covering for me when I was detained by unpredictably long days at the hotel, she was given evenings and days off as often as my schedule allowed. I was trying to arrange more-regular hours at the hotel, but the nature of the business made it difficult. When Rhonda and I had hired Bernie as general manager, neither one of us had envisioned our family situations coinciding quite the way or as quickly as they had.

The weekend approached quickly as we prepared for the governor’s visit. Daniel and Carlotta Horne were popular figures in the state, and we wanted to give them VIP service with the hope that he’d spread the news throughout the South.

It was becoming more and more difficult to coordinate events with Rhonda, but the two of us stood on the front steps of the hotel to welcome their arrival late Friday afternoon.

Carlotta was the first to emerge from their private car—a large black sedan. Standing next to it, her diminutive height made her appear fragile, but every voter in the state knew of her strength, her determination to protect her husband from naysayers. Pretty, she smiled at us as she waited for her husband to unfold himself from the backseat and come around the car to join her. Two security people stood on either side, automatically surveying the area. We’d managed to eke out accommodations for them in a converted storage room that we’d set aside for such purposes.

Daniel Horne was every PR person’s dream—tall and good-looking, he had a natural friendliness that drew people to him. Even those who didn’t share his political views admitted they liked the man.

As Rhonda and I approached him, his smile was heartwarming. “So glad to finally see this place for myself. I’ve heard nothing but good reports about The Beach House Hotel and the two of you.”

Rhonda and I recited our standard, “Welcome to The Beach House Hotel,” grinning at the sound of our voices matching syllable by syllable.

He smiled. “Guess you’ve said this a few times, huh?”

“A few,” I answered, and held my hand out. “I’m Ann Rutherford.”

“And I’m Rhonda DelMonte Grayson,” said Rhonda, shaking hands with Carlotta and turning to him. “We’re sure glad to have you here.”

“Are our rooms ready?” the governor asked me.

“Yes,” I said, smiling at him.

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