Page 61 of Canapés at the Beach House Hotel
Vaughn and I exchanged glances.
“Is this about Jonny Arno?”I asked him.
He made a face and nodded.“He’s in trouble.I heard he borrowed a lot of money from the mafia to open his restaurant, and now he can’t pay it back.They overspent on the construction and the décor, and Jonny bought that fancy car of his.I don’t think that restaurant will be open much longer.”
“I’ve wondered about it,” I admitted.
“Two members of the kitchen staff have come to me for work, which I couldn’t give them,” said André.“I think they, too, suspect a bad ending.”
André stood and a waitress cleared our table.
Margot appeared carrying a plate of Macarons.“Here’s a little sweet for your dessert.Enjoy!”
I reached for the meringue-based confection and took a bite.
Vaughn did the same, grinning when we both said, “M-m-m” at the same time.
When it was time for us to leave, we thanked Andre and Margot for a delicious meal and then decided to walk around town to work off some of our dinner.
Walking hand in hand, gazing into the windows of stores now closed, I felt as if all was right with the world.Sabal was a charming town on Florida’s Gulf Coast, and I felt lucky to be able to call it home.After living most of my life in Boston, I’d loved coming to a warm, more tropical climate.Even now, watching the fronds of the palm trees sway in the breeze, I couldn’t help my pleasure.
Vaughn gave my hand a squeeze and I impulsively stopped and threw my arms around him.
“Well, what do we have here?”I heard a familiar voice say and froze.
I turned to face Brock Goodwin.“What are you doing in town?”
“I could ask Vaughn the same question,” he said.“In between movies?”
“For a bit,” said Vaughn, keeping a hand on my shoulder.
“How are things going at the restaurant?”I asked him.
“As well as can be expected for a restaurant of this caliber.It’s really beautiful.As you know, I helped the interior decorator by providing some of the décor items from my import business.It’s worked out rather well.”
I could feel Vaughn’s fingers squeeze my shoulder and knew that he, as well as I, was trying not to react.
“See you around,” I managed to say and watched Brock walk away with an added strut to his pace.
Chuckling softly, Vaughn and I continued our stroll.
###
The next morning, I slept in, cuddling Vaughn, knowing he’d be gone in a couple of days.His schedule had caused some problems and disappointments, but we managed to work with it.Having the hotel to run kept me busy along with family responsibilities.That helped.
Cindy nosed our bedroom door wider and then whined for us to pick her up.
Vaughn lowered his torso out of bed, grabbed hold of her, and tossed her on the bed.
After licking us happily, she settled between us.There had been days when Robbie was little that he’d be there too.Now, as a young teenager, he was in his own bed asleep.
Reluctantly, I got up to shower and dress for the bridal breakfast.We did a great job of providing both a hearty breakfast and healthy snacks for wedding guests who were leaving to go home.
###
As I drove to the hotel, I was anxious to see if Philippa would be there to help Lorraine.Being responsive to the demands of others grew tiresome if you weren’t really happy about doing it and following through.This would be an interesting test for her.
I went past the gates of the hotel and drove behind it to my usual parking space near the loading dock.Beside the dock, on an area reserved for staff breaks, I noticed Philippa and Chet kissing and couldn’t hold back a smile.They were an adorable couple.
