Page 74 of Sea Breezes at The Beach House Hotel

The visit to the lighting store was a lot more time-consuming than we’d thought. The number of choices meant that the selection process was slow.

We left the store, and realizing it was late, we decided to go to a drive-thru location to grab some lunch before heading to my house so Nell could pick up her car.

“I hate not seeing the kids when they come home from school, but I have to take care of business. I’ll surprise them later.”

“They’ll be thrilled to see you. They’ll understand, especially when they see the house and realize it’s in the same neighborhood as their other family members,” I said. “I’ll drop you off, and then I have to go to the hotel.”

“Thanks for everything,” said Nell. “I’ll see you tonight.”

After dropping off Nell at my house, I drove to the hotel to make sure the three in-house functions were set for tonight. A dinner in the private dining room was scheduled along with a small event in the library and a special holiday cocktail party by the pool lanai.

Grateful that Lorraine had declared it was best for her to be at the hotel instead of moping at home, I parked the car behind the hotel and went inside.

“How’s everything with Nell?” Rhonda asked me as I sat down at my desk in our office.

I filled her in and then said, “Is everything going smoothly here?”

“The ladies’ luncheon was a big success, but one of the toilets got clogged and we had to call in a plumber, which made it a little inconvenient for the attendees. I know we usually wait until it’s quieter in the day to do our repairs, but we couldn’t this time.”

“No problem. Those public restrooms get a workout with all the parties,” I said. “What else is going on?”

“Annette is handling the coordination of staff for each event, and she’s a bit frantic because some of the younger, part-time staffers have left Florida to go home for the holidays.”

“It’s difficult at this time of year. That’s for sure. Are we giving bonuses to those who do a double shift?” I asked. We’d discussed it but hadn’t decided how we wanted to handle it.

“I told Annette to go ahead and offer it to dining room staffers,” said Rhonda. “Let’s check on Lorraine and see how she’s doing.”

We walked to the hospitality department. Annette, Lauren, and Lorraine were gathered around Annette’s desk.

“Hello. How’s everything going?” I asked.

Lorraine looked up and frowned. “Usual holiday problems. With cancellations in one group or another, we have to make sure that the guaranteed number of attendees is met for billing purposes.”

“There’s a lot of illness,” said Lauren. “But we have some flexibility according to the quotes we gave for the function.”

“I’m working on staffing,” said Annette. “By offering bonuses to some, I think I’ve got the events covered. We’ll be a little short in the dining room, but not enough to be a significant problem.”

“Thank you, everyone,” said Rhonda.

“We appreciate all your hard work,” I said.

“I’d rather be busy like this,” said Lauren. “A friend of mine works at another hotel, and they’re not that full. Then, of course, they’re not The Beach House Hotel.”

Grinning, I turned to Lorraine. “How are you doing? Is it too much for you right now?”

Lorraine shook her head. “Being active here is a blessing for me. I’m still adjusting to being alone.” Tears pooled in her eyes. “Arthur filled my life in such a beautiful way.”