Page 74 of Bubbles at the Beach House Hotel

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

The next morning, whenRhonda walked into the office, I saw fresh circles under her eyes, and then I looked more closely. Her eyes were swollen.

I got to my feet. “Rhonda! Are you all right? What’s happened?”

“It’s Will and Reggie. Will did as he told me he would and talked to Reggie about something at work. Now, neither Reggie nor Angela is talking to either one of us. I don’t know what the conversation was, and Will wouldn’t tell me.”

I hugged her and then sat down. “This doesn’t sound like any of them. What could it be?”

Rhonda shook her head. “All I know is my family is about to explode, and I can’t do anything about it. I’m furious with the three of them. I’m glad the holiday week is here. I need to keep busy.”

“Okay, then. Dorothy and I have taken care of the confirmations for Thanksgiving dinner and upgraded the seating chart.”

“There will be more changes tomorrow, but it’s smart to have it organized for the moment.”

I’d just printed out the room reservations for the weekend to show Rhonda when Lorraine stumbled into the office. “Arthur has been arrested.”

Rhonda and I shot up out of our seats.

I held onto Lorraine as she collapsed into a chair, crying. “What’s wrong? How can we help?”

“It has something to do with his office and a financial offering. As they took him away, Arthur told me not to talk to anyone about it, but I had to come to you. I don’t know what’s going on, but I need to be there for him.”

Rhonda and I glanced at one another.

“That’s it,” said Rhonda. “Oh my God. It all makes sense. I have to call Will.”

“I’ll stay right here with Lorraine,” I said.

“I’ll use Dorothy’s office,” said Rhonda.

After Rhonda left, I turned to Lorraine. “Have you called a lawyer?”

“Oh, yes. Arthur gave me the name of one in Tampa. He was warned this might happen and tried to handle it before it became a bigger issue.”

“Where is Arthur now?” I asked.

“He’s at the county jail. He told me he won’t be there long.” She cupped her hands over her face. “It was so embarrassing to have policemen drive up to our door and take him away.”

“I’m sure,” I said.

Rhonda returned. “I just talked to Will. I’m sorry, but I can’t be involved with this. Lorraine, I hope things turn out right for you and wish you all the best.” Her eyes glistened with tears; Rhonda hugged Lorraine. “I have to go home. This is ripping my family apart.”

“I’ll come as soon as I can,” I told Rhonda. Facing Lorraine, I said, “I’m going to call our lawyer, Mike Torson. You may need one for your own purposes.”

“I know Mike. I’ll call him myself. Thanks for your help, Ann. I don’t want to make trouble for anyone.”

I got up and hugged her. “Lorraine, you’re part of the hotel family. We’re here for you. After talking to Mike, please let me know what we can do to help you.”

As soon as she left the office, I called Vaughn.

He listened as I told him what had happened and then said, “I’m glad I didn’t take Arthur up on going in on a special deal one of his friends was offering.”

“You knew something was wrong?” I asked, shocked.