Page 63 of Nightcaps at The Beach House Hotel

“Does Abbie know about all of this?” Rhonda asked.

“I don’t know. He didn’t mention it.”

Rhonda’s eyes rounded with surprise. “Some matchmaker you are! She should be with him.”

“That’s not our call to make,” I said, even as I agreed with her.

“Maybe Tina can help,” she said.

“No, Rhonda. Darryl has enough to contend with. He doesn’t need our interference.”

She studied me and slowly nodded.

I talked to Bernie. “It’s very important that his presence is a secret. Also, I’ve instructed his sisters to call you to privately register as guests at the house.”

“Smart thinking,” he said. “The media is going to go crazy over this. It looks bad for Darryl.”

I wished I could deny it, but I knew he was right.

###

We were in our office when Darryl called. “I’m here,” he said to me. “Bernie suggested I reregister to insure my identity doesn’t leak out. I’m under a different name. Douglas Hathaway.”

“I took the liberty of ordering the same groceries you requested for your earlier arrival. I’m happy to purchase anything else you might need.”

“Thank you. I’ll make do. The first announcement has already hit the network news station.”

“I’m sorry,” I said.

“Me, too. It didn’t have to be this way.” He abruptly ended the call, and I knew how upset he was.

Rhonda shook her head. “Let’s turn on the news.” We’d hung a smart TV on the wall of the office so we could keep up with the news.

The screen lit, and when we went to the ACBE TV station, we saw a picture of Darryl on the screen along with a photo of a young, dark-haired woman with a ponytail and wearing glasses. NIGHT SHOW HOST DARRYL DOUGLAS ACCUSED OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT streamed across the screen.

“Mr. Douglas is in legal trouble for allegedly acting inappropriately with one of his staff members. We’ve learned that the young woman is a former network staffer, and that she made her accusations against Mr. Douglas after she was let go. A source claims Douglas denies the allegations. Who’s lying and who’s telling the truth?”

I sat back in my chair feeling helpless. There was nothing I could do except to help keep Darryl safe at the hotel. “One helpful thing is they keep showing old pictures of Darryl.”

“Yeah. He looks entirely different today with his shaved head and new, tanned physique,” said Rhonda.

“In a short time, Darryl has changed a lot, making him unrecognizable. And most of that credit goes to Abbie.”

Rhonda didn’t say anything, but I could see her mind working.

“Oh, go ahead and call Tina,” I said. “I know you want to.”

“I feel she should know what’s happening in New York. What she does with the knowledge is up to her, but I wouldn’t feel right about not calling.” Rhonda picked up the phone and was forced to leave a message for Tina.

“We’ll see what happens with that call,” I said. “I hate to think of Darryl being alone at a time like this.”

At that moment, Bernie phoned. “One of Darryl’s sisters, Emma Strong, has arrived and is at the house.”

“Nice to hear,” I said. “Rhonda and I will go down and check on her.”

###

Rhonda and I eagerly headed to the house Darryl was renting. I felt much better about Darryl not being alone. The situation was too terrible to be by himself.

---