Danielle Steel - Hotel Vendome

Heloise’s world consisted of her father, a hotel full of people who loved her, and a mother who seemed not to and made rare cameo appearances, like a shooting star in a summer sky. Heloise had more of a relationship with Ernesta the maid, Jan the florist, and Jennifer her father’s assistant who watched over her benevolently; they were all loving role models for her, better than her mother, Hugues knew. There had been a story in the tabloids about Miriam having a fling with a young cabana boy at a hotel in Mexico, and Greg had been arrested twice that year, once for possession of marijuana while on tour in the States and then for assault and battery when he got in a bar fight while severely inebriated. Videos of the fight and his subsequent arrest had appeared on YouTube, which Heloise admitted to Jennifer that she’d watched. She’d seen her mother in the crowd in the background at the bar, looking horrified when they dragged Greg out in handcuffs. Heloise had felt sorry for her mother, not for Greg. She told Jennifer he looked disgusting, and it seemed like he really hurt the man he hit with a vodka bottle. But apparently the man was his drummer, and the charges were dropped afterward. Hugues disliked the fact that Miriam lived in an unsavory world, but never commented on it to his daughter. He thought it would have been wrong to do so and never crossed that line with her. Jennifer was well aware of how much Miriam still upset him and what a terrible mother he thought she was, but she never mentioned it to Heloise either. She respected Hugues and Heloise too much to do so.

Hugues wanted his daughter to have good values and a wholesome, happy life. He was glad that she had no interest yet in boys, drugs, or alcohol. And although she lived in a fairly sophisticated setting at the hotel, he saw to it that she was well protected and only spent time with those he thought were good influences on her. He kept an eye on all she did, while appearing not to and seeming to be more casual and cool than he was. He was very Swiss about his child, with traditional and even conservative values and ideas for her, even if he was occasionally a little more playful himself, although always discreetly.

Heloise was completely unaware of any of the dalliances he had, and he kept it that way. He saw to it diligently that nothing of his personal life ever appeared on Page Six or anywhere else, no matter who he went out with. Jennifer teased him that he was the mystery man of the Vendome. And his discretion always gave Heloise the impression that she was the only woman in his life. Hugues preferred it that way, since none of the women was important to him and he always knew his brief affairs wouldn’t last. The only one who mattered to him was Heloise. And he thought she’d been through enough with her mother, without having to worry over the insignificant women he went out with too.

He had a penchant for women in their twenties and early thirties, always beautiful and somewhat striking, models, actresses, a few movie stars, an important heiress he met at the hotel. None of them would have been a good partner for the long haul, and he knew it, but they were fun for a night or two. And Heloise thought he hadn’t dated since her mother. It was a myth he was careful to preserve, although Jennifer warned him he might regret it one day if he met someone he cared about, and Heloise put up a strong resistance because she wasn’t used to him dating and thought she was the only woman in his life. Hugues didn’t agree with Jennifer’s motherly or sisterly advice and said that would never happen since he couldn’t even imagine being in a relationship again or falling in love.

“I’ll deal with it if it happens,” he said vaguely, “but don’t hold your breath.”

“I’m not,” Jennifer said with a rueful grin. She knew him well. He was carefully defended against any woman getting past his protective armor to his heart again.

Among other solid values Hugues tried to instill in his daughter was a sense of responsibility for her fellow man, despite their comfortable surroundings. He didn’t want her to think that life was only about luxury and people who lived well and were rich. And he pointed out that the wealthy had an obligation to help those less fortunate. The hotel had been donating a portion of its unused food to a local food bank since it opened. And Heloise was proud of her dad for that.

Hugues wanted her to realize how blessed she was and that there was more to life than just living in a fancy hotel. She lived in a rare and unusual world, but she had a social conscience as well. She volunteered in a soup kitchen through school, and collected toys for the fire department on her own at Christmas, asking hotel staff to donate old toys discarded by their children. She was acutely aware of how lucky she was and grateful to her father for the life they led. And she was generous with her allowance and collected money for UNICEF at school. World disasters, particularly those that affected children, went straight to her heart. More than anything, as difficult as it was in their surroundings and circumstances, Hugues wanted Heloise to have balance in her life and remain aware of those who needed help, and the suffering of mankind. She was a good girl, and more aware than many children her age.

She had been working in the florist shop all afternoon, helping Jan cut flowers and snapping thorns off stems, when she left finally and went upstairs to do her homework. She had a big assignment due at school. And there was a big wedding scheduled in the ballroom the next day that she wanted to attend. As usual, Heloise was planning to “drop in” and check it out. Her father assumed that she had been watching the room being set up when she came in late for dinner with him that night. Everyone was talking about the wedding, which was going to cost a million dollars between flowers, catering, decor, and the bride’s Chanel haute couture gown.

“Where were you?” he asked her casually as the room service waiter brought their dinner in on a rolling tray. Hugues would have liked to cook for her himself, but he never had time. There was always some crisis he had to manage, or the constant overseeing of the hotel. The Vendome was a huge success because he was always there himself, attending to every detail. And his staff knew that he was ever present, aware of everything that went on and everything they did. It kept them on their toes.

“I was with Jan all afternoon, working on the big wedding. She has a lot of work to do. She hired four assistants and she’s still afraid she won’t get it all done. I was lending her a hand,” Heloise said vaguely, as the room service waiter served them lamb chops and haricots verts. Hugues was careful about what they ate and spent an hour in the gym every morning before he went to work. At forty-five, he looked younger than his age and was in great shape.

“I went by there, and I didn’t see you,” her father commented.

“I must have been up here doing homework by then,” she said innocently.

“A likely story,” he teased her with a grin. Her grades were decent even if they weren’t great, and it was a difficult school. She was equally proficient in English and French, and her Spanish had remained fluent, due to her long conversations at the hotel. “So what are you doing this weekend? Are you having friends over?” he asked warmly. He had four VIPs checking in that weekend and a foreign head of state on Saturday, which meant additional security and Secret Service in the lobby and all over the hotel. The foreign dignitary had booked an entire floor, save for Hugues’s private apartment on that level, and they had to close off the floors above and below him, which was annoying since they couldn’t use their two penthouse suites on the floor above, nor the presidential suite on the floor below. And those three suites alone were big revenue sources for them. They charged fourteen thousand dollars a night for the presidential and twelve thousand for each of the two penthouse suites. They had two dead floors on their hands for the weekend, although they were charging the foreign government a fortune for their occupancy but the hotel’s security costs would be high too, with their entire security staff working overtime all weekend.