The Lighthouse Road(54)
They'd been twenty minutes in the cab before the driver stopped in front of the Spalding Hotel, seven stories of stone and leaded glass that was all the proof Odd needed of his insecurities. Still, he stepped from the cab, offered his hand to Rebekah, who took it and jumped down, landing beside him.
"Sir," a bellhop said, stepping from beneath an awning, "may I take your bags?"
Odd looked at him, this man dressed like a Mountie, and said, "You bet."
The bellhop retrieved a rolling cart and loaded their belongings. Odd and Rebekah moved cautiously behind him.
Odd heard Rebekah's breath catch as they entered the hotel. The chandeliers hanging high above the lobby cast a refracted light on the Oriental carpets, the long, elegant sofas and beautiful mahogany tables, each with a vase of fresh flowers at its center, the guests lounging on those couches, their muslin dresses and fine English suits lit by the chandeliers above as though made for that express purpose. All of it was gorgeous and elegant in a way that Rebekah couldn't have imagined. If the downtown lights, as they approached them in the cab, had softened her, the loveliness of that hotel lobby melted her.
At the counter a man with a handlebar mustache and slicked-back hair greeted them. He wore a black suit and a black tie and a boutonnière of blood-red roses blossomed from his lapel. "Good evening," he said. "Welcome to the Spalding Hotel. Will you be checking in this evening?"
"We will," Odd said.
Rebekah said, "We're on our honeymoon!" and curled her arm into Odd's.
The man looked from Odd to Rebekah and back again at Odd. "Your honeymoon, yes." He looked again at Rebekah. "Well, congratulations from all of us here at the Spalding." His mustache curled up with his forced smile. "Let me see what rooms we have available." He opened a ledger on his desk and ran his finger up and down a column of numbers. "We have a suite on the seventh floor. How long will you be staying?"
"Can't say," Odd said. " Three or four nights, anyway."
The man behind the desk checked the ledger again and said, "A suite is a must for your honeymoon." Now he raised his hand and snapped his fingers and the bellhop who had unloaded the cab stepped quickly to the desk. " Bring their bags to the Harbor Suite. Draw the curtains and turn down their bed."
The bellhop nodded and was gone with the rolling cart of their luggage.
The man behind the desk pulled his watch from his vest pocket, checked the time, and replaced the watch. "Will you be having a late dinner in the restaurant? Or would you like dinner brought to your suite this evening?"
Again Rebekah and Odd looked at each other. They must have appeared as children, so giddy were they.
Rebekah said, " Bring dinner up. Roast beef and potatoes and something sweet for dessert."
The man behind the desk leaned forward, glanced once in each direction, and whispered, " Would you fancy a bottle of champagne? To celebrate your nuptials?"
Rebekah's eyes spread wide and a broad smile came across her face.
"Very well," the man behind the desk said.
He had Odd sign the registry and snapped his fingers again. Another bellhop stepped to the counter. " Bring Mister and Missus Eide to the Harbor Suite. See that their needs are satisfied." Then to Odd he said, "I hope you enjoy your stay. If there's anything I can do — anything— please don't hesitate to ask." He handed the bellhop the key.
The Harbor Suite was perhaps even more elegant than the hotel lobby. There were three rooms and a turreted sitting area overlooking Superior Street and the harbor below. An enormous four-poster bed covered in silk with a dozen pillows at its head filled the sleeping chamber. The bathroom was twenty feet square with a marble-topped table in the middle of it, a crystal vase with a hundred flowers sat atop it. The tub was claw-footed and cast iron and large enough to bathe a bear.
Rebekah moved from room to room with her finger pressed to her lip. She appeared to be levitating. He stood at the window in the turret, watching her, marveling at the contrast between this place and all the other places he'd ever been. He rolled a cigarette and stood there long enough to smoke it while Rebekah inspected every inch of the suite. As he stubbed the cigarette in an ashtray there was a knock at the door.
He crossed the room and opened the door. A waiter in a white coat pulled a linen-covered cart into the room. Two covered plates and a basket of bread sat on the cart. Odd's mouth started watering at the smell of it.
" Would you like me to set this in the sitting room?"
"Sure," Odd said.