Hannah simply nodded. She was a bit too awed by the sight of Lynne’s home to speak. It was the largest home she’d ever seen. No wonder Lynne had told Delores that she had plenty of room and invited them to stay with her!
As the limo pulled up in front of the doorway, Lynne stepped out and hurried out to the car to greet them. She pulled open the door, not waiting for Robby, helped Delores out, and gave her a hug. “I’m so glad to see you two! Come in and let’s get you settled. Don’t worry about your luggage. Robby will bring it in.”
Robby opened Hannah’s door and extended his arm to help her out of the car while Lynne escorted Delores to the double doors at the front of the house. They crossed the wide veranda and Hannah followed them inside.
“Wow!” Hannah exclaimed, catching sight of the huge chandelier that hung in the foyer. “That’s humongous, Lynne!”
“I know. Remember how I always said I wanted a house with a chandelier when we were in college?”
“I remember,” Hannah told her, but she didn’t mention the rest of the memory. Every time she’d been a guest in Lynne and Ross’s small apartment, Lynne had voiced her wish for a chandelier. And Ross had draped his arm around Lynne’s shoulder and promised that once they got married and bought their first house, he’d make sure that she had her chandelier.
“Is it very hard to keep clean?” Hannah asked, gazing up at the gleaming crystals.
“Yes, and I don’t know what I’d do if I didn’t have Maria to keep it clean and sparkling. Once every two months, Robby gets out the ladder and removes all the fobs, facets, and crystal pendants so Maria can put them through the dishwasher.”
“Through the dishwasher?” Delores asked, looking positively shocked.
“Yes, she runs them through the wash cycle, but she uses the air-dry feature. Robby and Maria were part of Tom’s staff when I married him, and Maria told me that she’s been cleaning it that way for years. Once the crystals have gone through the air cycle, she wipes any moisture away with a soft cotton cloth.”
Delores looked impressed, and Hannah wondered whether her mother would install a chandelier in the foyer of the penthouse that Doc had given to her as a wedding present. There was no question that Doc would indulge Delores if she truly wanted one.
“I think my ceiling is too low for something like that,” Delores said, and Hannah gave a little smile. She’d accurately read her mother’s envious expression.
Lynne turned to Robby, who had followed them in with the luggage. “I’ll put Hannah in the Rose bedroom, Robby. And Delores will have the gold one.”
“Very good, Mrs. Larchmont.” Robby turned toward the wide staircase that led up to the second floor.
“I’ll let them go up and get settled, and then we’ll go out to a late lunch,” Lynne told him. “Will you please make reservations at the French Room, Robby? Let’s say for three-thirty?”
“Of course, Mrs. Larchmont,” Robby said, and then he turned to Hannah and Delores. “If you ladies would care to come with me, I’ll show you to your rooms.”
Hannah and Delores followed Robby up the wide, carpeted staircase and down a lengthy hallway. They passed several doors and stopped at one near the end of the hallway. “This room is yours,” he said to Hannah, opening the door and ushering her in.
“It’s beautiful!” Hannah declared, entering the bedroom Lynne had chosen for her. The walls were painted a lovely shade of rose, and the curtains were a velvety shade of yellow.
“Your bathroom is right through here,” Robby told her, opening another door and gesturing toward a large bathroom that was decorated in a reversal of colors with velvety yellow walls and lovely rose-colored curtains and towels. It was complete with a roomy shower stall and a huge bathtub with so many jets around the inside of the tub that Hannah was almost sure it also served as a Jacuzzi.
“And this is your closet,” Robby said, opening another door to reveal a walk-in closet. “I’ll set up the racks for your suitcases on the adjoining wall.”
Hannah watched as Robby unfolded two luggage racks and positioned them on the far wall next to the closet. He lifted her luggage effortlessly onto the racks and turned back to her. “Would you like me to unpack for you?”
“Oh! Uh . . . no, thank you. I can do it myself,” Hannah said quickly. There was no way she wanted Robby to see some of her favorite clothing, especially because she hadn’t purchased anything new in several years, as well as several pairs of what Delores called unmentionables. Robby had obviously been trained as a butler, and the other guests that Lynne and Tom had entertained undoubtedly had undergarments that were much pricier and more stylish than the white cotton ones that Hannah purchased at CostMart.
“I’ll get your mother settled, then,” Robby told her, heading for the door.
“Wait!” Hannah said quickly. “Could you tell me a little about the French Room?”
“Of course. What would you like to know?”
“The name sounds very fancy,” Hannah said choosing her words carefully. “Is it the type of restaurant where everyone dresses up?”
Robby shook his head. “Not really. Mrs. Larchmont often stops by the French Room for a bite after a day at the studio. And then she’s usually wearing comfortable clothes.”
“Yes, but Lynne’s comfortable clothes probably cost more than everything in both of my suitcases!”
Robby chuckled. “You could be right, Ma’am. Mr. Larchmont always wanted her to dress in the height of fashion and she shopped at the finest boutiques.”
Hannah took Robby’s chuckle to heart. He’d been clearly amused by her comment. “Please call me Hannah, not Ma’am. I think my mother would like to be a Ma’am, but I’m just Lynne’s friend from college.”
Robby considered that for a moment. “Would it be all right if I called you Miss Hannah? I wouldn’t want Mrs. Larchmont to think I was being too familiar.”
“That’s fine with me,” Hannah said quickly. “I was hoping you could help me out, Robby. If I show you what I was planning to wear, would you tell me if it’s appropriate? There’s no way I want to embarrass Lynne by wearing something that’s . . .”
“Too casual?” Robby asked.
“Yes.”
“And I doubt you’d want to embarrass your mother, either,” Robby said with a smile. “I probably shouldn’t have said that.”
“Why not? You’re right.” Hannah walked over to one of her suitcases and pulled out a forest green pantsuit that her mother had given to her as a present. “Do you think this would be all right to wear?”
“Yes, indeed. It would be perfect. It’s a good color for you with your hair.”
“Thank you.” Hannah smiled at him. “You’d better go help my mother now. She’s probably getting impatient.”
Hannah waited as Robby crossed the room and went out the door, closing it behind him. Then she made quick work of unpacking and hanging what needed to be hung in her closet. Once her other clothing had been stashed in the dresser by the bed, she rolled her suitcases into the closet and went off to take a quick shower and change into the outfit that Robby had deemed appropriate.