Chapter 1: A Decent Proposal

As I got out of the car that the hotel had sent to meet me at the airport, I was glad that I had come back to this hotel. It was in a terrific location, close to the things I needed to do and close to the things that I wanted to do while I was here in London. I walked in the front door and the first person that I saw was Terri, one of the concierges at the hotel. Terri had helped me with so many different things on my previous trips to London and I was sure it was her that had sent the car to pick me up, rather than me having to get a taxi from the airport.

“Ms. Alexander, it’s so good to see you back in London again. How long will you be staying with us this time?” she asked.

“Hello, Terri. It is nice to see you again. My plan is to stay here until Monday when I will fly back home,” I replied.

“That will be great. Here is your room key and I will have your bags brought up shortly. Were you able to eat on the plane or should I have breakfast brought to your room?”

“Thanks, Terri. I ate on the plane after I woke up this morning and before we landed, but I could use a pot of tea if you don’t mind having one sent up,” I told her.

“Earl Grey as usual, or have you finally switched over to English Breakfast Tea?” Terri teased.

She knew that I preferred Earl Grey, but ever since I stayed at this hotel for the first time, she had been trying to get me to convert to English Breakfast Tea. Terri was one of those concierges that really tried hard to please the guests of the hotel. The hotel was already known for its fabulous service and Terri seemed to always take that service to the next level, at least for me.

After coming here for the past five years, Terri knew what I liked and what I didn’t like. She always seemed to make sure that I was taken care of, had the things in my room that I liked, and made sure to keep the things that I did not like away from me. Every time I checked out of the hotel, I made sure to leave her a nice tip for taking such good care of me.

So, here I was again, and I was sure she would go out of her way to make my stay as comfortable as possible. I went over to the ‘lift’ as they call elevators in London and headed up to my room. I had visited this hotel so often in the past five years that they always tried to give me the same room, which was my favorite. It had a beautiful four-poster, king-sized bed, a nice sitting area with a desk where I could work, and a bathroom to die for. The bathroom had a nice large soaking tub, a very large walk-in shower, the fluffiest towels I have ever seen in a hotel, and they always seemed to have my favorite soaps and shampoo in the shower.

The room was on the third floor of the hotel and was at the very front, with three large windows overlooking Kensington Gardens. The Daily Telegraph, the Wall Street Journal, and even a copy of my local paper from back in the States were always in my room. Over the years, Terri had discovered the magazines I liked to read, and the current editions were always in my room by the time I got there. There were three different bouquets of flowers in vases spread throughout the room, and fresh fruit in a bowl on the table at the foot of the bed.

Every morning, I received a call asking me when I wanted breakfast brought up, as I ate the same thing every morning. At night, when I returned to my room, there was always a bottle of white wine chilling in an ice bucket waiting for me. I loved my privacy, so I rarely ate in the restaurants, preferring to take my meals in my room, where I could work or read. The hotel was already known for its luxury, but for me, it was an ultra-luxury hotel since they constantly were going out of their way to take care of my wants and needs.

As I got up to my room, I went over to the windows and opened the drapes to let in the sunshine. It was one of those beautiful London mornings, with the sun shining brightly, flowers blooming and trees in full leaf. I stood staring out the window at Kensington Palace, wondering what royalty might be standing at their window looking in this direction. A couple of minutes later there was a knock at the door, and I let in the bellman with my luggage. He did not even ask me where to put it as I had seen him here at the hotel many times before and he knew exactly where I liked my luggage set so that I could unpack easily.

“I hope you enjoy your stay here in London, Ms. Alexander, and be sure to let the hotel know if you need anything,” he said.

“Thank you, Peter,” I replied, as I thought I recognized him from previous visits and confirmed it by reading his name tag. I gave him twenty Euros and he showed himself out the door.

I opened my luggage and took my toiletry bag out and moved it to the bathroom. I then began hanging some of my better clothes on hangers and hung them in the closet. I was unpacking my casual clothes when there was another knock at the door.

“One minute,” I called out, as I wanted to put the handful of things into the dresser. As I moved towards the door, I heard Terri on the other side of the door.

“I have your tea, Ms. Alexander,” Terri called out. I opened the door and let her in, and she walked over to the table at the end of my bed and set the tray with the teapot and cup. I noticed a cinnamon scone on the tray. “I brought you a scone just in case you needed a little bite to eat with your tea, Ms. Alexander,” she said.

“Thank you, Terri. I might just have to eat that scone as you know cinnamon is my favorite,” I told her. I walked over to the tray, put a sugar cube in the cup and poured the tea into the cup. I stirred the tea to dissolve the sugar and took a sip. “Now Terri, this is not Earl Grey, it’s English Breakfast Tea.”

“I know, Ms. Alexander. You know I am going to continue to try and convert you to a better tea for your breakfast.” She smiled as she said it.

I smiled back at her and told her it was fine, the cinnamon scone made up for her indiscretion with the tea. I asked her how busy the hotel was this week and she told me that it was relatively quiet this week, with very few guests. She asked me if there was anything she could do or get me right now.

I looked at her and told her, “Yes, I think there is in fact something you can do for me. How many years have I been coming to this hotel, Terri?”

“I believe you started staying with us about five years ago, Ms. Alexander, but I could certainly check the records to make sure,” Terri replied with a quizzical look on her face.

“I need you to do me a favor if you want me to continue staying here,” I told her, as I took a bite out of the scone.

“Ms. Alexander, I think you know that we go out of our way to take care of you, and over the years, we have learned what you like and don’t like and always try to make sure that we are prepared for your stay,” Terri replied. I could tell that she was a bit nervous, as my request had put her off, for a moment.

“Terri, if I am to continue to stay here and you are going to continue to dote over me like a Mother Hen, which I do enjoy by the way, you are going to need to stop calling me Ms. Alexander and just call me Brenda. I think we are to a point where we do not need to be quite so formal anymore, and it would make me feel more relaxed and at home if you would do so. I have more interaction with you than anyone else in the hotel. If you want to continue to call me Ms. Alexander around your peers or in the lobby, I will understand, but when it is just the two of us, it’s Brenda, okay?”

“I will certainly try to accommodate you, Ms. Alexander, but you do understand that we have standards here at the hotel that we must follow, and we are to never refer to a guest by their given name,” Terri said.

“I understand and would never do anything that would get you in trouble or jeopardize your employment, but if it is just the two of us, please try to just make it Brenda. While I am a paying guest of the hotel, you and I have sort of moved past all that formality, don’t you think? I would prefer you just call me Brenda when it’s just the two of us,” I explained.

“Brenda, I certainly appreciate your candor and will do my best to honor your request. Will there be anything else for now?” Terri asked.

“No, thank you. As always, you and the hotel have done a phenomenal job of making me feel welcome and I am sure I will enjoy my stay here, as I always do. What is your schedule for the week while I am here, so I know whether to ask for you or not?” I inquired.

“I am off on Wednesday and Thursday and will be working the weekend but will be off next Monday when you leave us to go home,” Terri told me. “Janet will be working the day shift and Jerry is doing the evenings, tomorrow and Thursday, and they know that they are to take good care of you while you are here. They have a list of the things you like and do not like. I believe Stephen, the hotel manager will be here all week, and you know you can always call him if you need anything at all,” she said, as she began moving towards the door.

“Thank you, Terri, I will probably need a car to take me to the Parliament building this afternoon around two. Do you have any plans for your day off?” I asked her.

“My husband and I are driving up to Liverpool after I get off work tonight to see his parents. His mother has been ailing and we are going to visit her for the two days that I am off work,” she told me.

This was a revelation as she had never said anything about being married before and she did not wear a wedding ring. I was tempted to ask a question to get a bit more information, but I did not want to embarrass her, so I let it pass. “Well, have a good trip and I will see you back at the hotel this weekend,” I told her.

“Thank you, Brenda,” she said. “I will be working the noon-to-midnight shift on Friday, so depending on your schedule, I might not see you until that evening. Enjoy your stay with us and enjoy London,” Terri said, as she moved to the door, opened it and left.

I sat down to finish my tea and scone before finishing unpacking. My plan was to change clothes and go over to Hyde Park to go for a jog, then come back to the hotel, get a shower, and then have the hotel drive me down to the Parliament building, where I had a meeting this afternoon.

The rest of my week went well, as the weather was very nice, and I had managed to continue my normal routine while in London. A jog in the morning, breakfast in my room, a shower, check in with friends back in the States via email, and then off to various locations around the city for meetings. I had lunch with whatever company I was visiting at the time, and then normally ate dinner in my room at night while I did a little work. Then I would catch up on the news of the day with the newspapers that were put in my room every day, call my sister, and then get into bed and read until around midnight when I would turn out the light and go to sleep. It was no wonder the hotel was able to take care of me so well. You could almost set a clock to my routine, and it was almost the same thing at the same time every day, at least during the week.

As had been discussed when I checked in, I didn’t see Terri all week since she was taking some time off, but the other concierges had been taking great care of me. On Friday, when I got back to the hotel from my last meeting, I saw Terri at her familiar place in the lobby, talking on the phone. I waved at her as I walked by and went up to my room. Since it was Friday, I thought about going out somewhere to get a bite to eat and maybe take in a movie. I called down to the lobby after getting settled in my room and asked Terri to book me a table at the Blue Door Bistro and to get me a movie ticket to see Red Sparrow, the latest movie with Jennifer Lawrence. I asked Terri to have the car ready to drive me in a half hour as I wanted to change clothes. She replied that the car would be waiting outside whenever I was ready.

Since it was summer in London, I changed into a sundress and a pair of sandals and headed downstairs to my waiting car. As I passed Terri’s desk, I stopped and asked her, “You are off work at midnight tonight if I am not mistaken.”

She replied, “Yes, Ms. Alexander. You have a good memory.”

I said, “Can you have someone bring me a bottle of my favorite Sauvignon Blanc around 11:30 or 11:45? I will be up late tonight and would like to have a glass or two of wine.”

“Certainly, Ms. Alexander. If you are not back yet, I will have someone set it up in a bucket in your room at that time,” Terri responded.

I went out the door, found the car and left for dinner and my movie. I enjoyed a delightful dinner with dessert and had a glass of wine with my meal. I then left the restaurant and went to the movie. While the movie was not really that good, I enjoyed watching Jennifer Lawrence and her nude scene in the movie. I had been a Jennifer Lawrence fan since her performance in Silver Linings Playbook and had secretly lusted after her ever since. After the movie, I headed back to the hotel feeling a bit horny after seeing Jennifer’s body in the movie. I was thinking of taking a leisurely soak in the tub when I got back and then enjoying a glass or two of wine as I relaxed in the room.

When I got back to the hotel and walked through the lobby, I did not see Terri at her normal station. I looked at my watch and it was 10:15 so I knew she was not off duty yet. I went to the elevator and rode up to my room. After entering my room, I stripped down and filled the tub with warm water and bubble bath and settled in for a nice soak. When I was done, I got out of the tub, dried off and put on my robe.

I was startled by a knock at the door and looked to see that the time was 11:30 and assumed it was my wine delivery. I got up and went to the door to let them in. When I opened the door, it was Terri standing there with a cart that had my wine chilling in an ice bucket. I noticed that she had also brought me some cheese, as well as some grapes.

I let her in, and she parked the cart just inside the door and proceeded to set everything up on the table that was at the end of my bed. There was a love seat there, where I quite often had my wine in the evening and Terri got everything set up for me. “Thank you, Terri, but now I have to ask you a large favor,” I said.

“Sure, Brenda, what can I get for you?” she replied, remembering that I had asked her to call me Brenda when it was just the two of us.

“Since it is almost midnight and you are about to go off duty, would you be kind enough to go back and get a second glass and come have a glass of wine with me?” I asked. It was a bold move, as I did not know whether she needed to get home to her husband right away or whether she might balk at spending time with a guest of the hotel.

“Brenda, I am not sure that is a good idea. I don’t think Stephen, the hotel manager, would be too excited about me spending time with a guest of the hotel after hours,” she replied.

“Terri, I can understand that, but what you do on your own time is your business, and as I am a regular at this hotel, I don’t think Steven would have any problem with you continuing to curry favor with me so that I will continue to stay at your hotel,” I told her. “I just don’t feel like drinking alone this evening, and I thought it might be nice if we got to know each other in a less professional manner,” I said.

She said, “I’ll tell you what. Let me go back downstairs and finish my shift as I have some paperwork to turn in. I will call my husband and let him know that I will be home later and will call him when I am on my way home, and I will get a second glass and come visit with you for a bit.”

I was so happy that she had agreed. I really was looking forward to a little company this evening before I went to bed. I have always liked Terri and thought it would be fun to get to know her as something other than the concierge of my favorite hotel in London. I told her, “Go do what you need to do and come back up. I will leave the door open and you can just come in when you get here. See you in a few minutes.”

“Thank you, Brenda, I will be back in a little while after I wrap up my day and call my husband,” Terri said.

She let herself out of the room, taking the cart with her. I walked over to the table to pour myself a glass of wine and happened to catch my reflection in the mirror. I blushed as I realized I had not tied my robe very tightly and that Terri had probably gotten a glimpse of me while she was here. That put a bit of a smile on my face as I tied the robe tighter and moved to the loveseat to sit down. I began pulling grapes off the stems and then cutting the cheese into slices to make it easier to eat.

At about 12:30, there was a knock at the door, but then Terri walked in since I left the door open for her. When she came down the short set of stairs that led from the door into my room, I immediately noticed that Terri now looked completely different. Normally, when she was working, her hair was up in a bun. Now, her hair was down, framing her face and she was wearing glasses. She looked even more attractive than when I had first noticed her when I started staying here. “Wow, you look different,” I said to her.

“Different good or different bad?” she asked, as she came over and stood next to me at the love seat.

“Oh, definitely good. Much more casual and relaxed. You always look nice and professional when you are working, but I like this look much better,” I responded. There had never been any discussion about my being bisexual, and I did not want her to think I was hitting on her, so I decided I better back off a bit. “I am glad you decided to come up and have a glass of wine with me. We’ve known each other for quite a while but it has always just been in a professional manner and it would be nice to get to know you a little better and maybe actually have a friend here in London when I visit,” I told Terri.

“Well, it is a bit unusual, but like you said, what I choose to do on my own time should not affect my work, and if spending time with you in a casual atmosphere causes you to continue to stay here, then that’s a good thing as well, I think,” she said with a smile.

“So, have a seat. Let me pour you a glass of wine and let’s just talk until you feel you need to go home,” I told her.

Terri sat down as I poured her a glass of wine. She asked if she could take off her shoes as her feet were usually sore by the end of her shift after being on her feet all day. I told her to take them off and to make herself at home, laughing as I said it, since we were in a hotel.

We spent the next two hours chatting, laughing, and just having a good time with each other. I learned that she had been married for eight years, they had no children, and that her husband was an architect. They were generally happy in their marriage, but that she sometimes wished that things could be a bit more “passionate” as she put it. After her second glass of wine, she had loosened up a bit and we were conversing as if we had been friends for a long time. She found out that I had been divorced about a year ago after eighteen years of marriage and that I also had no children. I related to her that my ex-husband had grown jealous of my success in my business and that his fragile male ego could not handle my accomplishments.

As we finished up the evening and she was getting ready to leave, she reached over and took my hand as she was putting her shoes back on. I guess she needed to hold on to me for balance and I happily took her hand. She stood and told me how much fun this had been and how nice it was to be able to speak freely about ‘things’ with someone that wasn’t so close to her as to be judgmental. I told her that I had really enjoyed myself and was so happy to see her in a more relaxed setting and that I thought that she was quite attractive with her hair down and in glasses. She blushed a bit as I said that and said that she better be going so her husband would not worry.

As she was walking to the door, I walked with her and asked her if she would be willing to have dinner with me on Sunday night as that would be my last night here before heading back home to the States. She said she would give it some thought and make sure her husband did not have plans for them that evening. I told her I thought that would be great and that I looked forward to seeing her the next day.

I opened the door for her, and she stepped out, but then turned back towards me and said, “Thanks, Brenda. This was fun and hope that we can be as good friends off hours as we are during business hours.”

I told her I liked that idea and hoped that she could work it out where we could have dinner together on Sunday night. She walked down the hall towards the elevator, and I found myself staring at her and admiring her as she walked away. When she got to the elevator, she pushed the down button and turned and was a bit surprised to see me still standing at the door. She gave me a bit of a playful wave and got in the elevator.