Las Vegas’ Kerth Ceremonies, part 8
When Lois arrived back in the room after her hair appointment, she was met with an empty room and a note left on the bedside table. It read, “Volcano in Italy. Be back as soon as I can. Go to K awards and accept all 5 for both of us. Love you.”
Lois was disappointed. She immediately put the television to LNN and noted that the disaster had taken over the news. She watched her husband come into view repeatedly, ferrying people out the way of danger. Lois was heartsick. They had worked so hard this year, and the result was the nomination for five awards. The two of them deserved to have a day free from disaster so they could bask in the spotlight of their accomplishments. As soon as the thought crossed her mind, Lois was ashamed. She knew that she was blessed, and her husband was responding to a higher calling than mere awards. But it was hard to get her priorities straight since she was not in the middle of the crisis like Clark. He would be disappointed to miss the ceremony, but not crushed. The loss of life at the disaster would make him upset, not the loss of adulation.
Lois called down to room service and ordered herself a salad with chicken and a pot of coffee. She was about to end the order when a strawberry-topped chocolate cheesecake caught her eye. She ordered herself a slice to top off the meal. It was obvious that the best way to overcome disappointment was to stuff her mouth.
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Casey and Susan stepped up to the front of the entrance of the Presidential Suite. He opened the door, pushed it back, and stepped aside for her to enter first. Her breath caught as she looked around at the lavish furnishings of the suite. It was even nicer than the one she had stayed in the night before. It had to be one of the most beautiful places she had ever seen. The lavish furniture was in shades of green, gold, and ivory. There was a high gloss to the wood tables, gold and crystal lamps, and artwork that looked expensive and rare. Recessed lighting made the bar area stand out and gave off a warm glow. Susan did a 180 degree swing to look at the beautiful room. Casey watched with a grin.
“Follow me,” Casey said. He went to a door off the far left side of the living area. “This is the room I’ve been using, but you can have it if you want it.“ He stood aside as she went into the room to see a large king-sized bed, a desk, a dresser, and a love seat all in the room with a lot of area left over. It was obvious that someone very neat had occupied the place, as the bed was turned back and there was a shirt on the back of the desk chair but other than that it was cleared. Just then Susan heard Casey clear his throat, and he said, “Through the first door you will find a large closet and that second door leads to a bathroom. That bathroom is why I chose this suite. It has ‘relax’ written all over it.”
Susan stepped into the bathroom that Casey had indicated. Last time she’d seen anything like this it was on the television being shown as a millionaire mansion. She instantly understood what Casey was saying.
Casey stood with an amused grin on his face as Susan looked around in the rooms. When she seemed to be through, he said, “Let’s go see the other room.” Susan followed him back into the living quarters and they went across the room to the far right side of the main room. Casey reached into the room and flicked the light switch. “This is the bedroom that no one has used on this trip. You are welcome to your choice of rooms.”
Susan stepped into the room decorated in ivory with light green piping on the bedspread and the loveseat. The queen-sized bed was a tall canopy bed and the coloring of the room was definitely feminine in comparison to the other room. Susan giggled to herself as she thought she could just see herself in that big room with everything oversized, and Casey stuck in a smaller room that was decorated feminine and the furniture was on a smaller scale. She looked around and then went to the door leading off into the bathroom. She flicked on the switch, and she was sure she was in the more feminine of the rooms. There was a make-up desk with lights on it, and the tub was a claw-footed tub. In the corner where the shower was, the door had seashells etched into the glass. The whole room was softer in appearance than the other bathroom, but still it had some very high-end decorations. The gold fixtures on sink and bath tub spoke of one step beyond the normal bathroom.
When Susan wandered into the living area, Casey asked her to sit down and offered her a drink. Not wanting to start drinking so early when she had such an important evening ahead of her, she asked him for a diet coke. He reached into the refrigerator, and took out a diet coke, took down a glass from the shelf, and put ice in it. He then handed her the filled glass and went back to the refrigerator to get himself a ginger ale. When he had poured himself a drink, he sat down next to her on the sofa.
“Have you decided that you can trust me enough to come and stay here tonight?” Casey was very apprehensive about asking her, but he really did want her to stay.
Susan thought about his question for a minute and then said, “Why are you offering this to me? It is not your fault that I was put into a single room like my publisher paid for me to stay in. That was the best I expected. Last night when I was so tired, you could have put me in a broom closet and I would have been satisfied.”
“My ex-wife was the one who replaced you in the suite today. I gave you that suite for two nights without any strings and I did not expect to have it yanked away from you. She has no authority to remove you like that when I gave you a place to stay. And if there was any other suite or penthouse available for you to go into, we wouldn’t even be having this conversation. But the facts are that I have a hotel at full capacity, an ex-wife who took something that wasn’t hers to claim, and you left in a stuffy old closet of a room just because my ex could do it.”
Casey was looking down into his drink. He looked so sad. Susan pondered his question about whether she trusted him. Oddly, even though she had not had a lot of experience with men, she did trust Casey. There were no clanging bells going off in the back of her mind. He had always been a gentleman. His explanation was plausible unless his ex-wife was in on his seductions. It came down to whether she was a fool to trust him or was she a fool to pass up this opportunity? If she stayed in the room she now occupied, she would be fine. But, she’d miss the chance to do something spectacular. And Susan was not one to miss an opportunity if she could help it. She looked over at Casey to discover he was watching her intently.
“Well, what you think? Would you like to move into here for tonight? I promise you, there are no strings, and no hidden costs in the offer. I have to be upstairs most of the evening with a very important group of people, and the whole place will be sitting empty most of the night.” Casey looked into her eyes as he spoke and could see she was weakening. “I still plan to come down to the Ballroom and dance your victory lap with you, but other than that you will probably not even see me all evening. Please, Susan. Consider moving in here so I don’t have to worry about you in the older room. You were meant to be in a nice suite.”
“Thank you, Casey. I am in your debt once more. I don’t know why you are being so nice to me, but I do know I’d be a fool to turn your offer down. Can you help me locate a luggage cart so I can go and get my things? I’ll try to be a good roommate and make sure you don’t regret this offer.”
“Let me get on the phone and I’ll make it all happen while you are sitting here sipping on your drink. Susan, welcome to your new home. Let me know which room you decide to take.”
He picked up the house phone, and asked for a porter to be sent to room 471 and everything transferred to his suite. He also asked for a key card to be made for Susan, and two tuxedo to be sent up to the suite in his size. He listened to the message being read back to him, and thanked the person on the other end of the phone.
“I wasn’t expecting to have to dress up tonight, but since I now have a date to a dance and it is formal, I thought I might need a tux or two here so I don’t embarrass my beautiful companion.” That put smiles on both of their faces.
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The security office was abuzz with speculation about the latest gossip that the boss had moved a woman into his suite. Facial recognition from the day before had given them the name of Lois Lane, but she was registered in the hotel as Susan Mayer. Out of curiosity, Delinda looked Lois Lane up on the computer. The first fact that popped up was that Lois had married her writing partner a few years ago. They pulled the picture back up from the day before, and there was no wedding ring on her finger.
“Who would have thought Casey Manning was the type to date a married woman?” asked Danny.
