He had to admit that Evelyn’s idea of making the gala a 1920s-themed event was a splendid idea. It just added to the charm of the old hotel. He was very proud of how the renovations had turned out.
Emily continued on with her enthusiastic recounting of her night.“And this lady said she knew the hotel back from when it was open before. Oh, look. There she is.”Emily waved.
He turned to see who Emily was waving to and his breath caught in his throat.
It couldn’t be, could it?
But it had to be. The same emerald green eyes. The same red hair, even if it was twisted in some kind of twenties look now, instead of the shoulder-length curls he remembered.
The woman walked up to them, a warm smile on her face.“Good evening.”
“I was just telling everyone about you. And your dress. I love it.”Emily bubbled with excitement.“Anyway, this is my mom, Olivia, and my grandmother, Donna. And Mom’s cousin, Heather. And this is Barry, he was in charge of the remodel, and this is—”
“Delbert Hamilton,”the lady interrupted and smiled at him.“I’d know you anywhere.”
“I thought that was you, Cassandra.”He reached out and took her hands in his while strangely familiar feelings, so long forgotten—kind of forgotten—swept through him.
“You two know each other?”Emily asked.
“We met here at the hotel when we were young and I’d come here in the summers with my grandparents,”Delbert explained. But he’d never thought he’d see her again. She looked just as lovely as ever, with a gentle charm about her and a friendly smile. His pulse quickened just like it had back when he was just a kid, which was ridiculous.
“And I looked forward to seeing him every summer. He and his grandparents were very special guests.”
“Everyone, I’d like you to meet Cassandra Cabot.”He turned slightly to the group, his hands still holding hers.“Oh, is it still Cabot?”
“It is.”She nodded.
“Wow, an actual Cabot. That’s so neat.”Emily moved closer.“A real Cabot.”
Cassandra laughed.“Yes, a real Cabot. And I’ve so missed the hotel.”She turned to him.“You’ve done a wonderful job with her. She looks so elegant. Like she used to before…well, before she got a bit run down.”
“Thank you. We tried hard to keep her as close to the original as possible.”
“Delbert, there you are, honey.”
He swallowed, hard, at Camille’s words and turned toward the approaching woman.
Cassandra slipped her hands from his and he kept himself—just barely—from reaching out and grasping them again.
“And who isthis?”Camille asked, casting dagger looks at Cassandra as she sidled up to him and put her hand on his arm.
He shifted uncomfortably.“Cassandra Cabot, meet Camille Montgomery.”He removed Camille’s hand from his arm and took a step away from her.
“Oh, Cabot as in…well, Cabot?”
Cassandra’s lips curved into a gracious smile.“Yes, as in The Cabot Hotel.”
“Shame your family let it go to such ruin.”
“Camille.”His tone came out sharper than he intended. But maybe not.
“Well, it was a shame. But I guess when families hit hard times…”Camille shrugged.
Cassandra stood with her head held high and a gentle smile on her face.“Yes, we did have some tough times after the hurricane hit and did so much damage. It just wasn’t financially prudent at the time to rebuild and reopen the hotel.”Cassandra turned to him.“But I’m grateful that you bought it and restored it. She’s just…magnificent. Thank you for that.”
“I was grateful for the opportunity.”
“I’m sure you’re busy with your responsibilities with the gala. It was great to see you again, Delbert. And nice meeting all of you.”Cassandra smiled her warmhearted smile once more, turned, and disappeared into the crowd.
