Hotel Vendome

No one knew exactly what had happened, but Natalie’s sudden absence was conspicuous, and people suspected that it wasn’t because she had finished the job. And they were sorry to see her vanish from their lives. She had been a sunny presence and a nice woman whom everyone had liked. But Hugues was the sorriest of all.

He started taking long walks alone in the park and worked till after midnight every night. His temper was short, which was rare for him, and he tolerated no nonsense from anyone. As best they could, his employees tried not to cross his path and hoped he’d be back to himself soon. Jennifer tried not to annoy him, and he barked at her several times, which was most unusual. By September he still looked terrible, and Jennifer was worried about him. She had never dared mention Natalie to him again, and when he’d gotten back from Paris in June, he told Jennifer to pay her final bill, which she did. As far as she knew, there had been no communication between them since.

The temperatures were over the hundred-degree mark on the Labor Day weekend, and they had trouble with the air conditioners on the fifth and sixth floors. The engineers were going crazy trying to get them working again while guests complained. Hugues told the front desk to discount the rooms, but the guests in them were unhappy anyway. The heat was unbearable all over the city. It was too hot to go anywhere or do anything. In spite of that, Hugues decided to take a break and headed toward Central Park when the weather started to cool down a little, which meant in the nineties, but there was a breeze at least. He had thought about taking Heloise’s dog with him, but it was too hot for her too, so he left her at the florist, where she had spent most of her time in recent months in Heloise’s absence, since Jan loved her more than Hugues did.

He was walking around the reservoir in his suit trousers and his shirt sleeves, and he had taken off his tie. Then the sky opened up, there was a clap of thunder, a bolt of lightning, and a sudden down-pour. It was the only thing that could help the city in the blistering heat. He was instantly drenched, and his shirt was glued to his body, but the weather was so warm, he didn’t mind it. He kept walking, he was thinking back to June and Natalie’s letter and the things he should have done differently. But it was too late now. And he still missed her.

He kept walking around the reservoir in the thunderstorm, which continued, and he had almost come full circle to where he had started when he saw a woman who looked like her in gym shorts and a T-shirt. She was as soaked as he was, and she was splashing through the mud on the dirt track. He told himself that she only looked like Natalie because he’d been thinking about her. She had long blond hair in a ponytail that was wet and plastered to her back. He could tell that she didn’t mind the rain either. She turned and changed direction then, and when she did, he saw that it wasn’t an illusion, it was Natalie walking toward him. She looked as surprised as he did, and neither of them knew where to look or where to go. They kept walking toward each other, and he didn’t know if he should say hello. She looked down at the path then and was about to walk past him, when a force stronger than he was made him step forward and block her path. She looked up at him, and the expression in her eyes nearly killed him. She looked as miserable as he was.

“I’m sorry I was so stupid,” he said as they stood there in the pouring rain.

“It’s okay.” She smiled sadly at him, making no effort to walk around him. “I loved you anyway. Maybe I should have waited, but I couldn’t take it anymore.”

“I don’t blame you. I was afraid to lose her. And instead I lost you.” He looked devastated as the rain poured down their faces.

“It was probably a better choice. She’s your kid.”

“I love you,” he said, without reaching out to touch her. He was afraid to. He didn’t want to offend her.

“Me too. It won’t get us far, though. She probably would have made you give me up anyway.” His daughter had a death grip on him. Natalie knew that now.

“I won’t let that happen … if … if you give me another chance. I don’t know if I’d tell her before she comes home. She’ll be home in three months. And I’d fight like a dog for us then.” Natalie smiled at what he said, but she didn’t believe him. “Can I call you?”

They were both so soaked they looked like they had no clothes on, and he wished they didn’t. He remembered too well what her body looked like. He had dreamed of it night after night, and her face and her eyes. And he could see most of her body now through the soaked T-shirt and gym shorts.

“I don’t know,” she said honestly. “I don’t want to go back to where we were, with me in the closet and you hiding me from her.” He nodded.

“And if I tell her in December when she gets home?”

“She’d probably kill you.” Natalie smiled at him, and he nearly melted. “Maybe it’s a good thing I never had kids.”