“I knew you were bringing the baby, so I had the limo stocked with milk, bottles, and stuff like that. At the hotel they’ll have everything you need.”
LuAnn made up a bottle for Lisa, cradled her against one arm, and fed her with one hand while she devoured a sandwich with the other.
Charlie watched the tender way she handled her daughter. “She’s cute, what’s her name?”
“Lisa, Lisa Marie. You know, after Elvis’s daughter.”
“You look a little young to be a fan of the King.”
“I wasn’t — I mean, I don’t really listen to that kind of music. But my momma did. She was a big fan. I did it for her.”
“She appreciated it, I guess.”
“I don’t know, I hope she does. She died before Lisa was born.”
“Oh, sorry.” Charlie fell silent for a moment. “Well, what kind of music do you like?”
“Classical. I really don’t know nothing about that kinda music. I just like the way it sounds. The way it makes me feel, sorta clean and graceful, like swimming in a lake somewhere up in the mountains, where you can see all the way to the bottom.”
Charlie grinned. “I never thought about it that way. Jazz is my thing. I actually play a little horn myself. Outside of New Orleans, New York has some of the best jazz clubs around. Play until the sun comes up, too. A couple of them not too far from the hotel.”
“Which hotel are we going to?” she asked.
“Waldorf-Astoria. The Towers. You ever been to New York City?” Charlie took a swig of club soda and sat back against the seat, unbuttoning the front of his suit coat.
LuAnn shook her head and swallowed a bite of sandwich. “I ain’t never really been anywhere.”
Charlie chuckled softly. “Well then, the Big Apple is a helluva place to start.”
“What’s the hotel like?”
“It’s real nice. First-rate, especially the Towers. Now it’s not the Plaza, but then what is? Maybe you’ll be staying at the Plaza one day, who knows.” He laughed and wiped his mouth with a napkin. She noticed that his fingers were abnormally large and thick, the knuckles massive and knobby.
LuAnn looked at him nervously as she finished her sandwich and took a sip of Coke. “Do you know why I’m here?”
Charlie settled a keen gaze upon her. “Let’s just say I know enough not to ask too many questions. Let’s leave it at that.” He smiled curtly.
“Have you ever met Mr. Jackson?”
Charlie’s features grew grim. “Let’s just leave it alone, okay?”
“Okay, just curious, is all.”
“Well, you know what curiosity did to that old cat.” The dark eyes glittered briefly at LuAnn as the words rolled off his tongue. “Just stay cool, do what you’re told, and you and your kid have no problems, ever again. Sound good to you?”
“Sounds good to me,” LuAnn said meekly, cradling Lisa closer to her hip.
Right before they climbed out of the limo, Charlie pulled out a black leather trench coat and matching wide-brimmed hat and asked LuAnn to put them on. “For obvious reasons, we don’t want you to be observed right now. You can ditch the cowboy hat.”
LuAnn put on the coat and hat, cinching the belt up tight.
“I’ll check you in. Your suite is under the name of Linda Freeman, an American business executive with a London-based firm traveling with her daughter on a combination of business and pleasure.”
“A business executive? I hope nobody asks me no questions.”
“Don’t worry, nobody will.”
“So that’s who I’m supposed to be? Linda Freeman?”
“At least until the big event. Then you can go back to being LuAnn Tyler.”
Do I have to? LuAnn wondered to herself.
The suite Charlie escorted her to after he checked her in was on the thirty-second floor and was mammoth in size. It had a large sitting room and a separate bedroom. LuAnn looked around in wonderment at the elegant furnishings, and almost fell over when she saw the opulent bathroom.
“You get to wear these robes?” She fingered the soft cotton.
“You can have it if you want. For seventy-five bucks or so a pop that is,” Charlie replied.
She walked over to the window and partially drew back the curtains. A goodly slice of the New York City skyline confronted her. The sky was overcast and it was already growing dark. “I ain’t never seen so many buildings in all my life. How in the world do people tell ’em apart? They all look the same to me.” She looked back at him.
Charlie shook his head. “You know, you’re real funny. If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were the biggest hick in the world.”
LuAnn looked down. “I am the biggest hick in the world. At least the biggest one you’ll probably ever see.”
He caught her look. “Hey, I didn’t mean anything by it. You grow up here, you get an attitude about things, you know what I mean?” He paused for a minute while he watched LuAnn go over and stroke Lisa’s face. “Look, here’s the refreshment bar,” he finally said. He showed her how it worked. Next, he opened the thick closet door. “Over here is the safe.” He indicated the heavy metal door inserted into the wall. He punched in a code and the cylinders whirled into place. “It’s a real good idea to keep your valuables in there.”
“I don’t think I have anything worth putting in there.”
“How about that lottery ticket?”
LuAnn gulped, dug into her pocket, and produced the lottery ticket. “So you know that much, huh?”
Charlie didn’t answer her. He took the ticket, barely glancing at it, before thrusting it in the safe. “Pick a combo — nothing obvious like birthdays or stuff like that. But choose something you’ll remember off the top of your head. You don’t want to be writing the numbers down anywhere. Got that?” He opened the safe again.
LuAnn nodded, and input her own code and waited until the safe was in the lock mode before shutting the closet door.
Charlie headed to the door. “I’ll be back tomorrow morning about nine. In the meantime, you get hungry or anything, just order up room service. Don’t let the waiter get a good look at your face, though. Put your hair up in a bun or wear the shower cap, like you’re about to jump in the tub. Open the door, sign the bill as Linda Freeman, and then go into the bedroom. Leave some tip money on the table. Here.” Charlie took a wad of bills from his pocket and handed them to her. “Generally, keep a low profile. Don’t go walking around the hotel or stuff like that.”
“Don’t worry, I know I don’t sound like no executive person.” LuAnn pulled her hair out of her eyes and tried to sound flippant, although her low self-esteem was as plain as the hurt tones in Charlie’s response.
“That’s not it, LuAnn. I didn’t mean...” He finally shrugged. “Look, I barely finished high school. I never went to college and I did okay for myself. So neither one of us could pass as a Harvard grad, so who the hell cares?” He touched her lightly on the shoulder. “Get a good night’s sleep. When I come back tomorrow, we can go out and see some of the sights and you can talk your head off, how about that?”
She brightened. “Going out would be nice.”
“It’s supposed to be chilly tomorrow, so dress warmly.”
LuAnn suddenly looked down at her wrinkled shirt and jeans. “Uh, these are all the clothes I have. I, uh, I left home kind of quick.” She looked embarrassed.
Charlie said kindly, “That’s all right: No luggage, no problem.” He sized her up quickly. “What, you’re about five ten, right? Size eight?”
LuAnn nodded and blushed slightly. “Maybe a little bigger on top than that.”
Charlie’s eyes hovered over her chest area for a moment. “Right,” he said. “I’ll bring some clothes with me tomorrow. I’ll get some things for Lisa, too. I’ll need a little extra time though. I’ll be here around noon.”