CHAPTER THREE
Christopher
Green Lake
“Good evening, sir. Welcome to Sunny Hills hotel,” the security man at the door said as I got down from my vehicle which was parked at the entrance of the hotel and brought out the small hand luggage I had brought with me.
“Good evening. Is there someone to help me park my vehicle in the appropriate place?” I asked as I looked around for a valet.
“I am the one to help you do that, sir. First of all, let me help you with your luggage to the reception, after which you can hand me your car keys to park your vehicle properly for you,” said the security man/valet.
“Don’t worry about bringing the luggage into the reception for me; I will do that myself. Here, have the keys and park my vehicle in the appropriate place,” I said as I handed over the keys to my car to him.
“Okay, sir,” he said as he walked towards my car.
“You know what? I don’t think it’s wise for you to park it in the garage now. I will be on my way out of the hotel in a few minutes,” I said.
“Okay, sir. I will just park it by the side of the stone path then, to make your exit easier,” he replied.
“Thank you …?” I said as I looked to him to supply his name.
“Michael,” he said
“Michael,” I repeated as I turned and entered the hotel.
Thena had already made a reservation for me before my arrival as it was evident I might have to spend the night, so all I did when I got to the reception was to confirm the reservation, get my room keys, and collect my car keys from Michael before heading up to the room.
I entered the room and immediately fell flat on the bed. I was so exhausted. My eyes caught a glimpse of the complimentary wine by the hotel but I was too tired to investigate further.
I checked the time on my wristwatch and saw that it was thirty minutes past seven already and the charity was scheduled for 7:00 p.m. I laid on my bed wondering why I had listened to Thena in the first place. I was so damn tired and was still supposed to show up at an event dressed in a tux and a bowtie. I was so sure I wouldn’t be of much use at the charity. I decided to put a call in to Mrs. Olsen and explain the situation to her. I picked up my phone and dialed the number from the text Athena had sent.
“Good evening, this is Lucas Graham on the line,” I said.
“Good evening. I know it’s you on the line. We’ve spoken once before,” the voice on the other side (which I guessed to be that of Mrs. Olsen) said.
“Oh ... That’s true,” I said as I tried to think of a way to tell her I wouldn’t be coming for the event.
“I assume you are somewhere around already and need descriptions?” she asked without even giving me a chance to make an excuse.
“I wish I was,” I replied. “I’m actually at the Sunny Hills hotel at the moment, but I’m afraid I won’t be available for the charity. I’m so exhausted, and the trip down here didn’t help matters either. I can barely move my body as it is now.”
“That’s quite unfortunate …” she started to say before I cut in.
“I’m very sorry, but I really need to rest. I will, however, drop in around 9:30 or so with my donation. I might just not be able to be present at the event like I had planned earlier,” I explained.
“I quite understand your plight. I will definitely expect you around 9:30 p.m. then,” she said.
“Thanks so much for your understanding,” I replied as I ended the call.
I was glad with the alternative decision I had made and set my alarm for 9:00 p.m. so that I could have some rest before going to drop off the donation around 9:30 p.m.
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I drove into the venue of the event and parked my vehicle on the other side just as the security man had directed. I was dressed in blue jeans and a gray vest. It wasn’t the sort of appropriate dressing for a charity event, so I didn’t want to go inside the hall, in the midst of dressed up men and women. I stepped out of the car, picked up my phone, and put a call in to Mrs. Olsen, who met me in about five minutes where I had parked my vehicle.
“Good evening, Mr. Graham. It’s so nice to see you,” she said as she greeted me warmly.
“Good evening. I’m sorry I wasn’t fully available for the event as I promised earlier,” I apologized as I responded to the greeting.
“It’s understandable. Persons like you are always very busy. You do not need to apologize. I must admit that we were a bit disappointed that you weren’t around for the charity itself but of course, we also understand that your absence was simply unavoidable,” replied Mrs. Olsen.
“That’s quite true. There are some circumstances that are simply beyond a man’s control, no matter how rich he might be, and this happened to be one of such instances. Only God knows if I would have fainted from exhaustion on the event floor if I had forced myself into coming,” I said with a light chuckle.
“Thankfully nothing like that happened. I can imagine the headlines already: Billionaire Faints at The Springs Charity Event. Definitely not the type of publicity we want to attract,” she replied with a laugh.
I reached into the car and brought out the check I had earlier addressed to the organization back at the office. I handed it over to Mrs. Olsen.
“Wow! This is really a lot. I don’t know what to say. Thank you very much, Mr. Graham,” she replied as she continued to thank me profusely while I tried to contain my embarrassment.
“It’s all right. I just love the fact that I can actually contribute my own quota to helping development in the world,” I said.
“This quota of yours is definitely not small. Would you like me to announce your contribution at the event when we are recognizing our donors?” she asked.
“No … Not at all. Please do not announce it. I prefer my donation to remain anonymous,” I said. I definitely did not want to be the center of the attention at an event like this, especially when I intended to leave as soon as possible.
“It’s all right, then. There are persons like you who don’t want their contributions to be known and would just rather bless lives in secret,” replied Mrs. Olsen.
“Thank you. Let me release you to go back to the event, I’m sure your attention will be needed as soon as possible,” I said.
“Thank you. I will get in touch with you after the event to extend a more proper appreciation,” she replied.
I watched as she turned to leave. I was about to enter my vehicle and drive off when my attention was captured by an oval green opening on the north side of the garden. I inquired of the gateman, who informed me that it was a garden. It had been a while since I had enjoyed any form of greenery so I decided to take a look around, and I was captivated by what I saw. The garden contained beautiful flowers which emitted very pleasant fragrances. I stood in a quiet and hidden corner of the garden and continued to stare into the lit part of the garden at the display of the wondrous works of nature.
I had barely spent fifteen minutes in the garden when a very beautiful lady walked into the garden. Her black gown glittered under the brown coat she wore, and her mane of red hair was the most perfect I had ever seen. She sat on a stool beside a pool that was in the lighted part of the garden and her reflection on the pool was the most beautiful image ever.
I approached her and we got to talking. I got to know her name was Rebecca and that she actually worked with the organization that had organized the charity. We spoke for over thirty minutes and in those thirty minutes I realized that she was not someone I wanted to let go of just like that. I found her company much more attractive than her beauty and we fixed a date for the next day before she left the garden to go back to work.
As I drove back towards the hotel, I continued to think of the events that had occurred tonight and how pleased I was that I had gone to the event, even if it had just been to drop off the check. If I hadn’t gone, I wouldn’t have met Rebecca, and I wouldn’t have had the very amazing discussion I had with her. I smiled to myself as I remembered that we were scheduled to see one another tomorrow and that I was going to have another opportunity to be with her and enjoy her remarkable company. Tomorrow was definitely going to be a good day.