Among The Roses

Chapter 23: Let's Party

It was Chiara's first time in a chauffeured car excepting her father's funeral. She had been running on fumes then, on tea and a couple hours' sleep, so she barely remembered it; it was a misty memory, filtered through illness and grief.

Today, though, even though it was cold, the sun was shining and she was on her way to London, for as close to a holiday as she had ever had in her life. And for the first time in weeks, the shadow of her father's death wasn't looming over her, casting a pall over her every waking moment.

She settled back into the luxurious leather upholstery, determined to enjoy every moment of her found good fortune. She opened every drawer and cupboard in the back of the car and helped herself to a bottle of water and a biscuit, even though she wasn't particularly hungy or thirsty, and the trip was barely two hours.

The car pulled up in front of the hotel and someone was there to open the door and whisk her one piece of luggage away before she could say anything sensible. Not that she would've known what to say, anyway. Noah was waiting for her, and had tipped everyone in sight before she could even get her money out.

"Chiara, welcome to London!" He smiled and hugged her, leading her into the hotel's opulent interior.

Chiara's eyes were like saucers, looking from one thing to the next inside the hotel. She'd never been anywhere like this in her life. "Sorry, Noah, but we have to walk a bit slower, okay? The only other times I've been to London was when we went to Gardening conventions and stayed in Motor Courts by the airport, you know?"

They laughed together as they rode up in the elevator.

"Lovely to see you, child," Ellie said as she hugged Chiara. "Hope your drive up was pleasant?"

Chiara nodded. "Yes, I had water and some biscuits I didn't even want, just because I could," she informed the older woman with a grin.

"Well, we have nothing going on this afternoon until dinner, then there's the concert, so you can rest, or we can go out, whatever you like," Ellie told her. "Oh, you can put your things in there." She gestured toward a door that opened off the beautifully appointed lounge in which they were standing. There was a beautiful view of Hyde Park across the street.

Chiara hesitated. "Have I put one of you out?" she asked. "How did I manage to get my own room when you didn't know I was coming?"

Ellie smiled. "No worries. We were in a two bedroom suite, and we switched to a three bedroom suite, that's all."

"Oh god, the expense!" Chiara was beside herself. "I wouldn't have minded to kip down on the sofa, honestly!"

"Nonsense!" Ellie was emphatic. "Please don't give money another thought whilst you're here with us, Chiara dear. During most of the year, I live a regular life, buying things on special, cutting corners where I can, but the holidays are my time to splash out a little, and thanks to Drew I can, so please, let me enjoy myself, all right? I only have boys, and while I do love them," and here she paused to smile at Noah, who smiled back, "I'm looking forward to shopping with a real, live girl."

Chiara finally nodded, depositing her bag in the beautiful room with the view of the park, and returning to have a cup of tea with Ellie and Noah.

She actually ended up taking a nap, a luxury she hadn't indulged in for years. Then she took a bath before getting dressed for dinner. She was a little worried that she'd be overdressed. but she saw Ellie was wearing a dark blue sheath dress with sparkles, and Noah was wearing a jacket and tie, and stopped worrying.

"Oh, Chiara, you look lovely," Ellie told her. "Doesn't she look beautiful, Noah?"

"Yeah," he agreed enthusiastically. "I think this is the first time I've seen you not in those overall things."