Off Campus 04

Everybody except Hannah is gathered in the bar in the immediate aftermath of Cheyenne's press conference addressing the national celebration of, and outrage at, this morning's viral video outing the harem. A media relations firm has been retained on just a few hours notice to help us deal with the fallout.

Hannah remains in Colorado Springs addressing her dilemma, with the procedure in process as of this morning.

=====

My phone buzzes again. I pick it out of my pocket and glance at the screen. Oh! It's Hannah!

"Hi!"

"(Hannah,)" I whisper to Ally and Cyan. They smile and nod.

"Wow, Steven. You sure pulled a crashing success out of a shitstorm. I was almost afraid to come home after this afternoon's reports. You and Cheyenne. What a power couple! It's going to be hard to compete against an entire country falling in love with you."

"Not a competition! But thanks. How are you doing? Feeling better about things?"

"Yeah. Great advice, as usual. I contacted Bethany. She's my main counselor; I filled her in on what was happening. You're right, she was shocked, and threw the works into high gear to sequester me. They even had a place to hide my car. She watched the evening news with me. Now

she's

in love with you, too. You gotta cut that shit out."

I laugh. "Thanks for the vote of confidence, Hannah," I chuckle. "Seriously, you doing okay? Any issues with the meds?"

"The bleeding hasn't started yet. I am hungry, though. Snackish. That's not like me."

"That has to be the emotional stress talking. Nausea is a known side-effect, however, so don't chow down."

"Thanks. Good idea."

"You able to get a workout in? I can't imagine they'd have a gym there."

"Just a treadmill. They did say 'no heavy exercise' for at least two weeks."

"That's got to be the worst part of your experience! You live off that adrenaline!"

She chuckles.

"Still on schedule for Monday?"

"Probably Tuesday."

"I'll pass it on. Call me tomorrow. And I'll tell Ally to snag a T-shirt for you."

"Huh?

What

T-shirt?"

"The Abercrombie Hotel - Home of Superstud".

"Really, Steven?" she sneers.

"Publicist said to print thirty thousand. You saw the news."

"You're a loony case sometimes. I love you anyway. You are so good to me."

I chuckle, "Love you too. Talk to you tomorrow."

I almost hesitate the put the phone back into my pocket because sure as heck, with everything going on it will ring and I'll have to fish it out again.

"She okay?"

Ally is still holding me tight.

"Yes, she's fine. She was worried about me and our mess here. She saw us on TV. Gave me grief about all the attention. She'll be back on Tuesday."

"She's obviously feeling better. She enjoys messing with you, sort of like you and Cheyenne."

"And I love both for it."

I glance over at the passageway entrance. Don is sticking his head through the doorframe.

"Mr. Albertson?"

"Yes, Don?"

"There are some people up front here who need to see you. Bring your lawyer and Ms. Abercrombie. The others might be helpful, too."

"Press?"

"No. They seem to be gone."

"Okay," I confirm. "Be right there. Everybody? You heard Don. Let's go."

The eight of us gather ourselves and start through the passage. I glance into the café on passing the door. Empty. I hear excited voices from a gathered crowd in the lobby. Past the stairway I catch a glimpse of several folks milling about near the elevators.

"Here they come!" somebody shouts.

The gathered throng breaks into applause and cheers. As I emerge into the lobby with The Gang trailing, shouts of "We love you!", "Omygawd you were great!", "Thank you Cheyenne!" and "You saved us!" welcome us into the teeming mass of employees.

It is the entire staff. Everybody. Several run towards Cheyenne, and me, to hug us. My cheeks glow red from countless kisses from female staff. It's hard to not cry. Cyan reaches into her purse for tissues, handing them to me.

"That's okay, Mr. Albertson," somebody calls out as they see me daubing my cheeks. "Those are happy tears. You earned them!"

"Guys? Everybody?" as they quickly go quiet. Now that's respect. "Let me guess. You were watching TV on company time."

Big, big laughter. I put my arm around Cheyenne.

"Isn't she great?"

I give her a possibly inappropriate kiss. More hoots and cheers.

"Thanks, everyone!" she acknowledges.

"You know," I start, "bosses like me are supposed to say things like 'we couldn't have done it without you' and stuff like that. It's in our training manual."

A murmur of chuckles.

"But it's true. We couldn't. You all were great today in not breaking ranks defending the fortress. The Visigoths were pounding at our doors wanting to make a mess of our lives."

"What's a Visigoth, Mr. Albertson?" a soft voice queries.

"Bad guys, Jason. Look it up," a familiar voice answers.

"Thanks, Jeremy. About that envelope."

More laughs.

"Seriously, we were in trouble with that video from this morning. We were being ourselves and having a whole bunch of fun, but us old folks..."

Giggles and chuckles.

"Yeah, us old folks aren't as quick on the draw as you youngsters are with your phone cameras. We don't expect being on camera, so we were caught being... and I will freely admit it... being our sexy selves kind of in public. But sexy is okay, right?"

"Yes, sir!" "Sure is" "You guys are great!" "I'd be sexy, too. Your girlfriends are HOT!"

"Oh, I agree. They are. Thanks!"

"Steven!" Jen scolds. Ally grins and slaps me on the shoulder like she does when I'm "being nasty".

Laughter, again.

"Let's get back to serious. Many of you heard the kinds of questions they we were shouting at us. They were fishing for responses to twist into making The Abercrombie sound like some modern Sodom and Gomorrah, a den of wanton sin. Scandal sells. It sells clicks, newspapers, page views, all sorts of shi... uh, stuff."

Oh, that drew chuckles.

"The bottom line here

was

the bottom line. Given a false reputation like that we would have lost more business, and of course you know what that means. Losing Acme was bad enough."

Head nods from most of the crowd.

"We saw on our first visit last year that there was charm and romance in these old bricks, and the ambience of nostalgic times permeated everything. You, all of you, were key to keeping that ambience alive. We had to save it. We are hopeless romantics, and appreciated what was here. We appreciated what you, together, have done."

I continue, "To that end, with skill, your wonderful defense today, and a little bit of luck we turned it into good times ahead for us all. The publicity from today means the phones will be ringing off the hook with reservations and bookings. This also means working hard, like in the old days. We're going to be counting on everybody to pitch in as the business grows. We will be hiring in all of the guest services departments. You will have new friends, and, yes, paychecks might just get a little fatter as we spread the success around. But that's going to take some time. We have work to do. Any questions?"

"Are you and your lovers still going to be on the fifth floor?"

"Straight and to the point. I like that. Welcome to my world. Yes. The entire residential wing will be ours. The newest addition to our fun family, Ms. Haverty here - raise your hand, Amber - has bought 507 and will be living here with us. We're still hashing out what to do with 509. It won't be sold as we had previously planned."

"Dungeon!" shouts somebody. I smile and glance at Ally.

"Will the carpets be chocolate syrup-proof?" from somebody else, obviously in housekeeping. Oops.

Lots of laughs on that one!

I have to gracefully answer, "We will be addressing ease of cleaning issues everywhere, so indirectly, yes. There is a certain reality that romance sometimes comes with messes, occasionally gross ones."

"You guys still going to have parties in the penthouse on weekends?"

"We hope to stop doing that real soon. We especially want that to be available for weekend guests, particularly as a honeymoon suite. We're not doing ourselves any favors by taking it out of commission. That's part of our thinking with 509."

"So, more weddings?"

"Yes. Definitely. Haven't you guys figured out yet that we're in love with love?" I grin.

That got chuckles.

"Ally?"

"We will be redecorating the banquet hall and large meeting room to be more appropriate for weddings and other romantic events like formal dances, and will be marketing to that clientele. Lots of great bookings go along with weddings. We expect to fill the hotel on wedding weekends."

"Thanks, Ally. Next?"

"Rumor is you guys run around naked in the hallway up there."

Giggles from Ally, Jess and Amber. Scowls from Cyan and Jen.

"And I don't mind at all. I mean, look at them. 'Cept you, Phil. Keep it zipped."

Oh, gawd! Gales of laughter with that one. Cheyenne rolls her eyes. Ally slaps me again. Maybe we should take this act on the road.

"Thanks, guys. I guess you can tell we're having fun. Anyway, some of you might have noticed that Mac covered the sidelights on the residential hallway door today. So you can put your phones away. However... discretion, remember? Safety is number one, discretion in our business is always number one, as well. Our privacy as well as that of our guests is utmost. You catch somebody doing the 'Ice Machine Challenge' or similar naked hotel hallway dare, just smile in appreciation and go about your business. Unless they are damaging hotel property or offending other guests, let them have their - yes, romantic - fun. I can guarantee you will see more of this."

"Yes Mr. Albertson."

"Oh," I add. "This also includes the cameras in the elevators. Connors, you tell your staff that nudity and sex in the elevators is to be tolerated. Period. Let the lovers love. We can't turn the cameras off like we did before because there are going to be serious security concerns, especially relating to my and Cheyenne's newfound celebrity status. There are going to be stalkers. Everybody, the rules about challenging unknowns where they shouldn't be remain. Be polite, of course, and keep security's direct number in your favorites to call for assistance quickly if something doesn't look or feel right."

"About marketing," Janice asks, "are we changing the website to promote the 'new us'? Social media?"

"Excellent question, and well timed, Janice! In response to the press problem we had today, Ms. Morris and I hired a PR firm to manage image and messaging. They are working on a serious social media presence, and somebody will be assigned to managing that as a full-time job. Phil?"

"I have been working with a web firm on tweaking what we have for a better smartphone experience. The PR company will be enlisted for a website redesign to unify the look, and to push the romance angle. We're looking at a new reservations package, as you well know what we have is dated and a little clumsy."

"Thanks," is Janice's acknowledgment.

"When do you expect the renovations to be done on the fourth floor?"

"Soon! Ally?"

"You might have noticed work crews here on the weekends. We are pushing them to finish up. I'd like the fourth ready to take bookings in six weeks. You've obviously heard there are supplier problems these days, so I can't commit to any hard date right now."

"Anybody else?" I ask.

"Thank you Mr. Albertson. Thank you, Ms. Morris. We love you guys. You did really good out there. We're proud of you! We're proud to work for you!"

"Thank you, Austin. Thank you everyone. It was a real honor you gathered here on your own to thank us. We appreciate every one of you. Thank you!"

There are more handshakes and hugs as the staff disperses. A few guests are milling about at the back of the pack, thankfully being patient with us in recognition that something special possibly just happened. The bellhops are scrambling to assist with their luggage, and that motion cues everyone else to resume their posts and get on with the business day.

One couple waiting to check-in steps up to address me.

"You're obviously in charge. What happened? We saw news trucks out front. Are we going to be okay to stay here tonight?"

"Steven Albertson," as I reach to shake their hands. "Yes. You will be fine. Ally? Could you please join us?"

Ally makes her way up front. She puts her arm around me.

"This is Allison Abercrombie, our CEO."

"Nice to meet you," she greets. "Thank you for staying with us."

"Wow. It's not just a name."

"Yes. I'm the fifth generation in the business. My great-great-grandfather built the hotel."

"And I'm an owner, with three others. The hotel went viral on social media today. A joke, a prank, among the management team was caught on camera."

Their jaws drop. "Ohmygawd,

you're 'Superstud'!!

I thought a couple of the ladies we saw up front with you looked kind of familiar. The pretty twins. We saw the clip on TikiePix. We didn't put it together it was

here

!"

"That's okay, folks. It's embarrassing, of course, but we're dealing with it. The media picked-up on the story and we just finished a press conference. It went well, and the staff assembled here for an impromptu debrief."

"He's being modest," Ally breaks in. "The staff gathered on their own to thank him for saving the hotel. Ottawa lost a big factory a few months ago and a lot of our business went with it."

"Thanks, Ally. I apologize for the inconvenience. How long are you going to be with us?"

"We leave Monday morning."

"Very good. I will see that you are taken care of. Tammy?" I address the front desk supervisor.

"Yes, Mr. Albertson?"

"Please comp these kind folks their stay here. Bar and café, too. Do we have one of the new suites available for them?"

"I think so."

"Thank you."

"You didn't have to do that, Mr. Albertson! But thank you!" the guests react in their surprise.

"Yes I did. You have given us insights on things we needed to know. Consider it payment for your consulting services."

"Professional

and

funny. We heard some of what you said to your employees, too. Ms. Abercrombie, is he always like that?"

"Ohgawd, you have

no

idea," she chuckles.

"This is obviously a great place to be, Mr. Albertson, Ms. Abercrombie. Thank you again!"

"My pleasure. Enjoy your stay." I shake their hands again.

As Ally and I step away from the mini PR session, I breathe in the relief from the pressure of just everything. Glancing around, of The Gang I see it's only Ally and myself remaining in the lobby.

"Where is everybody?" I ask her.

"I think I saw them heading for the café or bar."

"Good. Hungry. Cookie!"

She giggles. Out of the corner of my eye I notice the couple we were just with caught that exchange. They are chuckling and giving me big approving smiles. Being ourselves seems to be a pretty good marketing ploy. Roger Ahmonson is right.

We make a beeline for the passageway, glance into the café and see The Gang at our table. Applause as we step into the diner.

Phil's first, "Steven, I don't for the life of me know how you pulled that off. You, too, Cheyenne. Astounding."

"Us being us," I reply. "Roger told me in our first chat that was the winning formula."

Ally and I take our seats. Jess gets up from her chair, hikes her skirt and sits in my lap sideways, draping her arms over my shoulders, leaning into me. I hold her. She wants comfort and cuddling more than anything else. She's exhausted, too. We all are.

"Anybody see any cameras out there?" I ask.

"No, not yet," Jen notes. "Maybe they finally packed it in."

"Maybe. But a couple of guests Ally and I just left were asking about the news vans, so they're not gone as far as we know. How are things at your office, Cheyenne?"

"Just got off the phone with Jack. It's settling down. Paul has gone home, and there are two or three associates holding the fort. They'll be there until 10:00."

"Jack? Paul?" Amber is puzzled. She's had contact with some of Cheyenne's people as they helped her get settled here, but nobody with those names.

"Jack Miller and Paul McLaughlin, Amber. My firm's partners."

"Oh, wow. And you, Cheyenne. The big guns. That's going to be one heck of an invoice this month, Steven."

"That's okay. They earned it. Taking it out of Cyan's allowance, anyway."

"Steven!" Cyan laughs. Cheyenne, next to me, pinches a butt cheek. I jump up in my chair.

"Oo! Do that again!" little Jessica blurts.

"You guys, I swear," Jen scolds. Yeah, she always manages to play the role of "Mom" when we get silly. Makes sense, of course, given that she

is

the only mother of the group.

Jeanie steps over to me and gives me a peck on the cheek.

"You know, Stevie-boy, everybody here just loves your ass. Not just Ally and your girls, the whole staff. Ally's dad was great to us and all that, but you take the cake. Speaking of cake, what do you and Ally want for supper? I have everybody else going in the kitchen."

"Beef tips and noodles. Carrots. Comfort food. Ally?"

"Any salmon left?"

"Yep."

"I'll have that. Salad and broccoli. Thanks, Jeanie."

"My pleasure, guys. Lemme go put it in."

"Hey, everyone, we need to talk about tonight's plans."

"What do you have in mind, Steve?" Cyan asks. "My guess is you and Cheyenne really need to spend alone time together. Blow off that steam you guys didn't finish in the passageway. And cuddling.

Lots

of cuddling. Today was rough."

"Oh, thank you, sweetheart." I've said it many times, I love my wife.

Cheyenne responds, "Wow. Thanks, Cyan. Steven owes me -- you know how we work -- but it's different this time. This one's off the clock. We were both dialed to 11 nearly all day, propping each other up."

Ally admits, "Amber and I will miss you tonight, lover, but Cyan's right. You guys need to cool down together."

"Jess? You're with us," Jen offers. "You're overdue for some Phil time. Cyan? I already called Thad. He'll be at your place after he gets off work."

"Thanks, Jen! You're a dear!" Cyan grins.

Jess appreciates the offer, "Thank you, Jen. Phil

would

be nice to have tonight. I sorta miss that special..."

"Jeeeeeessss... not the time," I caution with a grin.

"Awwww... I know," Jess relents. "No sex talk while eating. Food, that is."

"You did it anyway!" Ally mock-scolds. "Bad Jess! No biscuit!"

Everyone cracks up. Jessica is a hoot.

If those press hounds who so badly wanted to peer into our bedrooms could have seen how we get along like this, how we lean into each other and are loving, thoughtful, considerate and open with our intimacy, they'd understand us. But them and frankly the rest of the world just aren't ready for people like us.

Jeanie is bringing the earlier orders to the table. Jess kisses me as she leaves my lap, and finds her spot at the table to enjoy the meal.

As we start to eat, I ask Jen if Thad had been following any of the events today.

"No, he had been working since before noon. He said he overheard customers talking about that the hotel was in the news, but the restaurant was unusually busy and he had to focus on his job and didn't chat. When I told him what was going on, his reaction was 'Well, that sure explains all the people with TV station logos on their shirts. They had to be a third of our business today.'"

"Thanks, Jen. Hey, gang, it looks like we goosed the local economy, too. Ally, how cozy are you with the Chamber?"

"Not very. That was always Dad's thing. Sort of don't care for their politics."

"Hmm. Well, you

know

I totally get that, but we need to build bridges if we get any pushback from the community about the sexy side of romance. They need to understand that, frankly, sex sells, and if we are bringing the traffic we expect into Ottawa, there's going to be a whole bunch of spillover business. Thad's report underscored that. Money talks, and the Abercrombie name is associated with big money here, so you're 90% there."