Magnolia
Mansion Bed and Breakfast
2127 Prytania Street - Garden District
New Orleans, Louisiana
1840 ZULU
Pulling
up to the magnificent structure in front of him, Harm knew his jaw was
almost in his lap. Hearing Mac’s soft gasp only confirmed that
there must be some kind of mistake. "You sure you got those directions
right, Mac?"
"Uh...yeah. This is the place...but...my god, it’s incredible,"
she practically gushed.
He had to agree. The stately white pillars that lined the wrap around porch only added to the grandeur of the beautiful old building. Stepping out of the car his senses were immediately assaulted by the smell of magnolias and rose blossoms that shared residence with massive oak trees that framed the perfectly landscaped yard. The black, wrought iron fence completed the picture, and sent them both slipping into an image of the past. You could almost hear the streetcar whistles, imagine horses and carriages lazily moving up and down the streets.
Shaking himself mentally, and physically, Harm walked to the back of the car to remove their bags, meeting Mac there. When he grabbed both of their bags, Mac started to protest that she could carry her own, when something in his eyes stopped her. Without another word, Mac slammed the trunk and Harm began the short trek up to the house.
Before they could even make it up the steps leading to the front door, a woman appeared, wiping her wet hands on a dish towel. "Now, you two I’ve been waitin’ on. Come’n up to ‘de house, so I can be gettin’ you settled down before lunch time."
While giving each other similar looks of confusion, the woman spoke again. "Now come on, you. I don’t have all day and neither do you."
Seeing no choice in the matter, Harm and Mac both mumbled "yes, Ma’am," and followed the willowy woman into the foyer.
"We’ll be havin’ none of dat ‘yes, Ma’am’ stuff around ‘ere either. You can call me Ceilee. Or Ms. Ceilee if you prefer. My grand mumma ran dis place for years and no one ever called her by any ting but her first name," she called over her shoulder as she moved to a very elegant desk set off to the side of the large sitting room.
The mixture of cherry wood and fine tapestries only added to the class of the place, along with the very ornate chandeliers, and again Harm had to wonder if they were in the right place. Surely the Navy wouldn’t be footing the bill for a place like this. "Ma’am," at her scowl he corrected, "Um...Ms. Ceilee. Are you sure we’re...who you think we are?"
"Oh, course I’m sure. I knew yous would be come’n as soon as all of dat wicked stuff started at de base. Shame it had to end like dat. But she was a bad one, dat one. Still...no one deserves what happen to her," she shivered to punctuate.
Again Harm and Mac shared a look, only this one was more shocked than curious. It was Mac that spoke this time. "I’m sorry but, I don’t understand. How could you know what happened? How could you know anything about our case for that matter?"
Moving papers around on the desk she didn’t look at them while she checked them in without their names. "Cher’, I know enough. But, do I know if dat boy you caught did what you tink he did? Naw. I just have de feelin’s." And with that her eyes met Mac’s directly and she jolted as if struck by lightning. It was like the woman was looking at her soul. It was unnerving and uncomfortable, but strangely peaceful at the same time. Mac didn’t like it at all.
Harm watched, transfixed, as Mac seemed to be locked in a silent struggle with this strange woman. His gaze shifting to Ceilee, he studied her. While obviously not black, like so many of the natives of New Orleans you could see the French ancestry in her features, but could also tell the Cajun heritage in her speech. She was probably older than she looked, but her caramel colored skin was flawless. No wrinkles, no worry lines, making it almost impossible to even guess at her age, but she had a commanding way about her that spoke of maturity. She was thin but nicely built, her body in complete proportion to her considerable height. Long, naturally curly black hair was pulled up in a ponytail but it didn’t make her look any younger. Her most intriguing feature, however, were her eyes. They weren’t the soft, golden brown color of Mac’s, but black as midnight. No pupils were visible and it gave her an almost unearthly look. Although, shockingly beautiful, Harm felt absolutely no attraction to her. But he was definitely intrigued by all of the mystery that seemed to surround her.
When it looked like neither woman would speak Harm, tired of being left out, cleared his throat loudly. "Well, Ceilee, we’re both tired after the trip and I’m sure we’d both like to relax a little before we have to change and head to the base."
Her eyes never leaving Mac’s, she nodded. "Sure ting. You’ll be at the end of de hall, across from each other. Even though it’s pretty warm here still during de day, at night it gets plenty chilly. Dere’s a fireplace in both rooms." As Harm was reaching for the keys she held out, she ignored him and spoke to Mac. "You come find me later, Cher’. I tink we be need'n to have a talk."
Mutely Mac nodded in agreement, having no intentions of seeking the woman out later. She had an ominous feeling she didn’t really want to hear what this woman had to say.
"You
be enjoyin’ de rooms now, you hear? I’m sure you’ll
be...satisfied wit’ dem." At this, her sly smile shifted
to Harm, as if she knew something he didn’t.
"Um...thanks. I’m sure we will," he stammered.
"Oh, I’m sure you will too, Cher’," she practically sang.
Uncomfortable, Harm snagged Mac’s elbow and led her away to the wide, winding staircase that led to the second floor.
Harm almost ran over her when Mac abruptly stopped at the entrance to her room.
"Oof, geez, Mac. Don’t stop like..." the rest of what he would have said trailed off when he saw what she did.
The room was magnificent. Pale pink, blue and cream colors all gilded in gold. A massive brass canopy bed occupied the center of the room, and heavy tapestries adorned the large windows. Harm glanced back at the large bed, picturing Mac lying amongst the fine linens, the silk sheets gliding over her naked body. Blinking rapidly, Harm gulped in air. The room was very warm all of a sudden.
Moving as if in a trance Mac walked over to the intricately carved armoire, opening it to reveal not only a television and a VCR, but a stereo system as well. The closer she looked, she noticed small speakers on top of the elaborate piece of furniture.
"Well, thank god they have at least some modern conveniences," Harm joked, dropping her bags down on the bed.
"That from a man who doesn’t even really own a television," she replied smartly.
"Hey, I own one; your boyfriend took care of that. I just don’t use it."
His defensive comment struck her hard. Maybe they hadn’t made as much progress as she thought. "Well, I’ll make sure to tell him you appreciated it." It was on the mean and ugly side, but it seemed to be the best she could manage.
Harm looked at her back, wishing for all the world that he could take the last few seconds of his life back. They had just been through this that morning, and again he was reminded that until he got some real answers, he had no right to push her buttons. If only he wasn’t so afraid of her answers. "I’m sorry, Mac. I don’t...I didn’t mean to undo everything we accomplished this morning."
With a chuckle, Mac turned to face him, before moving to stand in front of him. "And just what did we accomplish this morning?"
Her sweet smile gave him the courage to answer. "More than I think we really know yet. I...I feel close to you again."
"And this is a good thing?" she asked, her voice hopeful.
Their bodies were almost touching, and he could smell her sweet scent, along with the distant fragrance of magnolias. Harm found it difficult to draw a full breath. "Being close to you is a very good thing." And before she could reply he brushed his lips across hers, a barely there kiss that left both of them unsatisfied. To keep himself from dropping his own bags and pulling her closer, he backed away. "I’ll see you in a little bit." And as fast as he could, before she noticed her obvious effect on him, he ran out her door, leaving a shocked Mac behind.
Trotting across the hall to his own room, he opened the door and almost groaned. His room was even more extravagant than hers. It was almost entirely red; the bed spread, the curtains, even the damn walls. Red and gold covered almost every surface. The floors were hardwood, and oriental rugs lined paths to the bed, the bath, and in front of the large, marble fire place. Harm threw his bags on the bed, and sat down, utterly disgusted.
There wasn’t a manly thing in this room. The bathroom only sported a claw-foot tub, no shower, which would be damn uncomfortable for a man of his height. Let alone for two people, should he ever actually get Mac in there with him. He smiled at the lewd thought.
The desk was only a small writing desk, but it did boast of high speed internet access. An armoire, similar to Mac’s, set to the side of the enormous king sized bed and housed the same amenities. It too was a deep cherry wood that seemed to match a very delicate sitting table and chairs, as well as the vanity directly in front of the bed.
Looking more closely at the vanity he noticed for the first time the almost floor to ceiling gilded mirror that faced the bed. Standing, Harm moved to stand in front of it, taking in the whole room from this angle. His eye lids drooped and grew heavy as he let himself wonder. Unbidden, images of him and Mac, naked and wrapped in each others arms after making love, lying as one in that massive bed while the fire roared in its place, played against his closed lids. The erotic visions were almost enough to overwhelm him. God, he wanted her, more than he had ever wanted anyone or anything in his life. But why here; why now?
"Christ, I’m in trouble," he muttered to no one. Something really strange was happening to him, to them.
And Harm had absolutely no idea what the hell he was going to do about it.
(I also wanted to let you know the Magnolia Mansion is a
real place. I found it during my research for this story, and if you'd
like to check it out you can at:
See if you can figure out which rooms are theirs. Also, just wanted to point out, I'm sure that this place isn't ran by someone like "Ceilee" but I took some liberties to fit my story, as well as some liberties with the layout of this building. For all intents and purposes the Magnolia Masion has a second floor in my story. (which judging from the pictures, is unsure) Let's just pretend, shall we? LOL!)