Bette had unlimited use of the Peabody’s private jet and since she loved the luxury, comfort and convenience of not having to fly commercially she really appreciated Peggy’s generosity. On late Friday afternoon she relaxed into the comfortable leather seat and watched as the New York City skyline came into view.

Bette expected a car service to pick her up from the airport to take her to Tribeca but was pleasantly surprised to see Peggy’s personal driver David waiting for her. With Peggy gone it appeared the majority of her staff didn’t have much to do since Helena apparently preferred to employ her own. Bette and David caught up with each other’s lives on the ride to the loft and he offered his services for her entire stay in New York City. Other than the drive up to Allyn Barnes’ home Bette told David she would take him up on his offer as she didn’t necessarily like driving her own car in Manhattan; she usually took cabs.

Bette traveled to New York so frequently for business and pleasure that it made sense to invest in a second home rather than staying in hotels. She could easily have stayed at Peggy’s brownstone on the upper west side but she preferred lower Manhattan. The three bedroom loft in Tribeca was perfectly suitable to her eclectic taste and it was a great investment.

As soon as Bette opened the door she noticed the clean fresh smell indicating the cleaning service had been there to air the place out for her visit. Since it was unoccupied so much of the time she’d hired a caretaker to clean and to provide fresh linens for the bedrooms and bath. She spotted a bouquet of flowers and a gourmet wine and cheese basket with a small note-card attached on the granite counter-top in the kitchen. Bette smiled at the sweet gesture when she read the welcome note from Michael. He said he didn’t know if she’d be in the mood for white or red so he’d included a Merlot and Chardonnay which were paired with a host of imported cheeses, nuts, cookies, crackers and decadent chocolates. He’d also stocked the fridge with the essentials and a few ready to heat gourmet meals knowing Bette wouldn’t cook herself. Like James Michael knew her well and sought to anticipate her every need.