A room service attendant, Steve, who keeps his illiteracy a secret, faces personal and professional crises. Steve had to quit school when he was eight years old in order to support his family. His college-bound son, Rob, has a difficult time accepting his father when he finds out about his illiteracy without knowing the circumstances behind it. When Steve turns down a promotion and then tries to quit, Peter won't allow him, offering instead to pay for remedial education. Peter's ex-wife Janet comes to town seeking Peter's help in finding a job. Peter and Janet have stayed on good terms, and Peter gets her an interview at a small San Francisco hotel. Jealous that Peter and Janet are spending time together, Christine confronts Janet, only to learn that Janet has failed the physical exam for the job because she has a terminal illness. Janet realizes that the only person she can turn to is Peter.

Former college friends Bob, Tom and Susan meet for a weekend reunion, all three having recently ended long relationships. When Bob and Susan sleep together, Tom's anger betrays his longtime love for Susan, and the reunion begins to disintegrate. Although Bob and Tom get into a fight, the three friends eventually reconcile. Meanwhile, Peter is jealous of Christine's affair with Adam Kirkwood, a wealthy, young, international businessman. Returning after a long mourning period for his late wife, the hotel's venerable chief of security, Art Patterson, believes that his assistant, Billy, is after his job. Patterson plants a bomb in the hotel basement. When George Sandler, a rich man with political aspirations, hosts a fund-raiser, Adam invites Christine and Peter. Trailing them is Mr. Rider, an FBI agent interested in Adam's illegal weapons shipments.

When Christine announces her resignation, the entire staff is saddened. Christine leaves a note for Mrs. Cabot explaining her frustration with Peter, who uses their professional relationship to avoid showing Christine his feelings. Both Julie and Megan become upset when Peter promotes Julie to Christine's vacated position. Christine is distraught because Peter didn't consult with her in finding a replacement, while Megan is jealous and doesn't understand why she was overlooked. After making an emotional speech at Christine's going away party, Peter is overcome by his feelings and heads for the hotel bar to drown his sorrow. Billy tells Peter to admit his love to Christine. Peter goes to her apartment, but he still can't express himself, and Christine gets into her cab to go to the airport. Peter blocks the cab with his car and finally pronounces his love for Christine. They fall into each other's arms. Peter and Christine's celebration is short-lived, however, when they are informed th

Christine sees a briefcase filled with money in a car driven by Scott Baker. Later, Christine sees the now empty briefcase in Peter's office as Peter introduces her to Vanessa Clark, an old girlfriend. Christine is suspicious of Vanessa, but Peter refuses to listen. In fact, Vanessa has talked Scott into embezzling $850,000 and has contacted a fence, Steiner, to launder the money. Scott is, however, unaware that Vanessa plans to run off to Hong Kong with the money. Dan and Lisa Mason welcome Kim Lan, a 12-year-old Vietnamese orphan, escorted by Sister Nuyen to a foster home in America. Dan, a lawyer and Vietnam veteran, relocates Vietnamese children. Lisa is proud of her husband's efforts, but is stunned when Kim turns out to be Dan's daughter. Lisa cannot accept Kim, and is torn between a mother's concern and a wife's anger. After Kim tries running away, Lisa reconciles with Kim, who eventually feels like she's found a new family. Dave and Megan try to arrange a date between Mark and

Bellman Dave's amphetamine addiction takes its toll when he can't concentrate on his bar exams to become a lawyer. Megan temporarily moves in with Julie and is even tempted by the attentions of a handsome doctor. When Dave punches the doctor out in front of the hotel, he's suspended from his job. Dave's descent into addiction is even more painful for Megan as she discovers that she is pregnant with Dave's child. Attractive and young, Hayley Cole gets a job in the hotel antique shop, impressing both Christine and the widower antique dealer, Vernon Bennett. Hayley has recovered remarkably well from a ten-year coma, the result of a car accident in which she was abandoned by the young man who was driving. Hayley still has to walk with a cane and suffers from amnesia. She and the older Vernon share an emotional connection that goes beyond work. At a nightclub, Hayley meets pianist Tony Milner, whom she begins to date. She fails to recognize the pianist as the driver who had left her in the

Two precocious youngsters, Sara, 12, and Ben, 11, check in with their industrious father and their governess, Miss Oliver. Ben and Sara play a prank on Billy by faking an intruder attack. After Ben and Sara overhear an argument punctuated by a pistol shot, they see someone in a Burberry coat sprinting away. They find a dead woman's body in the front seat of a car, but when they take their father to the scene, the body is gone. When they inform Billy, he walks away. Christine's aunt Addie, a wealthy widow, is in town for a reunion with her lover Luke. After Peter exposes Luke as a hustler, Christine informs Addie about Luke's questionable character. Already aware of Luke's hustling, Addie chastises her niece for meddling. Ben sees Miss Oliver in a Burberry coat and is convinced that she is the murderer. Ben and Sara uncover evidence that she has killed the real Miss Oliver and has assumed her identity. As the impostor attempts to kidnap Sara at gunpoint, the police and Billy arrest her.

Drew Hayward, Peter's college classmate, starts as the new director of hotel operations. Julie hopes to become Hayward's assistant manager, but Hayward makes the job offer contingent on sexual favors. Because Julie thinks Peter would back his college friend, she doesn't report Hayward's harassment. When Julie rejects Hayward's job offer, he grabs her and threatens to have her fired if she doesn't have sex with him. Julie breaks free and tells Peter about the incident. Hayward claims that Julie tried to seduce him to get the job, but Julie reveals that she secretly recorded their previous conversation; Peter gives Hayward ten minutes to collect his belongings and leave. Maggie Lewis, a flower vendor at the hotel, seeks Christine's help. Lisa, the child Maggie gave up for adoption, is marrying Roger Easton, the son of snobbish Ruth Easton, and Maggie needs Christine and Peter's help to put up a well-to-do front and save Lisa embarrassment. Suspicious, Mrs. Easton checks up on Maggie's ba

Learning that Christine's boyfriend, Adam Kirkwood, is the FBI's prime suspect in an arms smuggling operation, Peter takes Christine to Agent Rider, who informs her that George Sandler, a powerful politician, and Adam are plotting to sell arms to guerrilla forces in the Third World. After planting a bomb in the hotel basement, security chief Art Patterson anonymously tips off the hotel and personally disarms the bomb in order to make himself a hero. When Billy finds evidence pointing to Patterson, Patterson asks for Billy's resignation. Over Peter's objections, Christine agrees to plant an FBI listening device in Adam's bedroom. When Adam catches Christine, Sandler insists on killing her, but Adam arranges for Peter to take Christine to safety. At the hotel, Billy agrees to resign, but Patterson eventually confesses to Billy and leaves the hotel security in Billy's hands.

The marriage of Gerald and Ivy Milburn is threatened by jealousy as Gerald questions his wife's attentions toward Peter, and Ivy watches her husband befriend a sexy, but obviously broke woman, Tracy Benedict. Gerald offers Tracy money and a room at the hotel if she'll distract Peter from Ivy. Meanwhile, Ivy asks Peter to befriend Tracy and find out about her affair with Gerald. Complicating matters, Tracy's jilted fiancé arrives, determined to win her back. Determined to correct the Milburns' paranoia, Peter sends Tracy and Nick on their way as lovers. Bartender Frank Jessup trades jibes with waiter Joel Shubert, a homosexual tired of Frank's prejudice. Ironically, Frank soon learns that he has AIDS. Frank believes Joel to be the cause, but Joel has twice tested negative. Frank's ex-wife, Sheila , berates Frank as a closet homosexual, and his son, Elliot, thinks he's a junkie. Frank apologizes to Joel then reveals his problem to Christine, who tells him that his job is secure. However

Actress Marion Thorne is on location at the hotel for a film being produced by Daniel Kingsford, her long time lover. When Daniel is called away, young screenwriter Tom Jordan woos Marion, asking her to be his wife even after she reveals that she will soon be blind due to a degenerating optic nerve. Honored as the city's woman-of-the-year, Christine ponders the pitfalls of a political career as consultant John Granger assures her he could manage a winning congressional campaign for her. A skid row bum, Anthony Sheridan, once a famous leading man, watches the proceedings on the movie set. Bellman Dave, a movie buff, recognizes Sheridan and convinces film director Victor Polito to audition the actor for a bit part. Sheridan shows up drunk and belligerent, but later has an opportunity to redeem himself with a beautifully recited Shakespeare soliloquy.

Laura Temple has eloped with businessman Michael Devlin (STUART DAMON). However, Laura is pregnant by another man, Chad Wheeler, a sculptor whom Laura jilted to be with Michael. When Chad proposes marriage to Laura, she knows that Michael is her true love, even though their relationship is now tottering. Laura and Michael's argument over the baby continues as Michael packs to leave. After Christine lectures him on his priorities, he leaves. Halfway to the airport, Michael turns around, and he and Laura reconcile. Jason Fielding claims to be the illegitimate son of Mrs. Cabot's late husband. Mrs. Cabot is moved by Jason's story, but Peter is suspicious and has Billy check Jason's background. On an outing to the marina with Mrs. Cabot, Jason points out the schooner with which he would start his own boat chartering company if only he had $50,000. Mrs. Cabot offers to help, but Peter thinks she's being fleeced, since there is no evident link between Jason and Stephen Cabot. Mrs. Cabot visi

Charles Canfield, owner of a prestigious English hotel, and his daughter Mary attempt to lure their friend Peter away to London to manage their hotel. Mary has a long-standing crush on Peter, and the attraction is mutual, which arouses Christina's jealousy. Mary's influence and the promise of part ownership in the hotel make the offer hard to refuse. Peter offers to take Christine with him, but she tells Peter that he has to choose between her and the job in London. When it becomes clear that the only thing keeping Charles's highly competent daughter from managing the hotel is his lack of confidence in her, Peter convinces Charles to entrust the job to Mary. Billy hires an attractive new assistant, Sheila, a former military policewoman. Billy begins to have doubts about Sheila, however, when she throws a shoplifter through a window. Billy checks with Sheila's former supervisor and learns that she and her boyfriend were suspected of operating a black market on the base. When a hotel gue

Jake Cabot, whose daughter-in-law, Victoria Cabot, now supervises the St. Gregory Hotel that Jake and his late son once operated, still resents that his family forced him into what he felt was a premature retirement. Jake takes Victoria's advice to get back into the hotel business and decides to run a country inn in Vermont. Aerobics instructor Angie Archer hopes to snare a rich husband from the celebrities checking in for the hotel's 75th anniversary gala. Angie mistakes Mike Passmore, head of a computer company, for a deliveryman, and instead pursues an older financier, Garrett Hardy. Despite her strategy, a romance blooms between Angie and Mike, and Angie chooses the ""deliveryman"" over the financier, only to discover Mike's true identity later. Christine discovers that one of the domestics, 19-year-old Tereza Cruz, who is pregnant, is an illegal alien. Because Tereza wants her child to gain citizenship by being born in the U.S., she is hiding from immigration officials. As Investiga

Bellman Dave arranges accommodations for his old fraternity, Delta Beta, to celebrate its pledge week. Blaine Chapman, leader of Delta Beta's alumni chapter, is on hand with his son Tony, a college junior and fraternity jock. When one of the pledges, Alan Hewitt, is severely beaten, Dave launches an anti-hazing crusade and takes a beating himself in the process. Meanwhile, Peter's terminally ill ex-wife Janet is afraid to die alone and plays on Peter's sympathies in an effort to steal him away from Christine. Janet asks Christine if she can have Peter for six months, after which Christine could have him back. Finding Janet's idea unacceptable, Christine demands that Peter choose between her and Janet. Peter decides to give Janet his emotional support as a friend, but maintain Christine as his girlfriend. Soon after Peter's decision, Janet suffers from a heart attack and dies with Peter at her bedside.

Jeremy Hale, a former ballet dancer paralyzed by a hit-and-run accident, finds it difficult to adjust to his new career as a choreographer, despite the help of his former dance partner, Natalie Rogers. Natalie's mother Madelyntells her that Jeremy doesn't want Natalie's pity and she should move on with her life, but Natalie loves him deeply and feels compelled to stay. When Jeremy tells Natalie to leave him and Natalie confesses that she was responsible for his injury, Jeremy explodes in anger. Peter keeps Natalie from leaving, then talks to Jeremy, and through his intervention Peter brings the couple to reconcile. Elizabeth Evans, assistant to Mark the guest relations director, tries to conceal her poverty-stricken background while resisting marriage proposals from wealthy young socialite Duncan Wingfield. Elizabeth is embarrassed by the arrival of her father, Tyler Evans, a weathered, former coal miner from West Virginia. Tyler charms Mrs. Cabot, Peter and Christine with his delightf

Agoraphobia, or the fear of open spaces, has kept Laura Shafer confined to the hotel for three months. Laura's father, Al, who is a used-auto dealer, her jilted fiancé Kevin and Peter all try to help her, but to no avail. When Al's efforts to help his daughter end up doing more harm than good, Peter eventually convinces him to stop trying to run her life. With help from a counselor, Laura makes enough progress to reunite with Kevin. When Charles Cabot fails in courting Christine as an ally against Peter, he resumes his angry confrontation with Peter. Elizabeth, the new concierge, recognizes a film director, Harley Magnuson, and manages a romantic rendezvous with him in his hotel room. When Harley's wife arrives unexpectedly and catches them, Elizabeth has to talk Christine out of firing her. Shortly thereafter, Billy is puzzled to see Elizabeth meeting in private with Charles Cabot.

After army officers Nick Hauser and Rodger Gage check in for a weekend on the town, Rodger has an illicit rendezvous with his gay lover. In a gay neighborhood, street punks beat up Rodger, and Nick learns his army colleague's secret. Nick furiously demands that Rodger leave the hotel. Bellman Dave, who is Rodger's old friend, has a talk with Nick, helping him realize that Rodger is a good friend, regardless of his sexual orientation. Meanwhile, Elizabeth interferes with important communications between Christine and a potential client, making Christine look incompetent just as Charles Cabot is questioning Peter and Christine's managerial capabilities. Elizabeth also schemes to estrange Christine from Peter by spilling wine on her dress while visiting Peter. When Christine arrives to find Elizabeth wearing Peter's robe, Christine assumes the worst.

Peter agrees to appear as a guest on a radio talk show hosted by his ex-girlfriend, psychologist Dr. Ann Vargo, who is broadcasting from the hotel's mezzanine. Christine helps Mrs. Cabot entertain boys and girls from the Children's Home, run by Betty Archer. Christine becomes enamored of an eight-year-old girl, Amanda. Later, Christine finds Amanda at her door and receives permission to keep the child overnight. Christine begins to feel that caring for Amanda is the most important thing in her life. During Peter's radio appearance, a caller vows revenge on Dr. Vargo for breaking up his marriage. After several threatening episodes, Peter has her moved into the hotel. Billy places a guard outside Ann's door after she and Peter barely escape a sniper's bullets. Hoping to lure the stalker, Ann goes to the deserted studio where Peter is hiding. The gunman turns out to be Glenn, a new bellman. Peter overpowers Glenn and turns him over to Billy. Weighing the pros and cons of adopting Amanda,

Wealthy yacht builder Sam Burton tries to lure prominent advertising expert and author Margaret Lawson away from her career. Standing in the way is her handsome young assistant, Jeffrey, with whom Margaret is having an affair. When Margaret gives in to Sam, she finds that he insists on having the final word in their relationship, whereas she's used to having the upper hand with Jeffrey. Billy gives Dave, who is still addicted to amphetamines, the news that he failed the bar exam. Distraught, Dave begs Megan to come home, but she leaves when she finds him strung-out and belligerent. When Julie informs Dave that Megan is pregnant, Dave flies into a rage. Dave's ensuing physical confrontation with Megan sends her to the hospital, where she miscarries. This dose of reality jars Dave to enter a drug rehabilitation clinic. Peter and Christine celebrate the third anniversary of sharing business and boudoir.

The St. Gregory Hotel plays host to the 15th reunion of Christine's high school class. Eric Madison, former student body president and captain of the football team, sets his sights on Christine, who was homecoming queen to his king back in 1972. When Eric makes a play for her on the dance floor, Peter steps in and fights Eric, who is obsessed with his shining past. Once the school's ugly duckling and butt of many jokes, Janice Fletcher now heads a publishing firm and is escorted by a suave, attractive man whom she introduces as her fiancé, Mark Fredricks. In reality, Janice hired Mark from an escort agency. Though Mark has a business degree, he thought he could get by in the business world with his looks. Janice and Mark's role-playing carries over into a genuine night of passion. The next day, however, Janice becomes cold and distant, and when Mark tries to convince her of his sincerity, a former classmate, who used to torment Janice, overhears them.

A Benham Academy football coach, Jack Allen, celebrates Benham Senior Weekend with half a dozen students. Five are football players; the sixth is scholarly Martin, the butt of their jokes. When Allen's daughter Beth arrives, she's delighted to find her friend Martin, but Allen interferes with their friendship. The football players try to humiliate Martin, and Christine berates Coach Allen for encouraging them. When Martin confronts Allen, Allen surprisingly vows to change his ways. Peter's old buddy, Brad Carlton, a former Vietnam POW, recognizes a hotel waiter, Duong Thanh, as one of his prison camp tormentors. When Brad's wife Wendy finds her husband fashioning a bamboo whip, she asks for Peter's help. After talking to Mrs. Thanh, Wendy learns that Thanh's cruelty stemmed from his parents' death in a bombing raid. Thanh goes to Brad's room, removes his shirt and hands the whip to Brad. Brad's anger, however, turns to those who sent him to war. Warned by Mrs. Thanh, Peter races to the

Just as Christine and Peter celebrate their now open romance, they soon face a takeover attempt on the hotel by the Cabot family's ruthless financier, Charles Cabot. As the battle over the hotel intensifies, Christine and Peter depend on each other for love and support. Charles digs up whatever dirt he can find on Peter and teams up with Jessica Cabot to put a legal hold on Mrs. Cabot's will, depriving Peter of a job and home. A successful young architect, Alan, despondent after a bitter divorce, falls in love with a beautiful, high-priced call girl, Michelle. Michelle discourages Alan's feelings for her, but he persists and follows her back to her apartment, where he discovers that she has a child. Alan leaves, and Michelle, emotionally worn, moves out immediately to start anew in another city. Finding her gone, Alan sets out to find the woman he loves. By virtue of her experience and current position, Julie expects to become Christine's assistant, but Megan makes an aggressive bid fo

Businessman Franklin Danforth is distracted by Ward Matthews, an opportunistic private investigator who claims he has located Danforth's granddaughter Karen, who disappeared 16 years ago. The detective wants to collect the $100,000 reward, but Danforth angrily dismisses Matthews's claim, having been pestered for years by fraudulent claims. Matthews coaches Karen on details she would remember as Danforth's granddaughter, and eventually Matthews succeeds in introducing her to Danforth. Having spent her early childhood in an orphanage, Karen wants to believe that Danforth is her real grandfather. Although Matthews is exposed as a fraud, Danforth decides to suspend doubt and welcome Karen into the family. After a long, suspenseful wait, Dave receives the results from his second try at the bar examination and learns that he is now a lawyer. While Peter and Christine temporarily cool their steamy romance, an advertising man, Gary Marsh, uses Christine as a model in the hotel's promotion camp

Banker James Chelton is distraught because his recently widowed sister-in-law, Amelia, lives a life of extravagance. MacDonald ""Mack"" Erickson and his pal Tommy work as trash collectors. When Amelia carelessly runs down Erickson, the slightly injured man is carried to her suite and treated by the hotel physician. After Mack charms Amelia, she extends his stay. James researches Mack's background and discovers that he has a criminal record for theft. When a piece of Amelia's jewelry ends up missing, James accuses Mack, who leaves. Visiting Amelia, Mack's pal Tommy tells her how Mack's life was ruined years ago after being wrongfully jailed for a theft. Amelia finds Mack, and the two are reunited. Megan is jealous because Dave spends all his time studying for a law degree. As Dave spends his third straight evening at the library, Megan returns alone to their apartment to face a rapist, who assaults her. Liz Maguire, a social worker, tries to help her recover, but Megan refuses to return t

Barbara Fremont, Christine's attorney friend, has decided to leave her career and move to South America. Her client and secret lover, John Dunson, has escaped from prison, and is posing as Barbara's brother Joe. Christine is not fooled, however, and Barbara admits that she and Dunson are leaving the country. Urged by Christine, Dunson decides to serve his sentence, and Barbara insists they'll see it through together. A 16-year-old faith healer, Rachel, accepts $50,000 to heal a wealthy crippled man, Garrison Snow, but nearly dies in the effort. Her brother Roy secretly sells her story to Stella Falco, a tabloid reporter. In order to send Rachel back to obscurity, Peter convinces Stella to brand Rachel as a fraud. Bellman Dave's friend, Tom, puts Dave's wife, Megan, in his film, which includes a steamy love scene.