“Do you see her there?” she asks her oblivious husband.
He slowly shakes his head no.
“She’s right there,” she says, pointing to a chair by the window, indicating the elegant woman in her long, green dress, hair twisted into a lavish Victorian knot.
“Honey, there’s no one there,” he responds.
“She was here last night, too,” she says. “She never says a word, just sits there, calmly by the window. Looking.”
It’s bright and cheery, but not without the Victorian excess that befits its name. The Queen Victoria® — the crown jewel of Cape May’s bed and breakfasts — is home to its very own Brothel Madam, as well as Doug and Anne Marie McMain.
We sat down with Doug and Anne Marie, relaxing in the sitting room of the House of Royals — a former brothel and gaming parlor — while strains of Mozart and Wagner play in the background.