Chapter One
DESTINY
“Did you get the picture?” I ask my sister the moment she answers the phone.
I can practically hear her eyes roll. “Yes,” she groans.
“And? Is it the perfect first day of work outfit, or does it look like I’m trying too hard?”
She laughs. “You’ll do great, Des. Seriously, why are you so nervous about this particular job, anyway? You’ve been doing this for years. You rock and you know it.”
“All of my jobs have been prepping me for this exact one, Bethany. This isn’t just any job. This is for the new hotel in town. And guess who the owner is.”
“There’s a new hotel in town?”
“Ugh, yes. Where have you been?”
“Up on this mountain, clearly. You know me. I work from home, so I don’t go into town that much. Why is there a new hotel, anyway? We already have a ski resort. Town isn’t that big.”
I sigh in frustration. Hasn’t she been payinganyattention? “Because during ski season, the resort gets booked solid. This will draw in more tourists. They’ll have more places to stay. You’re missing the point. Guess who the owner is.”
“I have no idea.”
“It’s Shepard Billings!”
I hear Beth sniff through the line. “Am I supposed to be impressed by this?”
“He’s been in Forbes Magazine! He’s been the world’s hottest bachelor, Bethany!Where have you been?”
She laughs. “Again, up on this mountain.”
“You’re so out of touch. You’re going to be alone and single forever if you don’t get out of the house every once in a while, you know?”
That only makes her giggle.
“Anyway, the next time you’re in town, you need to drive by the hotel. It’s not up and running yet, but it’s seriously amazing. It’s beautiful and I’m so excited to be the one who plans the first event there. This will be the event that all others are compared to. And as for Mr. Billings, well, he’s not so bad to look at, if you catch my drift.”
She snorts. “Oh, I caught it. Caught it and threw it back. You don’t honestly think you’re going to land yourself a billionaire in this town, do you?”
I smirk. “Ya never know.”
Beth laughs harder. “Well, I’ll keep my fingers crossed for ya.”
“Thanks. I need all the luck I can get.”
“Call me later and let me know how it goes. I just know I’ll be on pins and needles until I find out if I’m going to be related to a billionaire.”
I smile. “Laugh now, but you’ll be eating those words.”
“Bye, sis.”
“Bye.” I hang up the phone and toss it onto my bed as I turn my attention to the full-length mirror in the corner of my bedroom. My dark gray dress pants hug every curve perfectly, not too tight, but tight enough in all the right places. I decided on a white, silky, camisole top and a blazer that matches my pants. The camisole has lace along the top and shows off my slender neck and upper chest, but it’s work appropriate and also has a touch of sexiness to it. I pair the outfit with a pair of killer black pumps. My blonde hair hangs to mid-back and my loose curls bounce with every movement I make. I didn’t want to go overboard on makeup, but I added a sparkly shadow and liner to make my green eyes pop. I finish the look with some light pink lipstick and a shimmery gloss topper.
I wish I had someone else to ask about my look, but my sister is my go-to even though she never comes down the mountain or stays up to date on fashion. It’s a clean, classy look with just a hint of sexuality to it and I hope it’s enough to get me noticed by Mr. Billings.
I still haven’t met him or talked to him personally. Everything has gone through his assistant, and while she’s sweet and understanding, she’s not the one I need to please. I’m nervous about meeting him, but it’s something I have to do in order to see his vision of this party. I want to kill it more than anything else. Every party I’ve planned has been a steppingstone to this and if I fail, ugh, I don’t even want to think about it.
I’m usually not so nervous when it comes to party planning. I’ve been doing this for years now and I know exactly what makes or breaks a party, but I’ve never had such a big event before. Usually I get office parties, birthday parties, engagement parties, and receptions. This will be a town-wide event, a way to present the hotel to the town that is so openly accepting a newcomer. If I fail, the whole town will see it and it will, without a doubt, kill my business. Mr. Billings’ assistant, Linda, has been very vague on the details so I haven’t really been able to put anything down on paper yet. I get all the details today from Mr. Billings, and I hope that he trusts me to do my job and doesn’t feel like he can plan a better event than me. As long as he gives me free rein to take over and do the event as I see it, everything will go smoothly.
