First Thing I See
Authors: Vi Keeland
First
Thing I See
By
Vi Keeland
Text
Copyright © Vi Keeland
All
Rights Reserved
To
my carpenter, chef, and driver for not thinking I am anymore insane for doing
this.
1
Today, I start over.
Hope
stared in the mirror trying to convince herself that today would be a new
beginning and things would change for the better. Hope Marie York put on the
deep red Prada suit that cost her nearly two months pay from her job back in
Florence, Oregon. After two years of planning and saving, the day had finally
come for her to start over. Her closet was filled with designer clothing, in
her small New York City studio apartment, and her expensive salon makeover had
left her almost unrecognizable from the plain small town girl she left behind
in Oregon. With a deep breath, she opened the door and walked to meet Shauna
at the small café that had become their unofficial meeting spot.
“My lord Hope, look at you!” Shauna said
with a slow gaze up and down that I may have resented if I hadn’t been so
thrilled to see Shauna’s mouth hanging open. I’d always admired Shauna’s style
and confidence, perhaps even being a tiny bit jealous of how much of those
qualities oozed out of her without effort. Knowing from her expression that I
had impressed her gave me a jolt of confidence I needed on my first day.
Shauna, although my best friend since 4
th
grade, could be a bit of a
bitch and I knew it took a lot to make her jaw drop these days. Tall, fit,
blonde hair and blue eyes with legs a mile long. Shauna could piss off Barbie,
because Ken’s head would surely turn to follow her as she walked by.
“Thanks Shauna, just seeing your expression
almost makes the agony of the last two years of planning and saving worth it!”
Two years ago, I would have gone
unnoticed. I was average. Not too tall, not too short. Mousey dirty blonde
hair, pale complexion and an extra ten pounds put me at around a five on the
rating scale. My green eyes hidden behind glasses that concealed my lack of
makeup. It didn’t help that my wardrobe consisted of only black, white, brown
and navy. My closets were lined with conservative sweater sets, dark colored
slacks, jeans, plain t-shirts and sensible flats. But today, Shauna’s face
told me that I looked the part of at least an eight. In two years, I had
worked hard to transform myself. A strict diet and exercise routine helped
shed 15 pounds and defined my muscles. Bright blonde highlights and a
magician haircutter transformed my thick hair into bright layers. A good
lesson in using makeup to accentuate my almond shaped green eyes and full lips,
along with trading my glasses for contacts, completed my physical makeover.
Two years of saving transformed my wardrobe from drab to designer and even I
thought I looked the part of a New York City professional woman.
“We need to head to the bar and celebrate
after your big first day today.” Shauna could truly find a reason to head to
the bar and celebrate for anything. But today I wasn’t going to argue because
I was counting on feeling as good at the end of the first day of my new job as
I did at the beginning of it.
“How about if we meet at that
ritzy bar they have in your hotel after work? The one on the 45
th
floor that overlooks the city, Icon, I think it’s called. I’m sure the drinks
are expensive, but we can find some horny traveling salesman to buy them for
us!”
I almost choked on my yogurt at her
description of who tonight’s wallet would belong to for us. But Shauna was right;
there was never a shortage of men waiting to buy our drinks with the way Shauna
looked.
“I don’t know if it’s such a good idea for us
to party in the hotel I am working at on my very first day. I wouldn’t want to
people to see me and think I was a party girl.” I offered an alternative.
“How about we go to Marley’s Pub instead?”
Shauna gave a small wave to the
handsome man clearly drooling at her from the table across from us and said
loud enough for most of the café to hear “No, we are going to Icon tonight and
I won’t take no for an answer. The old Hope goes to Marley’s Pub, the new Hope
goes to Icon to be seen.” Finishing her breakfast and standing, clearly not a
topic she was planning on discussing, Shauna took three steps and looked back
“Icon 6:00 tonight”. Then she winked at the drooling man listening to our conversation
intently and I wondered if she was hoping me or the stranger would be at Icon
tonight when she arrived.
Blowing an escaped strand of hair
off my face, I stopped outside to look at the magnificent hotel where I would
now spend my days. The Monet, one of only two five star hotels in a city where
a two star hotel can cost more than three hundred dollars a night, is one of
the most grand buildings in all of the city. Stone columns arching more than
three stories high set the tone for the entry of the 45 story grand
structure. The doorman smiled at me as I took it all in, opening the door
tipping his hat to me, “Good morning and Welcome to The Monet”. Although I had
been inside the building for two interviews, the lobby still struck me with awe
as I entered the Upper East Side iconic hotel.
Like stepping back in time, the
lobby of the Monet brought together old world luxury with modern sleekness.
Immaculate marble and gleaming crystal were offset by breathtaking vibrant
colored flower arrangements on an unimaginable scale. Oversized archways and
vaulted ceilings held grand crystal chandeliers that sparkled. A sweeping
staircase, the epitome of elegance, set the backdrop for the understated
reception desk.
I was almost an hour early for the
beginning of my first day, even after breakfast with Shauna. I tried not to
walk around the lobby too starry eyed, but it was hard to contain my excitement
of landing my dream job. With all of my new outward changed, I had hoped to
blend in with all the other young professional native New Yorkers working at
the magnificent hotel. But even without all my outward changes, inside I
still felt like the plain girl from Oregon.
I had to really work at pretending
I belonged there as I walked to the general manager’s office to report for my
first day as The Monet’s new event coordinator. Four years of college studying
hospitality and business, three years as an assistant event coordinator in the
largest hotel in Oregon, a brand new wardrobe, makeover, city and apartment and
I still felt unworthy of the job. Why couldn’t I have Shauna’s sense of
belonging? It took her all of about 30 minutes to feel at home in New York
when she moved almost four years ago at the age of twenty two.
It wasn’t just Shauna that had the
innate sense of belonging wherever she went. My uber gorgeous step mother
Candace, the former Miss Oregon, had the same sense of belonging that I clearly
missed out on. My dad, Joe York, a retired secret service officer, had a
different kind of confidence than his wife, his wasn’t showy. His was a quiet
confidence, the kind that made you stand straighter when he was in the room. Of
course, my beyond beautiful two step sisters also reaped the benefits from
belonging to two confident parents and took confidence to a whole new level
that some people would no longer call confident but instead call entitlement.
***
George Windham, the general
manager, was a forty something, roundish balding man that I looked forward to
working for. He seemed kind and well mannered and I believed him when he told
me that he would help me become a success in my new position. After a grand
tour of the hotel and introductions to at least fifty employees, he left me
with the reception manager for my first day of hotel training. Even though I
was going to be the hotel’s event planner, the hotel had a policy of all new
employees spending their first month training in the key positions of the hotel
so that they truly understood how the hotel worked. My first week would be
spent in reception, learning the check in and check out process.
George left me with Dylan, the outgoing
red headed reception manager, who gave me an overview and then we took a break
together to grab some coffee. “So, are you single Hope? Because this hotel
is better than any singles bar for hunting wealthy bachelors. I mean, when a
man can spend seven hundred dollars a night on a hotel, he can afford to keep
me stocked in my Jimmy Choos, right?”
Dylan laughed as she studied me
from across the table. Despite my surprise at hearing that a manager thinks of
her position as a hunting ground, I couldn’t help but think that Dylan would
have no problem finding a handsome bachelor of her own. Unlike me, Dylan was
sex on a stick with an abundance of curves and sparkle. Although tiny, I’d bet
men didn’t notice her height. She wore a plunging purple halter top barely
containing her D cups under her snug fitting reception blazer. Her face looked
like it was airbrushed with perfect makeup to suit her large brown eyes.
Although to my liking it was a bit Dolly Parton over the top, I could
definitely see the appeal that she would have over men.
The rest of the morning flew by
with me observing the reception staff as they did their work. By late
afternoon Dylan announced that it was time for me to graduate and take a turn
at checking in the next guest. I’d just hung up the phone after transferring
a guest to the concierge to make some reservations, when I looked up to see the
next guest approaching the desk for check in. My heart skipped a beat and I stuttered
“Wwwww..Welcome to The Monet, how may I help you?” I looked up to the most
amazing pale blue eyes surrounded by dark black eyelashes that I have ever
seen. Instantly I felt my face flush and silently cursed my pale skin.
“You must be new here” the Adonis
standing before me said in a deep, smooth voice.
“Ummm…. I apologize, I am new but
I will do my best to get you checked in quickly.” Flushing even more as I
realized that he was able to see my inexperience.
“I wasn’t worried about a speedy
check in, I meant I would have remembered you if I had seen you here before.”
My lips and mouth went dry and I
had trouble speaking. Wait, did he just flirt with me? Blinking out of my
daze, I licked my dry lips and looked up at the beautiful man, who was staring
at my mouth, seemingly unfazed by my bumbling motions.
This was not a beautiful man; this
was a walking work of art. Tall, dark and handsome couldn’t begin to describe
what stood before me. His bone structure looked as if it was created from the
chisel and stone of an artist. His straight strong nose, stood above perfect
full lips and his slight smile revealed two glorious cavernous dimples that
sent a tingle straight through my spine just seeing a hint of them. His light blue
dress shirt neatly pressed with a beautiful blue and gray tie, and low hanging
dark gray dress pants, all looked as if they were custom made for him.
“ Kennedy Jenner, Mrs…..” the beautiful
man said as he extended his hand in my direction.
“It’s
Miss
Hope York, Mr.
Jenner, nice to meet you.” A shock of electricity shot through my body as his
large hand enveloped mine. My heartbeat raced and all of the hair on my body rose,
despite my best effort to hide my excitement.
He held my hand for longer than
necessary for a standard handshake and stared into my eyes with one brow arched
and the hint of a dimple desperate to escape. “Are you feeling okay Miss
York?”
Mortified, I was aware that my face
had to match the deep red color of my suit by now, but I sputtered out a
response. “I’m fine Mr. Jenner.”
I was upset with myself for not
being able to hide my nerves and for allowing a man I didn’t know turn me to
jello. Yet, he stood there with his cocky expression not wavering in his focus
to allow me a few seconds to compose myself. I stumbled with the computer
keys and pulled up the amazing creatures’ reservation. “I’ll just need a
credit card and a license to check you in Mr. Jenner.” I continued to look
down at the computer screen as he grabbed for his wallet, but I could feel his
gaze slowly taking in my face and its reactions to him. Finally, after what
seemed like ten minutes of keypunching, but was in reality probably only
thirty seconds, I completed the check in and offered Mr. Jenner the room card.