“Oh my God! I’m in heaven!” Emmaline said, practically falling from the taxi in awe of the building in front of us. Actually, it wasn’t simply a building. It was more of a monument to excess and wealth. Apparently, my employer was loaded. I knew he was rich because of the plane, but pastors from mega-churches had their own private jets nowadays, so a private plane wasn’t as impressive as it used to be.

I didn’t realize how rich Oliver actually was until I stood outside his hotel on the strip looking up at it. I stretched my head as far back as possible, but still couldn’t see the top of the building. It’s as if it extended into another dimension in the sky. It was the tower of Babel, I thought jokingly, as I unloaded our suitcases.

Emmaline was too busy yelling, “Oh my God!” and running around the fountains in awe to help out. I was impressed too. Fountains circled the entrance area, each one grander than the next. I felt as if we were on the set of a movie, a Cinderella remake in the modern world, but we were all going to get our Happily Ever After. But instead of a fairy tale castle, we were in front of a stunning hotel that seemed made for dignitaries and celebrities. I immediately felt out of my element, but before I could focus on my own insecurities, I was distracted by Emmaline who was chatting up the doorman and the valet, it seemed. Apparently, she had no trouble feeling as if she belonged here. She was shaking their hands and introducing herself with a big smile on her face. I bet she was the only guest that had ever expressed an interest in learning the employees’ names. They actually seemed a little nervous by all her attention and I could see one of them blushing. And then Emmaline let out one of her signature laughs that drew even more eyes in her direction. I looked at Misha and we smirked.

“You can take the girl out of the country, but you can’t take the country out of the girl,” she said referring to Emmaline’s background which had been similar to my own. Emmaline and I’d been raised in a rural area in Southern Georgia. We’d decided to go off to college in New York together. It had been Emmaline’s idea. She’d always been the braver, more outgoing of the two of us.

Misha though was born and raised in Brooklyn and had taken us country bumpkins under her wing. She’d especially been there for Emmaline when she’d become pregnant during our senior year and had thought of quitting school. Misha had arranged for Emmaline to stay with her grandmother in Brooklyn when Emmaline’s family had pretty much disowned her for having a baby out of wedlock. It had been tough for Emmaline, but between Misha’s help and Emmaline’s boyfriend, Colin, things had worked out for the best.

Emmaline had finished college only a semester behind the rest of us and for a while, we thought she would marry Colin. But they’d broken up shortly after senior year and Emmaline refused to talk about it. It was odd. They’d been a great couple and from what Emmaline told me, he was a responsible and loving father who always provided for their daughter and had moved to Florida to be closer to them. Emmaline prided herself on being a super mom and I figured she and Colin probably bumped heads a lot when it came to Theodora. I briefly wondered if Colin was taking care of Theodora while Emmaline took a much-deserved break from mom duty.

Speaking of which, she was definitely not being a mom now as she flirted shamelessly with a group of guys as they exited the hotel. They seemed to be foreign. They were all tall and blonde and regarding Emmaline with amusement and interest as they walked away with regret on their face.

“See you guys around,” Emmaline purred.

Misha laughed as we approached carrying all the baggage, which the doorman quickly took from us, gesturing to another employee to help.

I mumbled a thank you as I said to Emmaline, “Were you trying to flirt with an entire foreign delegation or sports team, whoever they were?”

Misha cut in, “We’re only here for the weekend; we have to take advantage of every opportunity.”

I shook my head. “You two are something else. And you’re married,” I said pointedly to Misha.

“But she isn’t. She’s a single mom who hasn’t gotten out of the house in at least a decade. She should be flirting with all the men. ALL.”

Misha turned around and headed through the large glass doors held open by the doorman.

Emmaline and I had to come to a sudden halt as we barreled into her solid, unmoving form.

“What—?” I began and then promptly shut my mouth. It was clear what had stopped Misha in her tracks. The gorgeous view in front of us deserved our awe. The inner part of the hotel was just as stunning as the entrance. The hotel was hollow nearly as far as the eye could see, with the rooms on the outer part of the building. A huge sunlight sat in the middle and I stared at it in awe, taking in the ultra-modern and chic decor that reminded me of show homes I saw on television.

I was definitely out of my element, but I was determined not to show it. I squared my shoulders and headed in the direction of the reception desk. A petite brunette greeted us with a warm smile.

“Ms. Cabot, I presume?”

I blinked twice, trying to figure out how she knew my name.

At the confused look on my face, she gave a laugh. “Mr. Oliver mentioned that you were coming.”

She busily began to type something into the computer and then looked up again at us with a smile when she was done.

“How was your trip? I heard Oliver’s plane is gorgeous.”

She called him Oliver. Apparently, she knew my new boss very well.

“Yeah, it was pretty amazing,” I said for lack of a better word.

“I heard it had a hot tub,” the receptionist said, and I laughed.

“It was amazing, but not THAT amazing.”

The receptionist chuckled, reached under the desk and slid over a key card.

“Oh,” she said, shaking her head at her error. “You’ll need three of these.”

She promptly entered something else in the computer, reached under the counter and laid two additional keys next to mine.

“I hope you ladies enjoy your stay. And if you need anything, please feel free to contact me. I’m the concierge here. My name is Renee.”

“Thanks, Renee.”

She smiled brightly at all of us again and said, “No problem.”

We looked around for the guy who had our bags and Renee said, “They’re already in your room.”

“Oh, wow, now that’s impressive,” Misha said.

We made our way to the elevators and it promptly opened up. There was a man in uniform inside and I awkwardly stepped in.

“What floor ladies?”

“Umm....” I looked down at our keycard. “Twelve?”

He pushed the button and as the elevator made its way up I could practically feel the excitement in the air. We looked at each other and smiled. The elevator operator noticed and said, “Is this your first time staying at The Xerxes?”

We nodded.

“But you ladies have been to Vegas before, right?”

We all shook our heads and the elevator operator smiled widely, and said, “Tell Renee that. She’ll get you set up with the vacation of a lifetime.”

He began to tell us about all his favorite shows and sights and before we knew it, we were out of the elevator and heading in the direction of our suite and practically best friends with the elevator operator, Hank.

“See you around, Hank,” I called as we made our way.

“He sure was nice,” Misha said.

“Yeah, the customer service here has been above reproach,” Emmaline added.

We followed the signs that directed us to our room. The floor was padded with luxurious carpet, so thick that you couldn’t even hear our footsteps as we made our way towards our room. We easily found it and with bated breath and barely contained excitement, I held up the key card against the lock. There was a little click as I swiped the card, and as I pushed the door open, I gasped.

The room was gorgeous. As I walked in, I noticed that the suite had three separate doors, leading to what I guessed were three separate rooms. We excitedly bounced from room to room, arguing with each other about which room to pick. Not that it mattered, they were all decorated in the same manner: classic, yet modern with understated luxury.

“I can’t believe this setup,” Emmaline said pulling out her phone and taking a selfie in front of her room. She gestured to the rest of us. “Get in here. Get in close. My kid’s going to be soooo jealous.”

We did as we were told, making funny faces and laughing the entire time. We located our suitcases in the main living area with the gigantic TV and agreed to meet up downstairs for cocktails or happy hour at one of the restaurants.

As always, I was the first one ready. I was pretty no-nonsense and had changed into a serviceable wrap dress and low heels. I left Misha and Emmaline upstairs changing and decided to explore the hotel a little bit while I waited for them. I found Hank still on duty in the elevator and chatted with him a little more about his favorite places in Vegas until I reached the lobby. I was doing my best to memorize our conversation so that I would have something to share with Emmaline and Misha when they eventually came downstairs.

I looked around the lobby and realized I had quite a few choices in terms of entertainment. I didn’t want to seem like a loser sitting by myself doing nothing, so I headed to a restaurant that I’d noticed earlier on. It had seemed pretty laid-back in comparison to the other eateries around me.

The maître d’ smiled brightly at me, but the smile didn’t reach her eyes, and I pretended that I didn’t notice that she didn’t seem too impressed with my choice of clothing. I wouldn’t have noticed if it weren’t for the small frown that marred her face when she saw my shoes, before she caught herself and her forced smile returned. I shrugged it off and raised my chin.

“How many this evening, ma’am?” she said with a slight British accent.

“I thought I’d just sit at the bar, if that’s okay.”

She seemed relieved. I guess there had to be at least one haughty employee, I thought to myself. I didn’t wait for her to say another word. I wanted to be the one who turned my back on her. I made my way to the bar not waiting for her “permission”, ignoring the other guests who were dressed as if they were attending the Oscars.

I slid onto a stool and ordered a drink, hoping the ladies wouldn’t mind that I started without them.

The bartender slid my drink in front of me. As I said thank you, I noticed someone slide onto the stool next to me. I automatically shifted over, giving the stranger more room than he or she needed, but I figured moving away from the person would dissuade him or her from making idle chitchat with me. I hated chitchat. I didn’t want to make eye contact and start a conversation, so I stared studiously down into my glass, hoping that Misha and Emmaline would text me soon.

I thought I heard female voices and looked up in the direction of the entrance. It wasn’t them. Disappointed, I turned back to my drink, accidentally glancing in the direction of the stranger. With a sinking feeling, it was then that I noticed the stranger looked familiar. And to my disgust, he sat staring at me with a smile on his face. Unfortunately, I knew that smile and I knew that face.

“Hi, princess,” said Jude with a stupid grin. It was actually a beautiful grin, but I didn’t want to admit it.

I rolled my eyes in an exaggerated motion and sighed deeply. “What are you doing here, stalker?”

“Oh please, don’t pretend you’re not thrilled to see me.”

“Oh I don’t have to pretend anything. I’m absolutely thrilled to see you. I was just thinking to myself, you know what would really make my day: running into my boss’s obnoxious son.”

He smiled even wider. “So you have been thinking about me. I knew it.”

I moved to get up and he watched, taking his time to look at my legs, before bringing his gaze to my breasts.

I planted my hands on my hips, “Seriously. Could you be any more blatant?”

He shrugged and gave me a rakish smile. “You can’t blame a man for appreciating the view.”

“Well you can appreciate this view as well,” I said turning around and marching away from him. I was so angry that I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going and ran right smack into the concierge. She looked upset and harried.

“Oh, God. I’m so sorry, miss. Tell me, you wouldn’t have seen a really handsome guy, dark brown eyes, pretty smile somewhere around here, have you?”

“Unfortunately, I have.” I gestured towards the bar and the concierge gave me a smile in gratitude before hurrying to Jude’s side. It was then that I noticed the phone in her hand. She said something to Jude and then handed him the phone.

Jude looked confused, and I watched as his smile disappeared as he brought the phone to his ear. He caught me looking in his direction, but seemed to look through me as he listened to the voice on the other end, his lips growing tighter as the conversation continued.

Something was clearly wrong, but it was none of my business. I went off to find the girls and didn’t have to go far, as they caught up with me as I exited the hotel restaurant.

“Oh, there you are. We were looking everywhere for you...”

I wondered why they stopped talking when abruptly I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around already knowing who was there.

“What is it, Jude?”

“We need to talk.”

I narrowed my eyes at him, “No way, I’m on vacation. Your dad’s orders. And remember, I work for him, not you. Whatever you have to say to me can wait.”

“My father’s dying.”