ONE
Cat Addison stood in the billiards room of her father’s once-posh hotel, her pert nose wrinkled up at the scent of sea water enhanced by the sight of splotchy watermarks throughout the room. They had been evacuated just the same as everyone else in Marathon at the first signs that Hurricane Irma was going to hit the Keys, and they hadn’t been sure what to expect upon their return.
“Well, I suppose it could have been much worse,” she muttered to herself as she started to pick up pool balls and wipe them down with the towel she’d brought along with her. “This entire building could have blown down, and then what would we do?”
“I’ll see about going to the bank tomorrow,” her father muttered in a wooden tone as he looked over the carnage with despair in his eyes. Cat couldn’t blame him, of course. Every penny he ever owned was invested into the old hotel. It was his life’s dream to finish his tour as a naval officer and finally settle down somewhere in the Keys, and ten years ago that’s exactly what he’d done, bringing his wife and children out to the island in southern Florida along with him.
But Cat’s mother wasn’t cut out for island living. She had stayed about a year before she declared she’d had enough, and headed back for New Orleans, dragging her daughter and son along with her.
Unlike the rest of her family though, Cat was determined to return to the wonderful sights, sounds and smells of Marathon just as soon as she was able. She went to college and learned everything she could about the hospitality industry, and once she had her degree she told her mother good-bye and came back to her father’s hotel.
That had been two years ago, and she’d been helping out her father ever since. She’d managed to turn the place around, too. When she first got there he’d practically run the place into the ground. He clearly needed better employees and lots of upgrades, and she’d seen to it that he got both. Now though, she wasn’t even sure if they could fix the place up again after the thorough soaking it had undergone.
Still, it would never do to bring her father’s spirits even lower than they already were by pointing that out. Instead, she smiled as warmly as she could and said, “Yeah, Daddy, that’s a great idea. And in the meantime, we may as well give this place a spit-shine. You know, if we clean it up a bit, this old rat trap might even be good enough to serve some customers again in no time.”
When her father paused and cast her a guilty glance, Cat set down the ball in her hand and gave him her full attention. “What’s the matter?”
He sighed. “Actually, you are. I can’t help thinking that your talents are being wasted here. I mean, with the training you got at that fancy college of yours, you could be managing a five-star hotel with ease, and yet here you are wasting your talents on me and my half-baked dreams.”
“Half-baked?” Cat snorted, shaking her head at him. “There’s nothing wrong with wanting to live a life that’s a bit on the edge. Daddy, I’d rather be here in the Keys in a rat trap, run down hotel over some boring everyday hotel anyplace else in the world. Besides, I know how much this old place means to you. So I refuse to let you down.”
“Sweetheart, I can pick up a manager for this place easy once it’s fixed up a bit,” he scoffed. “Managers for rat trap hotels are a dime a dozen. But you? You’re worth a hell of a lot more. And I don’t want to hold you back anymore. So what if I told you that you could stay right here in the Keys and be able to work in one of the best hotel resorts around?”
Even though it was early October, it was still quite warm in the Keys, and Cat pulled the scrunchie free from her long, reddish mass of curls and ran her fingers through her hair, trying to combat some of the dampness gathering there. She frowned at him as she asked, “What are you talking about, Daddy?”
“Don’t you remember hearing about the new resort they’ve been building up near Key Largo? I believe it’s owned by Whitney Industries, and you know they never skimp when it comes to treating their customers right,” he explained with a dreamy smile just touching his lips. “Hell, with the kind of money Aiden Whitney makes in one day, I’d be able to turn this old heap into a palace, you know what I mean? But the reality is, I’m never going to be able to do that unless I can get a whole gaggle of customers willing to rough it until I can pay off all my debts.”
“I wouldn’t be too worried about that,” said Cat. “There’s plenty of people who don’t mind sacrificing some of the niceties for a cheaper lodging. I’m sure we’ll do just fine.”
“No, Cat, not ‘we’, just me,” he told her. “Because you are going to be up working at the Whitney Resort. Look, I picked up this magazine at the airport, and what do you think I found inside? Says here they’re hiring for all positions this week. In spite of the storm hitting the Keys so hard, they expect to be opening on schedule within just a couple more weeks, and they’ll be starting the hiring process tomorrow.”
“Hiring process? What does that mean?”
“The flyers says the applicants will get up to one free week stay at the resort while they determine who they’re going to hire,” he said, pointing out the location of those words on the page.
Cat took it from him and read the entire article. “One week if you make it through all their tests, anyway,” she said, shrugging. “But what chance do I have of that? I’m sure there will be plenty of people applying who are more qualified than I am. Besides, I already have my work cut out for me.”
“Don’t even think about it,” her father snorted. “I want you to go up there and knock ’em dead. If you don’t get in, you can always work here instead, sweetheart, but as a good father it’s my duty to make sure I’m not holding back. Just because this place is my dream doesn’t mean you need to take on the nightmare for yourself.”
Cat smirked at his description. The truth was, she was beginning to feel the stir of excitement deep in her gut at the idea of working for Whitney. While she’d been in school and learning the ropes, that company’s name had been one of the top five prospects on the list she’d compiled as one of her assignments, and she’d even read up on it a little.
“That resort is a testament to Aiden Whitney’s late father, it says here,” she commented as she scanned through the text. “His father used to work in textiles, but Aiden never found it to be appealing, and turned to fitness and recreation projects instead. This guy’s as much of a sucker for half-baked dreams as you are, eh?”
“How’s that?”
“It says here that he and his father used to vacation together in the Keys every year, and he’s always wanted to establish a resort,” Cat said, running a finger over the text. “I can understand that. Once you’ve visited this place it gets into your blood. It’ll always draw a person back no matter where else they might go. Don’t you think so?”
“I do,” he said with a nod. “I always knew I’d make my home here someday. So even if I’ve hit a bit of a road block to my success, I’m not going to let it hold me down. I’ll get that loan and make this place better than ever, and seeing you working at a job you’re going to love too will make me the happiest guy around.”
“You’re just not going to give up on this, are you?” she grumbled.
“No way, I’m not,” he persisted. “So you might as well pack your bags for the trip, my dear. I’m sure I’ll get along just fine without you. Besides, I believe Miss Tilly is just too polite to tell you that we’d like some time alone. I’m sure she’ll be more than willing to help me figure the old hotel out.”
“Yeah, I’ll just bet she will,” Cat agreed with a knowing chuckle. “So yeah, I guess I’ll give this number a call and find out more about it. What could it hurt?”
“I already called it, and even submitted them your resume,” he told her. “You’re meant to arrive there sometime tomorrow afternoon. They’re even going to send down a car to collect you. That seems pretty top notch.”
“Daddy, I can’t believe you,” Cat protested. “How could you set this all up without even knowing how I would feel?”
He chuckled. “I did know how you would feel,” he pointed out. “You’re my daughter, and I love you. Of course I knew.”
Cat rolled her eyes and gave him a hug. “Thank you.”