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Still, I was stubborn.
I had always been stubborn when it came to work and the schedule I had there. It was why I was one of the top designers in the entire company, and why I was happy to keep pushing myself harder than I had before. The payoff I got from the achievements I made were what prompted me to keep going.
And nothing could change my mind on that.
Greyson had already asked me to think about taking the day off if I woke up still feeling sick, and I told him I’d think about it, but I had every intention of going in regardless. There was no way I was going to let a stomachache and nausea stand in the way of me and the promotion I would get at the end of this.
I had already been through the stress of dealing with the hotel in Florida, followed by the stress of going through the plane being under repair the day we were supposed to leave California. Now that we were in Washington, the last thing I would let get in the way of me and doing my job was feeling sick.
So, I put on enough makeup to make myself look more awake, and though I opted for a loose shirt that wouldn’t touch my stomach and comfortable pants that were nice enough to be worn to work, I still managed to look put together enough to manage the day.
Even if it would be a battle to stay out of the bathroom most of the time I was on my feet.
I barely made it through the Uber ride over to the new location, and I started the meeting by running into the restroom and splashing cold water on my face to try to calm down. I hadn’t eaten anything that day, and the only thing in my stomach now was the bit of anti-nausea medication I’d taken.
I thought about taking a drink of the cold water in hopes it would help some, but I opted out for fear it would make things worse. I just had to get through the next couple hours, and I could count this as a day worked. I didn’t have to be on my feet all day, and I didn’t have to go looking at furniture today, either. I was able to do a lot of that online. I just had to have a good idea of what I was looking for and what space it would be filling before I could do that.
And that meant I had to be here for the meeting with Mr. Hopkins.
“Good morning! So glad you finally made it,” Mr. Hopkins said as he walked into the main lobby.
“I apologize for the delay. There was something wrong with my flight up here, so I had to stay an extra day back in California. I’m glad we finally made it up here as soon as it was fixed,” I said.
“Better late than never, right?” Hopkins asked, and I smiled, though I wanted to point out to him I was never late. Well, almost never as it turned out. So far on this trip I had been late twice, and now I wasn’t sure what my normal would be.
Then again, feeling as sick as I was, I didn’t really care that I was a bit late. I would rather be in bed right now, which in my mind meant he was lucky that I showed up at all.
Still, I knew that was no way to make friends with the man, so I didn’t say anything. Instead, I let him be the one to take the lead and show me around the place. He clearly had his own ideas already in mind over what he wanted to have in the lobby, but there were some guidelines that Jason Weir had given him that he wasn’t happy with.
“I’m sorry, you’re going to have to talk to him directly about that,” I said. “All I am here for is to combine the ideas that you had along with the ideas that Mr. Weir has. I would love to be able to make the perfect blend of the two, so you will be able to express yourself while still being within what he is looking for.”
“Hm, well, I’m not sure how you plan to do that, but if that’s your prerogative, then there’s really no reason for me to even be here,” he said.
“No, please don’t take it that way,” I said, hoping he wasn’t pulling out of this. “I don’t mean to be rude. I just want to make you both happy. Really.”
“I’m listening,” he said.
“Let me see the notes you’ve put down, and I’ll take it back to the hotel with me to draw some concept sketches to see if you like those. We can go from there,” I said.
“Fine,” he replied. “Wait here, and I’ll be right back with my book.”
He left me in the lobby, and I immediately saw why this was going to be the hardest hotel so far. This man clearly didn’t like to be told no, and he wasn’t happy with the fact that Jason was the one who had the final say with this hotel.
But, I would do my best to make him happy, along with Jason, and Leroy, too, for that matter.
I just hoped to be able to do it soon.
I was on the way back to the hotel with Mr. Hopkin’s notebook in hand, wondering just how I would pull this entire thing together when my phone rang. My heart jumped to my throat when I saw it was Naomi. It had been a long time since I’d spoken with any of my girlfriends, and I looked forward to hearing from her.
“Hey, long time no speak,” she teased me when I answered. “How are things going?”
“It’s been a wild ride,” I told her, and I quickly filled her in on everything that had been going on, only waiting until I was out of the Uber and walking into the hotel before I told her about sleeping with Greyson.
She let out a low whistle. “I knew you had it in you.”
I laughed. “I don’t know, but it’s pretty great, I’m not gonna lie. I’m glad I held out as long as I did, though. Although I wish I could shake some of this nausea.”
“Nausea?” Naomi asked.
