Damion had successfully worked his way up the corporate ladder at Fortune Foundations. There were rumors around the office that he was about to get the deserving promotion that he had been working for the last couple of years. He was called into his boss's office Thursday afternoon.
He sat down on the opposite end of his boss's desk and waited for his boss to finish a phone call. Mr. Jenkins hung up the phone and looked at Damion with a smile on his face. Damion wondered if this would be the conversation that he had been hoping for a long time.
Mr. Jenkins sat back in his chair and informed him that he would be attending a corporate training required in order for him to receive the promotion. He also informed Damion that his protege' who had just been hired would also be attending a training and that he was to train her to be his replacement before he could assume the new role with the company.
Damion was beyond excited to finally be able to move up in the company and realize all the hard work he had poured into the corporation. He could not wait to meet the new hire whom he would groom over the next few months.
Mr. Jenkins raved about the new hire, mentioning that she was very professional, had worked in a similar position with a rival company and quickly climbed the ranks of that company. He hinted that the faster she learned her new position and began making an impact, the faster Damion would continue climbing the corporate ladder.
The next morning Damion and Mr. Jenkins were sitting in the board room discussing the plans for the trip. Mr. Jenkins had booked them to both stay in the hotel with side by side rooms. They would be in separate training rooms during the day, but Damion was assigned with showing her a good time afterwards by taking her out to eat at 5 star restaurants and escorting her to a few of the town attractions and finally, the corporate ball the last night of the trip.
The shades covering the glass windows of the board room vibrated as the door began to swing open. When Damion's new protege' entered the board room, his jaw dropped open. Looking up at the beautiful woman's face, he saw her jaw drop as well. Her face became ghost white as she stood frozen in the door way.
Mr. Jenkins' voice filled the room. "Come on in and take a seat Mrs. Williams. I would like to introduce you to Damion Sims."
It appeared Mrs. Williams was unable to move for a second, looking at Mr. Jenkins' extended hand, pointing at the empty chair between himself and Damion. She moved around the circular table and slowly took a seat, showing visible signs of being flustered.
Mr. Jenkins looked over at Damion, seeing the surprised look on his face. "Do you two know each other?"
Damion looked in Mr. Jenkins' direction and attempted to hide his overwhelmed emotions. "Yes, we knew each other a few years ago."
"Great!" Mr. Jenkins exclaimed. "We will be able to move past you two getting acquainted with each other then and speed up the process. Damion, will you show Alexa to her desk?"
"Yes sir" Damion replied as he stood up.
Mr. Jenkins, with a proud smile on his face, stood up and moved toward the board room door. "Come see me in my office after you have helped Alexa get settled into her office." When he finished speaking, Mr. Jenkins exited the board room. The board room door closed behind him.
Damion looked over at Alexa with a half smile. "Well, this is clearly a surprise."
"I swear I didn't know you worked here" Alexa replied before he completed his sentence.
"That's great that you have turned your life around since we last spoke, what five years ago?"
Her facial expression became stern. "You told me the last time we spoke that I needed to do something with my life and support my kids. Your words sunk into my soul and I followed your advice. Never did I ever think it would lead me to you company. Honestly, had I known you worked for Fortune Foundations, I would have probably stayed with Capital Enterprises. I have no problem working with you, but had I known you worked here, I would have declined the offer so that I wouldn't put you in an uncomfortable position."
Damion took a moment to collect his thoughts. Events from their past raced through his mind like a movie playing in fast forward. He brought his consciousness back to the present. "Let me show you to your desk." He extended his hand toward the board room door, palm pointing upward.
A week later, Damion and Alexa exited the airplane and made their way through the airport on their way to their hotel. In the pickup section outside the airport, Damion tracked the Uber ride on its way to pick them up. Alexa stood by his side, adjusting her dress that bunched up around her hips. Damion noticed the movement and glanced over in her direction. Though he had looked at her seemingly a thousand times already today, he could not get over how beautiful she looked in the skin tight dress.
It took quite an adjustment seeing her in business attire after knowing her in their previous life when jeans or basketball shorts and a t-shirt were her usual attire. Her body had developed from a young adult into a woman over the past five years. Her hips had widened, her body filled in with femininity, her cheeks and eyes had become more defined.
Alexa brushed her hair away from her face and ran her fingers through her long black hair as she watched the movement of people around her. As uncomfortable as the past week has been, though she refused to let anyone know, she knew this week was going to be much more of a challenge.
The black BMW SUV pulled up to the curb next to them. A middle aged man wearing a button down shirt with tie, dress pants and a sport coat appeared from the opened door of the driver seat. Damion and Alexa grabbed their suit cases and moved toward the rear of the SUV as the driver opened the back door and began placing their bags inside.
Inside the hotel, Damion stood with Alexa by his side at the front desk. The front desk clerk was typing away on the keyboard, pulling up Damion's name in the computer. After a few moments, Damion turned away from them and grabbed a piece of paper that just finished printing. Opening up a drawer below the counter, he grabbed two electronic hotel keys, wrote "523" on a key holder envelope then slid both the hotel reservation confirmation and the envelope across the counter in front of Damion.
"Your room is ready. You will be staying in room 523 through Friday. I hope you both enjoy your stay. Let us know if you have any concerns during your stay."
Just as the clerk began to turn away, Damion spoke up. "Excuse me Escobar, but there seems to be a mixup."
The clerk turned back around with a confused look on his face. "What seems to be the problem sir?"
Damion explained that the reservation was for two side by side rooms, not just one room. Escobar, went back to typing on the computer. After what seemed like eternity, Escobar looked up from the computer screen. "I am sorry Mr. Smith, but it appears only one room with a king size bed has been reserved."
After ten minutes of arguing with the clerk and supervisor, Damion was unable to make any progress. The hotel room was completely book with people from their conference and swimsuit models who were also in town for a photo shoot. The supervisor explained that there must have been a mix-up and that she would do everything she could to resolve the situation if a room came available, but in the meantime, she has no way to fix the situation.
Showing outward signs of frustration, Damion followed the escort to the elevator, Alexa following a few footsteps behind him. The escort pulled a cart with their suitcases to the elevator and made small talk with them while waiting for an elevator to arrive on their floor. His upbeat personality and constant smile was annoying to Damion, who was irritated by the events.
This mishap was going to put both him and Alexa in a potentially awkward position if it was not resolved by the end of the day. Inside the hotel room, Alexa hung her business suits in the closet next to Damion's suits. She did not empty her suitcase, hoping that they would find her another room, as Damion apologized over and over while placing his suitcase contents in the dresser drawers.
Breaking the silence, Alexa said, "I certainly did not expect to ever be in the same hotel room with you ever again."
Damion turned in her direction, glanced at her, then glanced at his watch. He refused to go down that road at this juncture. "The welcome party begins in a half hour. I am going to call Mr. Jenkins and get this situation sorted out. Do you want a drink from the bar?"
"Yes, a glass of wine would be wonderful."
He was surprised by her sophistication. Beer had always been her drink of choice in the past. Making his way to the hotel room bar, he poured her a glass of wine and a glass of whiskey for himself.
"I am going to use your bathroom to freshen up while you speak to Mr. Jenkins, if that is okay with you?" Alexa replied as she accepted the glass of wine.
"Perfectly fine", he replied, after taking a sip of whiskey. He pulled his cellphone from his pocket and scrolled through his contacts. Alexa disappeared into the bathroom and shut the door. Finding Mr. Jenkins in his contacts, Damion dialed the number and waited for an answer.
Mr. Jenkins apologized and assured Damion that the secretary booked two adjoining rooms. He promised to resolve the situation even if it meant finding another hotel or Air BnB space for them. Hanging up the phone, Damion finished his glass of whiskey in one swig.