One

ONE

PRESTON

The “very unfortunate” beginning

T he best part of my day was always four forty-five in the morning. It was the rare moment when New York City was calm and quiet, when I could take a ride through the streets and admire all the buildings that were lucky enough to bear my last name.

There was the Parker that the first hotels I took over were achieved out of my hunger and desperation for success, not anything else.

Why haven’t we ever taken a chance on someone like that?

“As you can see, she graduated from Yale at the top of her class.” George smiled as he spoke, saying the same words he’d said hundreds of times before. “Not only has she worked in the hotel industry for over ten years, she’s spent significant time with the marketing and branding departments at the Hilton, Marriott, and Starwood brands. I think you should pick her brain for inside tips on the competition.”

“I’ve been number one for ten years. I don’t have any competition.”

“You will if you don’t start getting any backup help.” He groaned. “At some point, you have to accept that you need one hell of an EA to help you keep this company running. Someone who can not only help you here, but someone who can go in your place to meetings whenever you finally decide to take a break, or God forbid, take a vacation like a normal person.”

“Fine.” I shut the folder and handed it to him. “Give me a few weeks to pick out my next one, and if she doesn’t work out, I’ll go with your choice.”

“Fair enough,” he said. “I need to sit in on all the interviews, though.”

“Why? Don’t you trust me to pick her?”

“Now that I know you have women texting your phone about their pussies, and you’re hell bent on your next assistant being a ‘she’? Absolutely not .”