Shattered (closed)

[wideeyedone]

Lily was waiting for Thornton on the couch. She had pulled a throw over her. She was chilled and couldn't seem to get warm.

"I think the bonus is a great idea. but I think we need to make it clear that they need to speak up if something were to ever happen again. The lobby bar has 12 waitresses. There is one of them that I would like to send to bartending school. She has great potential and I think a female bartender might build more trust with the waitresses."

Lily snuggled into the corner of the couch. She wrapped the blanket around herself tighter.

She looked up at Thorton.
"You are a good man. I know you want the world to see you as hard as nails, but you are a good man."

 

[NewGame8]

"Thanks Lily. That means a lot coming from you. In this business you can't be seen as being soft. Sometimes it is hard to keep the lines of perception and reality from being the same."

He saw Lily curled up in the blanket. "Are you ok Lily? Let me turn the air conditioning down." Thornton went to the thermostat and raised the temperature.

"I will pay for her bartender school in addition to her bonus. I want to meet with all of the employees in that restaurant. I want them to know that I will not tolerate stealing of any kind and I want them to report it if they are a victim of it or know of someone who is the victim of it."

Thornton moved over to the couch and sat down next to Lily. "Are you feeling okay?"

 

[wideeyedone]

Lily whispered softly.

"I am not sure, I am just cold." She shivered and laid her head on his shoulder. "I don't want to be alone tonight. Can I just stay here? I know it is getting late... I can just curl up here."

Lily wasn't sure what was wrong. Maybe it was hearing about her mother. maybe it was hearing that he had really loved her mother. For so long her drive had been to infiltrate his business and take it from him. But now, she just wanted to make it better for him. She wished she could tell him that Cassie had loved him. She had been so happy when she had fallen for him.

 

[NewGame8]

Thornton put his arm around Lily and held him to her. "Absolutely you can stay here tonight. However, you are not going to sleep out here. The bed was just made up this morning. You will sleep in the bed. I will sleep out here, and that is not open to discussion, so, don't even bother."

He held her close for a few minutes. "Come on Lily. Let's get you into bed. I have a shirt, shorts, and/or sweatpants you can put on so you don't have to sleep in your clothes." He helped her up and walked to the bedroom with his arm around Lily's waist. He sat her on the bed and grabbed a t-shirt, shorts, sweatshirt and sweatpants for her. "If you prefer, I could get you a dress shirt to sleep in. Tell me which you would prefer."

 

[wideeyedone]

Lily asked for the button down dress shirt.

When Thornton gave her the shirt, she went to the bathroom and slipped out of her dress. She buttoned on the shirt. There was a hint of Thornton's smell in the fabric. She combed her fingers through her hair. Then she emerged from the bathroom.

"Would you stay... just until I fall asleep. Or you could stay all night. We are adults, i won't pounce on you." Lily's voice was sot and eager.

 

[NewGame8]

He grabbed a dress shirt off a hanger in the closet and handed it to her. He put the other clothes away and looked up at her as she came out of the beathroom in his shirt. Damn, she made that shirt look a whole lot better than it looked on him. Then she asked him to stay with him for a little while.. or for the night.

"I wouldn't expect you to pounce on me Lily. I am old enough to be your father." He thought about it for a little bit. "It is a big bed. If you start invading my personal space and making inappropriate moves toward me I will get up and go into the other room," he joked with her.

Thornton watched Lily walk over and get into the bed. He undressed and climbed into bed in just his boxers. He was careful to stay near the end of the bed. The sweet smell of a woman in his bed had him somewhat aroused, but he had no intention of going anywhere near Lily. "Good night Lily. Sleep well."

 

[wideeyedone]

Lily was able to get warm snuggled under the covers. She was breathing deeply and in just a few moments, she was sound asleep. She was able to relax with Thornton beside her.

Her face was soft and relaxed, her hair spilled around her in a dark halo.

It wasn't long before she was dreaming. She dreamed of her mother. She was watching her mother as she brushed on her stage make up and applied the rhinestones onto her skin.

Her mother was chatting with the other showgirls, telling them about her fellow. She never told the girls who he was but she was so happy. Lily watched as she put on her feathered headress and the girls began to get ready to dance.

Then there were screams and pills were raining down on everyone and Cassie was dead. She collapsed on the stage and the rest of the girls kept dancing.

Lily began crying trying to wake her mother. She began crying, sobbing in her sleep.

 

[NewGame8]

Thornton had trouble getting comfortable in bed with Lily there. Here was a beautiful woman in his bed, and he was afraid of her.

He listened as her breathing eased and relaxed and he could tell that she was asleep. He laid there thinking of the day they had just spent together. Then he thought of Cassie. She was the last woman to sleep in his bed.

Suddenly Lily got restless. Then she started to talk in her sleep.... screaming about her mom. Thornton put his hand on her shoulder in an attempt to wake her from her bad dream. "Lily, relax dear. It is only a dream Lily. Relax." He caressed her shoulder lightly to get her to relax.

 

[wideeyedone]

Lily sat up in bed. She breathless and crying.

"I am sorry.... I didn't mean to wake you." She curled up with her knees to her chest. "I am sorry...." She gasped, wiping the tears away with the back of her hands.

'I saw it. Not the way it really happened... but she died... I couldn't stop it."

 

[NewGame8]

Thornton sat up in bed and moved closer to Lily. He took her in his arms. "Relax Lily. It was just a dream. Take it easy and breathe. Breathe slowly Lily"

"There is nothing for you to be sorry about Lily. I was just laying here. I was actually wide awake. You need to relax." He pulled her close to him. His lips by her ear as he whispered to her trying to get her to relax.

 

[wideeyedone]

Lily stopped talking and let herself rest against Thornton. She tried to quiet herself. She shook in his arms.

Lily nestled in against him.

It took a while for her to quiet, but she clung to Thornton.

She relaxed and softened in his arms. Her crying stopped and then her breathing slowed and soon she was asleep in his arms.

 

[NewGame8]

Thornton held Lily to him. He felt her shaking, and he was holding her to reassure her that everything waqs okay. He felt her nestle into him. He was okay with it. He wanted her to relax and to go back to sleep.

He leaned back against the headboard and pulled her close to him. He felt her start to relax, and then he could tell that she was asleep. He stayed there with her. He held her close to him. He had every intention of spending the entire night holding her... protecting her from whatever the bad dream was.

 

[wideeyedone]

Lily slept deeply through the night. She was surprised to wake up in Thornton's arms. He was dozing leaning against the headboard. He was cradling her head to his chest.

She carefully extracted herself from his embrace. In the small kitchenette in his suite, she found the coffee maker and started brewing a pot of coffee. She was pretty sure that he took his black. She found milk and sugar to add to hers. She tried to be quiet and let him sleep.

 

[NewGame8]

Thornton felt Lily move from his arms and get out of bed. He didn't say anything to her. He did not want her to feel awkward about what happened and feel obligated to talk about it.

He stayed in that position and leaned back a littl emore against the headboard. Despite the fact that Lily was no longer in bed with him, her scent lingered, and it was perfect. For a moment some naughty thoughts ran through his head, but then he smacked himself in the face, and then dozed lightly.

 

[wideeyedone]

Lily wrote a note to Thornton. She just scrawled "thank you" and signed with an L. She retrieved her dress and folded his shirt and left it on the counter. She needed to sort out her thoughts. SHe needed to get it together. She was feeling all sorts of things for Thornton. It didn't seem right to be so attracted to a man that had been in love with her mother. She felt as if she was betraying her mother... and he might hate her when he found out that she was Cassie's secret. She knew she had to get back to work, before she threw herself at him.

 

[NewGame8]

When Thornton woke up and realized Lily had left he felt deep disappointment. He wasn't sure what he expected, but he had hoped that she would still be there when he got out of bed.

He poured a cup of coffee and sat at the counter in a t-shirt and shorts. He clicked on his computer to see what his schedule looked like for the day. It was full of meetings, which added to his disappointment. He wouldn't have much time to spend around Lily. "Get a hold of yourself Thornton.... she is young enough to be your daughter," he said to himself. What the hell was going on here?

 

[wideeyedone]

Lily had gone to her suite and showered. She dried her hair and then dressed in a black suit with a slim pencil skirt and a red silk blouse. She pinned her hair up and then headed down to the front desk.

She began her rounds of the hotel. She checked in with security, housekeeping, the different bars and restaraunts. She took notes and tried to learn more names. It was her goal to know as many employees as possible.

She wanted to be busy, she wanted to be focused. Lily's phone buzzed. The front desk was texting her that a high roller was checking in. She put on a fresh coat of lipstick and her best smile to head to the front desk.

 

[NewGame8]

Thornton poured more coffee and headed for the shower. While showering he thought more about the previous day and about the previous night. Lily was consuming his thoughts, and he wasn't quite sure why. Yes, she was beautiful, but there were plenty of beautiful women around.

After showering he dressed in a black suit with a crisp white shirt and a red and black plaid tie. He went to the phone and called the office and told his secretary he would be right down. He was going into the first of a long day of boring, but necessary meetings.

His first meeting was with a representative of one of the US Senators from Nevada. He was seeking Thornton's support in the upcoming election. Thornton grilled him and asked what his business would get out of the support. The representative talked of support for gaming. Thornton responded about the revenue that gaming brought to Nevada and reminded him that without the casinos Nevada was nothing but desert.

The next meeting was with his personal financial advisor. It was a routine meeting that took place once a month. It was nothing special. Then there was a meeting with a member of the LVPD homocide squad. He wanted to give an update on the investigation into th edeath of the bartender. It was another non-event. Thornton was bored, but the day seemed to be moving quickly.

 

[wideeyedone]

Lily greeted Max Talbot and his wife. Max was a long time client from her previous casino.

"Mr. Talbot, I am glad to see you." Lily offered the man her hand. Talbot was well dressed. He had a new wife since she had seen him last. He was a harmless flirt. But in a gaming weekend, he might play with over a million dollars. His wife would be given free reign to shop . And to make up for hours at the gaming tables, he would be wining and dining his wife. His stay would bring millions to the Chelsea.

Lily escorted them to their suite. She assigned them a host. She had champagne and strawberries sent to their suite and hired Mrs. Talbot a driver to have at her disposal.

Lily was behind the counter putting the comps into the system, keeping track of what it cost to host Mr. Talbot and getting ready to keep track of the money they would make from him.

 

[NewGame8]

After finishing up his final meeting of the day Thornton decided to stroll around the property. When he went on his strolls he normally did not have an agenda. He would just walk around and go wherever his mood took him. He got off the elevator and headed toward one of the restaurants. He walked through the restaurant and said hello to a few of the guests; careful not to interrupt their meal or any conversation they may have been engaged in.

Thornton walked back into the kitchen and stood around and observed the food prep and the expediting of orders. He talked briefly with several of the line cooks and then headed back through the restaurant. As he walked out he spoke briefly with the hostess, and then headed toward the casino.

He walked around the casino making sure not to draw attention to himself... or trying not to at least. Several employees noticed him and he knew that they would tell their co-workers that Thornton was walking the floor.

Thornton left the casino and walked out toward the Grand Entrance. Something about his walk today had him feeling good. He wasn't sure what it was, but he felt happy. He walked over to the front desk and leaned on the counter. "So, anything good happening today?"

 

[wideeyedone]

The young woman behind the counter smiled sweetly at Thornton.

"Well, Ms. Bristol landed a big whale. He has already been playing with half a million dollars and his wife has racked up a huge bill in the spa."

She turned the computer screen so he could see the itemized statement.

"Also, Ms. Bristol said both of our four star restraunts have full reservation lists for the whole week..."

The two concierge on staff were working with customers and the grand lobby was alive with the sounds of happy guests, spending money.

 

[NewGame8]

Thornton smiled at the young woman behind the counter and looked at the statement of the whale. "She is doing a pretty good job, isn't she?"

He turned around and went and sat in a chair in the lobby that faced another one of the restaurants. He watched the people coming and going. He saw a packed bar with patrons waiting to be seated. He saw couples and larger groups walking up to the hostess and asking to be seated.

Thornton watched as the two concierges worked with hotel guests and he saw the guests walk away happy with the service they were receiving. Lily was doing a hell of a job. He put his head back against the chair and smiled.

 

[wideeyedone]

Lily entered the lobby with an elderly couple. The couple were arm in arm and Lily was walking them to the concierge.

"Abby, these lovebirds are celebrating their fiftieth wedding anniversary. They got married here in Vegas and it stuck. They are having trouble making reservations. Will you call over to Charlie's and get them a table near the dancefloor. And dinner is on me."

Lily was beaming as she made arrangements for the couple. She also stopped at the front desk to upgrade them to a honeymoon suite.

She saw Thornton sitting in his chair watching. She waved at him before coming over.

 

[NewGame8]

Thornton watched Lily working with the elderly couple. He watched as she made a reservation for them and then upgraded them to the suite. He waved to Lily as she approached him.

"So, giving away all of my money, huh? Is that how you are going to take over." he joked to her as she got close to him. "You are pretty busy today young lady. I thought I told you to take it easy for a little longer. You need to get better.. make sure you are 100% before you get back to working yourself so hard."

She looked good. She was excited about what she was doing, and she was good at it. He liked seeing someone who loved what they were doing, and he loved watching Lily.

 

[wideeyedone]

Lily was actually grinning when Thornton was talking to her.

"I also got them tickets to see the showgirls. it is her surprise for him. He has never seen them."

Lily sat beside Thornton.

"Things have been going so smoothly. The hotel staff is really gelling and they seem to be responding to me really well."

Lily nudged him. "Phase one of operation take over complete." She smirked and then broke into laughter.