The Alpha For Her

“What-ev,” Bea said. “See you in the AM.”

Jennifer tossed her plate in the trash, then headed up to her room.

“I think I’ll join you,” Billie said, following. “Been a long day for me too. We gotta get a fresh start in the morning with Mr. Dryzek.”

“Yeah,” Jennifer said.

As she snuggled beneath the covers, Jen couldn’t stop her mind from seeing that small smile on Dryzek’s face, and hearing his words “all a dreamer gets is sleep.” She wondered about the intention behind that smile and that phrase, and she wanted to think that it was as if he were inviting, maybe even challenging her to think big. But in what context? Obviously he had overheard her comment on not daring to dream as big as he was, and so that had to have been the direction of his thought. But, what if…

She thought about the lingerie. She thought about the dresses. She wondered if those were a sort of challenge – something for her to aspire to, or if it was something that he was aspiring to. Perhaps he was a subtle manipulator, and was showing her how he thought that she should look.

She switched on a light. She went to the closet. There she saw that the gifts were intermixed with her own things. So was the lingerie. She spent some time separating them, and as she did, she shuddered, imagining the cost. Then she looked carefully at them all.

The dresses and skirts were designed to flatter her form. They were eye-catching, but not dramatically so. The delicates were another matter; they were fashioned to allure, and the bras and panties were her size. How could he have known?

She went back to bed, troubled.

The morning dawned with bright sunshine. Jennifer lazed a while, wallowing in the luxurious comfort. Then she stepped to the windows and drew open the sheer curtains. To her surprise and delight, she found that the windows were French doors that led to a quaint little veranda with a small umbrella-table and two chairs. She stepped out into the warm, fresh California air, breathing deeply. From afar she could hear the breakers crashing. She stood there a while, letting the feeling of actually being there seep in, and delighting in that thought.

She strode to the end of the porch to see if she could see the ocean. What she saw was another set of doors to Billie’s room. The girl still had her curtains closed, but in the morning light Jennifer could see in. Billie was dressed in a white Tee shirt and purple panties. She had all of her under-things on the bed, and seemed to be sorting through them. Jen wondered if Billie might be having the same thoughts that she had. Jen crept away.

She was looking out over the vista of the grape-vines, when she heard a soft knocking. She put on a robe, and went to answer the sitting room door. There a maid had a silver tray with coffee and orange juice.

“You are an angel,” Jennifer said taking the tray.

“Ms. Lane wants me to remind you that breakfast is at eight,” the girl said.

“Right. Oh, um, can you tell me…how should we dress?”

“I’m sure that I don’t know.”

The maid then stepped back, shutting the door. It was then that Jennifer noticed that there was no lock. She wondered if that should concern her. She shrugged and set the tray on the coffee table.

“Billie,” she called, “we got coffee.”

“There in a sec.”

Billie soon bounced out of her room, still in her tee and underwear.

“Orange juice,” she said with a sigh. “Joy.”

She turned, and Jen saw her take a pill with the juice. Then she plopped herself down on one of the wingbacks, her legs crossed in a lotus that she didn’t need to coax with her hands; the girl just flowed into that pose. But, the pose exposed her, and Jen wondered if she was just nonchalant, or if that was a throwback to having been a boy.

“Sleep well?” she asked.

“Oh, yes,” Jen answered. “You?”

“Like a baby. I love it here. It’s all so exciting. What do you think is going to happen today?”

“You know,” Jen said, pouring coffee, “that’s a funny thing. Now that you mention it, I don’t remember receiving any kind of itinerary. You?”

“Mmm, no. But I hope that the day includes some free time, I so want to enjoy that pool in the sunshine.”

“Me too. But then, that begs the question: how do you think we should dress? For breakfast, I mean.”

“Good one,” Billie said, screwing her nose.

They went back and forth on that. They thought about going formal, but then they’d stand out if no one else did. They decided against casual, debated a while, and settled on a business look; they were, after all, at a business conference with a very wealthy businessman.

“Let’s think of it as having breakfast in the White House.”

Back in her closet, Jennifer decided that, the White House or not, she wanted to stand out. She dressed in a conservative, shimmery, soft maroon satin blazer with silver buttons, and a silver shell beneath. Her skirt, however, was bold: cut above the knees with horizontal stripes that alternated between maroon, pink, black and white. Comfortable white heels finished the look.

Billie was a bit more daring. She had on a short, wrap dress that hugged her petite form lovingly. It had black sleeves and sides, and black and white striped bodice and midriff. The neckline plunged a bit daringly, and she held her chest proud. Jennifer’s eyes darted from the skit to Billie’s cleavage.

“Too much skin?” the girl asked.

“It looks good,” Jennifer said, grinning. “On you, it looks good.”

“I worked hard to get this body,” Billie said, “and I want people to see.”

“Oh, girl, people will see.”

“Oh, and look,” Billie said, peeling back her shoulder to reveal a bikini top. “Just in case.”

“I see you in the water by noon.”

It turned out that most everyone else had the same idea, with different variations. For the men, it was easy; a suit was a suit. But for the woman, there was everything from garden club conservative, to business casual, to cocktail dresses. But, in terms of color, only Candy and Jennifer stood out. Candy was in her signature style skirt-suit, but this time in bright yellow.

In the dining room the attendees found that tables were set with their nametags; simple white laminated things with a blue boarder and their names in a bold and readable font.