It was one of the reasons her father had made a name for himself,
starting from the ground up. In his twenties he’d started working for a crew
who dug in and built swimming pools in family friendly neighborhoods. By
thirty-five, he was at the top of a six-figure company, putting his own pools
into ritzy back yards all over the country. He’d expanded that to add the
landscaping design around the pools. It always shocked Christina that
people were willing to pay thousands and thousands of dollars for a hole in
the ground and some water. Sometimes they even had an existing pool
removed and replaced with a brand new one.
Walker Hilford was responsible for Christina’s jet-black hair and vibrant
blue eyes. He’d given those traits to her brothers as well. Sean was older by
two years, Brandon younger by just a year. When their mother died
suddenly from a brain aneurism when all three children were still under ten,
Walker raised them and ran a growing multi-million-dollar corporation.
Walker Hilford never failed at anything.
Christina also inherited the attitude that failure wasn’t an option from
her father. Maybe it wasn’t an attitude. Maybe it was more a way of life.
A sharp knock at her door made Christina jerk in her chair. She looked
up slowly, swallowing back her desire to utter a mumbled curse. She pasted
on a smile and called out a greeting. Thankfully, she composed herself,
because Michelle Darker, VP of their branch, entered.
“Do you have a few minutes?” Michelle was a warm, easy to like
woman. In her early forties, she also carried herself with an unmistakable
air of professionalism that Christina admired.
“Sure.” Christina shut the file. Michelle stepped into the office but
didn’t sit down. “I don’t know if anyone’s talked to you about the benefit
we’re doing on Friday night. It’s for an organization that helps send
underprivileged children to camp in the summer. Mostly to ranches around
here. It’s a great program, and we really believe in supporting it. It’s a
dinner with entertainment. A few other companies and corporations are