Author Note: Just a warning that Regina will be fairly OOC. I am channeling young Regina from the pre saving Snow era. Hopefully you will like my spin on things! Also this fic is probably going to focus more on CS rather than OQ. Be kind to me!
Chapter One – 92 Days Left
"I am not going in there."
Two tall figures stood at the edge of a busy Beverly Hills street. Although it was only the 1st of June, the hot summer sun was beating down on their shoulders. The yellow taxi cab's engine was still running behind them as the driver was half way through unloading the large leather pieces of luggage.
"Fine. Then you pay the meter all day Regina." The tall blonde said curtly, flipping her long ponytail off her shoulder and stalking off towards the enormous building in front of her; the heated rays from the sky pushing her towards her destination. She already seemed to fit in perfectly in this luxurious town wearing her navy Michael Kors stretch-cotton shirtdress with a thin leather belt secured around her tight, natural waist. It was light and airy as it flowed off her legs as she walked. The Valentino crisscross leather espadrille wedges on her feet clicked against the gray concrete that was the building's large entrance with her Louis Vuitton bags rolling in tow. Her ensemble cost more than most people's mortgages, but that was the price of being Emma Nolan.
As the second figure watched her cousin disappear behind the prestigious revolving doors, bright chestnut eyes took one more glance up at her home for the next three months.
It could have been worse, she tried to tell herself. It was the most prominent hotel in the western hemisphere. The white adobe-like exterior was grand and fitting for the Southern California location but the large glass windows that covered the front facing walls gave the air of sophistication. At the very top of the striking structure sat the large emerald green worlds she had grown up with: 'Storybrooke Plaza'. She knew she would soon be taking over the family business with her cousin but she didn't think she actually needed to manage one of their hotels hands on.
The lean brunette sighed as she tipped the driver. This was her last summer to be free before real life started. She should be off in Paris having a casual fling with a struggling artist, riding horses along the countryside and eating macaroons all day.
But no.
Her father and uncle David send her and Emma here? To Beverly Hills? She had seen enough Bravo TV to know nothing good came from this part of the free country. Readjusting her onyx Tory Burch Odelia linen dress, she too grabbed hold of her Gucci luggage and followed after her determined cousin.
"You're late." Were the words that first greeted Regina as she finally made her way into her hotel.
The foyer to the building was just as elegant as the outside led you to believe. Every inch of the floor was covered in pristine white marble that led all the way up to the gorgeous Macassar Ebony double staircase in the center of the space. Swarovski crystal chandeliers hung precisely through the room lighting it brilliantly. The detailing put into the area was outstanding and the two cousins were surprisingly impressed with the atmosphere.
"Nice to see you too Robby." Regina shot back, her frustration apparent. She felt the disapproving gaze from her cousin beside her but she just ignored it.
Robert Gold was the Western Regional Manager for the Nolan Mills Corporations. The girls had known him most of their lives but still he treated them like the five year olds he had once baby-sat. His air of superiority always annoyed Regina and the fact that Emma respected him blindly only irritated her further.
"I must be off now, I am late for my meeting," giving Regina another pointed look, to which she only rolled her large brown eyes, "These are your uniforms and your employee handbooks. Your room keys and time cards are in the side pocket along with a map of the area. You are now under the identities of Emma Swan and Regina Queen. You start tomorrow morning at nine. Don't be late." Handing them each a black Nike duffle bag, Robert straightened his dark gray Marc Jacobs suit, picked up his black leather briefcase and strode out the front doors.
"This is complete and utter bullshit!" Regina exasperated as she flopped onto her queen sized mattress. "This isn't even a suite!"
They were on the 23rd floor in the nicest hotel in the LA area and Regina continued to complain. And Emma had had enough.
She slammed the closet door shut loudly and whirled on her cousin, "Seriously Regina just shut the fuck up already!"
Her cousin rarely used profanity and when she did, Regina knew she was in for it. Sitting up from her tantrum-throwing position the brunette just stared as her fiery cousin.
"At the end of the year David is going to name me Chief Executive Officer and Uncle Henry is going to name you Chief Operating Officer. Of our own fucking company. You have been handed everything in this life on a silver platter but for some reason I thought that might actually mean something to you. If you don't want the title then just leave. I'll tell our fathers that you would rather spend a summer in Paris rather than preparing for the biggest opportunity of your life!" wisps of blonde hairs had fallen from Emma's high plait and framed her tightened face perfectly. Her usually jade eyes now burned emerald with aggravation and anger.
Regina had rarely seen this side of her cool, collected cousin and it made her question her childish actions. Yes, they had to work in one of their own hotels under false identities but its not like they were assigned as janitors or maids. They were working poolside and bar: any college student's dream job during a Southern California summer.
Seeing Emma react like this made Regina realize how selfish she had been acting. Her older cousin was only twenty-five but she was wise beyond her years. They both had been training for this year for most of their lives. And Emma had taken it in strides. She had loved every minute of it and counted down the days until she was in full control of Nolan Mills Corporations. And she was going to do a great job too. David Nolan and Henry Mills built this company from the ground up the past thirty years. Now, since it was time for them to retire, they had entrusted their only daughters to continue their legacy. And Regina was bitching and moaning about it? Their Beverly Hills hotel was one of the nicest ones in all of America. This summer gave them the opportunity to see how their chain worked from the inside out. And she doubted it would be all that straining.
Biting the inside of her cheek, Regina stood from her previous position on the pillow-topped bed and swallowed her pride, "You're right. I'm sorry." With four short words the heat melted from Emma's body.
She loved her cousin like a sister. And she had cherished their time growing up together. But Regina was never the overachiever in the family; she was the baby, the princess-even though she was only a year younger than Emma. But Emma still thought this was something she wanted. Most heirs in their position were forced into their family businesses without questions or objection but the girls loved their fathers and loved everything their company stood for. Even though they were the largest hotel chain in the world it still was a family business with family morals.
Ruth Mills and Henry Mills were siblings born and raised in Boston. They were just two regular kids with no real dreams or aspirations in life. Until they met the people they were going to marry. Ruth Mills met George Nolan during her spring break junior year of university. She had gone to Paris alone in hopes of being inspired in some way. She felt as if she were floating through life with no real plan. Then when a gorgeous blonde Frenchman sat down across from her as she was reading Hemingway at a street side café, everything changed. It was love at first sight and she never looked back after that.
Her younger brother had a harder time convincing the object of his affection that he was genuine. Cora Parrilla had been an exchange student at university from Puerto Rico. She was only in Massachusetts for the semester studying Eastern European history. Henry had been her professor's assistant. The two had not initially gotten along, seeing that Henry was fairly arrogant back in his younger years. Cora disregarded him and did not give him the time of day. Something the handsome man was not use to. Trying to show the beautiful student an act of sincerity, the youngest Mills spent night after night learning Spanish so he could speak to her in her native tongue. When he finally got the courage to test his learned skills she just laughed at his horrible pronunciation and dialect. But gave him a chance nonetheless. And that was all that he needed.
Both siblings were soon married after graduation. The two couples received a small business loan and started Nolan Mills Corporations. They made their first million within a year, the cargo/freight industry being more lucrative then they originally had hoped. With their new revenue they decided to branch out into the hotel business and thus the Storybrooke was born.
Not long after that Ruth became pregnant with their only son David. Though George was uncharacteristically hard on him, only trying to prepare him for the business he would say, David had inherited his mother's unconditional love and never lost sight of his father's good intentions.
It was that love that led him to his future bride Mary Margaret Blanchard—an independent spitfire studying to be a schoolteacher. He always said she was more suited to be a pirate with that nasty right hook and all. It only took moderate convincing to win Mary Margaret's heart but once he did David new he had found his happily ever after.
Their true love was only solidified when Emma came along, a beautiful bundle of blonde joy. David was eternally grateful to the fates that both his mother and father were able to spend time with Emma before passing. David knew that George had finally come to realize the true meaning of happiness was not the billions of dollars he was leaving behind but the joy of his family. David and Mary Margaret would never forget the look of his face when he held Emma for the first time.
Within the same year of Emma'a birth, Cora and Henry were finally able to conceive a child after decades of heartbreak. And Regina soon followed. She seemed to be the virtual opposite of Emma regarding their appearances, midnight black hair and whiskey brown eyes inherited from her Latina mother, but the second cousins were attached at the hip their entire childhood.
"Its three months. We can handle three months." Regina sighed under her breath as she hung her "Best of France" calendar on her side of the room, crossing off the first of June. "92 days."
AN: Our two leading men will be making their appearance next chapter. You will not be disappointed ;) and watch out for more OOC-ness