John Bates walked up to the hotel's reception with a file cover in hand. It had been a hard week; he had spent his Friday night making numerous calls here and there to get things done for the hotel. He could kill for a day off but he knew he had several things on his agenda that needed to get done. His job was demanding and hectic, and sometimes made him want hit his head against something but most of the times, he loved it. Not only because he had a good pay and a position, but also because the Crawley's were like a family to him, and in times of crisis, one has to do everything they can for their family. With a sigh, he turned a corner to walk up to the main reception. Upon glancing at the counter, a smile formed on his face.

"Oh, hello Anna" he said as he rested his arm on the counter.

Anna Smith, the hotel's receptionist, who was busy typing away on the system's computer suddenly looked up at Bates and smiled.

"Mr. Bates! Isn't today your day off?" she asked him with a smile on her face.

"Yes, and no" he replied with a smirk.

Anna looked at him puzzled and Bates continued, "Technically my Saturdays are off but today we have a couple of important meetings and that Skype call with the US furniture company. And since its still Friday there, I am still on duty" Bates tapped the counter and Anna smiled.

"It's alright, Mr Bates. You can do this" Anna replied as she flashed a smile at him.

Bates smiled back, "If you have faith in me then I definitely will"

Anna blushed at the compliment, making Bates grin.

"Anyways, here's the guest list for the dinner next week, under the name of James Wilson" Bates added.

"Thank you, I'll enter their names in the system" Anna replied taking the file cover from him.

Bates coughed as Anna looked up to him "Are you free tonight for dinner?"

Anna smiled and nodded. Bates was about to ask her restaurant preference when he heard the sound of heels clicking behind him. He turned to see a woman and an elderly man walking up to the reception, both holding two giant folders in their hands.

Bates gave them a quizzical look and then slowly walked up to them.

"Hello, can I help you?" Bates asked the woman who just walked to the counter.

The woman gave him a confused look and then saw his tag on the coat.

"Oh, you're the manager" the woman stated and Bates nodded. "I'm Cora Levinson Bricker, from PRIME studio, I'm supposed to be meeting Robert Crawley"

Bates lightly clapped his hands, trying hard to control his excitement, "Of course, yes, yes. I'll just call Sir now. He's expecting you"

Bates looked up at the elderly man behind her and nodded at him.

"He is Charles Carson, accountant at PRIME Studio" Cora introduced Carson to Bates.

Bates shook his hand "How do you do, Mr Carson?"

Carson smiled at him "Very well, thank you Mr..Bates" Carson replied as he looked at his name on the tag.

"Anna can you pass me the phone" Bates asked.

Anna passed him the phone as Bates dialed Robert's office number. After a few rings, Robert picked up.

"The people from PRIME Studio are here. Should I send them upstairs?" He waited as Robert replied. "Yes, alright" Bates put the phone down.

"Please come this way" Bates assisted Cora and Carson.

As they walked a few steps, Mr Carson's phone rang. He picked it up as they neared the elevator.

"Yes, hello this this Carson, from PRIME Studio, how can I help?"

Carson gave a confused look and then put his hand on the speaker after the receiver replied "You go along, it's work. I'll join you in a few minutes" he said to Cora.

Cora nodded as Carson walked away. The elevator dinged opened. Bates made way for her to enter.

"Seventh floor. Go straight and turn to the first right. You'll find Mrs Hughes there. She's his PA"

Cora nodded and entered the elevator "Alright, thank you Mr Bates"

"My pleasure" replied Bates as the elevator door shut.

Cora exited the elevator and sighed softly. She entered a grand hallway, beautifully color coordinated in burgundy furniture and off white walls. She made her way to the first right and observed the glorious chandelier hanging from the ceiling. She looked at the hanging mirror placed on the wall and stopped for a second. Pleased with how she looked, she sighed again and walked towards the door at the very end of the corner.

She was quite tensed about this meeting. Usually, she was always confident and prepared. But this meeting somehow felt grand and she was never a fan of suspense, and now knowing exactly why this meeting was called, she was getting a little agitated. Of course, the party last night at her friend's Lisa didn't help. She didn't drink much but she got home late and got only a couple of hours of sleep before she had to get up and get ready for this curious meeting. She wasn't sure how this meeting was going to go, but by the looks of the grandeur, she was positive it was going to be something big scale, and that gave her goose bumps. With another sigh, she turned the door knob and entered the room.

Cora entered a very neat and cozy looking small room with a fancy desk up front. She stepped in and internally sighed at the central heating. A woman with chestnut hair and wide frame glasses looked up at her from behind the desk and smiled.

"Hello" the woman said, her thick Scottish accent making its way through in the two syllable word.

Cora smiled at her and made her way through to her desk.

"Hi, I'm Cora Levinson Bricker, from PRIME" Cora replied.

"Oh, yes of course. I'm Elsie Hughes"

Cora extended her hand and Mrs Hughes shook it warmly. "Lovely to meet you Mrs Hughes"

"Likewise Mrs Bricker"

"Cora please"

Mrs Hughes nodded and beeped in to Robert's office.

"Please take a seat. Would you like anything?"

Cora walked up towards the very comfortable cream colored sofa and sat down. "No, thank you"

Cora took out her phone and dialed Carson's number. Finding it busy, she cut the call and lightly tapped on the portfolio in her hand. Somehow the coziness of the place made her feel a little less nervous about the meeting. It could just be because of the very comfortable temperature of the room, but either way she was trying to take it as a positive sign. She was very curious to meet this CEO; she hoped he was also as nice as the general vibe of this little office. She kept her fingers crossed; usually the people she's met at such high positions were absolutely obnoxious and tried hard to flirt with her. The thought gave her shivers. The bell of Mrs Hughes' front desk made her conscious of her surroundings.

Mrs Hughes answered the phone.

"Alright, sir" she replied to the caller on the other end.

After putting the phone down she looked at Cora. "You can go in"

Cora got up from her seat, unlocked her phone and called Carson again. Finding it out of reach she sighed again.

"Um, Mrs Hughes?"

"Yes" Mrs Hughes replied looking up from desk.

"I was here with my colleague, Mr Carson."

"Oh, yes. I think he took the appointment" she replied.

"Yes" Cora smiled "He got a call downstairs and now I can't reach his number. Can you just let him know I've gone in. He's wearing a dark brown coat" Cora thought for a second "and a maroon tie, I think"

Mrs Hughes smiled at her "Of course, I'll go check where he is"

"Thank you so much" Cora replied as Mrs Hughes left the office.

Cora sighed, turned the doorknob and entered the office.

Robert Crawley sat on his office's desk, rubbing his temple with his index finger and thumb. It had been quite a long morning and it wasn't even 9am. He sighed as he rubbed his face with his hands. He had been quite busy sorting out the accounts with Mary last night and neither of them realized it was nearly 1am by the time they finished it. He had planned on waking up at 7.30 but was cruelly woken up by the sound of the blaring hair dryer at 6 in the morning. His wife Valarie, had gotten up early to get ready for her breakfast get together with her friends and had woken up Robert with the noise she had been making. He tried to get an extra hour of sleep by going to the guest room but it had been of little use since the sound of Valarie walking around the house with her high heeled shoes didn't let him go back to the land of slumber. Defeated, he woke up only to find out that Mary wasn't going to be able to make it to the meeting. She had eaten dinner from a dodgy looking Japanese place last night and soon after her meeting with Robert she had apparently projectile vomited all night. The thought made Robert lose his appetite for breakfast and he had decided to go out for a run, to force his body to wake up and function properly.

He had gotten ready for a jog when his dear Mama had called him and had asked him how disappointed she was that Robert had actually fired Jarvis. Robert wanted to roll his eyes. Of course he was going to fire him, the majority had voted in favor. He couldn't understand the point of his mother calling him at 7 in the morning just to share her annoyance. Like a good son, he proceeded to calm his mother down, which took a little over half an hour. By the time he had ended the call with his mother, he was exhausted mentally and after looking at the time, he realized he had lost his chance of going for a jog. Giving up he got ready to go to the hotel for a long working Saturday.

Robert looked at the list of appointments in front of him and moaned. He was not ready to socialize and talk to people. His first appointment was with the new potential photography team called PRIME. He thought back on his call with his mother earlier this morning; this PRIME recommendation by Bates had cost him a lot of time and convincing. He crossed his fingers and hoped they were up to the mark, otherwise he would never hear the end of it. Bates had suggested that Robert should meet the owner alone, and should make up his own mind about them. Robert agreed but looking at how clumsy he felt, he wasn't sure if it was the best idea. Before he could ask if Bates wanted to join, Bates called him informing that the people from the studio had arrived. It was too late now, so Robert decided to go ahead and meet them alone anyway. Or her; the main photographer.

He had googled them earlier in the week and he was impressed by the reviews he had come across. However, he couldn't find any pictures of the team and that made him curious on what they were like. Two women had already annoyed him in the morning, he hoped the third one; a stranger would be a nice change. For some reason, he could only picture an over excited woman in her forties and he hoped it wasn't the case. He wasn't ready for high energy so early in the morning.

Mrs Hughes beeped him and he realized that the team had arrived. He put his papers back into place and tidied his desk. He then called Mrs Hughes to let them in.

Realizing that the draft of the proposed plan was placed on the counter behind him, he got up from his desk to pick up the papers. Accidently hitting his foot against the counter, he dropped the papers on the floor.

"Shit" he murmured internally and kneeled down behind his desk to pick up the papers. He balanced on his knees and palms, trying to collect the scattered documents when he heard a soft hello.

He shut his eyes momentarily wondering what a big fool he must be looking, kneeling down in such a way. Slowly, he got up and turned to look at the voice that had witnessed him being in such an embarrassing state.

He turned to see the source of the greeting, and momentarily stopped in his steps. A tall woman with dark brown hair and bright blue eyes, dressed in a smart white dress stared at him from the other side of the table. He felt his face going red, he didn't know if it was because of the embarrassment due to the state she found him in or because of the soft blush up his face, because the woman standing opposite him looked nothing like he had imagined her to be.

The woman smiled softly at him and he felt his blush grow deeper. He tried his best to smile back at her, and gulped as he evened out the papers in his hand. He looked up at her again, and her bright blue eyes stared at him for an answer. It had to be the brightest blue he had ever seen. Realizing that he had left her waiting, he internally cursed himself.

"Hello, yes. Please come in" he quickly replied. Having been in business for so many years, he knew how quickly to turn an awkward situation to a normal one.

The woman walked up to the desk and smiled again. And for some odd reason, that smile assured Robert that she didn't judge him for his awkward behavior. He didn't know if she did or didn't, but somehow that was the vibe he got and he relaxed a little bit. They both sat down on the desk.

"I'm sorry about that. I accidentally dropped some papers" Robert added to clarify; to calm his own nerves than anything else.

"Oh, no problem." The woman put her hand up front in the air, to calm him down "That happens to me at least two times a day" she added with a smile, making him laugh.

Robert laughed as he heard her giggle in response to him. It was such a sweet sight, and sound. The women around him never really giggled, they smiled and laughed softly but this was a sweet little giggle and that cheered him up.

"Cora Levinson Bricker, am I right?" Robert asked, suddenly very interested in the meeting. For some reason he didn't feel tired as he did five minutes ago.

"Yes, from PRIME Studio" Cora took out her business card and passed it to him.

Robert nodded and took the card from her. "I've heard quite the rave about your company" Robert added.

Cora smiled at him and her bright eyes shone again, making Robert feeling like he's accomplished something. He couldn't understand why. He supposed it was always nice to make other people smile.

"I was curious to know actually, how did you find out about my studio?" Cora frowned in confusion.

Robert rested his hands on the table "All thanks to my manager, John Bates. He found out about your work at the Paris fashion week. I'll introduce you to him"

"Oh, I've already met him"

Robert raised his eyebrows in confusion.

"Downstairs. He guided me to your room"

"Oh, of course" Robert replied.

He felt silly once again. Bates called him just five minutes ago. How could he forget?

"So Mrs Bricker, what would you like? Shall I order some tea?" Robert asked.

Cora thought for a second and then nodded "Sure"

"I'll just call Mrs Hughes" Robert added as he picked up his phone.

"Oh, I'm afraid Mrs Hughes has gone to fetch my colleague Charles Carson. He got a call downstairs and I asked her if she'd let him know I was here" Cora clarified.

Robert nodded and smiled "No problem, I'll call the kitchens directly"

Robert ordered the tea. After cutting the call Cora sat straighter in her seat "So, um what exactly am I here for?"

Robert sighed softly and replied "We are planning to re-launch our hotel's website and magazine and would like to hire you for the photography and videography of it"

Seeing Cora's nod, Robert continued "I'll show you our website" Robert turned to open up the website on his laptop when Cora stopped him.

"I've seen it actually" Cora stated.

Robert moved in his chair quite impressed "You've done your research" he said.

"I had to know what I was getting into since it was all very vague on the phone" Cora added, with a hint of smirk in her sentence.

Robert laughed softly "I apologize about the suspense, but we thought it would be better to talk face to face"

Cora smiled "Yes, of course. I understand"

"So what do you think?" Robert asked, curious to know her opinion.

"About what?" Cora replied.

"The website"

"Oh, well" Cora stopped in her sentence trying to find the words.

Robert smirked looking at her expressions. It was quite amusing for him since he knew she was trying to find the right words.

"Not too trendy are they?" Robert said it for her, putting her out of her misery.

"Yes, that's the word" Cora snapped her fingers, making Robert grin. "Trendy, yes. They could use an update"

He softly slapped the table in front of him smiling "That's where you come along"

Cora smiled back at him softly, looking him straight in the eyes, slightly unnerving Robert "Yes, that I where I come along"

Robert gulped, still mystified by her eyes and her smile. After a few odd seconds, Cora spoke to stop the situation from getting more awkward.

"Is that it?" Cora asked.

Robert raised his eyebrows, transitioning back to present "No, actually, it's more than that. We want you to cover all our events and functions as well. As well as take pictures of the staff"

Cora's big blue eyes grew bigger at the statement. She chewed her lower lip for a second contemplating the idea. Robert could see her lower lip leave color as she chewed harder, stopping the blood flow. He gulped again; it was highly unprofessional of him to stare at another woman's lips.

He took this few seconds of silence to regain himself and then Cora spoke "Are you sure?" she asked and Robert looked at her perplexed.

"I mean, without looking at our portfolio, you're giving us such a big project" Cora clarified brushing aside a stray piece of hair on her face.

Robert smirked at her "We've also done our research, Mrs Bricker"

Cora looked at him confused and then smiled "Fair enough"

"Yes, all the board of directors saw several clips and pictures and then decided you were the best option. Just what Hotel Grantham needs" Robert smiled making Cora blush. There it was, another odd sense of achievement bursting inside Robert.

"But I would still like to see your portfolio, just because I really enjoyed your work that I've seen. I would love to see more" Robert added.

Cora smiled as she took opened her portfolio, and as she did, a waiter walked in with two cups of tea.

Elsie Hughes walked down the stairs, trying to locate the lost colleague of Cora Levinson. She looked around the sixth floor and its offices. She walked back up to the seventh floor and located a man turning left on the hallway.

She brisked walk towards him and called out to him before he could move anywhere else.

"Excuse me?" she called out from the opposite end of the hall.

A man in a dark brown coat turned at her voice. She squinted harder to spot the exact color of the tie. She walked nearer him, keeping her eyes fixed on his tie.

After a few seconds passed in silence, the man standing opposite her raised his bushy eyebrows at her.

"Can I help you?" The man asked her, confused at what the lady was staring it.

"No, but I might be able to help you. Are you Mr Carson?" she asked.

"I am, yes"

Mrs Hughes nodded and looked at his tie again; she squinted once more, leaving Carson more confused "It's not exactly maroon, is it? It's quite burgundy" she spoke in her Scottish accent.

"What?" Mr Carson replied, his bushy eyebrows reaching the ceiling.

Mrs Hughes moved her head and looked at him "Never mind. You're supposed to go to the right, not left"

Mr Carson frowned "I've been trying to the CEO's office for ten minutes now. These hallways are quite confusing"

Mrs Hughes nodded "Yes well. You're safe now, Mr Carson. I've been looking for you for the past ten minutes as well. Now thanks to you, I've completed 500 steps out of my target for today"

Carson looked at her amused, making Mrs Hughes laugh.

"Come follow me" she said as she started to walk towards Robert's office.

He started following her "And your name? Since you know mine"

"Elsie Hughes" she replied as they walked.

"Oh, you made the appointment?" he asked.

"It's a small world" she replied.

"And for a matter of fact, my tie is maroon. Only a deeper shade of maroon"

"Yes it's called burgundy" Mrs Hughes smirked, seeing Carson get confused again.

Cora drank her last few sips of tea, as she silently observed Robert Crawley go through her portfolio. She wasn't going to lie to herself; she found it quite amusing seeing his expressions change in response to the pictures. She smiled into the cup in her hand. It had been quite an interesting meeting; he seemed extremely nice and dignified. She wasn't always sure meeting these high-fi business types, but Robert Crawley seemed kind and looked genuinely interested in hiring them. It made her feel immensely proud of her team that such a big hotel would want to hire them. And not only that, the people in the hotel seemed very pleasant. Mr Bates downstairs was very accommodating, Mrs Hughes seemed very warm in person, and Robert Crawley seemed very…likeable, and kind, and also sweet. She softly smiled back thinking how she found him upon entering. Poor man, felt so embarrassed but Cora quickly controlled the situation. Or so she thought at least. But it was quite funny to see a man dressed in the smartest suit out there, kneel down on all fours to collect papers. A very good looking man as well, if she might add. She immediately felt herself blush, and quickly gulped down her last few sips of tea.

She looked back at Robert as he flipped page after page in fascination. He looked up at her to smile and she smiled back him. He had a lovely smile, a contagious one that made her smile too. And what made that smile turn into a grin was the fact that her work was the source of his fascination.

"Is this Mount Blanc?" Robert asked as he pointed towards a photograph.

"Yes" Cora put her cup down to look at the photo he was pointing at. "It was a shoot for snowboard company. It was quite difficult as it was snowing pretty hard and I personally don't do that well in cold" she laughed.

He laughed back "How long have you lived in London?"

Cora sighed "It feels like forever. I came to England for my postgrad, and have stayed ever since."

Robert nodded "Your husband, Mr Bricker also works at PRIME?" he asked curiously.

Cora shook her head "Oh, Simon. No. He is an art history professor"

Robert thought for a second "I think I've heard his name, have we met?"

Cora brushed away her hair from her face "I don't know, but he's quite social so you might have"

Robert nodded at her and looked back the photos "These are truly incredible, Mrs Bricker. Bates has found us a gem" he smiled at her making Cora blush.

He was such a gentleman. "Please, call me Cora"

"Alright, Cora" he smiled.

Listening the sound of her name from his mouth made her smile for the umpteenth time. It somehow felt like they'd known each other for a long time and Cora could easily picture them being good friends in the future.

"But then you must call me Robert as well" he added.

"Alright, Robert" Robert mimicked the stupid grin plastered on her face.

Robert's phone rang, breaking the sweet moment between the two. Robert picked up the phone, sighed softly and answered the call.

"Hello" he said.

Cora could hear a woman talking at the other end, but couldn't exactly make out what she was saying. But she could sense that it made Robert uncomfortable. The woman kept talking, and it almost felt like she was yelling on the phone at one point.

"Yes, well. I'll send him in half an hour" he replied to whatever the woman said on the phone. "Yes, I can't send it any earlier. Yes..alright. okay…Bye"

Robert cut the call and sighed softly, and then immediately sat back straighter realizing there is another presence in the room.

"Ah, that was the misses" he clarified.

Cora smiled awkwardly at him "Duty calls" she said.

There was a momentarily pause "I read somewhere that this is a family business?" Cora asked.

"Yes, my late Papa wanted to keep it that way. He was conservative like that. Now my mother, my daughters and my son in law are all board of directors"

Cora nodded and dared to ask after a moment "And your wife?"

Robert opened his mouth to reply and then awkwardly smiled "Valarie had other interests. But all my daughters are part of the hotel"

Cora nodded at him.

He put aside the portfolio and sat back straighter in his seat "Did you always know you wanted to do this?" he asked curiously.

Cora wasn't generally asked such questions, so she was taken aback by it but nonetheless was glad that he asked. "No actually, I found out quite late. I was working at a museum and a teacher part time"

"Oh really?" Robert asked now more fascinated by the conversation.

"Yes, but you know what they say, your work should make you feel like you've never worked a single day"

Robert smiled at her "What a clever thing to say"

Cora gave him a sweet smile "Yes and soon I realized my calling was quite different than teaching and taking care of paintings"

Robert grinned "Then let me thank the blessed callings for guiding you to photography, and blessing the world with your wonderful craft"

Cora almost choked up at his response and nodded softly "That means a lot, thank you"

A second later, Mrs Hughes and Carson walked in Robert's office. Cora turned in her seat to look at Carson.

"Carson, where do you go?" Cora asked as Carson walked towards her.

"I'm afraid I got lost" Carson replied.

"You're not the first, Mr Carson" Robert replied and got up from his seat to shake his hand.

"How do you do, Mr Crawley? I'm so sorry, you must think we're very unprofessional" Carson replied, in a panicky tone.

"Nonsense" Robert replied shaking his hand "Far from it. Please have a seat. Would you like some tea?" Robert asked and requested Mrs Hughes to bring some tea for Carson, to calm his nerves more than anything else.

Cora smiled softly at Robert. She knew that he could sense how awkward Carson would've felt and she really appreciated his kindness towards him, as she knew most people would truly find it unprofessional.

"Why didn't you call me?" Cora asked Carson after he had calmed down a little.

"I tried but I think there's network problem here" Carson replied.

Cora took out her phone to check the signals as Robert pitched in "Yes, the seventh floor doesn't have great signals. Funny that the CEO's office is here" Robert laughed trying to lighten the situation.

Cora and Carson laughed in response "Or it could be a deliberate blessing in disguise" Cora added.

Robert smirked at her "I guess my secrets out now"

Cora giggled in response and Carson looked at her in amusement. Cora blushed in embarrassment; she was aware that Carson knew that Cora didn't get this friendly with anyone this quickly. She would definitely have to answer some questions later, but she didn't know what to say. Some people just click instantly, right?

Carson's tea arrived and he drank it in five big gulps. After briefing Carson, Cora knew it was time to leave. Robert buzzed Mrs Hughes in and she walked in five seconds later.

"Alright, thank you so much for your time" Cora said as she got up.

"You're most welcome. And we hope to see you and your team soon" Robert replied.

"Yes, I will discuss it with my team and let you know in a couple of days"

Robert nodded as he shook Carson's hand "Thank you so much, Mr Carson"

Carson smiled a bright smiled, that showed his approval of Robert "Pleasure meeting you, Mr Crawley"

"Mrs Hughes will see you out" he said as he extended his hand to shake Cora's. Cora took his hand and they both looked each other straight in the eyes. A look that promised something, something that she wasn't exactly sure of. She only hoped it was of a positive nature.

Cora and Carson walked on the gravel, and Cora waited for Carson to reverse the car so she could get in. She looked behind her, seeing the grandness of the hotel. It took her breath away. If they accepted the offer, she was going to see a lot of it. It was a big project, and she was nervous if they'd be able to pull it off.

Her eyes devoured the architecture of it when her eyes landed on a window where she could see Robert Crawley talking on the phone. Her eyes stopped at him and a second later Robert found her gaze too.

He smiled at her softly, and waved at her.

She smiled and waved back at him, maintaining the eye contact. And somehow that little gesture reassured her that she'd be fine, that she could do it.

Hello guys! What a massive turn of events the world has seen since I last updated. I hope everyone is staying safe!

I was super busy the past few days and now all of a sudden I have nothing to do, like the majority of the world. I know it is very depressing out there, but let's all try our best to stay cautious and careful and try our best to keep ourselves and others safe.

Here is my little token that will hopefully put a smile on your face! Here is chapter 3. This wasn't going to happen for at least another month, but I had time now so I thought why not.

The multiple POV's annoyed me a little but I didn't want multiple chapters of this one scene. I'm sorry of it bothers you well.

Please let me know what you think! I love reading your reviews!

I'm sorry if this is quite an underwhelming first meeting but I had to keep it realistic. Sorry if you guys are disappointed :(

Once again, stay safe! Don't panic but stay cautious. We can do fight this!

Lots of love and prayers your way!