Charlotte dozed in and out of sleep while the car kept moving.
"I'm taking you to the hospital," she heard Logan say, his voice close to her ear.
"No, I just need to sleep," she mumbled, and then the world went dark around her again.
Charlotte realized she was dreaming when she looked down at herself and the body she was in was around ten years younger. She recognized the yellow-flowered dress hat she had never worn again after that day.
It was the day that her father died during their family barbecue.
It was a hot and humid morning and the air smelled of coal burning in the grill. Her father, dressed in a white dress shirt and khaki shorts had started the fire very early, and Charlotte, having just woken up from a late night of hanging out with Edward on the roof of her house, had just gone outside.
A few of her father's friends had already arrived, and the ladies were sitting under the shade of an oak tree sipping colorfu
Charlotte headed into the kitchen after splashing cold water on her face, looking for Logan. She didn't know how to explain it, but she felt an inexplicable... emptiness after waking up and not finding him there.Flashes of their encounter last night flooded her mind. She knew she was being ridiculous. What had happened between them -again- was just pure, undeniable sexual attraction. Adding to how much the two had drunk, what happened was just inevitable. That was all it was. It was all slightly blurry, but it still made her blush. Logan was sitting on the wide balcony, enjoying a buffet-style breakfast displayed on the table. It was a lavish feast, and Charlotte's stomach growled in response to the sight. She knew she should take a shower or at least change before letting Logan see her in the state she was in, but her empty stomach was stronger. "Good morning," Charlotte groaned as she slid the glass door open. "Good morning." Logan briefly smiled at her. "We're leaving for Sav
A few hours later, Charlotte couldn’t feel her feet. The upstairs area was apparently reserved only for a few people, so she danced with Logan as if it was only the two of them there. At some point, she sat down and gulped some water, resting her head on the lush velvet couch. The next thing she felt was someone softly lifting her up while the music pounded into her ears.“What?” she said groggily.“You fell asleep.” It was Logan carrying her. His deep voice sobered her instantly. “I can walk!” she quickly said, squirming to set her legs down. But his arms were stronger, and he held on to her. “Your shoe is broken,” Logan said, looking straight ahead. Thankfully, this seemed to be pretty normal around here. No one even glanced in their direction as he headed down a hallway that ended with an emergency exit. Charlotte lifted her leg and realized that it was true; one of the heels on her stilettos was snapped in half. She focused on his face. He didn’t seem angry or annoyed, just
Charlotte sipped on the cool, fruity drink. It was a soothing balm against the humid, night air. Logan’s penthouse had balconies all around it, giving whoever sat outside a view of not only the sunrise over the ocean, but the sunset towards the sprawling city of Miami to the west. “Do you have everything you need?” he asked her, squinting as the last rays of sunlight peered over the horizon, hitting his face and bathing it in a golden light. How had she never noticed how handsome he was? Well, she had, but she had ignored it. For so many reasons… “I have way more than I need,” she replied, setting the drink down and smiling at him. When Logan made her promise that he could buy her anything he wanted, she didn’t imagine just how much he felt enough was. They had spent a better part of the afternoon all over downtown, going from store to store. A valet followed them, burdened by the sheer amount of shopping bags filled with clothes, shoes, accessories, and jewelry. What was
"What kind of deal?" Charlotte pulled back a little. Because of where Logan sat, he towered over her, and this positioning was never good for negotiating. She had learned a lot from body language throughout the years, and it was never good to make deals when one of the negotiators was sitting in a position that implied power."Come with me to Savannah." Logan leaned back against the desk. "This trip I'm taking is not business-related. I'm going to go visit family and attend a high school friend's wedding. Let's pretend that nothing has happened between us yet. We're just good friends attending a wedding. If, after this trip, you want to keep working for me, I will back off and do whatever you want to make you feel comfortable. I will strictly be your boss. If you want to keep doing... this, whatever this is, I will open up an independent law firm that you will own and manage and you can have nothing to do with me. I think it's time you stopped working for other people w
Once the elevator doors opened on Logan's floor, Charlotte let out a long sigh. Things had happened so fast, and she had just realized what she had done. On the one hand, she couldn't be anything but grateful to Janet for telling her the truth about Floyd, and she was only sad she hadn't known this sooner. But because of the actions she took once she learned the truth, not only was Janet out of a job but technically, so was she. Logan had hired her via the company, and even if she was sure he would be happy to hire her personally, it felt a little demeaning for her. Janet was another story. She was her responsibility now. "Is this Logan Hamilton's office?" Janet said, poking her head out of the elevator and looking around as if she had walked into a cave and not an office floor. "Go, go!" Charlotte nudged Janet to step out and then gestured for her to follow. Stuart greeted her at the front desk, and this time, she saw
Floyd walked inside his office and slowly sat behind the desk, interlacing cupping his together, placing them on the desk.Outside, Lisa stood in awe of the scene before her. "Do you-"Charlotte slammed the door in Lisa's face. She'd apologize to her later."I'm not even going to ask what you were doing rummaging through my private files," Floyd said, staring Charlotte down. "I assume you read what's in there?""I did..." Charlotte said, slowly sitting down on the seat in front of Floyd's desk."Charlotte, that was a misunderstanding. A confabulation that my sister made up. She's always envied me, and this was her way of getting back at me for-""I don't care," Charlotte interrupted him. "I couldn't care less what you say happened, Floyd."Then she began to laugh wholeheartedly, out of anger and relief, but mostly relief, because she had been right about Floyd all along, albeit unknowingly. He had been sitting in tha