by Kailin Gow
I slowly released the bow of the blue ribbon and set it on the table and lifted up the lid of the box, so curious about its contents. When I saw it my eyes popped open. I slowly lifted up a chain and at the end of it was a pewter turtle. Definitely interesting…certainly nothing I would have guessed.
“This is great, thank you,” I said.
“Do you know what the turtle symbolizes?” he asked.
“No, what?” Now things were getting interesting.
“It’s my way of apologizing to you,” Mason said. He looked embarrassed and I saw his hands pressed into his pants pockets, nervously fidgeting.
“For what? You don’t have anything to apologize for.”
“I think I moved a bit too fast the other night when I shared what I did. It wasn’t my intention to, trust me, but it just came out. The moment felt right, I guess, but I think it had made you too uncomfortable, and for that, I’m sorry.”
“Mason, it’s not that, really, but that’s sweet. There is just so much on my plate right now, between school, here, and at the cosmetics company. I want to give each my best effort.”
“Which doesn’t leave room for any fun for you?” he asked dejectedly.
“Not much, but the fun will come after the hard work.”
“Does your mother say that, Charisma?”
“Actually no,” I said with a little laugh, “she’s always reminding me that I’m young and need to have some fun too.”
“Well, if you ever take her advice keep me in mind.” Then he walked out, leaving me with a confused smile on my face and warmth in my heart that I couldn’t deny. What the turtle symbolized was really endearing.
Which led to a gift the next day, a song send to my email from some country group that I never would have known—Zac Brown Band—and the song Keep me in Mind. He was clever and I liked that he had ideas that didn’t just involve spending money, they came from his heart.
For the next week, every other day when I was at Beast Company, Mason had some clever thing to offer me. One day it was a chair massage complimentary of this amazing woman, Gina, who traveled around to businesses and offered them. I loved it and definitely thought she would be welcome at Helen Chu Cosmetics, too. The next day it was a new portfolio with my monogram. Then there was a single flower—a Stargazer Lily—which happened to be the name of the shade of lipstick I’d worn that day. His gifts were thoughtful, and showed he really wanted to know more about me.
At the end of the week, Mason came and knocked on my door as I was preparing to leave Beast that day. “Okay, I know that you don’t have to work on your paper this weekend, and that you’ve had a long week, which is why I’d like to take you out to a movie and dinner tonight. Casual—jeans and fun—nothing serious or exhausting, I promise.” He held up his hand like he was taking the Hippocratic Oath.
“I surrender,” I said, raising my arms. “Where can I meet you?”
“I’ll pick you up at your home. Friday night traffic is hardly relaxing for a driver, is it?”
“Good point,” I said. “7:00?”
“Perfect,” Mason said, smiling a gorgeous smile that lit up his entire face as he walked out. It would be a miracle if I could stay casual with him tonight. His smile sent goosebumps up my arm as I noticed how he was becoming more and more handsome as he began losing more of his business-like mask and letting his more authentic self out, like moments as this one. His gifts over the past week showed that he was also a sensitive and deep person. Despite his riches, he was a man of substance. He also cherished what he had and didn’t take the hard work his ancestors did for him to enjoy his life today. Unlike the old Callum did. I reached for the turtle pendant which was tucked under my blouse for that day and felt it, smiling brightly myself.
I was looking forward to my date with Mason and ready to take the next step further in our relationship but was somehow nervous. It made no sense at all but I didn’t want Callum seeing Mason pick me up. Let alone date me. Although we were now just friends and it shouldn’t matter, I didn’t want his feelings hurt by it. Maybe I was just sensitive to Callum’s feelings of betrayal and guilt from his family or maybe it was something else?
Chapter 10
Callum
I’d changed so much since the accident. Outwardly, this change was obvious. I was no longer an attractive man and I had to accept that. But no one could have been more surprised than me to discover that it could happen relatively quickly and with the help of the two women that had led to the entire thing unfolding. Helen Chu was an amazing woman, one of those who were filled with grace and tenacity that you usually only read about—never had a chance to meet or be on the receiving end of it. Now that I got to know her, I felt so ashamed and humbled by what I did to her. She had the elegance and nobility of a queen. Everything she did reminded me of those great ladies you could only wish to meet in history. I’ve never met anyone classier than her, including my mother.
How she could even be so gracious to me after all the shameful things I did was testimony to her strength of character. I was eternally grateful to her. But it was Charisma that had really done the most for me as a man, making me realize what the important qualities of being a man were.
Every time I’d walk around the corner late at night to get something from the kitchen, I’d see Charisma at the table, studying so hard and completely focused on her laptop. She always had this same expression—a content look that showed she loved what she was doing and she’d always softly bite her pretty lips, as if it helped her to think. I halfway wondered if there was a dent in those beautiful lips from that habit. If there was, it would only lend to her perfection. By looks alone, she could conquer the world, but she never relied on it, like I did, and she worried more about helping her mother out and doing well in school and at work than anything else, that she never did anything for herself. The entire time I was a Helen Chu’s, Charisma didn’t take a break or do anything fun. She was the hardest working person I knew besides Mason, Helen, and my father.
She and Helen never complained about working hard, and never seemed bitter about all the adversities they suffered through, including jealous rivals in cosmetics, sabotaging partners, and the backstabbing that can happen in any industry especially when someone small but talented comes along and threatened the status quo of the bigger players. I didn’t know how hard it was for a startup like Helen Chu’s Cosmetics to become so successful. It opened my eyes to everything, and made me realized how immature and stupid I was to insult them and think I was anything but superior to them or anyone just because my Grandfather became successful, and I was a leech riding on the coattail of his hard work and success. And then ruining the good will he built for the family name.
How could I have been so low? So classless? So ugly? I can’t even explain it because I can’t even comprehend why I was so full of hatred that I had to take it out on an innocent sweet woman like Helen. Why was I such an insufferable stupid bully? The only thing I can do now is to try to make it up to Helen and Charisma. To the day I die, I will try to fix what I did, as my dad’s dying wish.
“Hey, do you like British humor?” I asked softly, not wanting to startle Charisma as I approached her.
“Yeah, I guess, haven’t watched much of it,” she said, looking up at me over the top of her laptop screen.
“Well, I saw that A&E is playing an old Monte Python classic, The Holy Grail, in a half hour. I’m going to be watching it if you want to join me,” I said. Please join me, I thought. I hadn’t talked to her much that day and a day didn’t feel complete without her around me for at least a little bit of time. I missed her. Terribly.
Mason was such a lucky bastard to get her for an entire day at Beast Company when she was there. I doubt he realized it since all he’d think about was the bottom line at Beast’s. He was so buried in ledgers and paperwork, he’d wouldn’t even notice if the most beautiful woman stood naked in front of him. But then again, he didn’t have Charisma in front of him before.
>
“Sure, I am finishing up on a section of this and then I’ll join you for a bit before I get some sleep. It’s been a hectic day,” she said, smiling at me. I wanted to capture that smile in a photograph or a painting, it was so beautiful. It was full of joy, kindness, playfulness, and appreciation. And it was directed at me. Despite how much I think she must hate me, she seemed to appreciate me, too.
I paused for a minute and realized she was waiting for me to leave so she could get back to work. I gladly did, knowing that the sooner I left, the sooner she’d come by me. Of course, I really never got British humor, but so many of my friends loved it so I thought I’d give it a try. Maybe with this new life perspective, I’d like it just a bit more. And hopefully, I could get it if I wasn’t stoned out of my mind like a lot of my friends liked to be when they watched it.
***
Watching quirky guys running along a desolate mountain region while their servant clacked coconuts together to make it sound like they were on horses was surprisingly entertaining. Who would have thought! I laughed at it, but what made me smile most was watching Charisma’s expressions as she looked at the silly movie. Her eyes lit up when she was shocked and her hand flopped over her eyes adorably when she was in disbelief. She was so animated and natural about it, not holding back or calculating her every move. She was herself, and she was being it around me. It felt like a major achievement and when I saw that side of her, I couldn’t help but realize everything that I’d lost out on over the years by not embracing this type of life. It wasn’t boring; it was fulfilling.
Before we both knew it, the credits were rolling and Charisma looked over at the clock. “Oh my gosh, it’s so late! I wasn’t planning on being up past midnight.”
“Sorry about that. Did you like it?”
“It was funny, but I wouldn’t need to see it every day, you know. I think that a little can probably go a long way.”
“Agreed,” I said.
We both stood up and I said, “So, see you in the morning?”
“In the morning. Want to carpool?” she asked. Then she started laughing. It had become our joke. Now that I didn’t have a license for awhile, I was completely reliant on her or her mother to get to work. And I didn’t particularly like going with Helen since she got there at 6 AM, so I only did that every other day when Charisma went to Beast for the day.
Morning came and I wasn’t tired at all, because I was riding high on the energy of a great night. It was those little, unsuspecting moments that really got me excited, and I would never be experiencing them without Charisma. She made all the difference and showed me that being authentic and genuine was such a better deal than keeping up appearances or struggling to be the life of the party. Being the life of the party had robbed me of having a life.
With two large cups of piping hot coffee in tow, Charisma and I made our way to the office, talking about everything going on that day at work. I was feeling good and excited about work, but also excited about seeing where this connection with Charisma could take me.
“Hey, did you want to go do something tonight?” I asked as we sat still in the freeway, waiting for an accident to clear up.
“Oh, I can’t tonight. Have plans already,” she said. She didn’t say anything else and I was so curious to know what her plans were. It was ridiculous, of course, because she didn’t owe me any explanations about what she was doing any more than I owed her any. But I was a bit lonely, if I were to honestly express it. Since the accident, my friends and I weren’t really tight anymore. We’d talk on the phone, but I found out that a share of them weren’t really true friends. Hanging out with a monster wasn’t a part of their plan. And the ones who didn’t care were too into partying and I couldn’t risk being by them, either. I was determined to stay away from drugs and alcohol with my own willpower, not with going to a support group.
“Got it,” I said, smiling. “Maybe another night then.”
“Yeah, maybe,” she said, glancing over at me and then looking straight ahead.
The accident had cleared up and the car ahead of us wasn’t moving, which made Charisma lay on her horn and call out some comments that I’d never heard her say before. “That was something,” I said, trying to hide my laugh.
She looked at me with that same frown, but it quickly turned to a smile. “I’ve never been good at road rage. Not believable.”
“And let me say that I’m glad,” I added. “Otherwise, I might just walk to work.”
“I noticed that you were working out again. How’s that going?” Charisma asked me.
“Good, I’m sore but it feels good. Relieves the stress and reminds me that I have way too many muscles I don’t use.” And that was the topic that took us to work—sharing stories of funny occurrences that happened while working out. The woman could make any topic interesting.
***
Admittedly, I was curious. When Charisma said she was getting picked up that evening for wherever she was going, I made sure that I was in a place where I’d see who it was that was picking her up. A girlfriend or a guy friend—I wanted to know.
From my room, I heard a car pull up into the driveway and I glanced out. My face fell. It was a black Jaguar—Mason’s Jaguar. Why was she going out with him? It instantly stung, but I tried to not jump to any conclusions, as tough as that was. Of course they’re probably friends, I thought. Charisma could make friends very easily so why not Mason?
Mason and I weren’t on very good terms yet and he was still plenty mad at me about what had happened. I got that, but I hadn’t seen him for a bit so I thought I’d go out and say hi to him, at least.
When I walked out into the living room, Charisma was opening the front door and I saw a bouquet of white roses being handed to her and Mason’s head leaning in for a kiss. It made me sick to my stomach and my fists clenched together in rage, a sudden protective feeling coming over me about Charisma. Were they dating? Why wouldn’t she say anything about it?
“You look gorgeous. Ready to go?” Mason asked.
Charisma turned around and met my eyes briefly, a flicker of guilt crossing them, and then turned back to Mason. “I’m ready.”
Then the two left, leaving me all alone—painfully alone and realizing something that I didn’t want. I was in love with Charisma. In a short amount of time, I’d managed to fall in love with someone that made me feel better than any other woman ever had in my life, and we hadn’t even kissed or fooled around. That meant it was the real deal, right?
This intense anger went through me at a breakneck speed and I felt this intense desire to destroy something…make that someone—my brother. Mason was a louse and he knew that it would bother me if he came to pick Charisma up at the house. Did she know it, too? Was she not really as nice and authentic as I’d thought? I didn’t know, but from where I stood, he was the problem, not her.
Unable to contain my rage, I quickly changed into some running clothes and took off down the sidewalk toward the running path a mile away. I had to get rid of what I was feeling before I had a setback. And, I had to find a way to take Charisma away from Mason. He didn’t deserve her, the arrogant prick. He was all business and if she was with him, she’d become that, too.
With each step I ran, my mind kept shouting, “my heart is breaking,” over and over. But when I stopped and caught my breath, I began to plan for what I wanted, not what I felt at that moment. I wanted to win Charisma’s love. The only way to do that was to show her that I was a smart man, a changed man. Because of what I did and my role in causing the death of my father, the Board practically threw me out on the streets. They kept me away and appointed Mason as the Interim CEO of Beast’s, instead of me. I’d gain the Board’s trust again at Beast Company and take my rightful spot as CEO, ousting Mason for good.
Chapter 11
Charisma
When we pulled up to the private airport I knew that I was in for quite the evening. When I saw the helicopter with the Beast Company emblem on the side, my s
uspicions were confirmed.
“Where are we going?” I asked, my eyes wide. I’d never been on a helicopter before.
“To the family home on Catalina Island,” Mason said. His smile was flirty and relayed how delighted he was in his surprise. “Come on, you ready?”
“I am, but where’s the pilot?”
Mason looked at me and pointed to himself. “At your service. I assure you, you’re in good hands, Charisma.”
I had no idea if he was talking about flying or something else, but I was intrigued. “Well, I can’t wait.”
Both of us had on our headphones so we could talk while making the half hour flight to Catalina Island, where he was able to land right on the roof of his family’s estate. Honestly, I’d never experienced anything like it before, and it was such a rush that I could see how people got wrapped up in their uber-wealthy lives. I’d better be careful.
“Welcome to Chateau Falaise,” Mason said, extending his hand to me so I could get out of the helicopter. The blades were still rotating slowly despite it being turned off and I ducked down cautiously. I was definitely attached to keeping my head attached to the rest of my body.