by Kira Blakely
“Charlotte, I’d like to introduce you to–”
I raised my hand up and stopped him from saying another word. I didn’t like how we were set up. I was standing at the bottom of the stairs while all three of them addressed me from above, not bothering to come down and greet me properly. It was a statement, I realized. This was their subtle way of telling me where my place was, and it was beneath them.
Well, I figured I should give them a statement of my own.
I pulled my dog’s leash lightly and climbed up the stairs, my lips barely able to contain the smirk that crossed my lips as I watched the older woman’s face turn ghastly pale. I guess she really did mean something with the whole staying on top of the stairs thing.
I stopped right in front of them and turned to look at my father, smiling politely.
“You were saying?” I asked him.
“Oh. Charlotte, allow me to introduce to you my wife, Wilhelmina.” He waved his hand toward the older woman and she lifted her hand slightly – a poor attempt at a wave. She raised one eyebrow as she assessed me from head to toe, and I could tell she didn’t think highly of me. I was just wearing a t-shirt and tattered jeans, after all, very different from the fine dresses she and her daughter were sporting. “And this is your sister, Ariana.” He pointed toward the younger woman.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” I said, smiling politely at both of them.
“I’m sure it is,” Ariana replied, and I knew then that my half-sister and I would not be getting along anytime soon.
She was beautiful. Her long curly brown hair was tied in a high ponytail, her tanned skin was flawless and radiant, and she had big brown eyes that looked sleepy yet vibrant at the same time. She was quite petite as well, barely reaching my chin with the top of her head, and I guessed she was about five feet tall. However, the way she stood was ramrod straight, making her look regal and so much taller than she was.
I tried not to let the growing feeling of insecurity show in my face as I looked at her, even though it was hard. She was so beautiful and looked like she really belonged here, surrounded by luxury, unlike me, who stuck out like a sore thumb. I looked plain compared to her – my flat red hair and green eyes would never compare to the almost exotic allure of her features. Her mom pretty much looked the same. She was an older version of Ariana but with hair that barely reached the tip of her chin.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw my father pull his phone out and answer a call. He spoke quietly for a while and when he hung up, I knew he was about to ask me something else.
“I’m so sorry, but I have to take care of this matter for the company. Ariana, may I please ask you to give your sister a tour?” he asked her.
“Of course, Daddy. Leave her to me!” she said, grinning so hard I thought she’d break her teeth.
“I’ll go and help you with the documents, darling,” Wilhelmina said, following after him.
As soon as they disappeared to one of the rooms, Ariana turned to look at me, her eyes blazing and taking me aback.
“Let’s make one thing clear, Charlotte,” she sneered. “I don’t like you. I don’t even understand why my father would ask for you when I’m here.”
“What did I ever do to you that’s making you hate me so much?” I asked, my brows furrowing in confusion.
“You exist. That’s what you did!” she cried. “I’m sure you can find your own way around the mansion, so hop to it!” She flipped her hair and walked away from me, leaving me alone with my dog.
I still didn’t understand what was going on, and my father had left before he was able to explain anything. I contemplated whether to just explore on my own or look for my father’s office and ask him what I was doing here when I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. I pulled it out and smiled as I saw a text from Parker. I checked the time and immediately felt guilty because I had promised him I’d watch his game today.
From: Parker
I’m glad you’ve finally realized it. I told you he was a douche.
I’ll be out in a few minutes. Can you wait for me outside? We’ll get a bite to eat before I take you home.
I bit my lip, feeling guiltier after reading his reply and quickly texted him back about what happened and that I would make it up to him next time.
“Charlotte? Why are you still standing there?” I looked up to see my father coming toward me, his brows furrowed in concern. “Didn’t Ariana show you to your room?”
“Uh, no. She mentioned she was busy with something, and I didn’t want to disturb her so I told her I could take care of myself,” I quickly fibbed. We may not have started on the best of terms, but I didn’t want Ariana to get into trouble because of this. “Besides, I was just about to look for your office. You never told me why your driver had to drag me over here, remember?”
“Ah, I apologize. The call I received earlier is related to why I called you here actually. It’s about our company and, in particular, the C&A – our fashion line. News of my… my ailment,” he said the last part with distaste and I figured he might be feeling sore because of what happened to him. “Anyway, news has spread and already people are talking about who I’m going to be appointing as the next head of C&A.”
“And you brought me here because of that?” I asked.
“Yes. Also, I think it’s about time I introduced my first born to the world, don’t you agree?” he asked, and my eyes widened.
“What do you mean introduce me? How?” I asked.
“We’ll be holding a party in two weeks to announce the changes for our brand as well as some other projects we have planned. But the main event would be to finally reveal your existence to everyone,” he explained.
“But if your reason is because you want everyone to know you’re stepping down as chairman of C&A, then why do you have to involve me? I’m sure Ariana would be the better choice in this matter,” I said.
“Ariana is the obvious choice, that’s true. But I’m afraid she’s entirely confident that she’ll get the position no matter what, and therefore I don’t see her working as hard as she should. Introducing you would force her out of her comfort zone.”
“So, you’re introducing me because you want Ariana to have an opponent for her dream job. Is that right?” I shook my head, mad at myself for not expecting this.
My father sighed heavily before putting both of his hands on top of my shoulders, making me look up at him. “There are plenty more reasons why I’m doing this, and some of them I know you’d never believe, given how I never gave you and your mother the time of day, but I promise to explain everything when the time is right. Just trust me for now.”
“All right, I guess I don’t have a choice, do I?” I grumbled.
“Which reminds me, starting tomorrow, you’ll be starting your training. Good luck,” he said, giving me a brief smile before entering his office again, shutting the door in my face before I had a chance to ask him what he meant.
Training? What training?
Chapter Five
Sean
“So, whatever happened to that chick you almost ran over, Sean?” Evan asked as he spotted me. I grunted a little as I lifted the barbell over my head. Honestly, I didn’t need a spotter to bench press 250 for only two reps. But ever the worrywart, Evan insisted he spot me so nothing dangerous would happen. Like, I don’t know, I lost my grip and the bar fell on my neck and suffocated me or something.
“I don’t know. Why ask me?” I said, slowly putting my arms down.
“Dude, you almost ran her over,” he stressed.
“Yeah, and?” I asked, not following where he was going with this.
“Are you serious? It’s your responsibility to check if she’s all right,” Evan pointed out.
“Well, I’m pretty sure she and that dog are doing just fine. Besides, how am I supposed to check on them?” I asked.
“Didn’t you get her phone number or something?”
“No!” I said, a little too quickly. If that chick a
nd I had met somewhere else, under entirely different circumstances, I would’ve totally asked her for her digits. But unfortunately, I was so preoccupied by my smarting foot and need for escape that it completely slipped my mind.
I finished my set and placed the weights back before sitting up. I grabbed my towel from the side and proceeded to wipe the sweat on my brow with it. I could feel Evan staring at me, but I ignored him, pretending that I didn’t notice it.
“Not cool, bro,” Evan finally said, and I grimaced as I turned to look at him.
He didn’t need to tell me I’d messed up on that one. I should’ve given that girl my number, or at least told her my name so she could look me up and tell me if she needed something because of that almost accident. Which reminded me…
“You dumb jock…”
Her voice had echoed in my brain a couple of times that day. I’m sure I didn’t give her any outward indication that I was a football player, which meant…
“She knows me,” I muttered, my eyes wide, surprising myself at how I hadn’t realized it sooner.
“What?” Evan asked, raising one eyebrow.
“She knows me,” I repeated, smirking as I swept my hair up with my fingers and feeling a surge of confidence rising inside me. “She called me ‘a dumb jock’ that day, and I never told her who I was. I guess I’m more famous than I thought, huh?”
Evan blinked a couple of times as he stared at me before bursting into laughter. I frowned at him as I waited for him to finish laughing.
“What’s so funny?” I asked, annoyed.
“It’s funny because of course there’s a huge possibility that she knows you, and yet you seem so utterly surprised about it!” he pointed out. “I mean, come on, Sean. After being part of the Giants for a couple of years now, plus all those endorsements you’re doing? Your face is practically mainstream on television. It’s not exactly a stretch to think she knows who you are.”
The massive ego boost that I’d felt earlier burst.
“And you know the best part? You’re actually happy she thinks you’re dumb!” Evan chortled.
I scowled and looked away, ignoring Evan as he continued to laugh at me. I never thought I was the type to get easily bruised by words, but he didn’t have to laugh so hard about it. I didn’t think I’d be so happy a girl knew who I was right off the bat, and that thought was unsettling. She was affecting me more than I thought, and it wasn’t good, not when there was a remote possibility of me ever seeing her again. I should nip this in the bud before it got worse.
Desperate for a change of subject, and you know, to get Evan to shut his trap, I asked him about the one thing I’d been meaning to talk about.
“How’s the orphanage going?” I asked him, and just like that, Evan’s face lost all its humor.
He sighed. “It’s not doing so well. The building’s old, and it’ll cost more to repair it than to tear it down or renovate it. But we can’t do that unless we find a place to relocate the children. Other than that, there are a whole mess of problems.”
Ever since his mother, Aunt Judith, got sick with breast cancer, all their money went to paying for chemotherapy and hospital bills. The money to keep the maintenance of the orphanage was used up as a result, and the place started to decay. The roof started leaking, pipes rusted and burst, floor panels started to creak and break off. I told him I would pay for everything since I knew he was still working on paying for his student loans, but he was having none of it. The idiot said his pride as a man was at stake and told me that he was going to take care of it himself.
I told him that Aunt Judith was like the mother I never knew and that I had to help, if only to show them how much I appreciated them taking me in. They were the only family I’d ever known, so it was natural I felt the need to help. This convinced Evan to let me help, but only a little, as he said that it was still his main responsibility.
“Shall I hire a real estate agent to look for a temporary place for the kids? I don’t want to risk them getting hurt when the place is so rundown,” I suggested.
Evan shook his head and he heaved another sigh. “I’ve actually started getting offers to sell the place. One wanted to tear it down and put an apartment complex on it. Another wanted to use it for a parking lot. The money’s pretty good and I was thinking–”
“No,” I said, not letting him finish.
“Why not? The orphanage isn’t doing so well, and the money I could get from selling the place could go a long way,” Evan said.
“That orphanage was my home – me and all the kids who wound up there. It’s where I met you and your mom. It’s your second home, too. And you’re willing to sell it off to the highest bidder who’s going to turn that home into a fucking parking lot? We’ve already got thousands of parking lots here in New York!” I cried out.
“Okay, okay. I’m not going to sell it. Money’s going to be tight, but I’m not selling Our Place,” Evan said, raising his hands up in surrender.
“I already told you that if you need money, ask me! I’m practically a walking bank account! Hell, I’ll put a five percent interest rate if it makes you happy, I don’t fucking care,” I said, trying to convince him of my point.
He scratched the back of his head in embarrassment before nodding. “Okay, I’ll think about it. Thanks, man,” he said, giving me a soft smile.
I shuddered violently. “It’s cool, man. Now enough of this emotional drama, sitcom bullshit before I grow a fucking vagina. And quit smiling at me like that. I don’t do guys.” I scowled.
Evan scoffed at me. “And here I thought you could keep a serious conversation for once,” he said, shaking his head.
“Come on, man. You know being serious gives me hives,” I joked. We chuckled and headed for the showers.
Chapter Six
Charlie
Waking up in the manor was an entirely new experience for me.
For one thing, I’ve never had my alarm go off and my eyes open to three maids hovering over my bed, one of them carrying my breakfast. My dog, who still remained nameless, barged into my room and jumped over the bed to wash my face with its slobbery kisses, so I excused myself first to the bathroom. By the time I got back out, the maids were still there, the dog had disappeared, and my bed was all made up. They had served a plate of scrambled eggs, bacon, and a pot of coffee on the small table by the window, and my stomach automatically started to growl. I didn’t know why the maids were still standing there, and I didn’t know what else to do, so I smiled.
“Um, thanks for bringing me breakfast,” I said lamely.
“We have your schedule for today. We’d also like to ask if you need assistance in dressing,” one of the maids said.
I looked at her in confusion. “Schedule? I have a schedule?” I asked dumbly. And why would I need help dressing? How old did they think I was – five?
“Yes,” the second maid said, opening a very large and intimidating-looking book. “You have manners and etiquette training at from eight to ten, then posture and dance lessons from ten to noon. You’ll have lunch afterward, of course.”
“Of course,” I repeated, my mind reeling as I thought about how hectic my day was going to be.
“You’ll continue your training after lunch until two, and lastly, you’ll be learning about fashion and the Jameson brand from two until five.” The maid closed the book with a flourish and then snapped her head up to look at me expectantly, like she hadn’t just told me the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard.
“Wow,” was the only thing my brain could command my mouth to say. I felt seriously overwhelmed by what she said, and I didn’t understand why I had to learn all of that. The fashion thing? Sure, because I had very limited knowledge about fashion besides a T-shirt and jeans. But manners and etiquette? I was sure that there were celebrities out there who behaved worse than I do. Why do I have to be different?
“Are these lessons really necessary?” I asked, looking at all three of them for confirmation. They all
nodded at me vigorously, and I sighed. I walked over to the table and plopped myself down to the seat, picking up a scone and taking a large bite out of it, making the maids gasp loudly. I gave them my ‘What-the-fuck-is-your-problem?’ face, and they quickly bowed their heads. “Well, they can’t be that bad, right? And it’s only for today, so I say bring it!” I told them, trying to psych myself up.
The three of them looked at each other and my stomach flopped.
I didn’t have a good feeling about this.
***
I didn’t think I was going to last a day at this rate.
I barely had any time left to take a shower and fix myself up after breakfast, and I ended up putting my shoes on while I was making my way to the study, which I must say, was not an easy feat. I had to stop a couple of times to ask one of the maids where to go because I got lost, and by the time I got there, I was fifteen minutes late. The pinched look on my instructor’s face said that she completely disapproved.
I was too busy trying to catch my breath to give a shit what she thought. Pardon my French.
“Obviously, we’re going to have to work on your timing,” she said snidely, and I glared at her through the curtains of my hair.
What a bitch.
She didn’t cut corners, either. She immediately went behind me and pulled on my shoulders, making me yelp in pain.
“I do not work with hunchbacks,” she tutted. She walked around me once more, looking at me from head to toe. She stopped in front of me and immediately placed her hand on her forehead and massaged it with her fingers, her eyes closing as she sighed. “It seems I have my work cut out for me,” she said.
“Excuse me?” I said, hating this woman more and more with every word that came out of her big, fat mouth.
“No, you are not excused. Only the most dignified and regal-looking women in this industry are given a free pass for being fashionably late. And, my dear, I must say, you are just late, and not at all fashionable,” she said with a huff.