Chapter 11 #2
Charli huffed. “Of course, he wants me to stay. If I leave, it puts our ownership in jeopardy,” she added sourly.
“Oh my god. Are you serious right now? Because if you are, I will totally come down there and slap you silly.” Annette finished that line with a severe look.
“That man is completely obsessed with you, and it has nothing to do with the property you two inherited. Of course he wants you to stay, but the operative word there is you.”
Charli stared at the phone, wishing beyond words that what Annette said was true. But it was tough to dispel the little, nagging inkling of doubt that what she had with Jack was just too good to be true.
“And since we’re talking about that gorgeous handsome stud, how is he?” Annette asked, switching the subject.
Charli shrugged a shoulder. “He’s fine, I guess.”
Annette’s eyes squinted and her head tilted to the side. “Just fine? You guess??”
“Well, yeah,” Charli deflected, unable to meet Annette’s gaze on the screen. “He’s...doing okay.”
“Oh. My. God! Yes! You totally slept with him, didn’t you?” Annette crowed in the background.
“Shhhhhhhhh! Keep your voice down, people will hear you,” Charli urged. “Rumors like that are the last thing I need floating around that firm.”
Annette scoffed. “Who cares what these pencil necks think? And stop trying to change the subject.” She smirked. “You two had sex, didn’t you?” she added, waggling her eyebrows.
“Nope,” Charli replied firmly. “I am not having this conversation with you right now.”
Annette chuckled, her expression victorious. “That’s all right, sister. You don’t have to say a thing. I can see it on your face and in the glow you’ve got, and I’m so freaking proud right now that I could pop.”
Charli huffed. “Annette, focus. I need to figure out a way to get Alan out of this mess.”
“No, Charli, you don’t.” Annette insisted, her gaze firm. “Right now, you need to focus on that property you’re restoring and that incredible man you’re working with,” she added, using parentheses as she said ‘working’.
Her expression became stern. “I’m serious, Charli.
There’s not a damn thing you can do for Alan other than what I told you.
And you can do that comfortably from Key West with a few phone calls.
Stay down there and see what happens between you and Jack, because you two have something special.
You have the chance of a lifetime with what your Aunt Dottie set up, and I’m not talking about the properties and trust.”
Charli inhaled deeply and gave herself a minute to take in Annette’s advice. “You’re right. If I show up there, it’ll only make things worse,” she admitted in a voice barely above a whisper.
Annette smirked. “Of course I’m right. Now get back to work with that hunk and hurry up and finish the renovations on Paradise West because running that place is my next job,” she added with a cheeky grin.
* * * *
The next week passed quickly as repairs throughout the compound moved forward at a rapid pace. That Thursday morning, Charli was painting a completed section of the massive wrap-around front porch.
After the incident with Amelia, she hadn’t worked up the nerve to venture inside the old house. Fortunately, there hadn’t been any other reports of creepy paranormal activities since construction had begun.
She pursed her lips as she concentrated on moving the brush slowly up and down, enjoying how the antique white paint filled the grains and grooves in the wood, smoothing out all the imperfections.
The repetitive motion was perfect therapy and her mind wandered back to the conversation she had with Alan the day before when she’d called with the referral to a new attorney.
Again, he’d been adamant about her returning to Boston to take the case over, but she assured him there was nothing she could do on that front as the firm had stripped the case from her. Her hands were tied when it came to her old cases.
“You almost done there?” Charli jumped at Jack’s deep voice right behind her ear. She turned swiftly, slinging paint from the brush.
“Jack! You scared the crap out of me!” She fixed him with her most annoyed glare, but it didn’t work because he only grinned and stepped closer. “Why do you have to sneak up on me like that?”
“I wasn’t sneaking, baby,” he replied with a gentle smile. “You were just off in the ether. What are you thinking about so hard?”
Charli shrugged. “Work stuff.” She turned back to the section of outer wall she was working on.
She’d been avoiding Jack for the last several days trying to work though her chaotic feelings—leaving the compound early, ignoring his phone calls and texts—and she felt like a big jerk.
He had been nothing but wonderful to her and she was acting like a complete jackass.
After everything he’d done for her, he didn’t deserve that.
Releasing a rough breath, she turned her head to find him still there quietly watching her. “Would you like to come to dinner tonight?” she asked, half expecting him to say no after the cold shoulder she’d been giving him.
Instead, his smile deepened. “Sure. Anything I can bring?”
She smiled back. “A nice bottle of white wine would go well with what I have planned.”
His brows shot up. “Now I’m curious. What are we having?”
“It’s a surprise, but I can tell you it’s my favorite comfort food,” she answered in an attempt to be coy. It seemed to work because his eyes brightened.
“Mmmmm...I can’t wait.” He tossed a thumb toward his truck parked just outside the main gate. “I need to run this pile of scraps out to the dump on Stock Island. After that, I’ll head home and clean up. Then I’ll come over. Is 7 o’clock okay?”
Charli nodded. “Sure.” Realizing suddenly that she’d never seen where he’d lived. She’d been so absorbed in her own problems that she hadn’t tried to learn more about him.
Way to go Charlotte Dorothea. Incredibly hot gentleman who is clearly smitten with you and you decide to show absolutely no interest in his life. Can you BE any more self-absorbed?
Shame wasn’t a fun feeling—it was like a weighted blanket covering her entire body, smothering her.
She pressed her lips together, determined to change her behavior and stop acting like a bitch starting tonight. “So, I’ll see you in a few hours then?” She asked, hoping that Jack would forgive her.
“Absolutely!” He replied, grinning literally from ear to ear. He turned and walked off the porch moving along the main walk through the gardens.
She turned to continue painting, listening as he left. As his truck drove off, she dropped the brush in the paint pan and closed her eyes.
Jeez...I’m such an idiot. I’m falling for that man...I truly am. Why am I such an asshole?!
Releasing a rough breath she glanced at the front door and felt a powerful urge to go inside. Her stomach quaked at the thought, but for some reason, she sensed this was something she needed to do.
Standing slowly and rubbing her hands on her pants, Charli moved to the open front door and stepped inside.
Crews were busy in both front rooms and no one bothered to look up as she moved steadily toward the main staircase.
Reaching for the banister, she jumped and squeaked when Gus suddenly appeared at her side.
“Charli!” Gus bellowed, a huge grin on his face. “Have any trouble with the front porch?”
She pressed her lips together. “Nope. Just taking a break.”
Gus glanced up the stairs and then his gaze moved back to her, his brows dropped down. “Where are you going?”
Charli pointed to the upper floors. “Just thought I’d explore a little.”
Gus’s expression was forbidding, but he sighed. “Okay but stay away from that Widow’s Walk.” He glanced up the stairs and crossed himself. “There’s something up there and I don’t get the feeling that it’s happy we’re here.”
A chill shot through Charli at his words.
She remembered vividly what had happened when Gus initially inspected the Widow’s Walk.
She couldn’t explain why, but she felt compelled to investigate on her own.
It both terrified and excited her, and her hands shook as adrenaline coursed through her body.
“Don’t worry,” Charli assured him. “I just want to snoop around in some of the old bedrooms.”
Gus bobbed his head. “If you need me, I’ll be in the kitchen.” He turned and walked away.
Charli stared up the staircase for a moment and took a deep breath, then slowly moved up to the next floor. She glanced over her shoulder to see if anyone was watching. The coast was clear, so she walked to the next set of stairs and slowly, but purposefully, made her way to the third floor.
For a moment, she eyed the spiral staircase that led to the Widow’s Walk, then turned to revisit her aunt’s old bedroom. Her gaze immediately moved to the picture on the wall as she walked in, and it seemed that the weight of Amelia’s sad gaze followed her slow progress across the room.
Charli stopped and stared at the old image, trying to imagine what it would take to make such a beautiful young woman leap from a three story building.
Lost love, obviously. But it was apparent that Amelia was about to be married to a wealthy man based on the quality of her dress.
She’d been so young and had so much to live for, even after she learned that her true love had died in a shipwreck.
Charli took a deep breath and turned her gaze toward the open hallway. After a moment, she made her way slowly to the spiral staircase. Reaching the bottom, she stared up at the opened hatch door that led to the very top floor.
Have you lost your freaking mind, Charli?
She let out a nervous giggle and rubbed her forehead—she probably was crazy for doing this, but strangely she couldn’t stop herself. After taking that first step, she moved carefully up the staircase until she stepped out onto the landing.