Page 17 of Live Like There's No Tomorrow
Her dad turned to look at her. “And where are you off to? Don’t you think it’s a bit soon to start dating? Your divorce only came through yesterday.”
Charlotte gave him a sour look. “I’m not going on a date. Not that it’s any of your business.”
“Don’t be like that, Charlie, love,” said her mum. “We talked to Alastair. We thought you might want some company. I still can’t believe you went through with it.” She came out of the kitchen and put a hand on Charlotte’s shoulder. “I know you got all mixed up when you saw that Ben again, but Alastair understands you just went through a funny phase. He’d take you back again, you know.”
Charlotte sucked in another deep breath to calm herself. She wasn’t going to lose it. Much as she’d love to tell them what she really thought of them and throw them out, she wasn’t going to. She was going to stay calm. “I don’t want to get back with him—”
“Then you’re a fool,” her dad cut in. “He’s a great guy, and he’s loaded. He puts up with your crap. You’re not going to find better.”
Charlotte glared at him. “As I was saying, I don’t want to get back with him—”
“So, what are you going to do?” asked her mum. “Your new job is nowhere near as good as what you were doing working for Alastair. And this place …” She curled her lip as she looked around the flat. “It’s hardly what you’re used to, is it? You’re going to have to make a fresh start, aren’t you?”
Charlotte nodded. She really needed to bite her tongue. Part of her wanted to tell them all about the fresh start she was hoping to make, but she knew it would only lead to arguments and she didn’t want to deal with that. She was planning to take a leaf out of their book. She was going to head back to Summer Lake, and she’d tell them where she was when she got there. Normal people didn’t do things like that. Normal people had the decency to explain their choices and actions before they left. But her family wasn’t normal. There’d been so many times in her life when she’d gotten a phone call from them telling her they were in the Caribbean or somewhere. Even times when she’d seen them the day before they left and they hadn’t mentioned a word. Hell, they’d done it right from when she was in school. She remembered being woken by her aunt telling her to get ready for school, her parents would be back in a couple of weeks—and they hadn’t even mentioned it when they’d put her to bed the night before.
“I’m in the process of figuring out what I’m going to do.” That wasn’t a lie. “And I’m afraid you really can’t stay long. I have things to sort out this afternoon.” Just the most important thing of all—her conversation with Ben.
Her mum brought two cups out with a smile. “Okay. We’ll just have a quick cuppa then. We only wanted to make sure you’re okay. We thought the reality of getting divorced might hit you hard. It’s one thing to talk about it; it’s another thing now you’ve got those papers in your hands.”
Charlotte nodded. That was true. No matter how much she’d wanted her marriage to be over, she still felt sad. “Thanks.”
~ ~ ~
The morning couldn’t go fast enough for Ben. It seemed to be dragging on and on. He’d seen the gang for breakfast, but he hadn’t been able to sit still with them. He didn’t want to tell them about Charlotte’s email. He’d rather tell them after he’d talked to her this afternoon. Hopefully then he’d be able to tell them that she was coming back. Missy seemed to have an idea something was up. He should have known she’d see straight through him—she always did. He’d fobbed her off with a promise that he’d give her a call this evening and tell her what was up then. He was hoping that he might be able to go over to her and Dan’s place and share his good news with them. It’d be awesome to go back into that house knowing that Charlie was coming home.
He was sitting in the office again right now, filling in the orders he hadn’t gotten to earlier when Charlie’s email came in. He looked up at the sound of a tap on the door.
Smoke grinned at him. “Just checking on you.”
Ben grinned. “Come in a minute, and close the door, would you?”
Smoke stepped inside with raised eyebrows. “You look a lot happier than you did last night. What changed?”
Ben grinned. “I heard from Charlotte.” He hadn’t wanted to tell the others, but Smoke was different—somehow.
Smoke grinned back at him. “Great. What did she have to say?”
“That her divorce is final and she wants to know where I want to go from here.”
Smoke nodded. “And what did you say?”
“I haven’t said anything yet. She told me in an email.”
Smoke frowned.
“That’s actually a good thing. She realized that after not having heard from her for all these months, it might just be putting me on the spot to tell me on the phone that she’s free now and in the next breath expect me to know what I want to do about it. She told me in an email and asked if we can talk this afternoon.”
Smoke nodded. “Smart lady.”
“She is.” Ben smiled. “And I have to say, I’m impressed. She always used to be so impetuous, she’d act in the moment and think later. She said she’s changed, and her doing things this way proves it.”
“Good. I’m glad.”
Ben raised an eyebrow. “You don’t sound it. What’s up?”
“Nothing. I’m not trying to put a damper on it or anything, I’m just a little wary on your behalf I guess. What we talked about last night?”
“Whether I really love her or I’m just in love with the memory?”
