Unchained Memories (25 page)

Charlotte knelt on the floor so Eva could reach her head with the hat. This was a familiar game and Charlotte played along, doing Eva’s bidding. “Where are we going?” she asked, opening the pocket book to see what Eva was sharing with her.

“To Macy’s, of course.”

“Of course.” Charlotte pulled out the wallet and checked its contents. Fake credit cards and paper dollars. Perfect. “I’m ready.”

The doorbell rang, and Renee nearly jumped out of her skin. Charlotte watched her as she slowly made her way to the door, smoothing her hair, pulling on her shirt, brushing nonexistent wrinkles from her pants.

Then Charlotte’s heart sank.

“Come on in, Matt,” said Renee, drawing him into the living room.

Renee bit her lip as she turned her eyes on Charlotte.

Speechless, Charlotte just stood there, looking at the two of them, her annoyance at the surprise increasing with the stony look on Matt’s face.

“I’m surprised you’re not at the office, coming up with more ammunition against us.” His voice had the hint of a tease, but his eyes didn’t.

Charlotte felt the sucker punch to her gut and almost gasped. Did he know about the lawsuit she was working on? They hadn’t filed the complaint yet. Guilt and anger collided, as Charlotte found her voice. “You’re not the only game in town. I have cases against others.”

“What a relief.” The sarcasm hit its mark, and Charlotte searched for a comeback.

“Okay, you two.” Renee stood between them, holding up her hands. “It’s not necessary to claw at each other every time you’re in each other’s company. As a matter of fact, we should go, Matt. What time is our reservation?”

He glanced at his watch, and turned to Renee, losing the scowl he’d given Charlotte. In its place a genuine smile emerged. “Eight thirty. Are you ready?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be.” She tried to make her tone light, but Charlotte heard the hesitancy in it.

Renee glanced at her over her shoulder as she headed out the door, mouthing
it’s okay
. She pleaded with her eyes for Charlotte to understand.

“Have fun,” Charlotte managed.

She did want Renee to enjoy herself. She wanted her to make a new life, get out of the cave she had buried herself in ever since Jason had died.

She just didn’t want her to do it with Matt.

****

Charlotte sat on the couch, going over the questions she wanted to ask at the deposition she had scheduled for Monday. Glancing at her watch, she noted it was almost midnight. Where in the world was Renee? She and Matt were only going to dinner. They couldn’t find that much to talk about.

Within minutes the door opened, and Renee peeked her head around, then ducked out again. Shortly, she came in alone and closed the door, a huge smile on her face.

“Where’ve you been?” asked Charlotte, sounding more like a parent then a sister.

“Todd’s. After that we stopped at Park Place for a drink.”

Charlotte raised her eyebrow. “Why would you want to do that?”

Renee laughed at her question. “Have a drink or spend more time talking to Matt?”

“You know what I’m asking.” Charlotte’s annoyance from hours earlier returned.

“He’s a really nice guy, Charlotte. He’s interesting and funny. And extremely easy on the eyes.”

“And he goes out with dozens of other women. Clay told me as much. He’s just adding you to his list,” Charlotte finished.

“That’s okay with me. I don’t want a serious relationship. I just want a few hours out of the house with it not being work-related or kid-friendly. This was a test of sorts.” Renee shrugged. “When Jason was alive we had a very busy life, work, board meetings, charitable galas, get-togethers with friends. We never missed a beat between the work week and the weekend, yet we also spent time with our two little angels, just the four of us.” A tear slid down her face as she rubbed her finger where her wedding band had been. Renee inhaled and brushed the tear aside. “I’m still not over Jason. I may never be.” Renee’s shoulders slumped.

Charlotte mentally kicked herself for bringing Renee down. All because she couldn’t manage to keep her big mouth shut. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you think about him. I just don’t want you to get hurt. You don’t need that.”

Renee gave her a lopsided grin. “I appreciate your concern. But I’m a big girl. I know the risk and I’m not worried. I have no intention of getting close enough to Matt, or any man, to become involved. So, please don’t worry.” Renee took Charlotte’s hand and squeezed it. “But thanks for caring about me. It means a lot.”

Charlotte swallowed the lump growing in her throat. Maybe she didn’t have to worry about Renee. Any relationship with Matt would never last.

“So, I hope he didn’t get into the medical malpractice issue with you.”

Renee came over to sit by Charlotte. “We didn’t talk about that at all. We discussed what music we like, sports, a little politics, but not enough to get us in trouble. He asked about Eva and Jake. And you know how much I love to talk about them. He didn’t even yawn.” Her smile came back. “And he told me at least five times how great I looked. The night was worth it just for that.”

Charlotte had to agree Renee looked fabulous. Her long blond hair, now highlighted, sporting new bangs, made her look younger and spunkier. A black lacy top over black pants gave her a spicy edge and her great smile added a warm personality to all that sleekness. Renee had always been pretty, but tonight she glowed. Charlotte guessed it had something to do with the excitement of a new challenge. And she sure had a challenge ahead of her.

Not only because of Matt. But because she had to navigate a new life for herself, one she hadn’t anticipated.

Charlotte had to give her a lot of credit. Renee was making great strides in pulling herself together, whether for herself or the kids it didn’t much matter. And she was stepping out. It shouldn’t be Charlotte’s place to put a damper on her exhilaration. Charlotte should be the good sister, encouraging her and helping her along the way, not throwing up roadblocks.

“Okay. I won’t say another negative thing about Matt. If he makes you smile and you don’t want anything else from him, then so be it. I give you my blessing.”

“Thank you, sister Charlotte.”

Renee gave her a hug.

“Now what’s going on with you and Clay?”

“Nothing.” Charlotte’s mood deflated. “I haven’t seen him since last Sunday. He’s working tonight.” And she’d been avoiding his calls for fear he’d realize immediately, just by her tone, that she’d gone back on her word about suing Nassau General. “I have another case against the hospital.” Charlotte rolled her shoulders, attempting to throw off the weight of her choice. “When I took this job, I had reservations because I wasn’t at all sure I wanted to be back here in Princeton, dredging up old memories. It never occurred to me I’d be putting myself right back where I was ten years ago, but this time pitted against the very people who’d helped me.”

“Can’t you transfer to another department at the firm? Practice some other kind of law?”

“No. I chose this field to help people who’ve been injured through medical mistakes. Who deserve to be compensated for their life-changing injuries. And I believe in what I do. I want to do it. I’m good at it.”

“You do seem to love your job most of the time. You’re always working so hard.”

“I just don’t think it’s wise to do it here. Being back here, having cases against Nassau General...it’s all too personal. I know those doctors. I even managed to fall for one of them.” She rubbed her forehead.

Renee put her arm around Charlotte’s shoulder and pulled her close. Like she would with Eva or Jake. “It seems like you’re between a rock and hard place. Your career is interfering with your personal life, and your personal life is affecting your career. I’ve always found writing down your options on paper is a good place to start when you’re trying to solve a problem. Then you can look at them, prioritize them, delete them, until you come up with the solution that makes the most sense.”

Charlotte chuckled. “No wonder you’re the comptroller of a major corporation.” She pulled her yellow legal pad into her lap. “Okay, my options. Well, I can quit my job. That has to go to the bottom of the list.”

“You can talk to someone at your firm and see if there’s a possibility of switching departments. There must be other areas where you would be just as committed.”

“Brad Carlton, my boss, would never allow me to do that. He considers me his protégé. He’s even boasted to the other partners he went after me and persuaded me to join the firm.”

“Is that true?”

“He did call me at my firm in California last year. He’d been looking for someone with a year or two of experience and found one of my articles on the Internet. Of course, he made the connection to our parents and asked if I’d be interested in making the move to Princeton. At the time I wasn’t. But after Jason died, and I decided to stay here longer than I’d initially anticipated, I called and asked if his offer was still open. It was, and I took it. Now I’m not so sure it was the right choice.”

“Maybe, if you get a few other partners on your side, you’ll be able to make the switch.”

“Maybe.” Charlotte was skeptical about that one, but she wrote it down anyway.

“You could look through the Law Journal and see what other jobs are out there. Or you could call a headhunter.”

“I could cut off all ties to any doctors I know so I won’t care whether I have to sue them or not.”

“Write that down.”

“I was saying it facetiously.”

“I know. But that’s the way this exercise works. You have to write down all options, no matter how crazy.”

So Charlotte wrote it down, shaking her head the whole time. “I could marry Clay so I wouldn’t be able to sue him or his hospital. How’s that for a crazy option.”
And where did it come from?

“Write it down,” Renee demanded, tapping on her pad. “What if I married Matt? Would that get you off the hook?”

“Oh, puleeze.”

Now the two of them were giggling, coming up with even more far-fetched ideas than Charlotte could have ever imagined.

“Okay, okay,” she laughed, turning to the next page in her pad. “Let’s get serious. I need some good choices here. Some I can truly consider.” She thought for a moment, then said, “I could go back to California. See if I could get my old job back.”

The giggles flew right out of Renee. “No. You can’t. I mean...you can, of course, but the kids would miss you so much. You’ve become such a big part of their lives.” Renee’s sadness was evident in her clear blue eyes. “I would miss you.”

A lump grew in Charlotte’s throat. She nodded. “I would miss you, too.” She stared at the pad in her hand. “So I guess that’s not an option.”

“You have to write it down now that you came up with it. Just put it at the bottom of the next page. And write it really, really small.”

Charlotte smiled at her sister’s suggestion, but she did it.

Besides, if she were truthful with herself, it was probably more of a real option than any of the others.

****

“Come over. I need you.” Clay’s husky voice echoed through the telephone.

Charlotte squinted at the clock on her nightstand as the sleep-induced fog lifted at Clay’s enticing proposition. “It’s only nine in the morning.”

“It’s Sunday and I know you well enough to believe you would either disappear to your office or to Renee’s if I didn’t get to you early enough. I didn’t want to lose my window of opportunity.”

Joy bubbled through Charlotte at the thought of spending the day with Clay. That joy was suddenly eclipsed by the unfortunate message she would have to deliver to him about the new lawsuit against Nassau General. She couldn’t hold off any longer.

“What did you have in mind?” she asked, now cautious about their day.

“Sex, food and more sex. Any interest?”

Oh my
. She rolled onto her back as her female parts clenched in anticipation. “I’ll be there in an hour, maybe sooner.”

His wicked chuckle sparked her like a lightning rod and heat pooled between her legs.

“I’ll be waiting impatiently,” he said before hanging up.

She jumped from her bed and dashed to the shower, more than anxious to be with Clay after a week of abstinence. Their schedules conflicted constantly, but their time together was that much sweeter. And hotter.

Not bothering to dry her hair, she quickly brushed it and threw on a pair of shorts and a tee shirt over her sexiest bra and panties. They’d all be on the floor in a matter of minutes following her arrival and she couldn’t wait.

With not much traffic to contend with early on Sunday morning, Charlotte arrived at Clay’s within forty minutes of his call, a record. “Are you still impatient?” she asked when he opened the door.

Without answer, he swept her into his arms and ambushed her with a deep, soulful kiss as his hands roamed over her body. The spark he started with his sexy invitation flamed into a passion she couldn’t control. Clay nudged the door shut with his elbow and maneuvered Charlotte through the living room and into the bedroom without breaking their connection. With the ease of a master, he shed her tee shirt and unzipped her shorts, dipping his hand into her panties and fingering her hot, slick sex.

He continued his erotic assault until Charlotte groaned in ecstasy as she felt the first wave of an orgasm take hold and spread outward. She clung to him as he took her higher, tonguing the side of her neck, making her scream as she came with just his touch. She’d been with him for only minutes, yet he’d turned her into a boneless mass of euphoria, struggling for breath, yet wanting more. So much more.

“You’re on fire,” he whispered against her ear, holding her close enough to weld them together.

“You do it to me,” she panted, gripping his shoulders so as not to slide to the floor. She found his mouth and devoured it with hers, mating their tongues, their limbs, their hearts. “I need you,” she breathed, then practically tore his clothes from his body with frantic hands.

They fell into bed together, finally naked and more than ready to unite. Clay reached for the condom on his nightstand and expertly sheathed himself before plunging into Charlotte, fast and furious. He came within seconds, calling her name as he rode out his release.