LITMIR.BIZ

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clear to you yet what that reason is.”

      “I like your optimism, but being accidentally pregnant by a man who doesn’t love me is classic Charlotte. I’m trying to avoid all appearances of the old me.” Charlotte leaned down and kissed her aunt’s cheek, then grabbed her gloves and handbag and stepped out into the hall, closing the door behind her.

      Each impeccable detail of the Grand Legacy—the plush black carpet with ornate royal blue scrolls, the gleaming chrome-and-glass wall sconces, even the tasteful sign directing guests to their room—was a link to Charlotte’s past. The hotel had been in her family since the 1920s, long before she’d been born. Now it was solely owned by her brother Sawyer, a detail that displeased their father greatly.

      She pushed the button for the elevator. Every time she stepped on board, childhood memories of clowning around in the hotel with her brothers played in her head, like an old movie. The ones where she was youngest were the fuzziest, but the happiest. There had been many games of hide-and-seek in these halls, but only when her mother had been alive. As soon as she passed away, their father never wanted her or her brothers to spend any time at all in the hotel.

      “Good morning, Ms. Locke,” a bellman said as she emerged from the elevator.

      “Morning,” she said cheerily. Her heels clicked across the black-and-white marble lobby floor.

      “Stay warm out there, Ms. Locke,” the front desk clerk said.

      “I’ll try.” She pushed her way through the revolving doors and was smacked in the face with a rush of icy air that felt as though it had been shipped in from the north pole. The doorman hustled to show her to the car Sawyer had sent.

      “Thank you.” Charlotte juggled her wallet, a five-dollar bill and her gloves.

      “That’s not necessary, Ms. Locke.” He tried to hand back the tip. “Not from you.”

      “Of course it’s necessary. You work hard, and it’s the holidays.” She smiled, waved him off and slid into the back seat of the car.

      The driver knew exactly where they were headed—downtown to Sawyer’s office in Chelsea. Charlotte had already practiced her pitch several times—awake in bed last night, in the shower that morning. It wasn’t that Sawyer was intimidating. He was anything but. It was more that Charlotte hated to ask for yet another favor. She was already bracing for that look on her brother’s face, the one that said he was hesitant to give her responsibility. She’d done so poorly with it in the past.

      Charlotte couldn’t commit any more time or effort to feeling bad about her current situation. Now was the time for action. The car pulled up in front of Sawyer’s office, and she wasted no time climbing out and heading upstairs. Hopefully inertia would be enough to keep her going.

      Her brother’s admin, Lily, greeted her warmly. “Your brother is waiting. Let me take your coat for you. Remind me when you get out of your meeting and I’ll call another car for you.”

      “Thank you so much.” Charlotte smoothed her skirt, trying to ignore the trepidation in her stomach. This was her brother. Sawyer. Everything would be fine. She hoped.

      A broad smile crossed Sawyer’s face when she poked her head into his office. “There she is.”

      Waves of relief washed over her. Why she constantly worked herself into a tizzy over things was beyond her. She only knew it was her habit. “Hey, Sawyer. Thanks for meeting with me today.”

      “Of course. I’m glad you came in. I feel like I hardly had the chance to speak to you at the grand reopening party at the hotel.”

      “Sorry about that. All sorts of old friends were there.” Plus, pregnancy makes a woman all kinds of tired.

      “I’m just glad you’re back in town. It wouldn’t have felt right not to have you there.” Sawyer sat back in his chair. “Do you want to tell me what precipitated the surprise junket to see Aunt Fran in England?”

      Even though she’d prepared for the question, Charlotte blanched at it. So much had led to that trip. It started with the breakup from Michael Kelly, the man she’d fallen hopelessly in love with, the man who was unable to return the feelings. That had been bad enough, and then came the real powder keg—the pregnancy. She couldn’t tell her brother she’d gone to England for those reasons. Charlotte was always falling in love, and it was always getting her into some sort of impossible situation.

      “I just needed some time to really think out my long-term career goals. Fran is so good at listening and helping with advice.” She cleared her throat. “Plus, I’ll be honest. It was stressful to watch the way Dad was fighting you on the Grand Legacy renovation. I hate the family rifts.”

      “If I could’ve gone to England with you, I would have. Then again, that might have meant things wouldn’t have worked out with Kendall the way they have. So scratch that. I’m glad I stayed and fought through the Dad situation.”

      Charlotte smiled. She was happy Sawyer had found someone, and Kendall was a very special someone. Charlotte had worried for many years that their home life had left her and her siblings—Sawyer and their brother Noah—incapable of having normal romantic relationships. The fact that Sawyer had finally broken through that particular Locke family glass ceiling gave her hope that some day she’d do the same. Just not anytime soon—she was no longer looking for love. Stability was her number one quest. “I’m really happy for you and Kendall. I’m so looking forward to the wedding. I love the idea of a wedding at Christmastime.”

      “I know it’s soon, but we didn’t want to wait. Call us old-fashioned, but we both want to tie the knot before the baby arrives.”

      “Sure. Wouldn’t want your little boy or girl to do the math later in life and figure out you were married after the fact.” Charlotte couldn’t believe what was coming out of her own mouth. She sounded like her grandmother. Maybe she was just as old-fashioned as her brother. She’d be putting an end to that soon, though, with her very single status while welcoming a new life into the world.

      “So, tell me about these long-term career goals. You aren’t considering a change from real estate, are you?”

      This was a valid question where Charlotte was concerned. The number of careers she’d had in her twenties was enough to make anyone’s head spin—interior designer, fashion blogger, party planner, cupcake maven. That last one had been the most disastrous. Charlotte couldn’t cook to save her life and she’d gained fifteen pounds tasting buttercream all day long.

      “Nope. It’s still the right career for me. It’s a natural fit with the real-estate development and hotel interests in our family. It allows me to work with people, which I love doing. And the good side of having had so many false starts with various careers is that I’ve made a ton of contacts.” Watch me make lemonade with my arms full of lemons.

      “I’m glad to hear you’ve settled on it. That stability will be good for you.”

      “Exactly. Stability.” Charlotte sucked in a deep breath. Here goes nothing. “And that’s why I’m here. Now that you’ve put the finishing touches on the Grand Legacy condos, I’m hoping you’ll let me have the listings.” Charlotte couldn’t help but notice how her brother’s expression had fallen. She had to make her case now, or lose out. “I know the building better than any agent you could possibly work with. You know that it will have my full attention, and more than anything, it will give us a chance to work closely together, which is something I’ve always wanted to do.”

      “But, Charlotte...you can’t just pop in here and ask for the listings now. I’ve been working on this for months. This is so like you to throw a wrench in things at the eleventh hour.”

      Yeah, well, I didn’t exactly plan on getting pregnant. “I know. I’m sorry about the timing, but nobody expected the units to be ready now. Your original opening date was New Year’s Eve. That’s still several weeks away.”

      Sawyer pressed his lips together firmly, seeming deep in thought.

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