Reality in Check: A Sapphic Celebrity Ice Queen Romance by Banting Emily

Author:Banting, Emily
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781915157119
Publisher: Sapphfic Publishing
Published: 2023-08-12T00:00:00+00:00

Charlotte was feeling the effects of a busy day, one too many glasses of wine, and lying awake at night, playing over what Arte had said on the sofa. Why would she not want to be CEO of Beaufort Hotels? It was in her blood, pumping through her veins.

Having convinced Freddie she was fine, he’d still insisted she call Claudette back immediately. When she did, her mother informed her she was taking some time off after all, insisting that nothing else had come from the hospital tests. Even so, a few weeks of rest were in order, and she needed Charlotte to take over temporarily as CEO.

Her unexpected announcement left Charlotte wondering how she’d come by that decision. She was unlikely to have made it voluntarily, so she suspected her mother had been given further stark warnings from the doctors. Everyone was to be told she was on holiday, and her medical blip, as she called it, was to stay between those who already knew.

It was time, Charlotte thought. This was finally her opportunity to impress and prove not only to her mother, but to the board, that she was ready. She was going to give it everything she had.

As she carried her bags down the stairs, she met Sophie on her way up.

“Leaving us so soon?” Sophie asked.

“Afraid so,” Charlotte replied.

“I hope it’s not on my account. My sister seems to rather enjoy your company.”

A subtle expression of joy appeared on Charlotte’s lips, despite her attempts to prevent it. “The feeling is mutual.”

“You two make an effective team. I’m not sure she and I would have whipped Gran’s room into shape as well as you did.”

“Sometimes it helps to have someone on the outside. I hope the show helps you get the fresh start you need.”

“I hope so, too, for Arte’s sake. She has a little more invested in this than I do,” Sophie said with a sigh as she looked up at the staircase. “I’d sell it tomorrow if it wasn’t for my little sister and her big dreams. There are too many ghosts here for my liking.”

Charlotte frowned. “Ghosts?”

“Memories of the past. Some of us don’t like to cling to them as much as others. I hope we’ll meet again, Charlotte. My husband is an… enthusiastic fan.”

“Well, I wouldn’t want to disappoint.”

“Oh, I don’t think you’re capable of disappointing anyone,” Sophie said, as she continued climbing the stairs. “Safe journey.”

If only that were true.

Arte didn’t look surprised to see her with her bags packed as she appeared from the kitchen. Following Freddie’s phone call, it was inevitable that things would change and Charlotte would need to return to normal life. Arte gave her a resigned smile and followed her to the car.

“It seems I can’t hide any longer,” Charlotte said, placing her bag down beside it.

“I thought you weren’t hiding.”

“I said I wasn’t running; I didn’t say I wasn’t hiding,” Charlotte said with a smirk. “I’ve spoken to my mother; it seems I’m to take over as CEO.

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