All Chapters of The Lady And The Billionaire Scoundrel: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

Charlotte had an inkling as to where Logan was getting to, but she wanted him to say it.  "What do you mean?" she asked.  "Let's be real. I'm not a member of your elite Atlantian society. As a relative newcomer, they don't hold me in such esteem as they would with you or any of your clique members. The police have a suspect who's providing them with a fairly fast and easy case, which will give them good publicity. I think we need to switch the direction we're taking here." "How so?" "We need to find who did it. I want the bastard who did this to María to pay. But the first person we need to look into is the person who ordered it done. And that happens to be Julie. In a way, I guess, I'm still to blame for this. If María hadn't been working for me, she wouldn't have been used as a pawn in Julie's horrid, twisted game."  That had also been in Charlotte's mind. She hadn't mentioned it before because she had to insist on what they c

When she got to the office, Janet greeted her with a smile, which could never mean something good.  "The boss wants to see you," she said to Charlotte, loud enough so people passing by could definitely hear. "Thank you, Janet," Charlotte replied ever so politely. Instead of stopping by her office to leave her purse, she headed straight to Floyd's office. The secretary that had been gone on maternity leave for a while was back now.  "Charlotte! How are you?" she said in a thick southern accent, her voice about an octave higher than normal. Lisa was her name, Charlotte remembered. She had dark spots under her eyes and her complexion looked like she could use a little exposure to the sun.  "Lisa, you're back. Is Floyd in?" Charlotte said. Lisa had always been kind to her but seemed a little afraid of her as well.  "He said I should let you go in the second I knew you're here," Lisa said, giving Charlotte a sad smile as

Charlotte met with Stuart and the press team, who seemed a bit lost as to how to get the right news people to talk to them. It was clear that the media was intent on portraying Logan as the bad guy, so they weren't really receptive to hearing the other side to him, yet. First, the press had to exploit this narrative, and then, they'd possibly listen to the other side.  Charlotte knew their strategy well. She had minored in journalism, and she had gotten a glimpse at how the news world worked. Besides, she had dealt with them before, and she had a few tricks up her sleeve. She gave the team some tips and dropped several names of people who would talk to them. She also recommended they focus on newspapers instead of television. Reporters from the written press were more likely to be unbiased, and because they didn't require such immediacy as television did, they were more inclined to take more long-term risks, like publishing an article that didn't align with the current

Lunch outside meant lunch right next to the cliffs overlooking the lake, and while the view was beautiful, Charlotte purposely stayed away from the edge. She wasn't normally afraid of heights, but she still wasn't sure she was entirely surefooted after the helicopter ride.  The sun was high on the horizon, and she and Logan sat beneath a ceiling of vines that covered a wooden deck. "Who was it?" Logan said all of a sudden, once he was done with his food.  Charlotte was still at it, enjoying the salmon and yellow rice. The food was superb. "Who was what?" she said.  "Who asked you to step away from the case?" She wasn't sure how much of the truth she wanted Logan to know, but after she had asked him for the truth, in turn, she also felt like she had to act accordingly.  "My mother, to begin with," she said. "Floyd. And Edward." "Edward?" Logan's curiosity seemed to have been piqued at the mention of h

Charlotte showered for about an hour as if the water could wash the stain of what she had just done. Or allowed Edward to do to her. What happened was very uncharacteristic for both of them. Edward always thought things out, analyzing the hows and whys of everything he did. And Charlotte... well, she had always been more impulsive, but not with men. She had had a few flings here and there during college, but nothing serious. She couldn't allow herself to go out with anyone when her heart had always belonged to someone else. And yet... Tonight he had reduced her to a lover, someone he could visit while drunk, and face no consequences for his actions. In her heart, she wanted to believe Edward hadn't planned for the evening to go that way, and he hadn't requested anything from her, either. But what happened was demeaning to Charlotte all the same. It had been a long time since she felt such hatred for herself, for being so stupid and impulsive an