One Night of Misbehavior Read Online Free PDF Page A

Charlotte and robbed her of appetite.
    Almost two hours later, she rubbed her clammy hands down her black skirt and knocked on the door.
    “Come.”
    After sucking in a fortifying breath, she opened the door and stepped inside. Elizabeth sat behind a large desk made of native kauri wood. Her cool blue gaze appraised Charlotte as she gestured her to come closer. She indicated the empty chair, but Charlotte preferred to take her punishment standing.
    “I hope you’re pleased with yourself,” Elizabeth began. “Your recent behavior has bordered on despicable. You duck out on your duties and return home with disgusting marks on your neck. You arrange interviews without my permission and now you’ve snatched away a job from Jenny without a hint of remorse. And to top all that off, you weren’t here when Mum needed you most. I’m sure Richard would be disappointed in you—God, rest his soul. What do you have to say for yourself?”
    Charlotte remained still, silent mutiny her sole weapon. There was no point trying to argue with Elizabeth or point out she’d won the job fair and square. And if her father were here, he’d act like a proud parent instead of playing favorites.
    “You have nothing to say, no excuses for your abominable conduct?”
    Charlotte swallowed, waiting for her punishment.
    “If your behavior doesn’t take a swift three-sixty, I’ll be forced to make you leave.” She offered a mirthless smile when a gasp escaped Charlotte. “I thought so. I expect you to spring clean the house from top to bottom. We’re having guests next weekend. I want you to ready their rooms and prepare menus for the length of their stay. Jenny said you haven’t ironed her work clothes yet, and Mum’s room requires tidying. And as for the job, you will decline the offer. You promised me you’d look after Mum, and getting a job is going back on your word. Is that clear?”
    “Yes,” Charlotte said, while Ms. Feisty muttered mutinous words, enough to make her brain want to explode. Instead she shifted her weight, spreading it evenly on both feet and clasped her shaking hands behind her.
    Her soldier impersonation seemed to placate her stepmother because she nodded. “You can go now.”
    Charlotte exited the office and closed the door behind her. Back in the kitchen, she rang Esther and learned the doctors suspected damage to Gran’s heart, a symptom of lupus. They intended to do tests the following day to ascertain the extent of the injury.
    Charlotte remembered her portfolio and went to pick it up from the hall. The contents had been removed and stuffed back inside with no regard to creases. Someone had ripped two of her pieces in half. No prizes for guessing the culprit. Jenny’s clear spite and her stepmother’s lecture pissed her off. They might think the matter was settled but somehow she intended to take the job. Gran wanted her to live a little, and Charlotte didn’t intend to let her down.
     

Chapter Three
     
    Gran’s face was a horrid shade of gray when Charlotte walked into the intensive care room midmorning the next day. She bit back her concern and forced a bright smile to match Gran’s tremulous one.
    “Are they looking after you? How are you feeling?”
    “I have more tests this afternoon, but it’s my stupid heart. It’s shutting down on the job.”
    Fear coiled Charlotte’s gut tight. Life without Gran was unthinkable. She couldn’t lose her. “But they can fix you?”
    “I don’t know. I can tell they’re worried.” Gran didn’t believe in sugarcoating the truth, but Charlotte could have done with blissful ignorance right about now.
    “Oh.” Charlotte’s fixed smile wobbled.
    “I hear you got the job.” A burst of excitement flared in Gran’s blue eyes, the emotion magnified by her lenses. “I’m so pleased. I told the man I spoke to about your talent. I said he’d miss an opportunity to nurture raw talent if he didn’t give you an appointment slot.”
    “Elizabeth told me