Chapter 32 - Kal

"You've been at this all week; when are you going to take a break?" Timo asked Charlotte at the end of another day full of meetings and helping their developers with a new project.

"I'll take a break when I've gotten enough backing, and our new technology is finished," Charlotte rubbed her eyes and refocused on her computer.

"You've gotten a slew of new investors already; how many more do you need?"

"As many as possible is best. I have to be completely certain my company can weather any storm."

"Is that why you warned all investors about Mr. Belloff and his son? If they get evidence of that, they could try to sue you for defamation, or is that why you're being extremely peculiar about the people you invite to invest?"

"You know me so well, Timo."

"Of course I do; what kind of butler would I be if I didn't after we've been together for so long?"

"Timo, you're more than a butler to me; you're my best friend."

"Ahem," he cleared his throat. "It's best not to go down that road."

"A rose by any other name..." Charlotte trailed off, knowing he'd get the hint.

"Anyway, I think you need to ease back a bit and take a day off. The bags under your eyes are gaining bags of their own, and you're scaring people."

"What?" Charlotte gasped and pulled out a compact mirror. She lightly touched the puffy bags. "I guess I am looking a bit worse for wear."

"And I'm sure Mr. Gideon wouldn't like to see you like this."

"It'll still be a bit of time before I can see him again."

"If you last that long. Look how pale you are, Charlotte; you need to rest or everything will crumble. Don't make me drag you to your room for rest. You know I'll do it."

"But—"

Timo held a stern finger up to her. "Don't test me when it comes to your health, young lady, or you'll force my hand."

Charlotte huffed and crossed her arms as she leant back in her chair.

"You know I'll do it."

"I'm a grown woman; you can't keep forcing me to eat those vegetables if I don't want them."

"Yes, I can. And they're not as bad as you make them out to be; you can eat them without hurling."

"Doesn't mean I like them just because I can choke them down."

"Be good and get some rest, then I won't force them on you."

"Ugh..." Charlotte stood. "Fine, you win."

"Naturally; you didn't think it'd go any other way, did you? Come along now. Even if you don't go home, you have this room to rest in. We made sure it was here for these late nights."

"You mean you made sure it was there," Charlotte yawned. "Okay, okay, I'm going. What are you going to do? You haven't been sleeping too much either."

"I've definitely slept more than you have, and after I'm sure you're asleep – really asleep – I'll go home to sleep as well. Now, let's go, missy."

Eric sat down in the back room of the flower shop with Kal, who handed him a beer. "You have an amazing memory," Kal opened his beer and leaned it towards Eric. "Good work, once again."

"Thank you," Eric did the same and tapped it against Kal's beer.

"You know what I've heard, though?"

"If it's from Karen, I'm not sure I want to know."

"Ha ha, no, it's not from her. From the customers, specifically the female ones, they say you're handsome and nice, but it's like you're covered in some veil of sadness or something. I can't say I disagree with them. I thought the steady, weekly paycheck might be enough to perk you up, since things are turning around, but it doesn't seem like it. You come to work on time every day, and you've obviously done your homework memorizing the flowers, but you still feel like a lost puppy."

Maybe because that's what I feel like.

"Would you like to talk about it?" Kal asked.

"I'm not sure there's much to say..."

"I'm sure that's not true. You've got a story behind you, I can tell. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, but the longer you continue like this, the more heartbreaking it feels."

"That's what I am, though, heartbroken. I..." Eric swallowed hard. "Even just meeting me has put her in a hard position... and the only way to help her is to stay away."

"That sounds unusual. I have to ask, is this unrequited love?"

"No, we were dating. She's kind of high profile and in the spotlight, and I'm nothing like that. I'm the bottom of the barrel."

Kal raised an eyebrow. "How are you the bottom of the barrel? You may be going through hard times, but you're no criminal who preys on the weak. From what I can tell, you're a genuine guy. I just can't understand why you're so down on yourself."

"Because of me, she's being blackmailed by a giant... turd."

Kal laughed. "Not too good with words, are you?"

"No, but I thought that was an adequate description of him. He's dangerous, in more than one way, and he abuses the fact that his father is a big shot CEO. He's already hurt her in the past, but it got swept under the rug..." Why am I telling him even this much?

"I'm confused still... It sounds like you want to protect her, but instead you're hiding here? How will that help?"

"That was the deal with the turd. I had to break up with her and basically never see her again, and then he wouldn't use the blackmail against her."

"What would happen if he did blackmail her? From the sound of this man, he might do it anyway."

"Her reputation would take a hit, and she'd lose investors. And if that happens, her company will probably have to downsize... and well, many people rely on her."

"I'm probably pushing this too far, but what is the blackmail?"

"Proof she hit me with her car... That's how we met, actually. She took me into her house, since I was being evicted anyway, and then she gave me a job. Somewhere in there, we fell in love... Arg!" Eric gripped his hair, nearly ripping it out. "I can't do a damn thing to help her."

"Well, you've obviously healed since then, and it sounds like it was an accident. Aside from maybe not letting her drive, I don't see the big deal."

"You may not, but people will look down on her. She has it hard enough in that world; they actively look for her mistakes to bring her down."

"Sounds like she needs new people around her."

"Agreed."

"Ha... Thanks, Kal, for letting me ramble like that."

Kal patted him on the back. "If this woman climbed her way to the top, I think she'll find a way to bring you back to her."

"Would that even be okay? I kinda broke things. Meeting me was a curse for her— Ow!" Eric yelped when Kal smacked him in the back of the head.

"Sorry, reflex when people spew too much crap. She fell in love with you, and that is an amazing thing. I highly doubt she sees meeting you as a curse. So, who is the mystery lady?"

"I don't know if I should say..."

"After telling me all that? Why not? You don't trust me?" He held his hand over his heart. "I'm just an old man listening to a young man's stories, wishing for this romance to continue, and to give a name to the mysterious woman. I would never tell anyone what you just told me; this is all going in the vault that only you can open. Promise."

An image of Charlotte passed through his mind, and a sad smile formed on his face. "Charlotte Burne."