There’s also another way in. Each one of their businesses has a door in the back of the shop, leading to a gate for foot traffic into the Village. Surely if I can get into the back alley that leads to one of those gates, I can sneak in. If I were to get caught—which I am not planning on—I’m sure I can always tell them who I am: a trusted employee of the family. I can tell them who my father is. Explain that I’m just wanting to surprise an old friend. They may be mafia but they are still gentlemen.
I’m sure they will let me pass, unharmed.
Now I just need access to the gate.
I scroll through the contacts in my phone until I find the one I need. On the third ring, a familiar, lilting voice answers, “Bachman’s Jewelers, Victoria speaking. How may I help you?”
I cut right to the point. “Victoria, it’s Charlotte. I have a favor to ask you.”
Chapter Four
Charlotte
The week breezes by and before I know it, it’s once again Tuesday. And this week is my turn to go to the city to meet Emily. I must look my best. No more bright pink for this girl. Elegance is key on this visit, because I’ve got a little detour up my sleeve. A secret pitstop. One I want to look my absolute best for.
I have to transform myself into a Beauty.
It’s going to take some serious effort, so I’ve taken the day off of work. My father encouraged me to do so when I suggested it, since I’ve been working double time to keep my nerves down. He tries to keep up but I think I’ve exhausted him. He’ll be thrilled to have a day to nap.
I start my transformation by booking a deluxe manicure/pedicure combo, complete with sugar scrub and a hot stone massage. When I run my fingertips over the rows of polish to choose my color, I force myself to ignore the bubble gum pink, the bright teal, the lime green. I settle on a mature, sexy garnet. One that will look almost vampiric against my pale skin.
After my nails are done, I head to the salon. The hairdresser offers to tint my light brows and lashes in addition to my haircut. It’s not something I would normally do, but I’m trying to break my mold, so I agree.
My golden curls make me look too young. I have the stylist trim my hair and blow-dry it out until it lays smoothly down my back. I can run my fingers through it when she’s done. My mouth gapes in the mirror at the change in my appearance. Between the red nails, dark, perfectly arched brows, and the shiny smooth hair, I look more mature.
Almost like a Beauty.
Everything I own seems childish and I’m going for classy. My budget doesn’t allow for new clothing, so I end up raiding my mother’s closet. On the far-left side of her rack of dresses, I find a black sleeveless sheath number. It’s timeless and perfect.
I pair it with my very best black flip-flops—I know I’m not hitting the billionaire wife standard with my choice in footwear, but there’s a lot of walking in the city and I aim to be comfortable.
Head held high, I stride out the door and depart for the train station.
On the hour-long train ride to the city, I have too much time to think. I begin to have second thoughts about my quest. My plan seems silly, dangerous even. Dressing up, trying to break in, thinking it will make Eli see me in some new light after all these years?
The task seems impossible.
My stomach becomes a bundle of nerves, my palms damp as I wring them in my lap. “You’ve got this, Charlotte. It may be your only chance before Eli has his next, even more glamorous actress lined up.”
An older woman sitting near me looks up from her knitting, a kind smile on her face. “Boy troubles, dear?”
I should only be so lucky. I laugh. “I wish.”
She chuckles at my strange response. “How so?”
Shrugging, I admit, “I just mean, I wish I was involved enough with a man in the first place to even be having trouble with him. The man I like barely acknowledges my existence.”
She gives me a curious stare. “And you’re off to meet him now?”
Nerves flare in my belly. “Not exactly.”
Her brow furrows. “He hasn’t invited you?”
I shake my head. “No.”
She asks, “But you’re planning on showing up on his doorstep all the same?”
Wincing, I say, “Maybe?”
She gives another chuckle. “So, you’re the stalkerish type, huh?”
Her words strike a little too close to home, making my face heat up. Sitting up tall, I defend myself. “I’m not stalking him. Just planning a surprise visit.”
“Me think the lady doth protest too much,” she laughs, quoting Macbeth.
Her honesty is depressing. I slump down in my seat. “You think I’m stalking him, then?”
She ticks off facts as she knits another row. “You are on a train. Talking out loud to yourself. Planning a surprise visit to a man who’s not invited you.”
My face falls. It’s all true. I feel totally pathetic.
She gives me a soft smile. “I’m only joking, dear. Tell me more.”
More nervous than I already was, I tug at the hem of my dress, worrying the material in my fingertips. “Well... I’m a friend of his family. Our fathers work together. We even spent a summer working together on our boss’s boat.”
Her brows raise in amusement. “And just how was it that you two ended up working on the same boat? A request of your father’s? A funny little coincidence?”
This stranger’s accuracy at naming my intentions is unnerving. I shift my weight in my seat, wanting the inquisition to be over. “It just kind of happened.”
She picks up her knitting, moving to an open seat across from me. “My name’s Pearl.”
“Charlotte.”
She shakes my hand, settling back down in her new seat, retrieving her needles. They click quietly as she works. “I’m not judging you, sweetie. In fact, you quite remind me of myself a few decades ago. In my day, very few men came back from the war, and there were far too many women. If you wanted a man for yourself, you had to play a hand in your fate.”
“I’m a fan of that,” I joke.
She leans in. “I call it destiny diving.”
I laugh at her strange term, repeating it back to her. “Destiny diving?”
She smiles, her knitting needles clicking surprisingly fast. “Of course. You can’t sit back and wait for love to happen. You have to give it a little help. Go searching for it, as you are now.”
Maybe she’s on my side after all. It’s silly, taking advice from a stranger on the train, but she’s got my curiosity raised. “How does one go destiny diving, exactly?”
She leans in, lowering her voice as if she’s sharing the location of a long-buried treasure. “I tell you what I did to snag my Henry. I found out he was supposed to take my friend Bess out on a date one Friday night at six o’ clock. Bess wasn’t that interested in him but she was desperate to get a ring on her finger—she would have taken anyone. I bought a ticket to a movie that was coming out that very same night at six. It was one I knew she desperately wanted to see. I called her up. Told her I had this great ticket but was feeling unwell, did she want it? Well, she called Henry right up and canceled on him. It was so last minute, I knew he’d not have time to make other plans. And guess who just happened to be calling on his mother with a fresh batch of chocolate chip cookies that evening?”
I lean in, whispering, “You?”
“You bet your boots. We sat on his porch swing and drank lemonade and talked well into the night. He walked me home. Gave me a goodnight kiss at my doorstep. Bess was completely forgotten about. We were married six months later.”
She’s given me the hope I needed to steel my nerves and carry out my plan. “Thank you for sharing that story, Miss Pearl. I think it was exactly what I needed to hear today.”
The train slows, pulling into its next stop. She pats my hand and gathers her things, rising from her seat. “This is my stop, sweetie. Good luck with your diving.”
I give her a grateful smile. “Thank you. I thin
k I have all the ammunition I need now, thanks to you.”
My faith in my plan renewed, the rest of the ride I’m calmer, daydreaming of Pearl and her Henry. Sometimes you have to give love a little help. And that’s exactly what I intend on doing.
When I reach Café Fresca, Emily is already waiting for me. She’s wearing a dress that’s a similar style to mine. She stands, taking in my appearance. “Charlotte! It’s so good to see you. You look... different.”
I do a little twirl, showing off my new look. “I thought I’d go a little classier today. Do you like it?”
She gives me a tight hug. “You look beautiful. I’m just used to you in your cheery colors.”
We slide into our seats, picking up our menus even though we both know we are going to order the chicken and asparagus pasta. It’s the best thing on the menu. I ask, “What have you been up to? What kept you last week?”
She peers over her menu, excitement blushing her cheeks. “I’m so sorry about missing our lunch, but I have some exciting news. I was rushing out to the car to head your way and I got this funny feeling. I took a test just in case and...”
After enjoying their first two years of married life on the pill, for the past few months, Emily and Luca have been trying to have a baby. Excitement jolts through my body. “It was positive? You’re pregnant?”
She nods emphatically, too overwhelmed by emotion to speak.
I get up from my seat and go to her side of the table, wrapping my arms around her shoulders and giving her a squeeze. “Oh, Emily! That’s so, so exciting for you guys. I’m so happy for you!”
Her face glows. “Thank you. I was surprised as can be and I had to go tell Luca right away.”
I slide back into my seat. “What did he say?”
“He was over the moon. It was adorable. A man who once openly proclaimed he’d never have children, to anyone who would listen, he now wants a houseful of little feet pitter pattering around.”
Happiness wells in my heart for my friend. “That’s a testament to his love for you. He wants to multiply it.”
She smiles. “That’s sweet of you to say, Charlotte.”
The waiter comes and we place our orders. We spend the rest of the hour tossing baby name ideas back and forth. She likes Rose for a girl and Bennet for a boy.
After lunch, Emily offers me her driver to take me back home. I tell her I have a few shopping errands to run. She apologizes but has to get home to rest; the pregnancy makes her tired in the afternoons.
I assure her I’m not bothered one bit. Having Emily with me isn’t exactly going to help my plan. I know she’s not allowed to bring me into the Village. Visitors are rarely permitted, and you have to have special permission from Rockland, weeks prior, as well as a male escort. I have no time for that.
Once Emily is safely in her car and headed back to the Village, I hail a cab. “Bachman’s Jewelers, please.”
“You got it, lady,” the cabbie says.
After battling traffic, we pull up to the red and gold sign, the swirling letters proudly proclaiming Bachman’s Jewelers. I pay the driver and get out of the cab.
Inside this shop is my ticket to getting to Eli; Victoria, a good friend from high school works here. Her mother handles all of the ordering for the jewelry store as one of the Bachmans’ legit employees living in our small hometown. Victoria got a job at the counter right out of school and has been here ever since.
When I called her last week and told her I needed a favor, she obliged.
A tinkling bell rings as I open the door. I let out a breath of relief to find her alone, polishing cases, no sign of a customer in sight.
When she looks up and her gaze meets mine, I’m once again stunned by how bright her aqua eyes are. As long as I’ve known her, I can never seem to get used to how beautiful they are. Her long, dark hair sails behind her as she rushes over to greet me. “Charlotte! It’s been so long.”
“Thanks for agreeing to this,” I whisper, giving her a tight hug. Her height is another thing I’ve forgotten—she’s so tiny, I practically tower over her.
Pulling back, she studies my face with those ocean eyes of hers. “Are you sure you want to do this?”
I train my voice to be void of the nervous shaking I feel inside. I give her a bright smile. “Sometimes you have to go destiny diving.”
Her brow furrows. “Huh? I’ve never heard that term before. Did you mean dumpster diving?”
Please don’t let my attempts today fail so miserably that they could be described as such. I shake my head. “It’s nothing. Just something a woman on the train said.”
She gives me another funny look. “Whatever you say. It’s your ass on the line.”
Her words make me cringe. Her helping me could mean her ass is on the line as well. Have I put my friend in danger? I push away the thought, I’m sure everything will be fine and besides... if the worst happens, I will never, ever let them know of her involvement.
Afraid I’ll chicken out of my mission, I change the subject. “Hey, where does Bronson keep the ladder for the staff to put up the lights at Christmas?”
She studies me hard, her serious gaze making me think she’s having second thoughts about helping me. “It’s in the back closet. Why do you need it?”
I smile and shrug. “No reason.”
“Listen—I don’t mind helping you but all I can do is get you through the back door. I can’t get you through the gate. When Bronson first gave the keycard to me, he told me it was only for emergencies—if the shop was being robbed or something, it would open the back door and I could wait in the alley for help. Wait a minute... is that why you want the ladder?”
I wince. “Maybe?”
She throws her hands on her hips. “Charlotte, are you bat shit crazy? I thought you just wanted to get in the alleyway to take a selfie for a bet or something. Are you seriously going to scale the wall? You know what, never mind, don’t tell me.”
I grab her hand. “It’s better if you don’t know anything. I don’t want to get you into trouble.”
“Or make me stop you.” Giving me one last unsure look, she takes me to the back hallway. She shows me the utility closet where the ladder is leaning against a wall, dusty and neglected. She helps me lug the heavy thing to the back door.
There’s the ding of a bell signifying a customer has just entered the shop.
“That’s a customer. I’ve got to go.” She gives me another tight hug, then swipes a keycard in front of a black box that’s set into the wall. The door clicks and opens on its own. “You only have about a minute before this door closes. Please be careful, Charlotte. And whatever you do—don’t get caught.”
“Thank you, Victoria—I owe you one.”
“Good luck, Miss Mission Impossible.” Flashing me a tight, nervous smile, she scurries away.
I feel the seconds ticking down in my mind, but moving the tall ladder alone is much more cumbersome than I’d imagined it would be. I’ve got the top three rungs through the doorway when the heavy door begins to slowly close. “You can do this, Charlotte. Use those muscles!”
Hauling the ladder through the door I stumble out onto the gravel ground just as the door shuts and automatically locks behind me. Slumping against the stone wall, I heave a breath of relief as the cool outside air caresses my cheeks. “I made it.”
Excitement dances in my stomach. I can’t believe I’m actually in one of the secret alleyways the Bachmans built behind their shops, the ones that lead to the Village. I’ve just got to get myself over the big black gate, and I’ll be inside their walls. “Step one of my plan is complete!”
From my bag, I retrieve a heavy piece of climbing rope I found in my parents’ garage, discarded from my father’s more active days. Tying one end to the top of the ladder with a knot I learned in Scouts, I tug on it hard to test if it will hold my weight.
When I’m satisfied it’s safe, I wrap one hand around each leg of the ladder, walking it step by step over to the hug
e black gate. After what seems like ages, I make it all the way across the alley and prop the huge, cumbersome ladder against the gate. Giving it a good shake, I assure myself it will hold steady when I climb it.
Taking the loose end of the rope in my sweaty palm, I prepare to throw it over the wall to the other side. My plan is to scale the wall, elegantly climbing down the rope in my dress and dropping gently to the ground.
What do I do once I get over the wall?
So far, all I have planned is to blend in, look like one of the Beauties, and find Eli. Show him that I fit right in at the Village, that I’m the one he should be dating. Give love a little hand. Dive headfirst into my destiny. When I’m safely on Village soil, I’ll head off to find him.
“Here goes nothing.” Picturing myself as a brave cowgirl, I lift my arm in the air, swinging the rope round and round, building momentum. The purple and blue rope goes faster and faster around my head until I’m sure it will be able to fly over the tall gate. I release it with a celebratory, “Hi-ya!”
It sails through the air as if in slow motion and I watch it as it goes over the gate. Elation pumps through my veins as I lift my fist in the air in celebration. “Yes!”
There’s nothing left to do but get on this ladder and climb to my destiny.
My shaking hands wrap around the rungs of the ladder. I place one flip-flopped foot on the bottom rung, then another repeating the pattern as I slowly ascend. My heart is racing, beating against my breastbone harder with each inch of the ladder I climb.
It’s almost too easy.
Holding my breath, I reach for the top rung of the ladder. I’m almost to the very edge of the gate. Soon I’ll get my first ever glimpse of the Village. Hauling myself up those last few inches, I squeeze my eyes shut tight, counting to three before I allow myself the pleasure of finally seeing the Bachmans’ secret world. “Three, two, one!”
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