by M. Sembera
Charlotte didn't say a word as Penny rolled her window halfway down.
"What do you want?"
"Get outta the car Pen," Auggie stated in a gruff tone.
"What for?"
"Because I'm asking you to."
Penny glanced at Charlotte before rolling her window up, opening the door and stepping out of the car.
Charlotte watched Penny walk in front of the car with her brother. Feeling a little betrayed by Penny at the moment, she couldn't be that mad at her for helping her brother. After a moment, Penny walked back to the bar as Auggie made his way to the driver's side of the car.
As soon as Auggie slid into the driver's seat, Charlotte blurted, "Save it," adding, "I have nothing to say to you."
Auggie shut the driver's side door, saying, "Yea well, I don't know what to say to you."
With a loud huff, she stated, "An apology would be nice."
Shifting to face her, Auggie confirmed, "I don't want you in there."
Adjusting herself in her seat, she leaned toward him, saying, "Awe, your right. That's not mean at all."
"What's mean about that?"
Charlotte stared at the baffled expression on his face. She had been so busy trying not to look at him inside, she didn't get the chance to appreciate how good he looked. Even with that stupid beanie on, he was a sight for sore eyes. Being in such a small space with Auggie caused her to let go of what had happened inside. She just wanted to sit there close to him.
"Nothing. It doesn't matter."
Auggie's eyes scanned her face, "What doesn't matter?"
"I don't care that you don't want me at the bar."
"Then why are you mad?"
"I would have at least said hello to you."
Scowling with an irritated expression, he asked, "So why didn't you?"
"I was going to."
"But you didn't," he snapped at her.
Why did he insist on arguing with her? She needed silence. Quiet while she was sitting there with him so she could figure out the feelings she was having for him.
"'Cause you didn't look happy to see me," she blurted, knowing that would shut him up.
~
Auggie couldn't believe what he had just heard come out of Charlotte's mouth. Facing forward, he leaned his head back against the headrest, rubbed the sides of his face with his hands and closed his eyes. He needed to get out of the car. He needed to go back into the bar. He needed to stop all this nonsense. Drawing in a deep breath, Auggie opened his eyes and shifted in the seat to face her.
Charlotte was looking at him, not staring just looking with an interested expression on her face. Whatever Auggie thought he was going to say to her quickly fell by the wayside.
"I a...I was surprised, not unhappy."
Her expression remained the same as she questioned, "Surprised in a good way?"
Clenching his teeth to keep himself from being too honest, he waited a moment before answering, "It wasn't bad."
Charlotte curled the corner of her mouth into a smile as she glanced to the side, whispering, "Good."
The air between Auggie and Charlotte grew thick as he watched her hand slowly make its way towards his. His entire body was fully aware of her touch the instant her fingers slid against his palm.
"What are y'all doing in there?" followed by a tap on the windshield caused them both to jump.
~
As Auggie quickly opened the door and jumped out, Charlotte noticed the car windows were foggy. Shaking her head at herself, she thought 'Great'.
"Really? In mom's car?" Penny teased as Auggie griped, "Grow up."
Penny slid in the car giggling.
The moment she shut the door Charlotte swore, "We were just talking."
Penny rolled her eyes, saying, "I know. He's my brother, giving each other a hard time is what we do."
Charlotte nodded, trying to recover from the shock of Penny interrupting her and Auggie's moment.
The car ride was silent for about ten minutes before Penny started to ask questions.
"So, is it still nothing?"
Unsure herself, Charlotte admitted, "I don't know."
"Because you have a boyfriend?" Penny questioned in a serious tone.
"It's not like that."
"What's it like then?" Penny asked clearly unhappy with her.
"Look, it's... Trace and I aren't together right now. I mean, we were seeing each other but now I'm not sure if marrying him is really what I want to do."
"You're engaged?"
"He was gonna ask when he comes back to get me. I guess he still will, but we aren't together like that."
"I'm confused."
Charlotte gave a slight laugh, saying, "That makes two of us."
Penny seemed okay with Charlotte's confusion as she laughed, "Finally, someone with a more complicated love life than mine."
Interested, Charlotte decided it was her turn to ask some questions.
"What about the guy at Legacy Ink?"
Shrugging as she made a face, Penny replied, "He's alright."
"That doesn't sound so complicated."
"I'm friends with every ex I've ever had."
"Oh."
"Yea well, I'm a lot of fun to be around ya know."
Charlotte noticed the disappointment on Penny's face.
"You are a lot of fun. I think maybe you just need a better class of people to hang around."
Penny laughed, "Easier said than done. I have quite the reputation around here."
"So do I..."
"Yea but I earned mine."
The car was quiet for a minute.
"Anyway, sorry tonight was kind of a bust."
Charlotte smiled wide, saying, "I had a great time."
"You really need to get out more!"
They both laughed as Penny pulled up to Charlotte's house.
17
Tattoo
What started out as a wonderful day, one Charlotte was sure would only get better, turned into a gigantic mess, in the span of ten minutes.
Charlotte had received her last ransom text the night before. Not only was she excited to get her favorite stilettos back, the meeting was early enough that she could still have a girl's night with Lola. She even found the perfect dress to make the exchange. Originally, she thought it would be funny but once she slipped into the pink and green plaid sundress she bought, she actually liked it. It was strapless but had a high enough back that her tattoo was the only mark that showed and she hoped Auggie would like it too.
Tossing Auggie's socks in her purse, she grabbed her phone and tossed that in too. Before she could open her bedroom door, it swung open.
"It's polite to knock," Charlotte griped at Silvia standing in her doorway.
"Mom said you left this in her car," Silvia said, throwing a shopping bag on her floor.
Bending down to pick up her glue that rolled out of her bag from the craft store, Charlotte shouted, "Gah, you are such a..." when Silvia cut her off taunting, "Oh my gosh!"
To make matters worse, Emerson walked in, holding the house phone in his hand.
Silvia flashed a malicious smile at Charlotte before turning to Emerson, announcing, "Daddy! Charlotte has a tattoo!"
Emerson stood, glancing between the two for a moment before informing, "Trace wanted to speak to you," as he held the cordless phone out to Charlotte.
Snatching the phone from him, Charlotte put the phone to her ear only to hear a dial tone.
Hearing her phone vibrating in her purse, Charlotte questioned, "Why were you on the phone with him?"
"His father is interested in making a donation to our foundation," he replied, clearly confused by her reaction.
Handing the phone back to him, Charlotte snapped. "Well, he hung up."
"When did you get a tattoo?" Emerson questioned before Silvia chimed in, "So trashy."
Furious, Charlotte stormed past them. Rushing through the house, Charlotte almost ran into Amila walking into the kitchen fro
m the back door.
"What's wrong honey?"
Hearing her phone vibrate in her purse again, Charlotte replied, "Tell Lola I'll be back for our girls night I have to go," as she hurried past her.
Pulling into a dead end street after leaving her house, Charlotte shifted her car into park. She grabbed her cellphone out of her purse as it vibrated in her hand.
T: Please tell me I misunderstood.
T: I am calling you!!!
T: It is best you do not answer. I am incredibly disappointed in you.
After reading Trace's texts, she cleared the two missed calls from him before texting back.
C: Disappointed? Why?
T: How could you do that to yourself?
C: Excuse me????
T: You did not even consult me!
C: That's because it's my body!
T: You don't have enough defects already without purposely adding another one?
C: F-YOU!
Charlotte was so angry she almost threw her phone out of her car window. She threw her cell phone in her purse instead, slammed her shifter in reverse and peeled out onto the main road.
The drive to Auggie's did nothing to calm Charlotte down. Pounding on his door with the side of her fist, she wished it was Trace's face instead. When the door slowly opened, she looked right past Auggie as she walked into his house.
"Come on in," Auggie griped as she threw her purse down on his coffee table and made her way straight to his kitchen.
Flinging his refrigerator door open, she grabbed a Guinness then started digging through his kitchen drawers for a bottle opener.
~
Picking his bottle opener up off of the coffee table on his way to the kitchen, Auggie wondered what had gotten into her. She looked pissed.
Stepping next to her, he cleared his throat before asking, "Can I help you?"
Charlotte slammed a drawer closed before shoving her beer at him, blurting, "No."
Auggie couldn't take his eyes off of her as she stood there in front of him. She had a wild look about her. It was clear she was angry. Her face went flush and her hands were shaking. He was never one for overly emotional girls but on her, it was extremely attractive.
An overwhelming need to calm her, compelled him to whisper, "Baby," as he reached out to touch her.
Charlotte's eyes flew open wide as if he had called her something else that started with a B as she leaped back, shouting, "My name is Charlotte!"
Auggie's mood instantly changed with Charlotte's outburst.
"You can take all that yellin' somewhere else," he growled, adding, "Sweetheart," simply because he knew it would irritate her.
All of the sudden, she was right in front of him, shouting, "I am Charlotte! Not Sweetheart! Do not call me names! Not honey! Not Defective! Charlotte! My name is Charlotte!"
Auggie started to yell back, stopping when part of her rant didn't make sense to him.
Backing away slightly, he fussed, "I never said that about you."
Charlotte turned and walked out of his kitchen.
Not understanding what was going on, Auggie was furious with her. Confused was something he wasn't fond of being but it was something that had become fairly common since she had come back to town. Watching her grab her purse, he couldn't let her leave without knowing what was wrong with her.
"Charlotte."
Auggie watched her stop dead in her tracks.
"Charlotte," he repeated, waiting for her to turn around.
She dropped her purse at her feet.
Watching her slowly turn towards him, from the kitchen, Auggie assured, "I would never say that to you."
Charlotte appeared calm as she narrowed her eyes and asked, "Do you think it?"
"If I thought it I would say it."
Reaching down, Charlotte grabbed her purse and walked to Auggie's kitchen table. Setting her purse down, she reached into it before holding his socks out to him.
Auggie had never met anyone who switched gears that fast. She had been out of her mind seconds before she was eerily calm. Slowly making his way towards her, he reminded himself not to make any sudden movements. The truth of it was, he didn't know her history. She could be mentally unstable for all he knew. After all, she had flipped out when he tried to touch her.
With a loud huff, she reached back into her purse with her other hand, yanked out her phone as it vibrated in her hand, then slammed it face down on his table.
Appearing impatient with him, Charlotte waved his socks around, asking, "Do you still want them back?"
Taking his socks from her, he set them on the table, saying, "I think you cracked it," as he lifted her cellphone off of the table.
Charlotte opened her mouth as if to say something, then stood there staring at him. The corner of her screen was shattered with several hairline cracks spreading across it. Through her broken screen, Auggie read the texts on her phone.
As soon as he read what that creep had said to her he tossed her phone back on the table, saying, "What the hell?"
"I got a tattoo."
Those four words burned their way into Auggie's mind causing his only reaction to be, "Can I see it?"
Hesitantly, she nodded.
His mind ran wild with possibilities as he asked, "Where is it?"
Without answering him, Charlotte reached around her head with her left arm and pulled her hair away from her right shoulder.
Auggie stepped around her to see what her hair had been covering. He was pretty sure he stopped breathing for a minute when he saw a white peacock feather on her back. He could tell it was still healing, but he couldn't stop himself from touching her.
Softly running his finger against her skin next to her feather, he whispered, "Beautiful."
Auggie expected her to flinch. When she relaxed her shoulders and looked down instead, he spread his fingers across the top of her bare shoulder.
Leaning closer, he swore, "A real man would know that every mark on your body is beautiful because it's a part of you."
Charlotte turned, looking up at Auggie with surprise. As Auggie leaned closer, she pulled her lips into her mouth, and started to tilt her head to the side. Finding that unacceptable, he caught her chin, gently tilting her face back to his. Softly grazing her lips with his thumb as she released them from her mouth, he couldn't help himself.
Closing the space between them, he breathed, "Lotte," as he pressed his lips against hers.
The softness of Charlotte's lips against his, mixed with the subtle firmness of her scar was the best thing he had ever felt. How could anyone think this was a defect? It was like a blessing. No woman in the world had lips like hers. Smooth like her skin, sweet like her smell and beautiful just like her.
~
Charlotte swore she could still feel Auggie's lips against hers after he pulled away. The moment felt more intimate than anything she had experienced. How was this possible? Slowly opening her eyes, she felt closer to him than she had to anyone in her entire life. Seeing one side of his face crunch up into his smile, she felt like she was sinking. Trying to remember what her first kiss felt like, a couple of years before her scar, she couldn't. There was nothing. There was no one. Just him, until she heard her phone vibrate against the table.
The noise coming from her phone seemed to break the moment for both of them. Charlotte watched Auggie's smile fade into a scowl as he took a step back.
"I have to go," Charlotte blurted, unsure of what was happening to her.
Taking another step back, Auggie nodded.
Feeling the need to explain, she shared, "I made plans with Lola."
Without saying a word, he nodded again.
Her feet didn't seem to listen to her as she repeated, "I have to go," more for herself this time.
Seemingly helping her out, Auggie stated, "Lola," as she continued to stand there waiting for him to say something else.
Charlotte glanced around the room and nodded before grabbing her phone and purse off of his kitc
hen table. As she made her way to his front door, she wondered why he wasn't saying anything to her. Thinking maybe she should say something, she hesitated before deciding against it and walked out of his front door.
18
Temporary
Sitting in his chair after Charlotte left, Auggie couldn't seem to get his mind right. He should have stopped her from walking out. He should have said something. He couldn't. Auggie actually thought for a moment he was having a heart attack. Frustrated with himself, he thought he shouldn't have kissed her at all. She was upset. He wanted to make her feel better. Why didn't he just say, 'Your boyfriend's a douche' and leave it at that? Then he wouldn't be sitting there alone wondering what she thought about the kiss.
Auggie's front door suddenly swung open. His body tensed in anticipation. The thrill of seeing her again was almost too much until he saw Braden instead of Charlotte walk in.
Strolling to the couch, Braden flopped down greeting, "What's up brother?"
Auggie groaned, relaxing back in his chair, "Nothing."
"Man, what did you do?"
Scowling at his brother, a hint of panic coursed through him.
"You look like the cat that ate the canary."
Thinking to himself 'It was a peacock', Auggie griped, "What do you want?"
"I need a reason to come visit my big brother?"
"Usually."
A wide smile spread across Braden's face as he admitted, "Lily and her mother in law are back. So I'm waiting for the nosy ol' bat to leave."
"Back from where?"
"County."
Shaking his head, Auggie fussed, "Let me get this straight, you're hiding out here so you can hook up with her after she's been to see her husband in jail."
"Don't make it dirty, she only went to get his mom off her back."
"Yea, that's why," Auggie sarcastically replied.
"You don't know."
"Neither do you."
"I know she's gonna ask him for a divorce when he gets out."
Shaking his head at his brother, Auggie stood up and walked to his kitchen. He'd need a beer for this conversation.
Grabbing the beer Charlotte had pulled out of the fridge from the counter Auggie's mind flashed back to her standing in his kitchen. Shaking it off, he grabbed his bottle opener and popped the cap off of his beer before making his way back to the living room.
