Charlotte Nichols
Charlotte Nichols sipped her getting-cold coffee and sighed. Normally, the noise of the coffee shop in the financial district—her makeshift office—cheered her up. Today, it was just distracting. A dark-haired man in a suit smiled at her. “Is this seat taken?”
Startled, she smiled back. “Yes, I mean, no, it’s not taken. Yes, you can sit there.” Was he hitting on her?
But no, he just wanted the chair, which he dragged away to another table. She shook away her disappointment. Was she getting so desperate that she hoped some strange businessman would hit on her? That was pretty sad, especially as she didn’t even want a date. It would just feel nice to know that someone thought she’d be worth asking.
Charlotte refocused on her …show more content…
She glanced over to see an abandoned newspaper and picked it up for the headlines. On the cover was a photograph of Jordan Lovett, most eligible bachelor, who had recently taken over as CEO of Lovett Industries when his father retired. He had a half-smile on his face, as if he found it all very amusing. His eyes were dark and brooding, though, full of secrets. Was that his personality or just a good portrait photographer? He was good looking, she thought grudgingly, but sure to be a complete jerk and selfish, just like his father.
According to the article, the company was planning to go public. “We’re always expanding,” said young Jordan. “This is an opportunity for investors to get in at the ground floor.”
She dropped the newspaper angrily. Jordan Lovett was the son of her father’s ex-best friend and cheating business partner who had forced Dad out of his own business ten years ago. It broke him: everything her father had worked for all his life was gone. When she was a teenager, she dreamed of confronting Mr. George Lovett, asking why he stole the company from her Dad. His name came up a lot, especially when her dad got drunk and melancholy. Once, he’d let slip that he was pretty sure George had illegal inside information but he couldn’t prove it.
Dad’s partner had been ruthless. That’s what Charlotte needed to be right now, ruthless. She took a deep breath. That wasn’t something that came naturally to her, but that’s …show more content…
What if she actually investigated Lovett Industries?
She tapped her pen against the side of the coffee table, still looking at Jordan Lovett’s photograph. If she could prove that his father had broken the law, then maybe she could make the company pay out. They were about to go public, any whiff of a scandal would be a big deal. At the very least, she could stop George Lovett’s upgrade from billionaire to zillionaire. In a perfect world, she could make him lose everything, just like her father had.
She picked up her phone and then put it down again. It was no good offering her services to them. She needed to get into the inside, not just offer her services. What she needed to do...
A smile crossed her face as the plan began to form. If they were always expanding, they needed staff. She would apply for a job there, any old job, and get on the inside. That would get her enough money to pay the rent but she wouldn’t be giving up. It would just be a temporary thing while she worked on the most important investigation of her
Charlotte Nichols sipped her getting-cold coffee and sighed. Normally, the noise of the coffee shop in the financial district—her makeshift office—cheered her up. Today, it was just distracting. A dark-haired man in a suit smiled at her. “Is this seat taken?”
Startled, she smiled back. “Yes, I mean, no, it’s not taken. Yes, you can sit there.” Was he hitting on her?
But no, he just wanted the chair, which he dragged away to another table. She shook away her disappointment. Was she getting so desperate that she hoped some strange businessman would hit on her? That was pretty sad, especially as she didn’t even want a date. It would just feel nice to know that someone thought she’d be worth asking.
Charlotte refocused on her …show more content…
She glanced over to see an abandoned newspaper and picked it up for the headlines. On the cover was a photograph of Jordan Lovett, most eligible bachelor, who had recently taken over as CEO of Lovett Industries when his father retired. He had a half-smile on his face, as if he found it all very amusing. His eyes were dark and brooding, though, full of secrets. Was that his personality or just a good portrait photographer? He was good looking, she thought grudgingly, but sure to be a complete jerk and selfish, just like his father.
According to the article, the company was planning to go public. “We’re always expanding,” said young Jordan. “This is an opportunity for investors to get in at the ground floor.”
She dropped the newspaper angrily. Jordan Lovett was the son of her father’s ex-best friend and cheating business partner who had forced Dad out of his own business ten years ago. It broke him: everything her father had worked for all his life was gone. When she was a teenager, she dreamed of confronting Mr. George Lovett, asking why he stole the company from her Dad. His name came up a lot, especially when her dad got drunk and melancholy. Once, he’d let slip that he was pretty sure George had illegal inside information but he couldn’t prove it.
Dad’s partner had been ruthless. That’s what Charlotte needed to be right now, ruthless. She took a deep breath. That wasn’t something that came naturally to her, but that’s …show more content…
What if she actually investigated Lovett Industries?
She tapped her pen against the side of the coffee table, still looking at Jordan Lovett’s photograph. If she could prove that his father had broken the law, then maybe she could make the company pay out. They were about to go public, any whiff of a scandal would be a big deal. At the very least, she could stop George Lovett’s upgrade from billionaire to zillionaire. In a perfect world, she could make him lose everything, just like her father had.
She picked up her phone and then put it down again. It was no good offering her services to them. She needed to get into the inside, not just offer her services. What she needed to do...
A smile crossed her face as the plan began to form. If they were always expanding, they needed staff. She would apply for a job there, any old job, and get on the inside. That would get her enough money to pay the rent but she wouldn’t be giving up. It would just be a temporary thing while she worked on the most important investigation of her