Shy Charlotte’s Brand New Juju (Romantic Comedy) Read Online Free Page B

new opportunities,
whether in the form of employment, volunteer gigs, or social adventures. No
more hiding from life!
    5. Rediscover the wide and delicious world of men! ([More
Sharpie]: I have OODLES of ideas. I mean, you’ve been with the same man since
college. Zoiks!  
    I’ve discussed your situation with each of my clients and
they ALL want to help YOU! So let’s get your transformation on!”)
    Charlotte’s face felt hot, and she wished that she could
step back in time and not drink that last bowlful of wine. She didn’t want to
rediscover any men, particularly not any that Fiona might find delicious and
particularly not with Hannah and Gracie watching her every move.  She wasn’t divorced
yet. Caleb was their father, and he was a good one. A shitty, philandering
husband, maybe, but a good father.
    She imagined, then, Fiona brandishing her scissors in her
glittery salon, telling each person what Charlotte had walked in on. Yes! Caleb
MacDougall. The novelist! What a low down dirty stinking rotten dog!
    Everyone in town would know what Fiona was doing to save her
sister. She could imagine them, in the salon, clucking their tongues and
nodding, their heads crowned with silvery foils. Their skin perfect and their
lips painted in that moist-looking orange color that Charlotte could never
quite pull off. And Fiona would tell them about her mission to save her sister
and she would poll them for ideas on what she should include. An art class? Who
had come up with that one? She had once liked to paint, but it was only to pass
the time as a kid. It was only to have an excuse to go into a room by herself.
    Have more fun? Yeah, Fiona had always told her that she was
kind of a stick-in-the-mud. But she needed to lose weight? Huh. She thought she
looked pretty good. Maybe that was why Caleb had …
    The room spun a little. Damn wine. Charlotte took another
sip, and the quiet of the room blared in her ears. She thumped her head on the
table, a wee rest. She stayed like this a moment and she may have dozed off. When
she raised her head again, she was unsure of the time and her tongue felt
fuzzy, much like the interior of her mind. She focused on the wall in front of
her and then picked up the packet once again. It was thick with documentation.
There was a curriculum vitae and a head shot of some guy named Leopold, the
personal trainer and “Confidence Coach.” He had a shiny shaved head and a
series of pimples on his cheeks. A pair of small ears stuck straight out on the
sides of his head, which, she decided, made him look a bit like Shrek.
    She clenched inside. She had come all this way to escape
attention. To escape the shame she felt in their small Missouri town. And now this whole town knew. Her sister had publicly consulted scores of people on how to
best yank her sister’s self-esteem from the yawning chasm where it now lay.
    Caleb would enjoy this. He would think the whole thing was a
riot. Truly he would. But he wasn’t here. Would never be here.
    She was drunk. She knew that she was, if she was wishing Caleb
was by her side.
    ***
    Caleb had to call three or four old classmates before he
remembered her full name. Rachael Whitmore. And then, just like that, she was
on the line with him. Like it was meant to be. 
    She remembered him instantly. “I know I could set
something up. Hell, Caleb, if the college doesn’t want you, I do,” she said,
laughing.
    “Pardon?”
    “I just mean, we could host these things on our own. But I’m
sure the college will go for it. I’ll bring it up right away. It’s a small
school. And with all of our town’s summer visitors, they are certain to relish
the idea. You have made quite a name for yourself since I’ve seen you.”
    “Thank you. Yes, it has been quite a ride.” The hardest part
for him was handling the attention and the compliments, especially from women.
He was never quite sure how to respond, particularly because he suspected their
zeal had something to do with