Prologue

When he finally found her, it was too late.

Charlotte was crossing the street, a shy smile playing across her lips, her small arm laced through the arm of another man. Josh's breath hitched; she was beautiful as ever. The southern sun had bronzed her skin golden, giving her a healthy glow, but even though she looked happy, he felt like her hand was strangling his heart.

He watched them for a few minutes. Charlotte was wearing a flowing, pale blue summer dress. Her hair had grown longer and was laying loose around her shoulders, curling slightly at the ends from the humidity. She appeared to have lost a lot of weight since he saw her last. He wondered if she were being taken care of properly, he knew very little about this aunt that she was living with.

The South Carolinian heat pressed in on him where he stood under a massive palm tree, watching Charlotte walk away from him again, on the arm of some other guy. He couldn't help the jealousy uncurling in his gut, but he stopped himself from revealing himself to her. She couldn't know that he was here. He only came down to Charleston to see her, to make sure she was doing alright. But he didn't expect to find that she had moved on so quickly.

Sighing, he placed his hand in the pocket of his slacks and pulled out the wrinkled letter that he kept there, his fingers unfolding the worn paper. Dearest Josh...he had read it a hundred times, each time hurting more than the last. It wasn't right. She admitted to loving him in this, she confessed that leaving him was killing her. He thought that there was a chance, but now...

He clenched his jaw and put the letter back in his pocket, then pulled out his phone, calling his driver back around. Maybe coming here was a mistake. He saw that she was happy and obviously over him, but it only made it harder for him not to go to her. Going to her would only upset her. No, it was time for him to go home, back to New York. Graduation was only a few weeks away, and Charlotte would be back for commencement. He had a lot work to do if he was going to win her back.

Chapter 1: Reverie

Charlotte thought she was prepared for the climate of Charleston, but she had never been more wrong. From the moment she had stepped off the plane, she felt the humidity threatening to strangle her. Thankfully, her aunt's massive plantation mansion had been fixed with air conditioning eons ago, and it was constantly running, even this late in May.

But the air conditioning at her aunt's wouldn't help her now. Today, she was in downtown Charleston with James, touring the historical downtown. It was the closest she had been to the ocean in years, and she could taste the salt in the air. Oliver had been kind enough to show her around the area, which he knew well since he had grown up there. The last time Charlotte had seen him was when she was visiting her aunt last. She had to have been ten, and Oliver had only been a year older than her. Being the only cousin she had on her mother's side, they had been close, and whenever her family would visit, they would immediately disappear together, playing underneath the giant willow tree that grew in her aunt's yard. That was the last time her family had visited in a long while. When Charlotte saw Oliver after arriving at her aunt's, it took her a while to recognize him. He had grown-up quite a bit, and had turned into quite a handsome guy. He had his dad's ginger hair and blue eyes which contrasted with Charlotte's brown ones.

It took quite a bit of catching up, but eventually they were back to how they used to be: teasing each other and sharing jokes. Charlotte was glad he was there, it kept her mind from drifting back to New York and Josh. She had kept Josh from her aunt and cousin, and she planned to keep it that way. Oliver was able to distract her during the day and keep her busy, but Josh had her mind at night. He drifted in and out of her dreams in various ways, usually resulting in Charlotte waking up, drenched in cold sweat. She wanted nothing more than to pick up her phone and call him after those dreams. When that happened, though, she was thankful that she no longer had his number stored in her phone. She made herself delete it before she even left New York. It would have been far to easy for her to cave if she had his number available to her all the time.

A light breeze blew in from off the water, cooling Charlotte's skin and ruffling her dress. She took in a deep breath, breathing in the sea air, then froze. The air was laced with salt and sea, but also...it couldn't be. She stopped and turned around, scanning the street behind her and the few people that lingered by the beach's edge. Her mind must be playing tricks on her, because surely she didn't just smell Josh's cologne on the air, it was impossible.

"Charlie?"

Taking one last look, Charlotte turned back to her cousin, who had a slight look of confusion and amusement on his face.

"You ok there, Charlie? You look like you've seen a ghost."

She smiled softly, taking his arm again. She reminded herself that Josh wasn't the only person in the world to own that cologne, and that it must've been a coincidence, nothing more.

"Yes, I'm alright. I just thought I saw someone I knew."

"Someone you knew? Let me assure you, Charlie. Everyone that you knew in Charleston is either with you now, or dead. So unless you were seeing a ghost, in which case I highly suggest we get you to a doctor-"

Charlotte punched him in the arm, giggling at him.

"Oh shut up, Olly. It was nothing. And everyone I know isn't dead. I know your mother, and Mr. Marsh, and-"

"I know, I know, calm down. I was only teasing you. Although, I'm not sure Mr. Marsh counts as alive, exactly. That poor man has been working for our family since mom was born. He's at least a hundred."

Charlotte snorted.

"I think that's a bit of an exaggeration."

"You're right, a hundred is too generous. I think a hundred and fifty is more accurate."

Charlotte laughed as Oliver steered her down the street toward his car, and for a moment, Charlotte had actually forgotten about Josh. But only for a moment. By the time she was sliding into her cousin's Lexus, her mind was back on the smell of his cologne. She let her thoughts dwell on the last time that she saw him, angry and flustered in his office as she told him that she was leaving him. She didn't think it was possible, but her heart broke a little more. Then Oliver's voice brought her back to reality once more.

"You still with me Charlie? What do you want for dinner?"

Charlotte decided to keep Josh out of her thoughts from now on; he was just too distracting.

"Hmm...you know? I could really go for some of Ellie's gumbo tonight."

Ellie was her aunt's cook, who cooked well enough to pull anyone out of the strictest diets, and she made the best gumbo that Charlotte had ever had. With all this thinking about Josh, Charlotte had worked up quite the appetite for southern comfort food.

"That sounds good. I'll call and give her the heads up."

Oliver smiled at her as he set the phone to call on Bluetooth and pulled out onto the street, heading back to their house. Aunt Lottie lived just outside of Charleston, on an old plantation. Her house was huge compared to anything Charlotte was used to. She was rich beyond belief; half of her fortune was old family money, and the other half was inherited when her husband, Henry, passed away when Charlotte was nine. Uncle Henry had amassed a small fortune from his family's business that he had run, but when he died, the company went to his younger brother. Now, Aunt Lottie was living solely off the contents of her bank account. She had no income, but that didn't matter since her account had enough money to support her for three lifetimes.

Other than Oliver, Aunt Lottie lived with the small company of hired help that also lived on the grounds. When her Uncle was alive, he added quarters for live-in help above their large garage. There were four apartments up there, just enough for the four assistants that worked for the Berkley's. There was Mr. Marsh, the groundskeeper, who was hired on by Lottie's parents just before she was born. He was quiet and kept to himself. Then Ellie, who worked in the kitchen and insisted that everyone called her by her first name only. Ellie was a little older than Charlotte, and she was cheery and friendly. She honestly could have worked anywhere, or gone to school to be a culinary master, but instead she chose to work for the Berkley's. Finally, there were the two housekeepers, a set of twins named Mabel and Mara. Both were young and spoke little to anyone but each other, and they honestly gave Charlotte the creeps. She would sometimes catch them staring at her from the opposite side of the room, whispering to each other.

Charlotte shivered. Thankfully, it was Saturday, and everyone was off for the weekend. Everyone except Ellie, who insisted on cooking their meals even if she didn't have to. As soon as the car drifted out of the city, it was a short drive to the house, if you could even call it that. It only took a few drives after arriving in South Carolina before Charlotte learned the way to and from her aunt's. A left off the main road, followed by another left onto a narrow dirt road, then a right into the driveway. The driveway was long, lined with large, flowing willows and magnolia trees, and led right up to a circle drive in front of the large, old plantation.

The first time Charlotte saw it, she fell in love with it. It was where her mother and aunt had grown up, and it immediately had made her feel like she was at home. It was a two story, white mansion with large french doors, a porch and a balcony. The interior of the house sported four large bedrooms, each with an en-suite bathroom, a sitting room, music room, dining room, and huge kitchen. But Charlotte's favorite part of the house was the foyer.

Even now as she walked into it, she got chills across her shoulders and immediately felt like royalty. The black french doors opened up to wide open ceilings and a sweeping staircase that led to the second floor. The banister was polished black and the stairs were a bright white. Her mind always imagined herself floating down those stairs, dressed in a large southern-bell gown, her hand sliding along the banister as she stepped lightly down the steps to an awaiting faceless suitor. Except this time, her suitor actually had a face, and it was Josh's.

But then her daydream was shattered by the arrival of Ellie, who stepped into the foyer from the sitting room on the right.

"Mr. Berkley," she greeted. "Miss Matthews. Welcome 'ome. I've already started dinner and it should be ready in about an hour. Can I get you a drink while we wait?"

"Ellie, I've told you a hundred times; you don't have to stand on ceremony with me. You can call me Charlotte."

Ellie gave her a smile and replied in her thick, french accent. "Of course, Miss. 'ow about those drinks? I just fixed up some iced tea."

That was Ellie, always professional. She never addressed anyone by their first names. Oliver and her aunt eventually stopped insisting that she do otherwise, and they even told Charlotte it was pointless to ask to be addressed by her first name. But Charlotte asked anyway, even though there was never a change. She suspected it was because Ellie grew up and was trained in France. She worked for a rich old couple who passed away several years ago and they had encouraged her to come to America before they died, which was always a dream for Ellie. When they passed away, they had generously left her enough money to travel, so Ellie had taken the leap and crossed over, finding employment with Charlotte's aunt.

"Sure, Ellie," James said. "Tea sounds great."

She smiled at him, blushing slightly, then disappeared back into the kitchen. She wasn't gone long before returning with a tray that carried a pitcher of iced tea and three tall glasses, followed by Aunt Lottie. Charlotte's aunt looked nothing like her mother. While her mother was tall, willowy and brunette, her aunt was petite, blonde and curvy. She also had a bubbly personality, opposite of her mother's quiet demeanor. She always found it difficult to believe that they were actually sisters. In fact, she once had them produce birth certificates to prove it.

"Charlotte!" Her aunt exclaimed, flinging herself at Charlotte and pulling her down onto the love seat. "How was Charleston? Did Olly take you shopping?"

Charlotte wriggled from underneath her aunt's arm, her lips twitching. After being under her aunt's hospitality for nearly three months, she had given up on trying to become accustomed to her aunt's vitality and enthusiasm. She was always excited to see Charlotte, no matter what the occasion. Even now, it had only been five hours since she saw her last, but she was attached to Charlotte as if it had been years.

"Mom," Oliver said, as he poured himself a glass of tea and sat in the chair across from them. "Calm down. Charlotte isn't here for you to hang off of. She's been out all day in this heat, give her some air."

"Oh Oliver, calm down." But she moved away slightly, giving Charlotte some much needed space. After pouring a glass for her and Charlotte, she looked at her niece expectantly, waiting on her to elaborate.

"We actually didn't go shopping, Aunt Lottie. Olly took me around to the art museum and the library, then we went to The Battery and walked for a while."

Her aunt scowled and sipped her tea.

"No shopping? Hog wash. Well, before you go home, I need to take you on a proper shopping trip. When you arrived, you basically had nothing! I can't allow you to go back to New York without a full wardrobe."

Charlotte rolled her eyes. Her aunt was busy adding more tea to her glass and didn't see, but Oliver did and he snickered. Charlotte had learned by now that it was best to just let her aunt do what she wanted. Besides, she did need a dress for graduation, and she wasn't going to go against her aunt's southern hospitality.

"Sure, Aunt Lottie. I would be very grateful."

"Don't mention it, sugar. I need to make up for all those years I missed out on spoiling my only niece."

Oliver sat back in his chair, finishing off his tea.

"When does your flight leave again, Charlotte?"

She sucked down her tea, silently wishing that there was some vodka in it. She hated talking about going home. For one, it meant leaving the hot weather, which she had become accustomed to and learned to love. Even though summer was right around the corner for New York, the weather was nothing compared to South Carolina. Then there was graduation. She was excited to finally earn her bachelor's, but graduation meant she would have to see Josh. She constantly imagined what she would do when she saw him again. Her feelings for him hadn't changed, which would make it all the more difficult to not launch herself at him.

"Charlotte?"

Oliver was looking at her expectantly, and she remembered that he had asked her a question.

"Oh, right. Sorry. It leaves Monday morning. We should probably leave immediately after breakfast so we can make it to the airport on time. My flight leaves at ten."

Her aunt squeaked.

"Monday?! Good gracious, that only leaves tomorrow for shopping! We'll leave at nine and get breakfast while we're out."

Charlotte cringed inwardly at waking up for a full day of shopping, but nodded and agreed. They spent the next hour discussing their travel plans for the next week, Charlotte's much-anticipated graduation, and the glorious hotel they would be staying at in Manhattan. Aunt Lottie was about to venture into the topic of boyfriends for Charlotte, which was not an uncommon occurrence, but Ellie thankfully announced dinner and they retired into the dining room with their tea, future boyfriends forgotten.

Later that evening, Charlotte was sitting in her bed after a refreshing shower, and was browsing her social media accounts when she decided to check up on her school's page for the graduation schedule. The moment the page loaded, she froze. Dominating the event's page was a large picture of Josh, his arm wrapped around a petite blonde who was all smiles. Josh looked tolerant of her presence, but he was smiling, too, albeit a bit stiffly. Her eyes quickly dropped to the caption, which was dated last week. Professor Joshua Hutcherson and student at NYU's senior brunch. She scowled as she read the article attached to the picture. Of course she knew about the brunch, which the school held every spring for the graduating class, and she knew she was going to miss it. But the site of Josh with his arm around another girl really got her gut churning.

Before she did something rash, she slammed her laptop shut and climbed into bed, fuming in the dark. Whoever that girl was, she was just a student, so it wasn't like he was dating her or anything. You were only a student, too, a snide voice chimed in the back of her mind. She pushed the thought aside before it made her sick. Yes, she was only a student when her and Josh started their relationship. But that had been different. He loved her, he wouldn't move on from her that quickly. Would he?

She mulled things over as she tossed and turned in bed, the picture of Josh with the blonde burned into her mind's eye. Eventually, she fell into an uneasy sleep, but woke often from dreams of Josh waiting for her, and nightmares of him hating her forever. She debated getting up and making herself a cup of hot tea, but thought better of it. She didn't want to leave the comfort of her bed. Instead, she pulled out her phone. Her fingers hovered over Conner's name in her contacts. She wanted nothing more than to tap his name and have him connect her with Josh. It had been months since she last heard from Conner, surely he wouldn't mind an update from her...

The creak of the stairs followed by the slamming of a bedroom door broke her trance. She quickly locked her phone, placing it back onto her nightstand. Contacting him now would be a horrible decision. Graduation was in a week; at the very least, she had to wait until after commencement before contacting Josh again. Sighing, she closed her eyes and rolled over. It was nearly two in the morning, and she needed to sleep if she were to survive tomorrow's shopping trip.