Disclaimer: I only own the story specific characters I created. The originals belong to Cecily von Zeigesar and The CW.
Eddie paced nervously outside Charlotte's building, working up the courage to go in. He knew the doorman was having a good chuckle at his expense. Glancing at his watch, it was now or never. He finally turned towards the door.
"Here to see Ms. Bass?" the doorman inquired.
"Yes, sir," Eddie nodded, "Edward Fraser...she's expecting me."
"Twenty-second floor," he was told as the doorman held the door open for him.
"Thank you," Eddie nodded. His hand quivered nervously when he pressed the correct elevator button. In his other hand was a bouquet of lilies. He'd taken a chance to ask his mother if she knew Charlotte's favorite flower. The answer came with a warning, but his mother didn't seem as surprised by the question as he'd expected.
"Mister Fraser?" Charlotte's housekeeper greeted him in the foyer.
"Yes, ma'am," he clutched the flowers tight, "I'm here to see Charlotte. She's expecting me."
"I'll tell her you're here," the housekeeper smiled.
Eddie scolded himself as he waited anxiously. He had to get himself together. It wasn't like he'd never gone on a date before. In London, he'd earned a bit of a reputation as a ladies' man after ending his long-term relationship. Dating Charlotte was different. He couldn't help thinking about a potential future he hadn't seen in a long time, ever really.
"Hello, Eddie," Charlotte came into the entryway with a bright smile and a beautiful emerald green halter dress. He awkwardly thrust the flowers into her hands. "Thank you, they're beautiful." She accepted them graciously before turning towards her housekeeper to trade them for her handbag and wrap.
He tried to speak, to tell her how beautiful she looked, but no words would come.
"Cat got your tongue?" Charlotte teased when they stepped into the elevator, "I promise not to bite."
"I feel like a fifteen year old going on his first date," Eddie admitted on the ride down.
"Really? I hope it goes better than that," Charlotte bit her lips.
"Was your first date really that horrible?" Eddie felt his confidence starting to return.
"My first date was with my father," Charlotte admitted, "It was sort of a trial run for the real thing. Honestly, he set the bar extremely high. No one has really been able to top it since."
"So, no pressure," Eddie snorted and guided her towards the waiting cab.
"Thank you, Pete," Charlotte handed her doorman a generous tip as he held the door open for her.
"Thank you, Charlotte," Pete tipped his hat to her and then Eddie. Eddie added a tip of his own for good measure. He figured it best to stay on this man's good side.
"Taking my advise to heart, I see," Charlotte's eyes twinkled when Eddie slid in beside her, "What do you have in store for this evening?"
"It's my little secret," he winked and nodded towards his driver.
"How'd you con your way into a fleet vehicle?" Charlotte inquired.
"Trade secret," he replied.
"If Daddy finds out, there's going to be a reprimand in your future," Charlotte sung out her warning.
"There are a lot of things about tonight I'll be in trouble for if Daddy finds out," he laughed, "I'm willing to risk it."
"Do you truly understand the consequences of any extracurricular relationship we may have if my father finds out? Eddie, you would be blackballed from every company in New York City," Charlotte stated, "I'm really not worth the consequences."
"How about you let me make that determination for myself?" he grasped her hand and brought it to his lips.
"Don't say I didn't warn you," she smiled.
"Warning noted for the record," he entwined their hands together while they drove along the streets of Manhattan. "How do you feel about Greek food?"
"I think you'll find I love nearly all types of cuisines," she told him, "My brother and I share the same undiscriminating palate. So long as the food is good, I'm all for it."
They drove all the way to Queens and stopped outside a charmingly styled restaurant entitled Floros.
"Ever given it a try?" Eddie helped her from the vehicle.
"Can't say I have," she smiled.
Eddie lead her into the restaurant. They were instantly greeted by a matronly woman who called Eddie by name after scrambling over to give him the warmest of hugs. She spoke to him in Greek, to which he responded in kind.
"Been here before, I take it," Charlotte accepted the menu she was handed.
"My parents went to school with Mrs. Zeta's son. He was my father's dorm mate. We probably came here once a month when I was still living in New York," Eddie took the menu from her hands, "Mind if I order for us?"
"I trust you'll know what is best," Charlotte agreed, "This doesn't exactly mean you win our wager. I said I knew every tasty spot in Manhattan. This is Queens."
"Sometimes you have to go outside your comfort zone for a good meal," Eddie winked and reached across the table to take her hands.
Zeta came over minutes later with beverages and a basket of pita chips and freshly made hummus. Eddie quickly put in their order and then encouraged Charlotte to taste their appetizer.
"Oh my god," Charlotte's eyes widened upon her first taste, "This is amazing."
"I know," Eddie dug in for his first bite.
"What was it like working in London?" Charlotte asked curiously, "I've been to London a few times, but we usually did fun touristy stuff while Daddy went to the office."
"It's not much different than what goes on at Bass Tower. Only thing different is the accents," he chuckled.
"Do you miss it?" she inquired.
"I missed being away from New York more than I miss London now," he admitted.
"What about friends?" Charlotte asked, "Surely you made a few while you were there."
"Mostly at Bass," he nodded, "It's not like I'll never see them again. Work kept me pretty busy."
"You still found time to socialize," she teased, "I believe you said her name was Heather."
"She was an acquaintance," Eddie replied.
"You don't take acquaintances to Bass gala events," she replied.
"Okay, let's turn the tables," he countered, "What about the bloke you brought? He was more than an acquaintance."
"Devon," Charlotte sighed, "Devon was…a close friend. I don't know if you remember my turn as an actress."
"I remember your high school performances," Eddie nodded, "You were quiet talented. I believe even the Times raved about your performance in 'Our Town'."
"Pretty sure Daddy put the critic up to the review," Charlotte snickered, "I fleetingly thought about become a professional theater actress in college. I met Devon during an audition my freshman year. I was convinced I was going to marry him. He was smart, handsome…talented, but it wasn't meant to be. We wanted different things. His life clearly revolved around acting. I wasn't nearly as serious about the craft. Acting has always only been a hobby for me. We broke up just after Spring Break my senior year. It had been clear for awhile that we were going in separate directions. I just wasn't ready to admit it. He's in L.A. doing his thing. I wish him the best, but he wasn't the guy for me. He didn't give me those 'feelings'."
"What did Daddy think of Devon?" Eddie asked.
"Not much," Charlotte laughed, "He tolerated Devon because Mom made him. The first time Devon met my father, I thought he was going to wet himself. His nervousness around my father never really dissipated. I can't be bringing a guy to every family function who needs to wear a diaper to get through the evening."
Eddie hooted with laughter.
"He doesn't seem to intimidate you," Charlotte noted.
"As a boss and as a person, no," Eddie confirmed, "However, as a father of someone I'm seeing, he scares the hell out of me."
"He does not," Charlotte challenged him, "You wouldn't be here if that were true."
"Perhaps not, but he is intimidating on that level," Eddie replied.
"You said you're not a fling kinda guy, and I said I'm not a fling kinda girl," Charlotte reminded him, "Are you willing to stick it out if things get rough?"
"What are we talking about here?" he caressed her fingers with his, "Until death to us part?"
"Okay, here goes," Charlotte took a deep breath, "This thing between the two of us is a big risk, not only personally but professionally. Playing devil's advocate here, we get serious. You're on the fast track, Eddie, maybe not as fast as I am, but you're good at your job. You're going to move up quick. How are you going to deal with the snide comments about sleeping your way up the corporate ladder?"
"Anyone who says that knows zero about me…or you," Eddie replied. "Would you be naïve enough to allow someone to use you to work their way up the corporate ladder?"
"No!" Charlotte protested, "But since when do actual intentions have any impact on the gossips?"
"Char, I don't give a damn what anyone thinks of my intentions other than you," he stated, "As far as getting your father's approval, we'll cross that bridge if we deem it necessary."
"You have a point," she agreed.
"If your father truly believes you're happy, he'll be okay with us," Eddie added.
"And you're willing to risk your career to find out?" she challenged him.
"Money doesn't equal happiness," Eddie replied.
"Dad's living proof of that," Charlotte nodded, "You can have all the money in the world and be miserable."
"Must have been before your mother, because I've only ever seen him blissfully happy," Eddie stated.
"Oh yeah," Charlotte agreed, "He always tells me these stories about how messed up he was in high school and how he could have easily slipped down the path of no return after his father died, but my mom yanked him out by the back of his neck. It's hard for me to even fathom what kind of man he could have been back then. It's not the man who raised me and my brothers. It's definitely not the man who loves my mom with every fiber of his being. He talks about these bad things he did back then…It's hard to reconcile with the man I know."
"It's never pleasant when your knight in shining armor falls off his horse," Eddie stated.
"No, it's not," she agreed, "I was mad at him for weeks after he sat me down and told me all he'd done. It was probably two or three weeks before we had much more than a cursory conversation. It was Mom who got through to me and explained how he got to be the man he is now. She termed it his Jekyll and Hyde persona. When he's happy, he's the most wonderful man in the world, but when he's not…he can be quite a 'basstard'."
"Have you ever seen that 'basstard' side of him?" Eddie asked.
"No," she shook her head, "Mom said it would take the loss of his family to bring that out in him again. Since she said she doesn't ever plan to leave him, we're safe."
Mrs. Zeta interrupted the serious moment by bringing their meals. Eddie had another brief exchange in Greek with the woman before she left them to consume their meals.
"You speak Greek," Charlotte switched their serious tone to something a bit more first date appropriate, "Not an easy language to pick up. Do you speak any other languages?"
"A few," he responded coyly, "I expect you're fluent in French, like your mother."
"Oui," she smiled. "How many other languages do you speak, besides Greek and English?"
"I can converse in most of the native languages were Bass has significant holdings," he replied, "It was one of the reasons I went to London in the first place. Your father wanted someone with an ear for languages."
Charlotte tested him with a few sentences in French. He responded easily. He then switched between four other languages, merely to prove his point. "Show off," she teased him.
"Is French your only other alternative language?" he asked.
"I can speak a bit of Spanish and Italian, but I'm nowhere near fluent in those languages," she replied, "I know a few Romanian lullabies and all the curse words from my mother's housekeeper."
"Ah, yes, and how is Dorota?" he laughed.
"She's slowing down a bit, but she's still as feisty as ever. Mom hired her an assistant. She says Dorota seems to enjoy being a boss some of the time, but she has a hard time delegated. She has a particular way of doing things," Charlotte explained, "She's always had a soft spot for us kids."
"Do you have your own Dorota?" he asked.
"Not really," Charlotte shook her head, "Dani is nice enough, and she's more than adequate when it comes to the work."
"But?" he prompted.
"She's not the confidante Dorota is for my mom," Charlotte replied.
"And does Charlotte Bass have any confidantes in her life?" he asked.
"My mom for starters," Charlotte nodded, "I have some close girlfriends from Constance and sorority sisters from Columbia, but Mom is who I go to when I really need to talk."
"Sounds like you two are close," he noted.
"We are," she nodded, "Mom was always…she and her mother don't have a very close relationship. Mom wanted something different for the two of us. She's always been very involved in my life. It was always made clear to us kids that we came before their work or any other goings on in their lives."
"Good parents can be hard to come by in the Upper East Side," Eddie stated.
"Oh, I know," Charlotte agreed, "Some of my friends' parents are very messed up…drug problems, extra marital affairs, probably things I don't even want to know about. Most of my friends are jealous of the relationship I have with my parents."
"It's pretty hard not to be jealous of Charlotte Bass and her life," he replied.
"It's a pretty good life," she agreed.
"Are you and your brothers close?" Eddie inquired.
"Yeah," Charlotte's head bobbed a bit hesitantly, "Aiden and I are closer than I am with Brice, not that Brice and I don't get along because we do. Brice is all the way across the Atlantic, living in France, working in the vineyards. I guess we're as close as we can be with an ocean between us. We still text and email on a nearly daily basis, but it's not the same as face to face conversations. I miss him like crazy."
"I know how that goes," Eddie agreed.
"You and Justin always seemed thick as thieves," Charlotte noted.
"Definitely," he nodded, "Justin is my best friend, always has been. It will be good to have him back in the states."
"Has his transfer come through? You never said anything," she replied.
"He'll be back in the states by Christmas," Eddie stated, "Did I tell you he and his wife are expecting their first child?"
"No!" Charlotte replied, "That's fantastic."
"Mom is already going a bit crazy getting a room ready for the baby when they visit New York, and Abigail isn't even due for another five months," he chuckled.
"She is a woman who likes to be prepared," Charlotte responded, "It's what makes her such a great assistant for my father. She's ready for nearly anything he can throw at her. She filled by parents' penthouse living room with sand on a moment's notice after only a few months into working for my dad. He knew after she pulled that trick off that she was some sort of miracle worker."
"I never heard that story before," Eddie admitted.
"Oh goodness, that's the tip of the iceberg really," Charlotte laughed, "Mom gave up a spring break trip with Aunt Serena and Uncle Nate in her freshman year at NYU because Dad couldn't go. He was in the middle of one of his first acquisitions and couldn't take time away as it had reached a critical juncture. I won't bore you with the details as they are a bit personal, but Mom was in a bit of a funk. He wanted to do something special for her. They couldn't go to the beach, so he brought the beach to her. He…or your mother rather, had the entire living area transformed into a beach with lounge chairs and umbrellas, sand toys, the whole nine years."
"It's your father who thinks but all these romantic gestures, it's just her job to turn them into reality," Eddie replied.
"And she's very good at her job," Charlotte stated.
"She is that," Eddie agreed.
"I guess that's what I'm looking for…someone to makes the effort," Charlotte admitted out of the blue, "As great as Devon was, romantic gestures weren't his forte. Flowers were only for Valentine's Day, a day planner for Christmas, chocolate for my birthday."
"You don't like chocolate," Eddie recalled.
"You remember that?" Charlotte was taken aback, "And I don't dislike chocolate as much as I used to. I simply don't care for milk chocolate. It's too sweet for me."
"What kind of chocolate did Mister Actor Man give you?" Eddie asked.
"Milk chocolate," Charlotte admitted.
"And the flowers on Valentine's Day?" he asked.
"Carnations," she frowned, "In fairness to him, they were my favorite when I was five."
"They aren't now," Eddie stated.
"And how do you know?" Charlotte challenged him.
"I might have asked my mother for a bit of flower related advice," he admitted, "She said lilies were your favorite."
"Because of my grandma, Lily," Charlotte smiled, "Does that mean your mother knows were out on a date tonight?"
"She made sure to give me a good talking to about it first," he chuckled.
"What kind of talking to?" she inquired.
"Be careful…she's the boss's daughter…you hurt her, I will disown you," Eddie replied, "Typical mother/son conversations."
"She's the best," Charlotte laughed.
"How's the grub?" he motioned towards her plate which was nearly empty.
"Best Greek food I've had outside of Greece," she proclaimed, "I'm telling Aiden about this place. He's always looking for new restaurants to try and get ideas from."
"By all means, spread the word," Eddie encouraged her.
"You'd never catch Mom in this place though. It's way outside her comfort zone," Charlotte giggled.
"Queens would be a tough sell," Eddie agreed.
After dinner and dessert, they found a nearby park and took a stroll. The late autumn air had cooled considerably. Eddie, being the gentleman, shed his coat and wrapped it around her shoulders.
"Have we managed to rise up to the bar your father set with your first date?" Eddie inquired.
"Pretty close," she laughed, "Although Daddy took me to a five star restaurant. My apologies to Mrs. Zeta, but the food was not quite at the same level."
"Fair enough," Eddie laughed, "I'll save up for the next date. Give me about a month, I'll have enough set aside for a five star meal."
"Don't you think it's awful bold of you to assume there's going to be a second date, Mister Fraser," she teased.
"And here I thought I we were having a good time," he chuckled, "Guess I'll need to turn on the charms a bit more. Should I pull out the British accent I learned?"
"God, no," Charlotte scoffed, "I like your voice just as it is."
"No appreciation for accented voices?" he inquired.
"When they aren't as phony as bologna," she responded, "I'm for of a sucker for a French accent. Grandpere Roman has one of the best. We mostly converse in French, but when he and my Grandpa Harold banter back and forth in English, it's hysterical. He usually gets flustered by the slang."
"I feel his pain. The slang they used in London was mindboggling. It took me a month to figure out a lift is an elevator, and the loo, just call it what it is, a toilet," Eddie laughed.
"Didn't you get some sort of guidebook before you went to London which explained all that?" Charlotte asked, "Dad always got those types of thing when he was preparing for trips in new countries. They covered local customs and laws, common phrases in the native language. They even had a section for slang."
"I was going to an English speaking country, what would I need the stupid guidebook for?" he exclaimed.
"To avoid sounding like some American wanker," she laughed.
"I figured it out just fine on my own," Eddie responded.
"Men," she rolled her eyes, "It's like asking for directions all over again."
"Why ask for directions when I have GPS on my phone?" he defended his gender.
"Then use the darn thing," she replied, "God, Devon and I once ended up in a seriously sketchy part of New York because he refused to read the subway map or get the directions on his phone."
"What is Charlotte Bass doing riding a subway?" he gasped in shock.
"I can manage the mass transit systems in this city just fine, thank you very much," she was quick to respond, "I'm not just some Upper East Side debutante who rode around in limos and town cars all my life. I am a true New Yorker. I ride subways. I eat pizza. I even enjoy street vendor hot dogs in Central Park."
"Who just so happens to have been born with a platinum spoon in her mouth?" he teased.
"That second date is looking like less and less of a reality," she huffed.
"I'm sorry. That was below the belt," Eddie was quick to apologize, "I know how important its been for you to be more than just Charlotte Bass. If I'm honest, I was always a bit jealous of you and your brothers. You were given pretty much everything you've ever asked for without much of a protest. My parents made Justin and I work for it, even when they could afford what we asked for."
"I wasn't always given everything I asked for," Charlotte replied, "To this day, I've never received the driving lessons I asked for. Daddy and I used to go around in circles about those until I was blue in the face."
"I would think driving a car would be the last thing you'd ever want to do, considering how your grandfather died, and that vicious accident your father was in several years back," he responded.
"It was just before Dad's accident," Charlotte frowned, "I was being such a brat about the driving lessons too. I lost any interest in operating a motor vehicle the night of his accident. Just thinking about what happened still causes my heart to flutter. We almost lost him that night."
"I'm sorry," Eddie's arm went around her waist to provide comfort, "I shouldn't have brought it up. I can't even imagine what you must have went through."
"It was definitely a wake up call," Charlotte admitted, "I've certainly never taken my father for granted after he recovered."
"Did he regain the nerve sensation in his fingers?" Eddie asked, "Mom said that was the last step in his recovery."
"Full sensation," she nodded, "Other than the gnarly scar on his arm, he's as good as new."
"Gnarly, huh," he repeated. He never thought the word would ever escape her lips.
"It's a legitimate word for what his scar looks like. If you ever see him with his sleeves rolled up or in a short sleeved shirt, you'll know exactly what I mean," she explained.
"Why didn't he have a plastic surgeon fix it?" Eddie asked.
"I asked him that once, and I never will ask again," Charlotte stated, "He said Mom is extra attentive when she's reminded of what happened, and his scar is a…you know what, I'm not even going to repeat it."
"Your parents are…" Eddie struggled with an appropriate word to use.
"Insatiable," Charlotte offered, "Believe me, I know better than anyone. Good lord, they can't keep their hands to themselves in any situation. My graduation from Constance, they were fooling around in one of the vacant classrooms. Said they were reminiscing about old times. Brice's graduation from Saint Judes, the headmaster caught them in one of the bathrooms. I don't know what they did during Aiden's graduation, but I'm pretty certain the entire faculty and board of directors are thankful they didn't have any more children."
Eddie fought not to laugh, but he knew he was losing the battle.
"They're ridiculous," Charlotte stated, "They've been together for almost three decades now. When is enough going to be enough with them?"
"Come on, it can't be that bad," Eddie tried to comfort her, "It could be worse. They could be divorced and only able to communicate between lawyers."
"Fair point," Charlotte conceded, "Honestly, I'm mostly immune to it now. Nothing they do surprises me anymore. I will say, I always call before I ride the elevator up the two floors to visit them. I don't want to walk in on anything traumatizing."
"Probably a good idea," Eddie laughed.
"They're not normal, right?" Charlotte asked.
"Not to their level, but my parents are pretty affectionate with each other," Eddie replied, "I don't know if they'd ever find themselves getting caught in a classroom or bathroom or anywhere else your parents have ever ended up, but it's obvious they love each other. Not that any kid wants to think about it, but they are still…physically attracted to each other to this day."
"So no luck on them slowing down with old age, huh," she frowned.
"Probably not," Eddie fought a bit more successfully not to laugh.
"Damn," she sighed, "Oh well. I've dealt with it for twenty-two years, what's another forty or fifty…hopefully sixty years."
"That's the spirit," he snorted.
"It's getting late," Charlotte glanced at her watch, "I promised Aiden we'd spend the day together tomorrow. He's even popping down in the morning to make me breakfast."
"So no sleepovers tonight, huh," he gave her a Cheshire grin.
"I'm not the girl who gives it up on a first date," Charlotte responded simply, "You've got to earn it, Buster."
"Oh, I intend to," he gave her an appreciative once over.
Charlotte only rolled her eyes in response.
"Come on, Buster, drive me home," she tugged on his arm.
Eddie guided her to the waiting town car. They rode nearly the entire way back to Manhattan in comfortable silence with their fingers entwined. When they arrived at her building, he insisted on seeing her safely to her penthouse apartment.
"I had a good time tonight," Charlotte slid his jacket from her shoulders and handed it to him.
"I hope you know the things I said about you being spoiled were meant in jest," he responded.
"I know," she entwined her hands with his, "I kinda like it. It suggests a bit of familiarity in whatever this thing is that is happening between us."
"Any embers flame out for you over the past three weeks?" he inquired.
"No," she shook her head and stepped towards him, "If anything the coals are heating up and about ready to ignite. You?"
"Definitely flames beginning to flicker," he smiled. "I'm a gentleman, so I'm going to ask…may I kiss you?"
"You'd better," she smiled.
Eddie freed his hands so he could cup her face. Their heads tilted slightly and then their lips made contact. Considering how long they had known each other, it could have felt awkward or weird even, but it felt natural.
"I think we should have done that a long time ago," Charlotte smiled when she pulled away.
"I think so too," Eddie dove in for a second kiss.
A few kisses later, Eddie forced himself to get onto the elevator after wishing her a final farewell. He made sure to tip the doorman and driver well to keep their secrets safe from her father and other prying eyes.
TBC…
Author's Note: I want to address something brought up by one of the reviews.
Eddie's background is more elite than middle class. Yes, he was raised differently, but not because his family couldn't afford the prep schools and the other perks Charlotte and her brothers had. He most definitely has a place in the Upper East Side.
As mentioned many times throughout my series, his mother, Eugenia, is one of the most well compensated employees at Bass. Their family has most definitely led a comfortable life.
I know I haven't worked in Eddie's background a lot into the story, but that's because this is being told mostly from Charlotte's perspective, and she knows him very well.
By no means would I compare Eddie Fraser to Dan Humphrey.
If I've offended said reviewer with my comments, I apologize, but I wanted to make sure Eddie is given the respect he's due, especially since it's been made quite clear throughout my storytelling that I'm not much of a Dan Humphrey fan.