Disclaimer: I only own the story specific characters I created. The originals belong to Cecily von Zeigesar and The CW.
"Mom, what are you doing here?" Charlotte was taken aback when her mother came into her dining room while Charlotte had breakfast. She glanced at the clock. "Shouldn't you be busy at at your loft churning out the next best trend?"
"Don't be silly," Blair laughed, "I'm engaging in a protest of sorts against Bass Industries. I took the day off to spend with you…Daniella says you're off for a weekend in the Hamptons."
"I was going to start packing after breakfast," Charlotte confirmed, "I just want to get away from the city for a few days to clear my head."
"I certainly don't blame you. Did you want some company? I'm sure Aiden will understand if I skip his event," Blair offered.
"Don't you dare," Charlotte scoffed, "This showcase is important to him. I already feel bad for missing it myself even though he says he understands with everything going on."
"You should have heard the way he ranted last night to your father," Blair laughed, "And Brice…I almost had to mute the phone line for a bit. They are both steaming mad."
"Brice called last night after he found out," Charlotte confirmed, "Threatened to come back to the states to show those people you can't mess with one Bass without taking on the rest."
"Your brothers are certainly protective," Blair smiled with pride, "Are you sure you don't want company? I don't like you spending all this time alone with everything going on."
"Eddie's coming with me," Charlotte felt her cheeks crimson at her confession, "He called a bit ago. We're leaving around two. We were planning on leaving at noon, but he has another appointment with HR today. They apparently have some follow up questions for him."
"Going away for a weekend together already?" Blair raised a brow.
"It's not like that, Mom," Charlotte was quick to reply, "He just offered to come with, and like you said, I didn't want to be alone this weekend. I knew you and Dad were busy, and Brice is thousands of miles away. My sorority sisters are carrying on with their own careers."
"I know you have dozens of close friends, but it's times like this I wish you had a Serena," Blair curled a strand of her daughter's hair around her finger, "It's times like this when you need your best girlfriend."
"I have that," Charlotte smiled, "In you."
Blair beamed with pride. Being a supportive mother and having a healthy relationship with her daughter had always been so important to her especially after the turbulence she'd had during her youth with her own mother. She felt herself getting a bit misty eyed.
"You've had nearly a day to process everything. How are you holding up?" Blair asked.
"Still mad as hell," Charlotte admitted, "Unfortunately there isn't anything I can do until HR finishes its investigation. At least I'm still getting paid while on leave."
"Because you have so many expenses," Blair laughed.
"The perks of being a Bass," Charlotte shrugged slightly, "Getting laid off doesn't mean the gravy train ends."
"That business manager position at CB Fashions could still come available, if you're interested," Blair offered.
"I love you, Mom," Charlotte smiled brightly, "Us working together would be a very bad idea. Nothing would get done. We'd just rave over one design after another."
Blair laughed in reply.
"I'll have you know, I gave your father a severe tongue lashing for this entire situation," Blair stated, "He should have taken care of this."
"It's not his fault…it's not anyone's fault except the person or persons who are doing this," Charlotte replied. "It will be okay."
"Eat up," Blair suggested, "I'll help you pack. If we have time, I'll take you to that patisserie you love so much before you have to meet Eddie. I assume you're taking your father's helicopter."
"Is there any other way to travel to the Hamptons?" Charlotte laughed.
"You certainly are my daughter," Blair hugged her tight.
Charlotte felt her heart flutter when she entered Bass Tower and made her way to the reception area to get a visitor pass to her father's office. He'd called with a last minute offer of lunch. Since she was taking the helicopter directly from Bass, it was a natural stop, so she'd accepted.
"Charlotte Bass to see Charles Bass," Charlotte told the receptionist. The receptionist did a double take before typing away on her keyboard. This had been a common routine before she came to work at Bass. She'd had lunch with her father once a week while at Columbia. Now the routine felt awkward.
The receptionist handed her the visitor badge without checking for an ID. Charlotte wasn't surprised. She was surprised by the whispered, "You'll be back at work in no time. The administrative staff is pulling for you."
"Thank you," Charlotte gave a slight nod and then badged her way to the executive elevator bank.
She was greeted the moment she stepped off the elevator onto her father's floor with a warm hug from Eugenia.
"Are you rallying the troops for support?" Charlotte asked Eugenia while they walked arm and arm towards her father's office.
"Why ever would you say that?" Eugenia gave a coy smile.
"The administrative staff is pulling for me?" Charlotte raised a brow.
"I didn't start the rally," Eugenia responded defensively, "You have more supporters here at Bass than you may realize."
"I love you, Eugenia," Charlotte hugged the woman who she had seen as an honorary aunt over the years. The irony of her now dating her son was not lost on Charlotte.
"Eddie will be up as soon as he gets free," Eugenia reply, "I have the helicopter on standby up on the roof."
"Dad's okay with Eddie joining me?" Charlotte looked to Eugenia nervously.
"Good heavens do you think I'm that dense," Eugenia's eyes went wide, "I didn't tell him Eddie was joining you when I had him approve your flight request."
"Further proof of how amazing you are," Charlotte laughed. She hugged Eugenia one final time before knocking on her father's doorframe and stepping inside.
"Perfect timing," Chuck motioned towards the food on the table steps away from his desk, "It was just delivered."
"Mom's mad at you for stealing me away for lunch today," Charlotte told him.
"I appreciate the warning. I'll make sure to smooth things over when I get home this evening," he guided her to the table. "How are you doing, Princess?"
"As well as I can be, I guess," she frowned for a moment.
"The Hamptons staff should have everything ready for your arrival when you land," he stated.
"I'm sure they will," Charlotte nodded, "Eugenia is always on top of things. How this family will ever run without her is… frightening."
"Don't I know it," Chuck laughed.
Charlotte's favorite comfort foods were waiting. "Did you have Chef come in and make all this?"
"I might have made a call to have him start his day a bit early," Chuck gave a coy response, "He was happy to do it when I said it was for Charlotte."
"He makes the best macaroni and cheese," Charlotte snatched up the container and dove right in.
"He also made a batch of your favorite dark chocolate brownie balls to take with you on your trip," he motioned towards the sealed container.
Charlotte opened the container and offered one to her father before stealing one for herself. She knew they were his favorite too. It was one of the reasons they became her favorite in the first place.
"You're smart for leaving the city for a few days," Chuck replied, "Let the news breathe for a bit."
"What has the Board of Directors had to say about yesterday's events?" Charlotte asked.
"They're concerned," he admitted, "Not about whether or not you'll be exonerated, more so about how the claim might follow you throughout your career here at Bass. How we handle the fallout will be a delicate balancing act."
"Dad, when the investigation is finished and the claim is proven false, are you going to fire the person who made it?" Charlotte asked.
"I'd be well within my legal rights," Chuck replied, "I've fired people for far less."
Charlotte winced as he spoke.
"Charlotte, I'm sorry for the spot I put you in. I never should have put you in an unstable department. I should have done a bit more research, but you said Mergers and Acquisitions is what interested you most," he apologized.
"It still is," Charlotte replied, "I like what I do, Dad, and I think I can do it well."
"Yes, you can," he agreed, "You will continue to do so. However you will be given a better team to support your professional growth."
"Don't fire them," Charlotte replied, "Probably reprimand them and then reassign them to duties to better fit their skillsets."
"You're making it sound like more than one person brought about this investigation," Chuck eyed her curiously.
"Because I think it is," Charlotte admitted, "I have suspicions but no proof to back it up. Dad, please, don't make things worse by firing them. If you do, they'll go to the press, maybe even hire lawyers and sue the company. It could drag out for years and drag you and Bass along with it."
"I can't do nothing, Charlotte," he responded, "Doing nothing might encourage others in the future to make similar claims."
"I'm not saying do nothing," Charlotte replied, "I'm just saying don't do anything extreme."
"I'll take your request under advisement," he stated.
"Thank you," Charlotte dove back into her mac and cheese. "You're the best daddy in the world. Do you know that?"
"That's a pretty bold statement, Char," he laughed, "Have you even met all the other fathers in the world?"
"I don't need to," she responded, "Who else would call up his chef just so his daughter could have her favorite foods when she's having a bad day?"
"You make it sound like such a chore," he chuckled, "It was a simple phone call."
"It's not the phone call," Charlotte replied, "It's the thought behind it. You could have gotten my favorite takeout instead and that would have been enough, but you took it a step further. You always have."
"Always will," he smiled, "You're one of the four best things in my life, Charlotte."
Charlotte returned his smile. They talked shop for a bit, discussing a newer acquisition the company was contemplating. Chuck loved that his daughter was up enough on Bass news to have an opinion even though she'd been buried in a completely different assignment for weeks.
"I think you should let this one go," Charlotte gave her opinion after hearing her father's rather enthusiastic pitch on the new startup company's strengths and the reasons he wanted to acquire it, "It's dead weight. You could get R&D to start from scratch and it would be a heck of a lot cheaper and the quality would be ten times better."
"You think so?" Chuck gave her opinion some thought.
"Did you look at the inventor's background? He doesn't have any engineering knowledge. He can't even get the device to work half the time. When it does work, it's by pure luck. Pay him for the research he's given you and then free him to do something else. It's still going to be more money than he's probably ever seen or will see in his lifetime," Charlotte replied, "We don't need his 'talents' at Bass too."
"Mister Bass," Eugenia poked her head into the office an hour later, "You have a conference call in five minutes.
Chuck growled at her for the formal way he was addressed.
Charlotte and Eugenia both had a good chuckle about it.
"And Charlotte, the helicopter is ready for you. The Hamptons staff has made all the necessary preparations," Eugenia added.
"I'd better get going," Charlotte glanced at her watch. She couldn't believe how quickly the time had passed while talking to her father about business.
"Don't forget to take your brownies," Chuck held out the container for her.
"How could I forget?" Charlotte snatched the container. She was about to stuff it into her travel bag, but decided to offer one to Eugenia first.
"He's waiting for you on the roof," Eugenia spoke softly so Chuck wouldn't hear as she quickly snatched up a couple of the sweet treats to get her through the rest of her day.
"I'd better get going," she added the container to her bag and then bounced over to hug her father. "Thanks for lunch."
"Call me when you get back to the city," Chuck kissed her cheek.
"I will," she nodded and hugged him a second time.
TBC…