Cheri on Top by Susan Donovan Read Free Book Online Page A

still hiding in the bathroom to make a phone call, just like in her high school years. She stared at the familiar pattern of pink and white ceramic tiles going halfway up the wall, inhaling the sharp mix of Jean Naté, Dial soap, and Pond’s cold cream that had seeped into the grout over the decades.
    Candy’s voice sounded like the music of the angels. “I knew it,” her friend said after Cherise had given her a detailed rundown of her first day home. “So when do you think you’ll be back? It’ll be great to have a car again. I hate the bus—it’s full of pervs.”
    Cherise sighed, then whispered, “I got some bad news about the car. It died. I have no idea what’s wrong with it.”
    “Oh, well, you get what you pay for, I guess.” Cherise heard her friend try to hide her disappointment. “How much did we pay for that car, again?”
    “Five hundred.”
    Candy sighed. “So you’ll be taking the bus home?”
    “I’m not coming home. Not right away. I’m going to give it a month.”
    “You go, girl,” Candy whispered. “That’s a month longer than I figured you’d last. Have you talked to Tanyalee yet? I know you said J.J.’s still an ass, but is he still hot?”
    Cherise frowned. “Yes,” she whispered.
    “I knew it,” Candy whispered.
    “Wait a minute. Why are you whispering?”
    “Because you are.”
    “But I’m in Aunt Viv’s bathroom. I have to whisper.”
    Candy burst out laughing. “My God! This is hilarious! I’m having déjà vu!”
    Cherise hung her head and ran her free hand through her hair. “Good Lord, Candy. I swear I have no idea why I came back here, and now I’ve promised Granddaddy I’ll stay for at least four weeks. I made a total fool of myself at that meeting today, pretending like I was Diane-Freakin’-Sawyer. And then Granddaddy took me to the publisher’s office and asked me to pick out a paint color for the walls, and J.J. walked by several times just to sneer at me through the open door.”
    “Ugh.”
    “I’m not qualified for this.”
    “Just choose something in a neutral pastel.”
    “No! I mean the job ! I don’t know the first thing about what I’m supposed to do in this job !”
    “I don’t know about that,” Cherise said. “You grew up around journalism and what you don’t know now you can learn in a hurry. The important thing is that you demonstrated leadership today—charged right in there and took the bull by the horns. Besides, advance preparation has never been our strong point.”
    Cherise giggled. How very true. They’d launched—and lost—several businesses before they stumbled into real estate. Armed with only an online course and an abundance of enthusiasm, they’d managed to turn a three-thousand-dollar investment into a portfolio worth more than fourteen million.
    The way up was nothing but one long, heady rush. The way down was all shock and pain.
    “This is different,” Cherise said with a sigh. “This is my family’s heritage. What if I do nothing but hammer down the last nail in the coffin? They think I’m some sort of business genius. They think I can turn around decades of decay in a few weeks!”
    “The important thing is you’re going to try your best. You’re keeping your promise to your granddaddy. That’s all that matters.” Candy paused. “Um, I just want to remind you that you can never tell anyone what happened down here. My mother can never find out I lost the money she gave me.”
    “I know.”
    “So what else?” Candy asked.
    “What do you mean?”
    “What aren’t you telling me?”
    “I’m not following.”
    “Come on now,” Candy said. “The paper is on its last legs, Aunt Viv and Garland are as strange as ever, Tater Wayne’s still hot for you, and the lake house has probably fallen to the ground. But what else aren’t you telling me?”
    Cherise rolled her eyes. “Isn’t that enough?”
    “Sure. But I know you. You’re hiding something.”
    “God,” Cherise groaned.
    “Well?