Chapter 4

Open skies.

Towering skyscrapers.

City lights stretching farther than the eye could see.

This was the world Charlotte Austin had always known.

Luxury wasn’t something she admired.

It was simply the life she had been born into.

Her parents had spared no expense in giving their children the very best. The finest schools. The safest neighborhoods. Vacations around the world. Private tutors. Anything money could buy.

Yet despite growing up surrounded by wealth, Charlotte remained remarkably humble.

She thanked the chauffeurs.

She learned the names of the cleaners.

She never demanded more than she needed.

Money had never impressed her.

People did.

The Austin family lived by tradition, discipline, and reputation.

Every decision carried purpose.

Every action reflected the family name.

At seventeen, Charlotte rarely complained. She loved traveling with her family, exploring new cultures, and spending quiet evenings with her father. But beneath the polished smiles and perfect grades lived a question she was almost afraid to ask.

What if the life chosen for me isn’t the life I want?

Her future had been mapped out long before she was old enough to understand it.

Her school.

Her extracurricular activities.

Her internships.

Even the books she read.

All carefully chosen by one person.

Her mother.

People often joked that Charlotte was her mother’s miniature version.

The perfect daughter.

The future of Austin Enterprises.

But Charlotte didn’t want to become another copy of someone else’s dreams.

She wanted to discover her own.

Standing against the floor-to-ceiling glass windows on the sixty-third floor of Austin Enterprises, she looked over Bangkok.

The city looked peaceful from up here.

Small.

Manageable.

She had never feared heights.

As a child, she’d climbed every tree she could find before the gardeners chased her down.

She was competitive.

Athletic.

Curious.

She believed achievements only mattered if they were earned.

That was why she studied so hard.

She hated being praised for privileges she hadn’t worked for.

She could have attended an Ivy League university overseas.

Her grades certainly allowed it.

Instead, she chose Bangkok University.

Everyone assumed she stayed because it was expected.

The truth was much simpler.

She couldn’t imagine being so far away from the people she loved.

Ironically…

Looking down at the crowded streets below, Charlotte found herself envying people who had far less than she did.

Children running barefoot through puddles.

Teenagers laughing over cheap street food.

Friends catching buses together.

They looked…

Free.

If being poor meant having the freedom to choose your own life…

She wondered what that felt like.

“Baby girl.”

A familiar British accent interrupted her thoughts.

“What are you doing all the way up here?”

Charlotte smiled before turning around.

“Dad.”

Without hesitation, she slipped into Arthur Austin’s embrace.

She had always been a daddy’s girl.

If her mother taught discipline…

Her father taught comfort.

“Daydreaming?” he asked.

“A little.”

Arthur looked cautiously over the city below before taking two exaggerated steps backward.

“I keep telling your mother I’m retiring.”

Charlotte laughed.

“Because of the heights?”

“They make my stomach do somersaults.”

She grinned.

“It’s all about perspective.”

“Oh, don’t start sounding like your mother.”

Now they were both laughing.

It was one of the few places Charlotte could simply be seventeen.

Arthur gently brushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

“Homework finished?”

She nodded.

“Hours ago.”

“I thought so.”

He smiled proudly.

“I just know how your mother gets.”

Charlotte smiled too.

But it was smaller this time.

“I know.”

A knock interrupted them.

“Miss Charlotte.”

Her mother’s secretary stood respectfully in the doorway.

“Mrs. Austin is ready for you.”

Charlotte’s shoulders tensed ever so slightly.

Her father noticed.

He always noticed.

He squeezed her hand.

“You’ll do fine.”

She smiled.

“I always do.”

Every other evening they held what her mother called leadership sessions.

Charlotte called them examinations.

The conference room could seat twenty-four people.

Her mother always sat at one end.

Charlotte sat twelve seats away.

Far enough that it felt less like a conversation…

And more like an interview.

As she walked toward the room, familiar words echoed through her mind.

“I can’t allow you to make the same mistakes I did.”

“You carry my name.”

“You are my heir.”

“Women cannot afford to be soft.”

“Leaders don’t have time to play.”

“You were born to lead.”

Charlotte entered.

Her mother never looked up immediately.

Only after finishing the document in front of her did she speak.

“Mrs. Austin.”

Charlotte greeted respectfully.

She never called her Mom inside the office.

That was one of the rules.

Her brothers had never been expected to follow it.

Sometimes Charlotte wondered if being born a daughter came with expectations her brothers would never understand.

She often questioned what had happened to the woman sitting before her.

No one became this guarded overnight.

Somewhere beneath the sharp suits, flawless posture, and commanding presence…

Surely there had once been a young girl with dreams of her own.

Whatever life had taken from her…

It had replaced tenderness with perfection.

“Miss Austin.”

Her mother’s voice pulled her back.

“Your report.”

Charlotte stepped forward and placed the presentation neatly on the table.

She had prepared for this all week.

She knew every number.

Every statistic.

Every projection.

Yet none of that quieted the fear inside her.

Because this meeting had never really been about business.

It was about proving she was enough.

And somehow…

No matter how hard she worked…

She always left feeling as though she had fallen just short.