Chapter 3 - Charlie (Part 1)

Charlie wasn't good at being sexy. It was a sad reality, but if the first step to solving a problem was realizing it existed, then she had to admit it: she looked ridiculous in that outfit.

With a sigh, Charlie flopped onto the bed, her breasts nearly bouncing out of the neckline of the shirt she was wearing when her back landed on the bed. The fabric was stretched to the limit across her chest and belly, almost to the point of being see-through, drawing attention to all the places she didn't want highlighted. Growing up with her grandfather, she learned to be confident and love every one of her curves and marks, no matter how many people might judge her because of them. But after three years of watching Samantha throw herself at Morgan and seeing the dozens of high-society fake friends she had doing their best to keep their bodies thinner than a sheet of paper, she could no longer look at herself without thinking. whether it was true that Morgan would never be attracted to a woman like her, who was far from slim and elegant as a model.

“What do you think you're wearing?"

Sitting up in bed with a jump, Charlie saw Samantha on the other side of her bedroom door, which she hadn't even realized her stepmother had opened without permission. In her rush to try on the blouse she'd been tucking away in the back of her wardrobe for months, she'd completely forgotten to lock the door. And now, after thinking about the devil, there was Samantha before her, in flesh and blood and disdain.

"Where do you think you're living? In a brothel?" her stepmother continued, not expecting any response, running her eyes over her body as if she were staring at a worm. "Oh..." she stopped suddenly, before a wicked laugh escaped her "Don't tell me you wore this to try and impress Morgan Sullivan? Oh, honestly, sweetheart, have you been looking in the mirror lately...?"

“And have you gone fuck yourself lately, Samantha?" Charlie snarled, fighting the urge to cover up as she lunged toward her. "Because that's what you should be doing, instead of coming all this way to insult me. In case you didn't remember, this is my room and you're not allowed in here."

“Everything in this mansion belongs to your father, Charlotte." Samantha retorted, convinced "And, therefore, also belongs to me."

“Oh, you think?" This time, it was Charlie who laughed, full of contempt "Well, you know that everything I had, and that he lost thanks to his own stupidity, belonged to the Foster family. And a year from now, when everything that rightfully belongs to me can finally be put in my name, then we'll see who this goddamn mansion and all the cars and jewelry you love so much go to." Crossing her arms over her chest, she narrowed her eyes, deeply satisfied to see Samantha's expression twist with rage.

"Yes, little darling, of course we'll see..." her stepmother muttered under her breath, her blue eyes tinged with a dangerous gleam that sent a shiver down Charlie's spine, though she tried to hide it. "You bet..."

"Thank you for the warning. Now you can get out. I've seen enough of your face for one day." Charlie was about to slam the door in her face when Samantha caught her at the last moment, a smirk stretching her red-covered lips.

“Oh, and about Morgan, if I were you, I'd give up. Not that I expect a stupid, ugly little girl like you to understand, but... Men like him aren't looking for someone who's always covered in fur and reeking of dog vomit." Her stepmother shrugged, tossing her long blonde hair over her shoulder, "I'm really trying to be nice and keep you from getting your poor little innocent heart broken, so just take my advice: let the real women take care of the men." still with that cynical smile, Samantha winked at her "Consider this my birthday present."

"Excellent. And here's my answer..." slamming the door in her face with all the strength she had in her body, Charlie made a point of screaming, even when the solid wood had already separated the two "Fuck you!"

Seething with rage, Charlie threw herself on the bed again, this time on her stomach, hugging the pillow tightly to her chest as she tried not to let Samantha's words take root inside her mind. It wasn't like her stepmother would ever get to keep Morgan, even if just for one night. He despised her too much for that, Charlie knew. Still, knowing that maybe Samantha could be right about how he felt about her was painful.

She knew he loved her, of course. He proved it in every word, every look and every gesture he directed towards her, since knowing each other. But Charlie didn't know if he could continue living next to him receiving only that innocent love that only a friend would be able to give to the other. At least not without freaking out. She wanted him to want her, as she wanted him. She wanted to be able to make all the steamy dreams she had about him come true and wake up every day next to him in bed.

Was it really impossible that, someday, he would actually come to see her as a woman and not as a girl neglected by the family he was supposed to protect?

And if that was true, then would she have to put up with seeing the man she loved with someone else someday?

“Charlie? Charlie what happened?"

Jumping in surprise for the second time that day, Charlie barely had time to look up before Morgan's face appeared before her, his expression full of concern.

"Why are you crying?" he questioned her, almost desperately, as he sat down on the bed and leaned close to her, touching her cheeks affectionately. "Are you hurt? Did Anthony or Samantha do something to hurt her feelings?"

Surprised, Charlie blinked her eyes a few times and was surprised to realize that, in fact, a few tears had gathered as she thought about the worst possible future, although none actually came out. Laughing at his exaggeration, Charlie sniffled and wiped her damp eyes, determined to show him that she was okay. She was a year closer to being out of this horrible place and Morgan was beside her, looking at her like she was the most important thing in the universe. There was certainly no way she was going to let Samantha's venomous words get to her that day.

“I'm fine, I promise." laughing, she completely let go of the pillow she was holding and rubbed her eyes even harder "Nothing much happened, forget about it."

"How do you think I can let this go...?" he started to protest, when suddenly his eyes roamed down her body and, in an instant, Morgan jerked his head to the side, so fast Charlie was worried he'd broken his neck. "Are you going to go somewhere?"

"No, why...?" she started to ask, confused, until, unconsciously, her eyes dropped in the direction where his had been a moment ago and she realized, unable to stop her cheeks from flushing in the process, that all the moving she had done had caused the neckline of the blouse she was wearing was even lower, leaving a good part of her boobs and her bra on display.

"You... I mean, that's not the kind of outfit you usually wear, so I thought maybe you had a date with other friends or something..." He cleared his throat sharply, and for a moment, Charlie thought she heard an almost imperceptible stutter in his husky voice.

"Uh... Not really..." she answered awkwardly, before she managed to muster up enough courage to be a little more daring. "You know how it is. I just turned 20. I want to try new things and change my look a bit. I can't dress like a nun all the time. I mean, it was pretty good, wasn't it?" Crossing one arm over the other, feigning innocence as she tried to make her cleavage stand out even more, Charlie smiled.

"I, um..." Still with his face completely turned away from her, Morgan shrugged quickly. "I don't understand anything about women's clothing, so I don't think my opinion will be of much help..."

"So you think I looked ridiculous...?" even if her intention was to ask that question in a joking tone, Charlie ended up swallowing hard "Like Samantha..?"

"Did she tell you that?" His eyes met hers immediately, filled with fury. "Is that why you looked so sad when I arrived? Don't listen to her, Charlie. Samantha is an empty woman who likes to torment you because she wants everyone to have a life as pathetic and frustrating as the one she has with Anthony." With an affectionate smile, he ran his fingers over her temple and her cheeks, in an extremely soft caress "You're beautiful inside and out, Charlie. Never let anyone convince you that you are less than perfect."

"Oh..." even though she knew she should take advantage of that moment to try to flirt a little more with him, the emotion of having him calling her beautiful for the first time was so strong that Charlie found herself bewildered "I... Huh. ... Thanks."

“I promise, as soon as I get out of here today, I'll make sure Samantha gets the full hearing she deserves for saying that kind of thing to you." he assured her, a dangerous glint in his eye that for some reason made her stomach clench and not in a bad way.

"You know it won't do any good." she tried to convince him "Besides, I don't want to give her the satisfaction of seeing you more than once a day, especially on my birthday. In fact, what surprises me is that she didn't keep you down there much longer than usual." Charlie snorted, furious at the thought of that woman blatantly throwing herself at him, after everything she had made a point of telling him a few moments ago.

“I was lucky I didn't run into her on my way here. Your father, on the other hand, lost me a few minutes while he tried to convince me yet again to change our contract and give him a bigger share of the profits. Fortunately, Anthony is much easier to dissuade than his wife."

“Much easier to scare, you mean." Charlie scoffed, making him chuckle.

"What do you say we forget those exist? Today is an important day after we waste time talking about them. Now…” He shifted his gaze toward the door, and Charlie finally realized that there was a cardboard box covered by a small sheet nearby, which Morgan must have brought himself "Are you excited to find out what your birthday present is?"

"Please tell me you didn't buy a ton of jewelry and put it in a plain box just so I wouldn't get suspicious…" She sighed as she watched him get up and walk over to the gift, looking genuinely pleased with what he'd found, there was in there, whatever it was.

“That's an excellent idea, thank you. Now I know what I can do next year." He flashed the kind of dazzling smile that takes your breath away, before reaching for the sheet covering the box. "Now..." With a graceful movement, he lifted the cloth, causing his smile to disappear in the same instant, when they both realized that there was nothing inside. "But what...? Where did it go...?"

"It...?" Charlie started to ask, confused, until a very light, almost non-existent pressure appeared in her lower back, followed by a high-pitched meow.

Dumbfounded, she turned to find a cat sitting on her bed, right behind her. Its shaggy fur was a mess of orange and white spots mixed on top of each other, and the large eyes that stared at her curiously were a soft gray, like an overcast autumn day. Feeling her heart melt as it always did when she saw any four-legged creature, Charlie gently held out her hands for him to come to her, which the cat did with impressive ease, starting to purr as soon as he snuggled his head against her neck.