The Bad Boy Next Room (Charlie and Taylor) novel Chapter 72

‘I lost it,’ Taylor acknowledged. But what could he do? Tristan was his bottom line, and now Charlie was part of those he intended to protect.

Earlier, when Taylor arrived at the Nook and Brew Cafe, he saw the growing tension from outside the glass windows. He rushed in, catching Archie slapping Charlie!

When he saw Charlie on the floor, something in him snapped. Who would dare touch his girlfriend?

The worst part was discovering the reason behind it.

Archie had broken Tristan’s acoustic guitar, the same limited edition instrument Taylor had tried so hard to secure. What was even more painful was seeing his brother cry, broken over the gift that he had cherished so dearly.

Taylor did not know what came over him. Call it an adrenaline rush, but he was able to carry Archie’s weight with ease. He pinned Archie on the ground and went into revenge mode!

Fortunately, Archie was so taken aback by Taylor’s unexpected arrival that he never had the chance to fight back. Only Archie’s friends tried to hurt Taylor from behind, but Jeremy and Atlas backed him up.

The fight led them to the police station, and now, they were about to face a scolding from Taylor’s grandfather.

“Let me take a look at your cheek,” Taylor said, carefully moving Charlie’s face from side to side.

They were in the living room of the Carrington manor, waiting for the family meeting.

Taylor’s parents were still changing, and his grandfather was securing surveillance videos of the fight. As for Tristan, he was seated across them, still feeling broken.

Charlie had no wounds, but her right cheek had become slightly swollen.

Looking at her hurt him. Taylor felt like getting angry all over again, but recalling the damage he did to Archie’s face gave Taylor a sense of satisfaction.

Archie ended up with a broken nose, a cut on his right cheek and lip, and a badly swollen face. He would likely need a week at home for the swelling to go down.

“Charlie, what were you thinking, throwing a punch first?” Taylor asked.

“I wasn’t thinking. He made me so mad,” Charlie replied. “What right did he have to destroy the guitar? What right did he have to talk to people that way?”

Moments later, Taylor joined in their embrace. He said, “Hey, Tristan. Don’t worry about the guitar, okay? We will buy you a new one, me and Charlie.”

Tristan nodded, sniffing his tears away. He let go of the hold and said, “Thank you, Charlie, Taylor.”

Just as they were emotional, someone cleared his throat from behind them. They all turned to find Douglas Carrington. He ordered, “Turn on the TV for me, Taylor.”

***

Charlie did not know how to act. Douglas Carrington made it clear it was a family meeting, but why was she there?

Taylor’s parents soon made it back down to the living room. Without a word, the governor picked up the remote and turned on the TV. The screen flashed, revealing a video recording from the Nook and Brew Cafe.

When it ended, Douglas leaned back in his seat and rubbed the bridge of his nose before speaking. “We were fortunate that there were surveillance cameras everywhere. If not for this proof that Archie Foster started it all, Taylor, you’d be in a much worse situation now.”