It took seconds before her senses returned to her. She screamed, “Taylor! Why didn’t you close the door?”
She slammed the door shut, fuming as she reached her room.
Later, while having breakfast, Taylor kept chuckling while eating. He asked, “What is so fucking wrong if you had seen me butt naked?”
“What do you mean?” Charlie snapped.
“I did not close the door because I was already in. I don’t see any problem with it. I’m living with my girlfriend. So what if you see me naked? Even if you take advantage of me, that’s okay! You are my girlfriend!” Taylor said.
“Great,” Charlie grumbled. “Now, I’ll be going to class with an image of your ass at the back of my head.”
Yes, Charlie was going back to school after a day’s rest. Her face was no longer swollen, and she needed to catch up on her marketing lessons.
So far, her grandfather Charles had not followed up on his offer to help introduce Taylor to her father, but she knew the plan was already in motion. It was only a matter of time.
Right now, she needed to get through the day, and in the evening, they would leave for the nut plantation just as they had planned. They were going to be out of town for the entire weekend.
Charlie went through the day enduring Sofia’s death glares. She knew it had something to do with Archie, her boyfriend, but as Taylor promised, they never bothered her. It helped that Taylor made an extra effort to see her almost after every class. Taylor also sent Atlas or Jeremy to escort her when his class conflicted with hers.
There was only one instance when Luke found the chance to speak to her. Luke appeared out of nowhere at the end of her marketing class, holding her wrist. He said, “Charlie, look, I’m sorry about what happened - with Archie. I should have stopped him.”
Although they arrived at night, and the structure was only two stories high, Charlie could see how the estate sprawled across vast land. Beyond the main house, Charlie spotted separate cottages and other structures she had yet to identify. Welcoming them was a wraparound porch furnished with plush seating.
Charlie thought it could not be any more grand. However, when she woke up the next day, the full scale of the estate became clear to her. After getting out of bed, Charlie opened her balcony door. She gasped at the breathtaking view before her.
Stretching as far as the eye could see, the farm was an expansive nut plantation, meticulously arranged in perfect rows. From afar, she saw workers moving between the trees. Shaker machines were already deployed.
There were other barn-like structures, which Charlie assumed were meant to store the nuts.
“Oh, my god!” she whispered, pressing a hand to her chest. “This isn’t just a farm. It’s a nut empire.”
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