Chapter 103: Trust Me
"Why don’t you give them to her yourself?"
Thea asked, still shaken.
"Too lazy...." Charlotte said, shrugging and nudging her aside as she walked inside.
"Hey, did I even allow you to enter my house?" Thea asked, following Charlotte.
"Grandma..." Charlotte replied, before embracing her in a warm hug.
Grandma Grace looked up from the TV and smiled. "What movie are you watching, Grandma?" Charlotte asked.
"It’s from our generation."
"Grandma, I have some recommendations. Want to watch?" Charlotte suggested, winking at Thea.
"Charlotte, don’t try to mess with her," Thea warned, shooting Charlotte a protective glance.
Charlotte’s grin only grew wider as she continued, her voice dripping with sly intent. "Like The .."
But Thea was too quick. With a swift motion, she pinched Charlotte’s arm, her fingers closing around the soft flesh with a firm grip.
Charlotte let out a pained yelp, her eyes widening in surprise. "Ouch!" she exclaimed, rubbing her sore arm as she shot Thea a mock-accusing glance, laughing.
Charlotte’s voice was laced with mock exasperation as she turned to Thea. "Seriously, I was right in the middle of recommending some great movies to Grandma, and you had to interrupt.." she said, a playful pout on her lips.
Thea raised an eyebrow, her tone dry. "Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize I was interrupting a cinematic lecture."
Charlotte chuckled, undeterred." Anyway, as I was saying, Grandma, you have to watch ’The Notebook’, ’La La Land’. They’re, like, the ultimate rom-coms.." she said, her eyes shining with enthusiasm.
As the movie credits rolled, the trio lounged comfortably on the sofa.
"When are you leaving?" Thea asked, feigning impatience.
"Are you eager to get rid of me.. Thea?" Charlotte teased, snuggling into Grandma Grace’s side.
Grandma Grace exchanged a knowing glance with Thea, aware of her playful jab.
"I’m here to help her get dressed.." Charlotte said with a smile, her eyes shining with excitement.
"Who needs your help?" Thea replied, rolling her eyes.
"I can make you look stunning, Believe my fashion sense.." Charlotte whispered."Mr. Thompson won’t know what hit him."
Thea raised an eyebrow. "Are you begging to get beaten up?"
"Do you think you can take me down?"
"I’ve taken self-defense classes. Want a demonstration?" Thea smirked.
"Come on, Thea, let me pick out your outfit today." Charlotte suggested, already heading towards Thea’s room.
"Grandma, help!" Thea pleaded.
Grandma Grace chuckled and shook her head. "I’m staying out of this, you two figure it out.
Charlotte smiled victoriously. "See, Grandma too has trusts in my fashion sense."
Thea sighed, following Charlotte to her room.
Inside her bedroom, Charlotte was rummaging through her wardrobe. "This dress won’t do.." she said, tossing it aside.
"You’re going to increase my workload, and look what you’re doing to my room!" Thea exclaimed, surveying the mess created by her.
"Sorry, I usually do this in my own room." Charlotte replied, still searching for the perfect outfit.
Thea stood tall, hand on her hip. "Before you go, you’ll put everything back exactly where it belongs."
"Deal, I’ll clean up before I go," Charlotte agreed.
"Yes! I knew I’d find it." Charlotte said triumphantly, holding up the dress. "This is going to look good on you."
Thea’s eyes flashed with incredulity as she took in the dress. She bit back her outrage, her voice trembling. "You can’t be serious? You expect me to wear this...this...thing?"
Charlotte revealed a black bodycon dress, featuring a tiny slit, square neckline, and three-quarter sleeves, creating a look that was both demure and daring.
Thea hesitated, holding the dress at arm’s length. "I don’t know, Charlotte... I’m not going to wear this."
Charlotte’s face lit up with persuasion. "Oh, Thea, trust me! You’ll look stunning in this dress. Just wear it with high stockings..."
Her mind flashed back to their shopping trip months ago, when Charlotte had insisted on buying this very dress despite her reservations.
"I’m not so sure..." Thea trailed off, still uncertain.
Charlotte’s smile never wavered. "Trust me, Thea. You’ll knock ’em dead in this dress."
"Go and quickly try it on." Charlotte said, excitement in her voice. "And tell me, where are your stockings?"
"They’re in the left corner."
She replied before reluctantly heading to change into the dress.
When she emerged, Charlotte couldn’t help but admire her. "Ah, look at how beautiful your legs look! If someone sees them, they’re bound to fall in love..."
Thea rolled her eyes. "You and your imagination..."Charlotte chuckled. "Charlotte, I feel a bit exposed in this dress." Thea said, tugging at the hem.
"Do you want to know what ’exposed’ is called?" Charlotte teased.
Thea shot back, "Okay, I get it..."
As she went to apply some light makeup, Charlotte suggested, "Use a bold red lip color."
But Thea opted for a pink shade instead. "Looking gorgeous, my baby..." Charlotte cooed, taking her in her arms.
"Don’t you have work later?" snuggling into the embrace she asked
"Yes, I’m going to see my best friend’s crush’s reaction." Charlotte replied mischievously.
"Are you going with me?"
"Will you take me with you?" Charlotte countered, grinning. "If it’s okay, I won’t mind."
"Did you seriously fall for my words? I don’t want to be a third party... you go and enjoy."
Charlotte laughed, releasing her from the hug. "I was just joking, silly! I don’t want to be a third party....."
At Thompson’s Mansion...
The sound of a sports car echoed through the air as it sped into the parking lot with full speed and parked. It was Liam. "Brother Liam, come here!" Emerson called out with a voice as loud as she could raise, because Liam was quite far from them. She went and took his hands and brought him to the sofa.
In the living room, only Emerson was there, engaged in drawing and coloring. "Brother Liam, when are you going to marry?" she asked.
Liam replied, still with his head up and closed eyes, "In the future."
Emerson exclaimed, "Haha!! Really??"
Liam responded with a gentle hum, "Mmmm."
Emerson continued, "The girl whom Brother Ryder will choose will be a good person."
Liam hummed again, "Mmmm."
Emerson went on, "He said that she will love me and care for me too, just like he does."
Liam’s response was another soft hum, "Mmmm."
Emerson concluded, "So I promised him that I will love and care for her."
"Hmmm."
Throughout the conversation, Liam didn’t talk much, instead keeping a gentle hum, listening and agreeing to Emerson’s words.
"Oh, young Master Flynn came to see us." Elder Edward announced, approaching the sofa.
"Good evening, Grandpa." Liam replied.
"After a long time, you came to visit us.You have become so dashing after coming back from abroad."
Liam’s expression remained serene.
"So, are you all permanently settling here?"
"Yes, Father agreed."
Lydia whispered to Melanie, who stood beside her on the 1st floor, grasping the railing and gazing down into the living room. "Look, another attractive friend of Brother Ryder has arrived."
Lydia’s eyes were fixed on Liam below, and Melanie’s gaze followed, taking in the scene unfolding in the living room.
Lydia: "Brother Ryder and Brother Liam are best friends for a long time, along with Brother John."
Melanie: "Exactly!!! Not just their facial expressions were the same, but they replied with limited words and the same tone."
Lydia: "There’s nothing to be surprised about. Remember? Grandma told us so many such incidents when these three were teenagers."
Melanie: "Yeah! I remember. Just their personalities are quite different, but can’t deny the fact that they are icebergs."
Lydia: "Yeah!!"
Melanie: "I wonder, what will happen when two of them will like the same girl?" She said with the expressions of a person from the gossip column.
Lydia: "Hah? Don’t say such things."
Melanie: "I am just saying it as fun. I wonder, with whom that girl will end up together with?" She said with eyes filled with curiosity.
Ryder came downstairs, wearing a white t shirt and a pair of dark blue pants that fit him perfectly, showcasing his tall and lean physique.
"Look how handsome he is looking." Lydia exclaimed.
Just then, Brenda, their mother, appeared at the scene, her curious gaze fixed on her twins.
"Lydia, Melanie, what are you two doing here?"
Both the twins shivered and looked at each other, their eyes locked in a silent conversation.
’Did Mom hear our conversation?’ they seemed to ask each other through their nervous glances.
