Chapter 41: Chapter 41

For the millionth time that day, Charlie pinched himself lightly to make sure he wasn't dreaming. However, the stone staircase under his feet remained the same and the green lawn full of people remained noisy and busy. Arranging the strap of her backpack on her shoulder, as soon as she reached the last step, she made sure to turn around and admire the complex of small buildings in the area destined for biology courses again. In the distance she could see the afternoon sun hitting the many windows of the veterinary medicine building, which she had just left, after a day full of introductory classes and presentations that had gone by too quickly.

When she searched her memory, it seemed like just yesterday she was still holding hands with her grandfather Aiden, learning to ride horses, feed the pigs and take care of the farm dogs. And now here she was, just a few semesters away from becoming a veterinarian, as she had been dreaming of for as long as she could remember. A dream that had followed her even after her grandfather had died and Anthony had made it clear that she was not going to waste money paying for a course that would train her in a profession that would not bring possessions or status to the precious Manson surname. But there she was. With a backpack full of books on mammalian anatomy and the name Charlotte Dawn Foster Sullivan signed on each of her application papers, with no mention of the Mansons.

She was still a little reticent about letting Morgan pay for it all, as it made her feel as if he had some quasi-parental obligation to her, like an adult taking responsibility for a child's education. But still, now that she had finally taken the first step towards her dream, there was no turning back...

No, everything would be. She would pay him for that in a year. Not even in bed.

If he just went back to acting normal with her again...

“Charlie!

The sound of her name caught her attention and she turned to see two girls coming down the stairs. She recognized them as her classmates, but could only remember the name of Emma, the slender girl with curly brown hair and glasses, who had helped her find the lab where they would have their first class. The second girl, with slightly orange blonde hair and a bored expression, had sat next to her in the auditorium to watch the dean's opening speech, but they hadn't exchanged a single word, until Emma found them and present them.

“Hi, Charlie. Are you already leaving? “ Emma asked, when the three came face to face “ Me and Ava are going to our dorms. Want with us? “ she asked, with a friendly smile “ Which room are you staying in?

“Uh, actually, I already lived in the city, so I didn't need to rent a dorm…” Charlie explained, a little embarrassed “I already live with my husband, so…

“Oh, are you married? Emma asked, looking surprised but not dismissive, unlike Ava, who raised an eyebrow as if she was looking at an idiot.

“And how old is the baby? Emma's colleague asked, earning a sideways look from her friend.

“We don't have kids yet. “ Charlie snapped, staring at her without flinching “And I didn't get married because I was pregnant, if that's what you're implying.

“Uh… So, Charlie…” Emma added, looking eager to ease the tense atmosphere that hung in the air, “We heard that the seniors are having a homecoming party at one of the sororities today. Do you want to come with us?

"Oh, I didn't know…" Charlie asked, surprised by the invitation. When she used to dream about college, all that came to mind were studying and graduating, but of course there was so much more. In fact, it was very likely that other girls her age were more looking forward to going to parties like that than learning how to perform high-risk surgery on someone's pet " Well, I wasn't planning on going, but... I don't have any plans for today either... " she mused, feeling the sadness take over at the thought of having to come home on that happy day and find Morgan's nervous look and avoidant attitude at home " When are you going to be, exactly?

“It will be at eight. “ It was Ava who replied, not looking too pleased to be left out of the conversation. But, who knows, maybe one of the seniors wants to make an exception for a married woman... " the girl smiled suggestively, making Charlie snort with her sick joke " If I were you and wanted to get along, I'd go with an alliance .

“Stop it, Ava. “ Emma nudged her, her cheeks a little flushed. “Don't listen to her, Charlie. You don't have to do anything you don't want to if you go to the party. I actually confess that I'm nervous about all of this myself…” she admitted, gaining even more sympathy from Charlie for her honesty “You know, it's not like we have a lot of unsupervised parties between boys and girls on the dairy farm where I grew up.

“I know exactly how you feel. “ Charlie laughed, relieved to confirm that he had found someone he could truly identify with “ I also spent my entire childhood on a farm with my grandfather and the most interaction with boys I had was when our neighbor brought his twins and I ended up pushing them into the pigpen when they tried to bother our chickens. she chimed in, making Emma laugh, though Ava looked nothing but annoyed.

“I think I've had even less contact with boys yet. The only boys our age who also lived on the farm were Ava's brothers, and they preferred to spend as much time in town as possible. We were never very close to him.

" Us? Charlie questioned, confused.

" Yes. Don't let Ava's bad girl attitude fool you. “ Emma laughed, while her friend glared at her. “ We've known each other since we were babies and grew up together. Her father owned the farm where my family has worked as veterinarians for generations...

“ And that's the only reason I'm here! “ Ava interrupted her, rudely “ If Dad hadn't forced me to become a veterinarian when I said I wanted to leave home to go to college, I would be in Paris right now with Mom and my brothers! The only good thing is that I'll finally be able to go to parties and get a boyfriend, without having my dad's rogue pawns sniffing around and keeping an eye on me for him. I can't believe I'm going to have to put up with a bunch of disgusting animals wanting to lick my face just to get this. she grumbled, earning Charlie even more dislike.

“Oh, come on! I'm sure you'll start to like the course over time. “ Emma tried to cheer her up, turning to Charlie “ But, what do you think about going to see our dorm, Charlie? Since you don't have plans for today, we can talk a little more and even get something to eat before the party...

" What a party? a deep voice asked from beside them, sending a shiver through Charlie's body.

Turning around, the three saw Morgan slowly approaching, looking as if he had just gotten out of his car, which was parked nearby. Though her heart was racing as it always did when she saw him, Charlie couldn't concentrate on much other than the sour feeling of pure jealousy that rose in her throat when she realized that Emma and Ava were staring at her husband in amazement. . But what really bothered her was the expression of pure lust that came over Ava's face, as if she was ready to jump all over him for any husband.

“Morgan! “ Charlie hurried over to him, before he could get too close to the girls “ Did something happen? What are you doing here?

" Like this? It's your first day of class. “ he smiled beautifully, as if he were talking about the most important day of the year “ We have to celebrate! That's why I came to get you. “ he explained, making a radiant smile appear on her face.

“Swear...? “ she started to ask, but a loud clearing of her throat interrupted her, making her, despite her annoyance, look away at Ava, which Morgan imitated.

" Hello. “Ava greeted him, being much nicer than it was necessary to be with a complete stranger, as she approached the two, without any qualms. “Aren't you going to introduce us, Charlie dear?

“Are these your friends? he questioned, looking genuinely happy to hear that she had already managed to make friends.

“Uh… Yes…” Charlie answered hesitantly, not knowing how to say without being rude that only Emma deserved that title “They're my classmates. We met today. These are Emma and Ava. “ She pointed at each one, unable to contain a grimace when she realized that Ava had stopped much closer to Morgan than necessary. “And this is my husband, Morgan. “ she made a point of wrapping her arm in his, introducing him.

“ Is that your husband?! Ava gasped, dumbfounded, like what Charlie had just said didn't make sense.

“ It's a pleasure to meet you. “Morgan greeted them politely.