Chloe obviously wanted to embarrass Charlotte.

"Charlotte, oh wait, I should call you sister-in-law now, shouldn't I? You've been doing these sorts of tough jobs since you were little, so you're probably more detail-oriented than the staff, right? How about you clean up the whole yard?" Chloe said, with a dig.

Charlotte ignored her, just sitting by the window sipping her coffee.

Chloe was fuming at her calmness and sent all the servants away in a huff, "What are you so smug about? Let me tell you, Charlotte, Kenneth is really happy with me. He can't wait for me to have Liam's baby!" "Oh, is that so?" Charlotte asked, all cool and casual.

Chloe was gritting her teeth with anger, "So that means the whole Parker family is on my side, except for Dylan, who has no real power anyway. What have you got to fight me with?"

"But isn't Liam on my side?"

Charlotte's innocent question just made Chloe even madder, "He's your brother-in-law! Have you no shame?"

"I'd like to have some, but he's not giving me the chance," Charlotte shot back.

Right then, Liam walked in.

Chloe had been crying and running to Kenneth to tattle, and after a long talk, Kenneth wouldn't budge, insisting that Liam and Chloe had to share a bed.

Liam was already irritated when he entered and saw Charlotte looking at him with those big, sad eyes. Her gaze was so soft and pitiful, that it followed him everywhere, making him feel restless, "What's up?" "My room hasn't been cleaned," said Charlotte.

Liam was annoyed, "What about your boyfriend? You should be asking him for this kind of help."

"But I wanted to ask you."

She'd never sounded so weak and yet so alluring when she spoke to him.

It tugged at the heartstrings even more than when she was burning up with fever at that hotel.

Liam just stared her down, took a few deep breaths, and seeing no way out, he stormed out to give the cleaning crew an earful.

Charlotte, watching his protective display through the window, took a leisurely sip of her coffee, then casually asked Chloe, who was practically frozen next to her, "He still has a thing for me, doesn't he?" "Home-wrecker!" Chloe hissed through clenched teeth, "Have you got no morals, Charlotte? How low can you go? We're engaged! Aren't you afraid of karma for flirting with him?"

"Why should I be scared of karma when you've done plenty and it's never bothered you?"

Charlotte dropped her smile and her face turned cold as ice, "I'm just afraid I haven't gone far enough. Annie and the others might haunt my dreams, blaming me for not doing enough."

Chloe was taken aback by the hate in her eyes and suddenly found herself unable to come back with anything.

In the silence that followed, Liam finished lecturing the servants and came in. He didn't even glance their way, just headed straight upstairs to his room.

"Even with all your flirting, he can't even be bothered to look at you!" Chloe blurted out like she finally found a vent for her frustration.

Charlotte let out a half-mock, half-serious chuckle, "Oh? Maybe I just need to try a little harder then?"

"You-!" Chloe was so mad she was lost for words.

True, Liam's ignoring Charlotte, but it's not like he's paying much attention to Chloe either.

It's their engagement day, for crying out loud. He's supposed to be all happy and stuff.Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

Chloe thought she wasn't that into Liam. She figured he was marrying her to snag the Beaumont fortune, and she was tying the knot with him to win some power play at Beaumont. Not much real affection involved. Turns out, she was wrong.

She was way into Liam.

The less he looked at her, the more he seemed to favor Charlotte, and the more Chloe wanted his eyes-and his heart-to be all about her!

The backyard was all spruced up by the time dinner rolled around. Charlotte had gone a bit heavy on the coffee that afternoon and just wasn't feeling the whole dinner thing. She pushed her food around the plate for a bit before deciding she'd rather hit the hay early.

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Dylan stopped her as she stood up, "Not eating much, huh? Nothing you like here?"

He was about to dig a little deeper when he caught a frosty look from across the table.

It was Liam, no surprises there.

That icy glare was loaded with daggers, and Dylan stiffened up, quickly getting the message to zip it and quit prying.

Charlotte glanced at Liam, who was parked at the head of the table, his plate barely touched too.

Weird. He's engaged to the girl he's into, but why the long face?

Feeling bugged by her, maybe?

Charlotte decided to just throw it out there. "Why the look, Mr. Parker? You find me annoying or something?"

Liam didn't see that question coming. His eyes flickered, irritation bubbling up quickly.

What else does she want from him? What more is he supposed to do?

Her questioning him like this-was it because she thought he wasn't doing enough? Was it some kind of threat?

With a click of his tongue, Liam looked away and just quit eating, ignoring her.

Charlotte was way too forward and aggressive these days. He hadn't gotten used to this new her yet.

Charlotte wasn't really hanging on for an answer anyway. She headed upstairs, did her nightly routine, and before she knew it, she was out like a light on her bed.

In that half-asleep haze, she felt some warmth next to her, like someone had taken a seat.

She blinked her eyes open and-yep, it was Liam.

There he was, sitting at the edge of her bed, a plate of candied fruit by his side, thumbing through her phone.

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"Liam," she called out to him, and he turned, setting the phone aside and standing to loom over her.

Charlotte eyed the plate of candied fruit. She's into fruit and the sweet stuff, but she's never been one to make a fuss over her likes. So, it's a toss-up whether Liam brought it because he knows what she's into or just because it was handy in the kitchen.

"Why aren't you eating?" Liam couldn't help but ask when she made no move to grab any.

Charlotte flopped back on the bed, her hair falling over her eyes. She blinked a few times before saying, "It's too far; I can't reach."

"You weren't glued to the bed, you know," he hinted, meaning she could get up and grab it herself.

But Charlotte played dumb, "Too far; I can't reach."

Liam let out a sigh like he was trying to keep his cool, and then just shoved the plate up to her face. Charlotte snagged a piece of the candied fruit and started chewing slowly.

This pricey stuff really hits differently compared to the cheap fruit from the street stalls.

After a few pieces, her teeth started to feel like they were on edge from the sweetness. She pushed the plate away and said, "What's up with you being here? Middle of the night, just the two of us. Doesn't look good, us being in the same room."

Liam froze, nearly losing it.

"And you weren't worried about 'looking good' when you were all tangled up with Dylan, huh?!"

What was she thinking at the start?

Charlotte kept it cool. "Don't go losing your cool over nothing, Liam. Did you ever feel 'not proper' with Chloe?"

"You're getting back at me," Liam muttered, lips pressed tight.

Charlotte rolled over, oozing nonchalance. "Nope, not getting back at you. I'm just making the most of you."

"You!" Liam was about to go off again, but Charlotte slapped a hand over his mouth, feeling the heat of his breath burning her palm.

"It's late. You should get back."