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Chapter 17 - Chapter Sixteen: Charlotte's story

WARNING: Nothing triggering. I'm against r*pe and anything forceful but do skip the ending if you don't like any mature content because things do get a little heated with Elliot and Charlotte.

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"It's a long story. My most painful scar." Charlotte began. She was in a daze as she started drawing circles on Elliot's back.

"This all started when my mother hired a tutor for me. You see, I was never really good at studying and my grades were poor. That's when I first met Douglas. He was a freshman in college and I was a junior in high school. He was a student studying at a prestigious university and was recommended by my fathers friend. Doug was a good student and he was in need of a little cash. What my mother was offering wasn't small so he took the offer and taught me until my grades turned for better. After a year of being tutored, my grades were above average and I no longer needed him. That was the last time I saw him

"It wasn't until I was in my last year of college that we met again. I was studying in Australia so it was a shock for me to see him. It was an accidental encounter in a bar, there was nothing else to think about. One thing from another we started talking. He was a fun guy and I really liked him. So I asked him out on a date. Which he accepted. After a couple of dates, we officially started dating." 

"A year into our relationship that's when everything went wrong. Doug changed. His possessiveness of me was unhealthy. He would want to know my whereabouts all the time. Restrict my choices and stick to me closely. It got to the point that he nearly hit me. That was my last straw hence I broke up with him."

"For the first two weeks he called daily and would apologize. I didn't want any form of connection with him so I blocked him. I thought he got the hint that I didn't want to see him anymore but after a month, he would randomly show up at my house or when I'm out and about. He would call these encounters 'coincidences'. I was scared s-so I did what was b-est. I called my brother and told him everything. At that time he was in Australia for a business trip." Charlotte's voice broke as she continued.

Elliots heart broke seeing Charlotte like this. He brought her into his warm embrace. "You don't have to say anything.."

Elliot felt Charlotte shake her head. "No i w-want to tell you this."

"Carson then informed the police. They did some investigation and found lots of evidence of Douglas stalking me from way back. The police arrested him and detained him for 6 months. By then I had forgotten all about him and moved on. I graduated with a degree in filming and was going to return to America. But a friend found an opportunity for me. He helped me to get a job as an assistant director. I didn't decline the offer and decided to stay in Australia for another couple of months."

"That's when I started receiving love letters. I thought it was a guy from work and didn't pay too much attention. I was really stupid. I missed so many signs." Tears slid down Charlotte's cheeks. If only she had realised sooner then things  would've ended quicker.

"When I started dating again, that's when things turned for the worse. I started receiving threatening letters from the same person. I sent them to Carson and he told me to come back home which I instantly did but Doug also followed me there. After I had left though, he broke into my boyfriend's apartment and vandalised it. He threatened to break up with me which he did but then I was already in America."

"Fast forward a couple of years, I was 28, I was about to start filming my movie. Douglous was out of my life-so I thought. My fear had become insignificant. Our last filming location was Brisbane, Australia. I was in my hotel room sleeping when Doug broke in. He was watching me and I didn't know what but I woke up. I saw him and instantly screamed. All those tormented nights came back to me. Douglas covered my mouth but I had already alerted people. I struggled but was so much more stronger than me. He tried escaping with me but someone had called the police. They surrounded him and arrested him freeing me of my nightmares."

Charlotte cried in Elliot's chest soaking his shirt with her tears while Elliot tightened his hold around her. His warmth gave her security.

"Carson took care of the r-rest. He managed to find sufficient evidence to put Douglas behind bars for 10 years. But the thing is, the day I met you I got a call from him a-and today I found pictures of me, you and my day to day life. Someone's watching me and I'm so frightened, Elliot!"

Elliot was startled. He was confused on how to handle this. He had never been in this situation so he could only imagine how painful and traumatic it was to have someone watching you for years and when you finally thought you were safe, they come to haunt you. His heart ached for her. "I'm so proud of you. You're so strong to be able to go through this." 

Charlotte blinked away her tears. "You're not scared?" She asked with her hoarse voice.

Elliot gently smiled and shook his hood. "Why would I be? This isn't enough to separate me from you. My feelings for you run deeper than you think."

Charlotte returned a smile as he kissed Elliot. It was a slow, gentle one, conveying all the unspoken words they had. Their lips molded into one. The faint taste of Charlotte's strawberry balm spread into their mouth as they shared the sweetness.

Elliot grabbed Charlotte and lifted her so she was sitting on the counter. He broke the kiss and pecked her nose. 

"You're stuck with me now Charlie." He said before he took hold of her lips again. This time it was full of strong desire. His tongue fought dominance with her. Their saliva and lust mixed with another. Charlotte moaned against his lips and threaded her fingers through his hair. She felt his hand move from her waist to under her top sending waves of electricity down her spine. Elliot traced her stomach with a finger. 

Charlotte wrapped her legs around Elliots waist feeling her core getting aroused but soon stopped responding to Elliots kiss. His election pressed against her core drove the fuel of lust in her body.

"Let's go to our room." She managed to utter.