(15) The Experienced and Inexperienced

"Just a walk from the park." Lucas answered her question nonchalantly.

Charity watched him move through her trailer with the casual ease of someone who owned the place, which, technically, he did.

The trailer was part of the package deal Lucas had arranged when she signed onto The Queen's Throne, a production funded largely by him. He could walk in and out as he pleased, agreements be damned.

He looked at the clothes in her closet, his fingers trailing over silk and lace with an almost clinical detachment. Then he pulled out a red bodysuit with a lace corset, holding it up between thumb and forefinger like he was examining a piece of art.

"You're going to wear this?"

"T-that is none of your business!" She grabbed the hanger and placed it back inside the closet before closing it with more force than necessary. "Stop going through my things. That's not part of our agreement, isn't it?"

Lucas turned to face her, a sardonic smile playing at the corners of his mouth. "Dear fiancee, you are too unwelcoming."

"I can't relax when you're here. What if people were to see you?" Charity asked critically, her voice barely above a whisper.

She moved toward the small window of her trailer, peeking through the blinds at the bustling set outside. Crew members milled about, preparing for the next scene. Any one of them could be a paparazzi in disguise, or worse, a reporter looking for a scoop.

People were aware of Lucas Cassian.

Unlike her, who stayed low and paid paparazzis to avoid snagging the spotlight for over two years, Lucas was infamous. He was either feared, admired, or the daydream of most women.

His face was everywhere, on magazine covers, in business journals, across social media feeds. If they were seen together, who knew what sort of rumor would spring up to ruin her carefully constructed career.

"And?" Lucas raised a brow, clearly not taking it seriously. "I'm aware of the implications. But, you're already engaged to me."

He grabbed her hand where the Krupp diamond ring rested, a monstrous thing, three carats of flawless clarity. Lucas kept his eyes on her as he kissed the ring seductively, his lips pressing on the shining diamond while his captivating gaze remained locked on her. It was a gesture of ownership disguised as affection.

"What if the world were to know? I'll be called a gold digger and my career, a sham." She pulled away her hand and found her way to sit in front of her mirror, needing distance from his magnetic presence.

Lucas moved behind her, appearing in the mirror like a specter. He leaned close, his breath warm against her ear, and played with a lock of her hair, moving it closer to his nose. The scent of her shampoo seemed to please him, judging by the slight relaxation in his jaw.

"Or... you'll be called the luckiest woman ever." Lucas made a different narrative from her, his voice a low rumble.

"Of course, of course." She nodded, understanding what he meant on a surface level. But beneath that, she understood the truth.

Lucas was a Cassian.

There was nothing he couldn't buy. He had been able to keep her status hidden from Samuel and Violet for two years, buying her enough time to prepare for the awarding events, for her debut. He silenced gossip columns, bought off photographers, and threatened anyone who came too close to spread theories about her and her past identity. The man could make problems disappear with a signature on cheques.

"Anyway, here's a card. I already bought a place nearby so you don't have to stay somewhere else." Lucas placed a card on the desk with an address written on it. The gesture was casual, as if purchasing real estate was as simple as ordering coffee.

"You could have asked Paige to bring it to me." Charity said, her eyes fixed on her reflection while combing her hair.

The brush moved through her blonde locks rhythmically, a calming motion that steadied her nerves. She missed the glimpse of darkness that flashed in his gaze.

"I'll be seeing you around." He simply said, already moving toward the door. The trailer felt bigger without him in it, the air lighter.

He left while putting on his sunglasses as a disguise, a man who needed to hide in plain sight. Charity watched him go through the reflection in her mirror, her hand pausing mid-stroke.

---

Paige was waiting outside with coffee and a paper bag of food, her usual order: a latte with oat milk and a spinach and feta pastry from the café down the street. He saw Lucas leaving the trailer and smiled to greet him, but Lucas went past him, even seemingly purposely to collide with his shoulder.

"Ow. What did I do?" Paige mumbled, looking at Lucas' fading back. He rubbed his shoulder, frowning. The man was built like he'd been carved from marble, and his shoulder was about as forgiving.

Paige entered the trailer, finding Charity still seated at her mirror. "He's in a mood today."

"When is he not?" Charity sighed, finally setting down the brush. "What's on the schedule?"

Paige handed her the coffee and began rattling off the day's filming schedule. "Garden scene with the ensemble. Afternoon tea setting. You'll be seated with several of the noble ladies."

"And Violet?"

"Already on set." Paige's tone suggested something unspoken. "Here's the script I got from the crew."

---

On set, Violet relaxed once Samuel said cut.

They'd just finished the bed scene for the umpteenth time, and it was mainly because of her. Either she didn't like the angle, the lighting, or readjustments of the costumes. Desmond looked visibly annoyed but kept it professional, dashing away quickly from the bed as if he'd been burned.

Samuel and Desmond spoke ahead of her while she arranged her clothes, smoothing out wrinkles that didn't exist. She saw Wane waving at her, not far from the set. Violet walked over to speak to him.

"Any news?" She casually asked and took the coffee from his hand.

"That Vivianne is on her way here for the take. I had Carla swap the script the crew was supposed to hand to her." Wane happily reported.

Violet clapped lightly, a sound of pure satisfaction. "Excellent. Let's see how the little flower blooms when the gardener changes the soil."

She then saw Charity arriving, and the crew ushered them to move to the garden. The transformation from soundstage to royal greenhouse was remarkable, hydrangeas and roses bloomed in carefully arranged clusters, casting the scene in an idyllic glow.

Charity sat at a table in the wide royal greenhouse while sipping tea and indulging in the small treats in front of her with other actresses.

It was an afternoon tea scene, and they were chattering like real friends, the kind of easy camaraderie that only existed in fiction. Charity played her part well, laughing at jokes she didn't find funny and nodding along to stories she couldn't care less about.

"Sister!" Violet arrived, acting as the innocent Avon Estrella with her prim and pretty persona. Her voice was sweet as honey, her demeanor that of a beloved younger sister who could do no wrong.

The crowd around the table turned quiet at her appearance. The other actresses tensed almost imperceptibly, they'd worked with Violet before, and they knew what her arrival meant. Chaos, usually. Or at least, someone else's humiliation.

"His Majesty told me I can join the tea party. That it is time for me to be introduced to the noble ladies." Violet said in the most naive way, her eyes wide and guileless.

Desmond followed right behind her with his regal clothes, a smug appearance on his face but a gaze lovingly toward Violet. The transformation was complete, he looked every inch the conflicted king, torn between duty and desire.

"Ladies, if you would allow her." Desmond gestured, and the actresses looked bothered and convincing as a maid arrived to bring more chairs to the table.

"Oh, I remember those treats. Our mother used to teach me how to bake them." Violet started and began her grim plan in mind, her eyes lingering on the pastries with a calculating gleam.

Charity, on the other hand, listened carefully. Violet's appearance on this scene was not in the script she was handed. There were just a few lines for gossiping with the other side characters. She was unsure of what to do.