Page 94 of Runaway Pride

“Nice!” Charles exclaimed. At least this guy was showing some enthusiasm. Charlie had to give him credit for that. “That sounds fun! Do you go on wild adventures?”

“Sometimes. I mostly travel with journalists and researchers. There’s a lot of logistics involved, but it gets adventurous when you’re in a foreign environment.” Rick took the glass Charlie pushed to him. She had already finished hers and was pouring herself another round.

“Awesome. Do you shoot for National Geographic?”

“No, but that is a dream of mine.”

“It’ll happen, man. Don’t worry!”

Charles was being exceptionally supportive and friendly, despite the obvious farce of the night. Charlie was grateful the man knew how to conduct himself in a strange situation and felt the utmost pride for Rick in handling everything. After tonight, she was going to have it with her mother.

“How much does it pay?” Grace inquired boldly, finishing her glass.

“Mother,” Charlie seethed. From her side, she felt Rick’s hand on her thigh.

“Not a lot. The career path is more so for people who are passionate about it,” Rick answered frankly. “It won’t ever bring in a huge cash flow unless you become famous, and that’s rare. I make most of my income selling my pictures to stock photo businesses.”

“I see.” Grace’s tone was as dry as the wine.

Their meals arrived, thankfully, taking them away from the banal atmosphere. Grace had indeed ordered for them. A Chilean sea bass sat on Charlie’s plate.

Fish.

With her appetite slowly diminishing, the reminder of her mother and fish together completely ruined it, so she went to chew on the Caesar salad. To her side, Rick stabbed into his ribeye steakand brought it to his mouth. Charles had gotten a rack of lamb. Grace ordered Wagyu. The table smelled divine, yet all Charlie wanted was to leave.

Despite Charles’s efforts in making things light, she was too uncomfortable to pretend, and felt awful for Rick. The guilt for putting him in such a position distressed her almost to the point of tears.

For most of the remaining time, Grace talked about Charles as if he was her son, showcasing his achievements and success stories. Rick merely nodded and threw small smiles in between, while Charlie sat as still as stone, fuming.

Near the end of their meals, everyone had finished except Charlie. Her fish was still untouched. Only Rick noticed, but he didn’t push. Grace was too busy chattering along with Charles to see anything beyond her insufferable world. Not once had she asked Rick anything about himself.

Charlie should’ve known her mother wasn’t ever going to give her or Rick a real chance. She was truly naïve to trust Grace to set aside her rigid ideology and meet her daughter halfway.

“Rick, have you thought about modeling?” Charles asked out of the blue.

The question slightly threw off Rick, but he bounced back and nodded. “Yes, recently.” He turned to look at her warmly, and it triggered a burst of butterflies in her stomach. “Charlie, in fact. She used me as her model for her men’s product line.”

She beamed at the proud cadence in his tone. Of the many times he’d turn down her offer to model for her, he’d strongly denied his qualification. But now, he was embracing it.

“That’s right,” she added. “Rick is a wonderful model. The photographers had complimented his features.” She reached in to intimately rub a thumb over his jawline, to which his eyes widened at her display of affection.

Charles nodded while looking at them. “Actually, I am inclinedto agree.”

Startled, Charlie and Rick turned in his direction.

“Rick, how would you like to model for my products?” Charles asked. “We also have a men’s line of sports sunglasses currently in its post-prototype phase. I think you have the exact look for what I want.”

Charlie gaped at him, and Rick blinked. Their server then came to grab the empty plates before anyone said something.

Rick cleared his throat. “Well… that’s a nice offer. I don’t really know what to say.”

“It’ll be really simple. Since you’ve already had experience, I’m sure you’ll do fine. As a wildlife photographer, high-quality sunglasses are a must have gear, right?”

“Yes… that’s right.”

Charles boomed brightly. “Great! Give me your contact, I’ll have my secretary give you a call. You can bring your equipment along to complete the look for the photoshoot. The camera, the backpack, everything that a wildlife photographer would wear!”

“Uh…” Rick looked at Charlie for guidance, clearly flummoxed. But she had nothing. The entire night wasbizarre.

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