Tempted Trapped and Too Late to Run
Chapter 55

When Simon walked back into the room, there was Quinn, already dressed up

and ready to kick off her livestream. She hadn't even bothered with the orchard today. Why would she? It was out in the sticks, there was no air conditioning, and the mosquitoes were relentless at night. So, she always did her livestreams from the swankiest room in the guesthouse.

As soon as Simon walked in, Quinn shot him a question, "Hey Simon, have you seen my sister? Word is the apple growers are bailing on her because her prices are sky-high. She's got over twenty thousand orders stuck. If those get canceled, it could really mess with the Ferguson Corporation, right?"

Simon was a bit annoyed and replied, "She only took on the Ashford project to get back at you. If she's in over her head now, that's on her. She should've known better."

Quinn was already in front of the camera, though her livestream hadn't kicked off yet.

"Do you think Uncle Dylan might fire her over this?" she asked.

Simon didn't really have a clue about that. It bugged him that Dylan and Clara were staying right across the hall from each other. Out of all the fancy suites, why did Dylan pick the one directly opposite Clara?

He remembered how Dylan got hurt in that car crash years ago because of Clara. If it had been someone else, would he have let them off so easily? Simon never liked his emotionally distant uncle, and now he was even more irritated. Could Dylan actually have feelings for Clara?

Lost in thought, Quinn's voice broke through, "Simon, she's really playing the part this time. If you try to patch things up with her just because she blocked you, she might keep pulling the same stunt."

"I'm not backing down," he said. "I just took your advice to check in on her, but she wasn't even there. She probably got freaked out by all those orders, skipped town, and headed back to the Capital."

"That's just like her," Quinn said with a smirk. "The tiniest setback, and she crumbles. Honestly, I wish she'd hang around a bit longer and toughen up. Otherwise, how will she get any respect if she joins the company?"

It sounded like concern, but every word Quinn said was a dig at Clara.

Simon put his hands on her shoulders. "Don't worry about her. You're almost done with your charity gig here. You just have three more days. Once we're back in the Capital, I'll get you a sports car."

"Awesome, thanks, Simon."

While they were cozying up, Clara was hustling all night. The whole village pitched in. They worked nonstop until two in the afternoon to pack all those orders.

In total, twenty thousand orders meant she sold two hundred thousand pounds of apples overnight.

Clara was starving, and her head was spinning with hunger.

A group of young folks came over, eyes wide with admiration. "Clara, you're incredible. Two hundred thousand pounds in one night! Are you hungry? The food's coming right up!"

The apple stash in North Ashford wasn't as massive as the one in South Ashford. It was only about four hundred thousand pounds, so she'd moved nearly half the amount in one night.

The apple growers, who had been pretty skeptical at first, were now looking at Clara with a newfound respect thanks to her hard work.

Clara noticed the food they brought had some delicious-looking stews with tender, braised lamb shanks while they were eating simple boxed meals.

A young guy served Clara and Addison each a whole lamb shank. "Thanks for all your hard work. These have been simmering since last night. Dig in and get your strength back."