The wedding happening in three months spurred Callista into action. She was clueless but she'd figured out that talking about the problem would help her gain some solutions. She walked towards Castor's house in Manhattan after changing her clothes. Fortunately, Thomas had agreed to let her go knowing that Castor would be there.

Sometimes it unnerved her how Thomas trusted her life to Castor Luciano. But in the end, she was too content to lose her tail that she ignored her mind's queries.

"Cas!" she called out. Caly ran her teeth over her bottom lip, thinking of where the guy was. She eyed the stairs with the ornate banister leading to the second floor. It was already eight in the morning but it wasn't also the first time that Castor woke up late.

"Stop right there!"

Caly angled her head to the right, ignoring the crawling annoyance that slithered to her tanned skin. She eyed the guy, noticing his nose ring and the mess of dark curls on his hair.

And the gun that was pointed at her.

She couldn't believe her luck for finding herself at the end of the gun again. However, she tried to be understanding. A member of the Luciano crime family not knowing her was unheard of. So she guessed that he was recently a made man. "I'm Callista Genovese."

Like a soldier, he straightened his form and lowered his gun. His Adam's apple bobbed up and down, lost in words for what happened. "I'm... How do I know you're telling the truth?"

"You don't," she answered. "But I think you know that your boss can handle a little girl like me, right?"

The man frowned. "Well..."

Caly flicked her hand, brushing off his uneasiness and strolled upstairs. Three years later and she still knew every nook and cranny of this mansion. Castor's house was the party center during their school days. She had slept over many times, helping him clean up because obviously, he was shit with those things.

An empty room met Callista but she heard the beats of running water against the tiled floor. Her metallic eyes gazed at the strewn bed sheets, the unopened curtains, and the lighted lamps.

She sighed, stepping on the black rugs and parted the dark curtains. To say that Castor Luciano loved black was an understatement.

"Woah! My eyes are hurting!"

Caly rolled her eyes, spinning on her heels to face him. He was dripping wet, a towel on his hips. "You're welcome."

Castor turned off the lights before marching to his walk-in closet. He emerged a few seconds later, buttoning his faded pants and a white shirt hanging on his shoulder. His other arm held a towel, drying his hair. "You need something?"

Callista was quiet for a while. She was busy raking her eyes all over her best friend's lean body. His damp hair leaving drops of water on his shoulders, sliding down to his hard stomach. The ink on his muscled chest made her fingers itch.

What the fuck? Did three years make him hotter?

"Caly?"

She cleared her throat. "Why do you always wake up so late?" Then her attention shifted to the dark bags under his eyes which only succeeded in completing his dangerous look. "Did you have sex?"

A dry laugh was pulled out from him. "What? I told you yesterday I was tired."

"I just want you to be careful."

Cas had a wide smirk. "I'm 25, mom. I know how to put on a condom."

It took all of Caly's effort to not combust on the spot with the image he had placed on her mind. She shook her head. "That's not what I meant."

"Then what?"

"You know, spies and all that," she answered lamely. Callista began to feel scared, petrified of the unknown. There was an unexplainable ache in her heart.

Once again, she forced it deep down.

Castor chuckled, unknowing of the turmoil that was happening within the girl. He stepped closer to her until she had him trapped between the glass windows and his searing body. "You know what, my queen?"

"What?" Caly appeared calm. She was aware of the man's penchant for teasing the hell out of her. She'd be damned if she gave up easily.

His long fingers traced the line of her jaw down to her neck. He felt the rapid drumming of her pulse, down to her collarbone. Cas leaned in, whispering in her ear in a rich, dark tone. "I won't need that many women if you just agree with me."

Callista raised an eyebrow, ignoring the rising goosebumps on her arm. "Agree with what?"

Castor slid his free hand on her right waist. He grinned, inserting his hand on the pocket of her skinny jeans. He earned a soft gasp when he grabbed her ass, pulling her closer. "Nice, right?"

"No, you idiot."

"Why not?"

"You kissed me, right?" Caly's upper lip quirked upwards. "And I didn't feel anything there."

Castor's forehead wrinkled. "We should do it again just to be sure."

"Three years and you're still like this." Caly shoved him off, disregarding the heat that emanated from his body. "No. We can't be friends with benefits."

Callista laughed when he pouted. His left hand still strapped to her pocket. In just a second, the air became thick. Their eyes met and she saw the golden ring around his irises, the fluttering of his eyelashes, and the intense stare. For the first time in three years, Caly felt safe.

Unlike the other thing, this was familiar.

Castor pulled her for a hug, nose burrowing on her shoulder. "I really missed you. And this."

She knew him well enough to know he was honest about this. Her arms wrapped around him. "Me too. We'll play strip poker next time."

"Really?" His green eyes shone as he pulled back to gaze at her face. "If you do, I want you to give me your heart."

"And I want you to give me your brain. God knows you don't need that," she replied playfully. In all the years of friendship they shared, Callista had never gauged whether Castor's sexual allusions were a joke or not. Nevertheless, she filed all of those memories under the folder labeled 'teasing'. Taking it seriously was too dangerous.

Castor put on his shirt, flinging the towel somewhere and let his hair dry naturally. "Let's talk over breakfast."

She fell into step with him. "Do you have apples?"

"Darling, I can give you a fruit salad."

Callista followed him to the kitchen where she found the man from earlier. He swallowed the pie he was eating and stood up to offer the stools to the pair. The maids had prepared a breakfast set for them.

"That's Dos. You haven't met yet." He opened the double door refrigerator, getting out a tub of strawberry frozen yogurt and blueberry jam. Castor's idea of breakfast was completely different.

"Where'd he come from?" Caly grabbed an apple from the tray, taking a huge bite.

"Moran's son."

"Ah, legacy." Dos caught her eye and she sent out a wink, making the man release a breath. She was aware of what would occur if Castor found out Dos aimed a gun at her. "It's so early and you're eating froyo."

"Earlier, you said it was already late." Cas continued eating his sandwich paired with the yogurt. His dark eyebrow rose in question. "So?"

"I met Franco." Caly chewed the apple, gulping it down before she spoke. "I scratched his face. He's a jerk."

"Haven't I told you that already?" Castor shook his head, his wet dark hair falling near his eyebrows. "In middle school, I tried to talk to him. He called me filth. The bastard! If I get my hands on him, I'll definitely–"

Dos had scrambled out at this point. Callista got up and searched the fridge for apple cinnamon rolls. She found it and ate it happily while Castor continued his tirade about Franco's demise.

When her friend finished, she licked her fingers. "Dad asked me to prevent their marriage. It's imperative that I do so or your father will launch an attack."

"Really?" Cas was genuinely surprised. "Dad never mentioned that."

"Anyway, back to my problem." Castor scoffed at this. He reached out for a cinnamon roll that Caly slapped his hand away. "What do you think I should do?"

"I don't know. Sleep with him?" He shrugged his shoulders, going back to his froyo. Times like this assured Callista of her deduction over his excessive flirting. His nonchalance on her dating life was very noticeable.

"It's an arranged marriage. I doubt that'll work."

"Well, I don't know."

"Wow, you're so helpful." She remarked, wiping her hands on his shirt for emphasis. "No wonder you repeated your senior year twice."

Castor rolled his eyes, moving his shoulder to get away from her touch. "Do you have to bring that up every time? It's not like I was failing. I was only late. Attendance can eat shit."

"Always late, you mean." Callista hummed, remembering the time when she and Cas were tardy for their Math class. She was accelerated once and since Castor failed, they both had been in their senior year together. It was when the rumors started. "What do you think is the most important thing to women?"

He swallowed, eyebrows scrunching in confusion. "Their shoes?"

Caly laughed and poured herself a glass of water. "No. Reputation. Girls like Delilah Gallo sniffed attention like a drug."

Castor set down his spoon, gazing up at her standing form. He noted the way her upper lip curled up. Her eyes were iridescent with something akin to delight. "What?"

"I'm going to throw a party."

✘✘

hello readers! how are you all?

what do you think of the relationship between Caly and Cas?

i really hoped you liked their flirty banter. that's kind of how i want their bond to be seen.

so i found this question. hahaha.

' would you rather Swim 300 meters through shit or dead bodies? '

i can't answer, i just died laughing.

don't forget to vote and comment to show your love and support!

hope all of you have a good day too! :)

✘✘
lucci 😈