𝐁𝐨𝐲𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝 | 𝐒. 𝐂𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐲

Chapter 1

ALANI CASTILLO
    Lake Tahoe, CA.

It's been quite some time since we last spoke, so allow me to fill you in.

As promised, Raelyn and I moved back to my hometown of Charlotte for a few months. That's when I was able to grow closer to my dad and my additional siblings, Manny and Miguel. And as hard it was, I made some really good progress with my therapist and worked through my deep rooted traumas. Wardell and I stayed true to our word, well for the most part. We continued raising our children in harmony. To everyone's surprise Ayesha and I were on great terms too. We finally realised we had more in common than sitting on the same dick once. Wardell kept his promise and still teases Ayesha to this day.

And now here we are, 2 years later.

The Warriors just won another championship so life has been sweet. It's been hard trying to keep the identity of Raelyn's father a secret from the public. I don't post her on social media and when we attend Warriors games we always watch from the skybox seats. At school, she uses my last name to keep unwanted questions at bay. Blogs have been speculating that Wardell and I were more than friends, especially since the information regarding the case was made public, but we do our best to avoid responding to those comments especially since it's not that hard to put 2 and 2 together and figure it all out.

"Mommy! Dada's here!" Raelyn ran past me towards the door. Seconds later I hear a car door closing and surely enough Wardell's keys jingle in the door. Myself, Raelyn, Wardell and Jordan were staying at an Airbnb for the duration of the American Century Tournament this weekend.

Wardell opens the door slowly, knowing Rae is probably behind it as usual.

"Boo!" She attempts so scare him as she usually does. Wardell throws his arms up and yelps like a girl, making her believe she succeeded. It was really funny to see it happen in real time.

"Dada!" Raelyn held her hands up for him to pick her up.

"Hey, little tiger." I watched in awe as they embraced each other. Seeing him be a great father to her  has been healing my inner child in so many ways.

"Where is Jordie?" Raelyn asked, referring to Jordan.

"He's right behind me." Wardell answered as he slowly approached me. He kisses Raelyn's forhead before placing her back on the ground.

"Ally bear." He said with his signature smile, which I gladly returned. His arms wrapped tightly around my waist as we hugged. I exhaled as the scent of his cologne invaded my nostrils. The hug lingered on longer than it should've, but that's just Wardell being his usual flirtatious self.

"Wardell, it's nice to see you too." I cleared my throat while slowly backing away from him.

"You look nice." His green eyes scanned over my body. I wasn't even wearing anything special. Just a tank top and some loose fitting pants. It was a hot summers day in Lake Tahoe after all.

"Thank you." I said quietly, suddenly feeling shy under his intense gaze.

"What's up family!" Jordan said, breaking the intense eye contact between Wardell and I.

I mean, we've remained strictly best friends for the past 2 years but that doesn't mean I stop finding him attractive, especially when he gets his hair freshly trimmed-

"Mommy!" I hear Raelyn's voice call out to me.

"Are we going to watch daddy and Jordie play golf tomorrow?" She asked eagerly.

"Yes, we are, baby." I replied.

Jordan walked over and hugged me quickly while he gave me a 'what was that' look.