Caught In The Crossfires - Spinoff

63

Chapter 63

Lola

Six weeks had passed, each day feeling heavier than the last, since that intense encounter in Cristiano's bedroom. Six weeks of longing, agony, and an emptiness that refused to fade. Six weeks since I had seen, smelled, or touched him. Six very long and nearly impossible weeks.

I had been doing my best to distract myself, throwing my focus into work and going out with friends when I wasn't in school, trying to lose myself in the chaos of life. But no matter how hard I tried, the memories of that day kept resurfacing, tormenting me. The mixture of pleasure and pain, the vulnerability I had exposed, the truth I had finally confessed. It had all been a whirlwind of emotions that I couldn't escape.

I had read and reread his messages, each one more business-like than the last. The connection that once existed between us seemed to have dissipated, replaced by a distance that cut deep. His silence about our relationship, about what came next, was a heavy weight on my heart.

But despite everything, the truth remained—I missed him. I missed the way he'd hold me, the way his fingers would trace patterns on my skin, the way he could make me feel seen. The ache for his presence, for his touch, had been a constant.


"Lo!" Catalina's voice echoed as she barged into my open bedroom door pulling from my thoughts.

"What's up, love-bug?" I responded, sitting cross-legged on my bedroom carpet, busy curling my hair. I glanced at her through the mirror's reflection. She grinned at me, and I could already sense that she was up to something.

"I'm playing hooky today, and I was thinking, since I'm not moving out, we call Matteo to help paint my room?"

"Hmm," I pretended to ponder over her request, bringing my thumb and index finger to my chin as if deeply contemplating my answer. She raised an eyebrow at me.

"Well, my beautiful but very dense best friend..."

"Hey!" She interrupted me, tossing a pillow in my direction. I ducked swiftly to avoid it.

"I'm kidding. but Matteo is super sweet and funny, and you guys are killing me moving at that snail-like pace." My best friend had confided in me about the drama with my brothers, and I was fuming on her behalf. Maybe I was leaning towards Team Matteo at this point. Or perhaps I just didn't want her to wait around for them to get their act together, something I'd been doing my whole life. "So, as the official shipper of you and Matty boy, I'm going to have to say no. You'll have to manage without your buffer, my dear."

A sly grin played on my lips. It was true. Matteo seemed like a really good match for her, and brothers or not, I wanted happiness for her, especially after the mess with Liam and his family.

"Plus, I've got to go see my daddy because momma has a dick appointment that she's just not willing to reschedule to paint a freaking room," I lied. Catalina was already dealing with enough. I didn't want to pile onto her with my problems too. "Sorry, not sorry," I shrugged, hoping she would buy my little act.

"Good Lord, Lola," she laughed, she chuckled, her face buried in her hands. I was glad my little charade worked.

"What?" I asked, slipping into a tiny yellow floral sundress that I adored. Detective Rollins had some more questions for me about Brody's ongoing case. He had called me at the ass crack of dawn to inform me as such, and I wanted to look as inconspicuous as possible when I met with him today.

"So when do I get to meet the guy who has my friend ready to toss her little black book?" My face dropped instantly at Catalina's question, and I could tell she regretted asking it almost immediately.

"Um, maybe we could do lunch... or something on Sunday... I'll check if he's available, if that works?" I knew I was lying, but I didn't want to delve into that whole issue right now.

Catalina tilted her head, crossing her arms over her chest and I hoped she would just let it go, but I knew better. "Do you not want me to meet him?" she pushed, and I inwardly groaned, wishing we could be discussing anything else. "Lola, I've told you before. I don't care about the age gap. If he makes you happy, I'm happy." She paused, pressing her lips together, her hazel eyes locked onto mine. "You never judged me for my situation with Nic and Enzo."

"Dumbasses," I muttered under my breath, earning a small laugh from her.

"So, I won't judge your decision to date this older man." I grinned, and her expression softened.

Taking a deep breath, I attempted to rein in my emotions. "Thanks, C, but his age isn't the problem." I trailed off, taking another breath, and met her gaze. "I'm just not ready, okay?" And that was the unvarnished truth.

"It's cool, bitch. Whenever you're ready," she reassured me with a smile, and I nodded, returning her smile even though it didn't quite reach my eyes.

I checked the time and grabbed a cropped jean jacket from my closet. "Don't worry. You'll meet Cristiano soon enough. Anyway, I've got to run," I cleared my throat, quickly inspecting myself in the mirror before turning to face her. I gave her a hug before heading towards the door. "And now, go call Matteo, ya lil' hoe!"

"Have a good one, Lo!" she sang.

"See you later!" I called back, though I knew that "good" wouldn't really be part of the plan.

**

After spending most of my day in an interrogation room with the most insufferable detective on the planet, who clearly didn't believe me when I told him Cristiano and I were no longer involved. I was more than ready for a night out. The police were still clueless about Brody's whereabouts, and were apparently still looking into me and the man in my life.

To make matters worse, his sister seemed to be convinced that I had some involvement in his disappearance... as Detective Rollins pointed out many times, apparently in their files I was the last to see him alive.

Leaving the police station I wanted nothing more than to call Cristiano and tell him what was happening but I didn't. Instead, I dialed Catalina's number. I needed a girls' night out to distract me from my life. Plus I wanted all the dirty details of what went down between her and Matty this afternoon. Hopefully they got over whatever it was they were fighting and humped like bunnies.

Currently, Sophie, Elise, and I were at a crowded downtown restaurant waiting for my best friend to get here. We planned to have a bit of a pre-game before heading over to wherever we were headed. Plus I needed to eat something. That asshole Rollins had only given me a pack of crackers and a single soda the whole time I was at the station.

Pulling out my phone, I sent a quick text to Catalina.

Me: "Hey, where are you? Running late?

As I waited for her response, my imagination started running wild.

Me: Oh my god, are you fucking Matty right now?!? Has my fucking ship sailed?!"

Bestie: "Relax, Lo. I'm in an Uber, almost there."

Me: "Hmm, taking a while to respond I know something happened. 😉 Spill the tea, bitch!"

Bestie: "Yeah, yeah, wannabe cupid, be there in two."

Me: "Fine, fine. I want every detail when you arrive."

Putting my phone away, I tried to calm my racing thoughts. Tonight was supposed to be about forgetting the stress and having some fun with my girls. At least that's what I hoped for as I waited for.

"Hey, ladies, I'm so sorry I'm late," Catalina's soft voice cut through our chatter as she walked up to the table.

"Oh, no worries! But it's finally nice to meet you," one of my friends exclaimed, standing up and giving her a warm hug. "I'm Sophie."

"Yes, we've heard so much about you. And I'm Elise," she, like Sophie, extended her arms, pulling her into a friendly hug. Catalina returned the gesture, her smile genuine and warm. I had been looking forward to this meetup for a while, wanting my oldest friend and my newfound friends to get along.

Catalina beamed brightly accepting their embrace and that made me so at ease. I'd been wanting us all to hang out together for the longest time but with everybody's busy schedules, it never seemed like the time aligned correctly.

"It's really nice to meet you both too," Catalina laughed warmly as they all took their seats, "I've heard so much about you all as well."

"You're late 'cause you were fucking. Weren't you?" I quickly and quietly leaned in, playfully whispering into her ear as Elise and Sophie fell back into their conversation. She gasped lightly and put a hand to her chest, a mock expression of shock on her face.

"Lola Mariano. I did no such thing," she retorted in a hushed voice, her tone teasing, and we shared a brief but infectious laugh.

"I know, I know. But a girl can dream, right? I genuinely think he's a great match for you," I tilted my head, my words sincere and supportive. "and I think if you weren't blinded by my brothers and all their tattoos, you'd see it too."

"Yeah, true, but we're just friends, Lo. I don't want to lead him on. He's a kind person, and I can't offer him everything he deserves right now because of- '' Her voice trailed off, a flicker of pain crossing her eyes as she held back from saying their names. The unspoken heartache was evident, and I could see the pain etched in her features. I felt that.

"I get it," I said, my heart going out to her, and slightly pouted, tucking a loose piece of hair behind her ear. Then I shook my head. "Nic and E are jackasses. So, are you finally gonna talk to them tonight or what? Because you at least need some closure."

Catalina shook her head firmly. "Nope. No, I want to have fun tonight. If I talk to them, I don't know what I'll do. I mean, honestly, Lo, I was ready to be theirs if that's what they wanted, and then they just sprung that chick, Olivia, on me without a single word. What am I supposed to do with that?" She bit her lip, tears welling in her pained-filled eyes and she attempted to look away, so I wouldn't see her full emotions, but it was too late.

I watched silently as she stared up at the restaurant's reflective metallic ceiling, before her eyes began blinking uncontrollably. Then I saw her deep smoky eyes glistening with unshed tears and because I didn't want her to ruin her makeup over stupid boys. I reached out, wiping one away before it threatened to fall. I reassured her, "You deserve so much better, Cat. We'll remind them of what they're missing."

"Ummm, what did we miss?" Sophie asked, wiggling her eyebrows because she already knew how I got down.

"Oh nada, I'm just texting that super-hot guy from Econ. You know Sebastian, the one with the eyes. Catalina needs to make some idiots jealous, and we're gonna help," I slapped my phone face down onto the table while wearing the wackiest smirk.

"Ouuu, I'm so down. I'd love to help make stupid boys jealous. And Sebastian is definitely the right choice. He's such a hottie," Elise agreed with a matching evil grin, even though women were more her speed. She rubbed her hands together like she'd been waiting for this moment, her whole life.

Sophie nodded in agreement, her grin matching the mischief in her green eyes. "Oh, I'm totally on board with this plan."

"Oh god, I think I need a drink or five if we're gonna do this," Catalina laughed nervously and waved over the attractive waiter, clearly ready to embrace the night's shenanigans.

"Get ready for some fun, ladies. This shit is going to be epic," I declared with a laugh as the drinks we had already ordered before Catalina arrived landed on our table with perfect timing.

ツ     hope   you enjoyed  it.

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