《Selena Arabella Calos》

"Hi," I mutter as I open the door.

He stares at me for a second, not saying a word, then looks behind me. "Not bad," he says, a small smile on his face.

"I know," I reply hesitantly, not feeling comfortable with the awkward energy between the two of us. It's never been like that between us.

"You're moving up in life, aren't you? New apartment, new job..." He pauses and points at my suit. "... and a new boyfriend."

I roll my eyes at his jibe. "If you're planning on being a jerk the entire time, Lexi, I'm shutting the door on your face."

He sighs. "I'm sorry."

"Get in before I change my mind," I say.

He smiles and comes inside. "Despite my tone, I am happy for you, Selena. You deserve it."

"The apartment?"

He shrugs. "That too but I meant the job. Gigi was right to promote you. It was time you took over GA from your mother."

I smile, praying he doesn't realise how fake my smile really is. I didn't want the promotion. I didn't want GA. But I did not have a choice. Gigi made that clear.

-

Two weeks ago

As soon as I entered my new office, a coming back gift from my grandmother- Gigi, I grinned.

"Gigi!" I exclaimed and running up to her to hug her.

She chuckled as she hugged me back. "If I'd known you'd be so happy to see me, I would have visited sooner."

"Of course I'm happy. You're one of the few people I don't dislike in this family."

"Your mother certainly doesn't share the same sentiments."

"Why did you give her your company then instead of Zia Sofia, then? It would have made my life much easier."

Gigi smiled. "You know this wasn't her dream. She wanted to be a psychologist, I couldn't stand in the way of that."

"Sometimes I wonder how Mother turned out the way she did considering how nice and thoughtful you have always been."

"She was always her father's daughter- ruthless and cold," Gigi replied, rolling her eyes, then muttered something under her breath- probably cursing her dead husband. She hated him since the day she met him and when she was forced to get married to him- let's just say she never knew she could hate someone that much before him. I tried hard not to smile. I had always imagined my marriage to be much like hers- a burden. But now, I had some hope. "Enough about her. How do you like your new office?"

I looked around properly and smiled. My mother had nothing to do with the decorating and it showed. The office was very me- minimalistic and chic. Almost everything was white- except the couches in the middle of the room, the book shelf and the desk chair all of which were a really light purple.

"Did you do this?" I asked Gigi.

She smiled. "I did not do any heavy lifting of course, but yes, I chose the colours and the furniture."

"When did she tell you she was promoting me?"

Gigi scoffed. "She didn't tell me. I told her to give the company over to you."

I stared at Gigi. "Why?"

"I want to see you run it before I die."

I frowned. Why is it that even one of the most considerate person in my family doesn't care about what I want? She cared about Zia Sofia's dream all those years ago so how can she ignore mine? "What about my dream then?"

Gigi looked at me with furrowed brows. "You said you weren't going to pursue it."

"I would at least like it to be an option and promoting me will make that impossible," I snapped and Gigi gave me a hard look.

"It was never an option for you. You were supposed to inherit this company since the day you were born. It's not anyone's fault that Ajax decided to leave and so you'll have to run your father's company too."

"What if I drive your company into the ground?"

"It's still better than Aurora handing it over to that-" Gigi looked at me with wide eyes, like she had said something she wasn't suppose to say.

"Who is Mother thinking about handing it over to?" I asked her and she looked away from me, refusing to answer. What the hell. Since when did Gigi not have an answer to something? "Gigi, what aren't you telling me?"

Gigi glanced at me, then composed herself. "Aurora is thinking about selling GA," Gigi replied but I knew something about what she said wasn't true. It was written on her face.

I didn't argue with her, knowing that when she'd be ready to tell me, she would.

"Oh," I muttered then look at her and grinned, hoping to lighten the mood. "You know you can't die soon, Mother is going to annoy me to death if you do."

"Your father won't let that happen," Gigi muttered and I looked at her and raised my eyebrow, confused. My father never cared about me. He wouldn't care if I died- he proved it with how he treated my kidnapping.

"What?"

"Nothing," Gigi replied. "Come now, you've already been on vacation for so long, you need to catch up."

-

Now

I never wanted to inherit GA. I never fit in there. I was always a better fit at Calos Industries. My father always knew that, as did my mother, and that's probably why she was selling the company. So she wouldn't have to give it to me and watch me ruin it.

But my mother can't make decisions like that. She may be the CEO of GA, but Gigi is still the chairwoman.

I'm pretty sure Gigi went against my mother just to get a reaction out of her. Mother never got along with Gigi. Their relationship is much like mine is with Mother. And as much I would like to say that my mother is the reason for that, I can't. Gigi is equally as responsible. I love her but she went wrong in a lot of places when it came to my mother. The biggest problem Gigi had with Mother is how close she was to my grandfather, a man Gigi loathed. She hated their relationship and because of that she mistreated my mother at times.

That's what I don't understand sometimes. Gigi had a reason for what she did, however invalid that reason was. Mother never had a reason for mistreating me. I only became really close to Gigi after years of neglect from my parents so my relationship with Gigi can't have been the reason.

"So, how's everything going at GA? How are you handling the new responsibilities?" Alex asks me, snapping me out of my reverie.

"As well as I can," I reply and he smiles.

"Good."

"Does this mean you aren't mad at me anymore?" I ask him.

"I was never mad at you, Lena. I just... I had to come to terms with the fact that you are with him now."

"Then why were you mean to me?"

"Because I was jealous," he replies, shrugging.

I don't know how to reply to that so I just sigh, dropping down on a sofa. Alex follows suit. "I missed you, Lexi."

"I missed you too, Lena."

-

"I never expected this from you," Alex says in disappointed and I stick my tongue out at him.

"Expect the unexpected, Lexi," I reply and he rolls his eyes.

"Glad to know you haven't grown up yet."

"I'm still your best friend. If I grew up, our mental ages wouldn't be compatible."

"I don't like you sometimes," he replies and I smile.

"I don't like myself sometimes either," I say, enthusiastically, holding my palm up for a high-five. He laughs before complying.

"That's just s-" He stops short when he sees something behind me and he suddenly tenses.

I turn to look at the reason for his change in attitude and almost groan. Daniel.

Daniel looks blankly at Alex but his eyes are cold. "Alexander," he says, his voice restrained and formal. "It's a surprise to see you here."

Alex narrows his eyes. "It really shouldn't be a surprise. After all, this is my best friend's apartment."

I hold my breath, expecting a reaction out of Daniel but there isn't one.

"Daniel," I say but he doesn't bother acknowledging me.

I purse my lips. He's so rude sometimes.

"My girlfriend and I have somewhere to be soon," Daniel says to Alex.

I close my eyes. It's very clear from the way he said it, that he is telling Alex to get out.

I turn to look at Alex. "I'm sorry," I say and he looks at me. "I totally forgot I already had plans." I didn't forget. You can't forget something you never knew about. "We can continue this another day."

He glances at the tattoo designs on my laptop and grins. "Yeah, sure," he says and moves forward and hugs me.

For a moment I freeze. I don't know what Daniel's reaction is going to be to this... but he also has friends of the opposite gender- he's even slept with some of them- so there's no reason for him to get offended if I hug my best friend.

I hug Alex back. "Bye, Lexi."

"Bye, Lena," he says as he gets up. He walks out without acknowledging Daniel.

Daniel finally looks at me, his eyes icy. "Was it him?"

I raise my eyebrow, genuinely confused about what he's asking. "Was what him?"

"The person you agreed to go out with."

My eyes widen. It's been so long since I had that conversation with Daniel that I nearly forgot about it. "Yes."

"You said you didn't have feelings for him."

I narrow my eyes at him. What's he getting at? "Yeah, and?"

He huffs. "Either you were lying to yourself or you were lying to me."

"You're delusional," I say, rolling my eyes and he gives me a hard look.

"Watch it, Selena," he warns me.

I roll my eyes, get up from the sofa and walk past him. I don't want to deal with him when he's like this. The last time he was like this was two weeks ago, when we had our argument about sex.

Daniel grabs my arm and pulls me towards him. "What did I tell you about you and other men?"

I look up at him. "Don't act like I was bloody seducing him. I just hugged him."

A muscle is Daniel's jaw ticks. "It's because you weren't that he still alive."

I narrow my eyes at him. "You're not going to hurt him."

"You're the one being delusional now," he says, his eyes blazing. "You will not be hugging him or any other man again." His voice is uncompromising and rough.

I narrow my eyes at him. "Then I don't want you hugging any of your exes from now on."

"Done," he says, already looking less angry. I free my arm from his hold and stomp towards my bedroom. I hear his light footsteps behind me. "What were you two talking about before I came?"

"The tattoo I want to get."

He stops walking. "You're not getting one."

I roll my eyes. "Good thing I don't need to get your permission then," I mutter as I look at the mess that is my room.

It's been a couple of days since Alessandro has been over so my room looks like a complete mess. I have hired maids, but they are under strict instructions from me to not move my things from their place.

"Selena," Daniel warns. "I-"

I turn to look at him and huff. "Are we seriously going to argue again?"

He rakes his fingers through his hair in frustration. "No, we are not, because you are not getting a tattoo and that's final."

"You can't tell me what do you."

He narrows his eyes at me. "Would you like to test that?"

As much as I would like to test that, I know it's better for me if I don't so I just sigh. "No, I wouldn't. But you need to be a bit reasonable. You have tattoos, why can't I have one? Is it because I'm a girl?"

He rolls his eyes. "No. It's because they fucking hurt and you can't handle the pain."

"I could handle being tortured," I retort and he winces. "So, I'm sure I'll be able to handle the pain. Any other reservations?"

"You might regret getting the tattoo," he replies.

"I can get it removed."

"That hurts more."

"My earlier argument withstanding," I reply. He turns his face as a small smiles appears on his face.

"Fine. You can get one," he says and I smile, throwing my arms around him.

"I love you," I say and he laughs, wrapping his arms around me.

"I love you too, cara."

-

The tattoo parlour is nothing like I imagined it would be. I imagined a dark, scary place that gave of bad vibes. But it is the complete opposite. It's brightly lit and there's some music playing in the background. Sure, most of the people here look like big scary men, but they're not really what they look like. Most of them are so nice.

I'm sitting on a table, elbows on my knees, looking at Daniel get another tattoo. I don't know what he is getting a tattoo of because he said he wanted it to be a surprise.

"I thought you said it hurts," I say and he looks at me.

"It does," he replies.

"You haven't given any indication that it does."

"You of all people know that pain doesn't really bother me."

I smile. "I forgot you were a masochist."

He narrows his eyes at me. "I never said that I got pleasure from pain."

"You never denied it either."

"People like me learn how to embrace pain, otherwise we get killed."

"So in other words you are forced to become masochists," I say and he laughs shortly.

"I guess you are right."

"Even if the pain doesn't bother you as much, why do you have so many tattoos?"

"They all mean something to me. They are a reminder of my past," Daniel replies.

"What does the one with the wing remind you of?" I ask him curiously. Daniel takes in a sharp breath. "You don't have to answer that if you don't want to. It's fine."

"No, it's not that." Daniel said, looking away from me. "It's a reminder of many things for me. But most importantly it's a reminder of Amara."

"How so?" I ask and he looks at me and smiles.

"There are lots of meanings of her name. One of them is immortal. In some cultures, birds are a symbol of immortality, hence the wing. And, well, Amara was our little angel and so the wing represents that too."

I rest my head against the wall and stare at him. I can't imagine what it must be like to lose a sibling, especially at the age he did. And Daniel not only lost a sister but a friend who was like a brother to him. No wonder he went down a dark path.

"Are you going to let me see the tattoo you got now?" I ask him when he gets up and he smiles and nods. I jump of the table and walk towards him. He turns around and sits on the chair so I can see his new tattoo properly. I take a sharp breath when I see it. The tattoo is on his left shoulder blade. It's a tattoo of a crescent moon with stars and 'Arabella' written in the middle. It's lightly shaded with purple. My mouth hangs open. I can't believe he did that.

"Your name, Selena, is associated with the moon goddess," he explains, his words quiet. "And when we met you told me your name was Arabella."

"The shading?" I breathe. He turns around and looks at me.

"Your favourite colour is purple, cara."

I lean forward and kiss him. "That's the most romantic thing anyone has ever done for me."

He smiles. "I got the inspiration from you, love."

The tattoo I decided on is of a rose and an ace of spades. The ace of spades is a tribute to him. Even though I don't call him Ace, I know that it's his nickname.

"Well, I want to make an addition now."

He raises his eyebrow. "What addition?"

"I want it to be a surprise too," I say and he rolls his eyes.

"Fair enough. Have you decided where you want to get it?"

"Just below my ribs," I reply and he shakes his head.

"The skin is very thin there making it one of the most painful places to get a tattoo," he tells me, trying to change my mind, but I just shrug.

"And?"

"Jesus, cara," he breathes. "I think you might be the real masochist between us."

I try to suppress my smile. "Rude."

"Don't worry, baby. I don't mind," he says, his tone amused- playful.

I smile at him and shake my head, feigning disappointment. I like it when he's like this with me- carefree and teasing. It makes me love him much more than when he's impossible and domineering. But in a messed up way, I am more attracted to him when he acts like the latter instead of the former.

"I want it there because of the scar," I tell him. That is the one scar that has not faded- probably because it was so deep. Daniel lifts my shirt slightly and brushes the scar with his hand before pressing his lips against it. I sigh and run my fingers through his hair.

The day that I got the scar started out normal- or as normal as things got in that place. Both of us were interrogated again and had been forced to watch while the other was tortured. But something happened that day to make Lucien so mad that he picked up a combat knife and stabbed me under the ribs. When he tried to stab me again, Daniel broke free of the guards that were restraining him and come between both of us and for some reason that made Lucien freeze. I don't know what would have happened had Daniel not intervened.

That day was the first, and last time, a doctor came to patch me up- probably because if he had not, I would not have survived.

-

《Daniel Nicholas Castello》

The bastard has the nerve to smile as I land another punch in his stomach.

"You better stop smiling, Moretti," I warn Alessandro as I hit him again.

His amused expression doesn't wear of though. I narrow my eyes at him. I would never admit it, but I'm impressed by him. He is handling pain much better than most men I know.

I glace at my cracked knuckles before looking at his face, debating if I am angry enough to break his nose.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," he tells me still wearing that stupid grin but I know he feels the pain- he's wheezing.

My jaw clenches. "Don't tell me what to fucking do."

"Your loss." I narrow my eyes at him, signaling for him to explain himself. "I'm meeting Selena later, she will ask me how I got the bruise and of course being the paradigm of truth, I will tell her the truth."

As soon as he finishes, I hit him again- this time on the face. "Tell her the truth, I fucking dare you."

Alessandro looks at Rafael and he shrugs. "This is between you and him."

Alessandro sighs and looks back at me. "How long is this going to go on for? I have things that need doing."

"He's going to shoot you if you continue with that," Rafael warns Alessandro.

I glance at Rafael, whose downing another glass of bourbon, then look back at his younger brother. "Get out of my sight within five seconds or else I will shoot you."

Alessandro doesn't wait- he turns on his heals and walks away but not before muttering. "I'm going to tell her."

I roll my eyes at the kid's nerve. I can see why he's best friends with Selena. Both of them are willful and daring- qualities that get people killed in our world unless they are as powerful as me.

"You need to stop drinking," I tell Rafael and he looks at me blankly.

"You of all people can't say that to me," he replies, derisive.

"It's because I know what drinking this much leads to can I tell you that."

He looks around the room and back at me, his expression suddenly miserable and worried. "He knows."

"Alessi?" I ask him, almost holding my breath, praying Rafael is talking about someone else, but he nods. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. "When did he find out?"

"Yesterday."

"Is Stella okay?"

Rafael looks at his drink. "I don't know. I know he's trying to get her to tell him who she slept with, but fuck, I don't know if she's okay."

I run my fingers through my hair. I should have done better. I should have somehow made sure that Stella didn't get married to that motherfucker. But I did not. And now, Stella is going to pay the price for it.

"Do you have any way of contacting her?"

Rafael nods. "There is a maid that works there. It's going to be difficult, but it's possible."

"Tell Stella to give him my name."

Rafael's eyes widen. "He is going to fucking kill you."

"Let him try."

-

A/N

The more I write Alessandro, the more I fall in love with him. I don't know but there is something about him that makes me get 🦋🦋🦋.

Also the tattoo scene is one I have been waiting to write to a while. Hopefully, I did it justice.

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed.

Again, autocorrect is turned off in my phone so if there are any mistakes, please do not mind. I will correct them when I edit this book after finishing it.