Claiming Callie: Part two (2 page)

“She
’
d freak. Dude, I
’
m actually a little freaked just listening to this s
hit,”
Emmett points out.

“Exactly.” Dean shoves his hands in his hair and exhales a long breath. “Getting out of the friend category is hard enough, let alone the pseudo-brother category. I knew it would take something drastic, and something indirect, a wa
y in which I could make her see me as a man and not just her best
friend
’s brother. This is it. It has to be. I can make her really see me. I can make her see what it would be like to be with me—something she never imagined before.”

Emmett places a hand ov
er his chest. “That
’
s poetic, dude.
”

“Shut up.” Dean glares at him. “Now I just have to figure out how I
’
m going to actually win her over.”

“Well, you
’
re either a fucking genius or a complete idiot. I
’
m not sure which, but I have to give you props for fina
lly doing something, bro.” Emmett laughs and shakes his head, then delivers Dean a fist bump. “I didn
’
t think you had it in you.”

Dean smirks. “Neither did I.”

CALLIE

Callie sips her coffee
as she stares outside. The sky is a cornflower blue, with only the slightest wisp of clouds. The sun streams over the pavement and reflects brightly off the large windows to
Buzz
. Inside the little shop, the aroma of freshly brewed coffee, espresso, and p
astries fills the air. Basking in the heat from the sunlight, she finds herself wishing it were as warm outside as it looks. Nevertheless, she
’
ll take the sunlight, if that
’
s all she gets. She tilts her head into the light, hoping that somehow the Vitamin
D will soak into her and erase her nerves.

Her job is hanging by a thin thread, her reputation—large campus or not—just got slaughtered at school, and now she’s agreed to pretend to be Dean’s girlfriend—a boy who, at one time, used to run circles around th
e family home and climb the trees, with nothing but a loin cloth to cover his privates, pretending he was Tarzan.

What was I thinking? As if I don’t have enough to deal with.

As happy as she would be to fast forward the next month or two, time is her
enemy, she reminds herself. She needs to get a better stake on her hard-earned position at GG Financial, and as of yet, she hasn’t had the chance. Dean’s money is a start, but may not be enough. Especially since she isn
’
t sure she
’
s going to use it. Sure,
she deposited the check this morning—he would
’
ve pestered her relentlessly otherwise—but she
’
s going to hold onto it, at least for the time being, to see how this whole charade plays out. If she can manage to make Maya jealous and help Dean win her back, t
hen she will use the money for her debt, as he insisted. But if she can
’
t, she
’
s not sure she should take it. He
’
s her friend, and she doesn
’
t want to take advantage. Lord knows he and the Michaels have all done enough for her over the years. If anything,
she owes him this one favor.

The door jingles, jolting Callie from her thoughts. She glances up to see Dean stroll in. He smiles and takes a seat across from her, and she watches as he shakes off his coat, noticing he’s dressed in a variation of his usual
attire—a hoodie and jeans. A knit cap covers his thick chestnut hair, with a few locks curling below the edge of the wool.

They lock eyes for a moment and Callie swallows.
This is so weird. He
’
s still just the boy down the street. Jinny
’
s little brother. C
an you actually pretend to be his girlfriend?

Of course you can. Suck it up, Callie. You
’
re doing this for him. You
’
re doing it for both of you, and it will be fun. Think of it as a game. You love playing games like this. Besides, you and Jinny never liked
Maya anyway; torturing her will be fun.

Callie doesn
’
t remember too much about Maya; only the aftertaste she left in Callie’s mouth following her relationship with Dean. From what Callie recalls, Maya
’
s domineering, too wild, and just not the type Callie
would pick out for him. She
’
s a year older than him. They dated Dean
’
s freshman year, and the relationship lasted through the summer. Then it ended, with little explanation on Dean
’
s part. Now Callie wonders what the reasons were. But she supposes it doesn
’
t matter. Dean wants her back, and that
’
s all she needs to know.

“Here, I got you this,” Callie says, pushing an iced coffee toward him.

“
Thanks.
” Dean takes the drink.

She draws in a deep breath. “So, I guess today is day one of Team Dean and Callie. Jus
t so you know, I haven
’
t told Jinny about our little plan yet, which is why I told you to meet me here after her shift. I
’
m not sure if she
’
ll think it
’
s weird or be completely cool with it, so I was saving that fun conversation for later today.”

“I think
she
’
ll be fine with it.”

“Probably. I don
’
t know how much she liked Maya, though. I
’
m not sure she
’
ll be too thrilled about that part.”

Dean shrugs. “
I don’
t pick her boyfriends. I mean, Todd? She can
’
t do better than him?” Dean raises a brow and shakes hi
s head.

“True. And what is with his hair, anyway? Every time I see him I want to run for either a comb or a pair of scissors, but I
’
m not sure which to go for first, so the straggly locks remain.” Callie laughs. “But he seems to be good to her, and she lik
es him. I guess that
’
s what counts.”

Dean grimaces, as if he doesn
’
t completely agree.

“But that
’
s not what we
’
re here to talk about.”
I can do this. I can be mature and discuss this. After all, we need to hash out the details.
“We
’
re here to talk about
us. About our…
relationship
,” Callie says, stumbling over the word. “I think it might be a little weird for us at first. You know, since we
’
ve known each other forever. It may be a little awkward, like holding hands with your sister.”

Dean
’
s cheeks flush, s
o Callie continues. “But I
’
ve been thinking…we can get past that. We just need to keep our heads in the game. It
’
s just like acting.”
I’m an actress! Cool.
“And if you keep your eye on the prize, Maya, then we can do this. I think the newspaper idea is a g
ood one. Valentine’s Day is coming up in a couple weeks, so it would be the perfect time for the student paper to do a fun article on college sweethearts or something, just like you said. We need to start with that. Just plunge right in.”

Dean nods and lea
ns forward in his seat. “Okay, yeah. I
’
ll talk to my buddy who
’
s on the paper. I
’
m sure I can get him to do something like that. It
’
d be a feature about campus life and relationships. I think it would work. Plus, it
’
ll spread the word to a lot of people wh
o know us.”

Callie purses her lips.
“But there
’
s no way to guarantee she
’
ll see it. Not everyone reads the student paper.”

Dean runs a hand through his hair, then pauses and snaps his finger. “I got it.” His gaze shifts to her. “Maya
’
s an art major. She
’
s
a photographer. I can find a way to get her to take a picture of us for the article, instead of the normal photographer. I think she
’
s actually done that for them before, so it
’
s perfect.”