16 Ci-ci and Frae 2

A furious blush spread across Frae's delicate features. Despite her worn out appearance and more than casual wardrobe, Frae was still a beauty few could match.

Frae didn't know what was wrong with her. Since when had she allowed words to fluster her like Ci-ci's had? How many times had she heard comments on her appearance before? It wasn't as though prejudice to her lineage effected how attractive she was to the opposite sex. And yet, here she was, blushing.

Only one other person in her life had ever complimented her eyes. Just one.

Thinking of a small boy she used to look up to like a big brother, tears began spilling from Frae's eyes. She shivered uncontrollably in Ci-ci's office. "Why'd you have to die?" She muttered to herself.

Hearing those words, Ci-ci's heart seized. He immediately understood what Frae was talking about.

To everyone Ci-ci used to know… He was dead. His funeral was a grand event and he had no doubt that Frae had been present.

"I'm sorry…" Ci-ci whispered. At the time, Frae assumed that he meant to apologize for reminding her about a traumatizing memory. But, no. Ci-ci meant that he was sorry for not having been there for her.

So, he took responsibility.

Ignoring Frae's startled reaction, he wrapped his arms around her. Letting her silently cry into his chest as she clutched onto her textbooks.

Frae didn't know why she let it happen. In fact, to that point, there had only been one other man who hugged her that wasn't her father. But, Ci-ci seemed so familiar… Being in his arms felt so right…

~

From that day onward, Ci-ci and Frae became the closest of friends. In fact, their relationship didn't mature into a sexual one until years later. In the beginning, they just needed each other.

Frae wanted a friend that looked past her lineage and Ci-ci wanted to feel as though he wasn't alone in the world.

Interestingly enough, Frae never asked for a reason as to why Ci-ci had originally treated her so poorly and Ci-ci had never explained either. But, with recent events, Ci-ci couldn't ignore the reason why she had never felt the need to ask anymore.

Without even noticing, Ci-ci had made his way to the top floor of the condominium. There was only a single elevator that made it to this floor. All he had to do was ring the bell and Frae would open it. In fact, it was likely that Frae was already aware that someone had used the elevator to reach her floor, after all, there was an alert for such things.

There was only one other entrance to Frae's condo, but that was through the roof's helicopter pad. Frae rarely made use of it. In fact, only Dean Mortlock ever did, when he felt like visiting his daughter.

'Alright. Well. There's no backing out now…' First Ci-ci texted Milana telling her she didn't have to leave, but to eat and rest well – it was likely he wouldn't be home tonight. Then, Ci-ci went to press the bell, but before he could, the light ding noise of the elevator doors alerted him to their opening.

What Ci-ci found took his breath away.

There stood Frae, hair done up in a practically identical bun to the day she had barged into his office, even down to the pencil. But, the rest of her outfit was nothing like that day at all.

She wore a tight-fitting tank top, but it was clear by the natural curve and dip of her large chest that they didn't have the support of a bra. Well, it was that and the clear and alluring points of her nipples.

But, even more beguiling were her long and exposed legs, hardly covered by the white laced panties she wore.

Ci-ci was at a loss for words. It hadn't even been a week since he had last seen Frae, but the longing he felt in this very moment made him feel as though he would have never made it ignoring her presence.

"What are you looking at?" Frae said coldly, "Only the man I love is allowed to see me like this. So, let me know quickly who I opened my door for."

"Frae I – "

"Who did I open the door for? Ci-ci Bell? Or Lucius Grandbell Jr.?" Frae reiterated her question, leaving Ci-ci no room to maneuver.

His mouth was so dry that he didn't even have time to register the names Frae had said.

"I'm whatever you want me to be."

Frae rolled her eyes. She had opened the door in the outfit mostly because she hadn't thought to change. As soon as she saw Ci-ci's figure on the monitor, she had opened the door. She was beginning to think it was a mistake. But, Ci-ci's next words were completely different to how he had been acting before.

"Are you sure?" He had lost his glass-eyed look. He earnestly gazed into Frae's cold eyes, asking for an answer. He needed to know.

Frae didn't respond. Instead, she stepped forward and took Ci-ci by the hand, leading him into her condo.

Ci-ci barely took note of the black and white aesthetic as he only had eyes for Frae's plump ass. Her cheeks hung ever so perfectly out of the back of her laced panties and their healthy bounce was having a hypnotizing effect on Ci-ci as Frae brought him to her bed room.

"Contrary to what this looks like, I brought you here to talk. It's not as though you've ever let me have sex with you." Frae's cold eyes flashed with something imperceptible. If Ci-ci didn't know better, he would have thought he had seen the semblance of a pout.

He had never crossed that line with Frae because he naively thought that if he didn't, it would be easier for her to move on from him when the time was right. In fact, he had no intention of crossing that line with Milana either, despite what her thoughts were on the topic. It didn't feel right to him. Not while he was still lying to her.

Ci-ci didn't see himself as a good person. If he was, he would have never gotten into either relationship. But, he tried his best to cling onto some small moral victories to try and keep himself level headed.

That said, it wasn't the first time Ci-ci had ever been here. So, he directly took off his jacket and hung it on her side bed chair even as Frae went to get them some wine.

Handing a glass to Ci-ci, Frae spoke, "You still haven't answered my question."

"You already confirmed your answer the day of the award ceremony, didn't you?"

"You're too smart to not know that that's not how I meant it. I've known for a lot longer than even you know, yet I let you keep pretending to be Ci-ci. So, answer my question."

Ci-ci set aside his glass, taking Frae's to do the same.

"You have no idea why I'm in this situation, do you?"

"None at all."

"But you do know that this will be dangerous."

"Anything that can put your family in this kind of situation is more dangerous than just about anyone is able to deal with."

"And yet you still want my answer?"

"Yes."

"And what do you want to do with that answer?"

"I've lost count of how many tears I've shed thinking you were dead. And that's just me, what about the others? Maybe if we had continued to grow up together, and you became just as annoying as all the other boys, we would have forgotten. But, you upped and died. You left a scar on all of us."

"Sounds like you're all more in love with my memory than me."

"Considering you used me for your lawyering license, I'm sure you can take advantage of that love we hold for your memory to do more useful things."

Ci-ci laughed, "I deserve that one. You're the only person who could find that trail considering you're the only loose end."

"Knowing that, you should know why I called you an idiot."

Ci-ci sighed, bringing Frae into his embrace, holding her head tightly to his chest as she gripped his chest's fabrics tightly.

"You knew I was on your side already. The moment I said nothing about that fake diploma, you should have known. But you still made me go through that. You made me feel like you wanted to use me then toss me aside. How could you do that?" Frae spoke softly, trembling ever so slightly in his arms.