The Seasons of Callan Reed: An Enemies-to-Lovers Office Romance Read online

  Copyright © 2021 S.M. Soto

  All rights reserved.

  Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into retrieval systems, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book except in the case of brief quotation embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial use permitted by copyright law.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.

  Cover by Najla Qamber Designs

  Photographer: Dany Fantoni

  Editing by Paige Smith, Jenny Sims, Rebecca Barney, and Rumi Khan

  Formatting by Stacey Blake

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Title Page

  Copyright

  About This Book

  Other Books by S.M. Soto

  Playlist

  Epigraph

  Dedication

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Epilogue

  Extended Epilogue

  Hate Thy Neighbor: An Enemies-to-Lovers Preview

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Acknowledgements

  Let’s keep in touch!

  About the Author

  An Enemies-to-Lovers Office Romance.

  After the death of her husband, Daisy Casillas is lost, desperately trying to repair the wreckage that has now become her life. In need of a job and money to stay afloat, her best friend suggests a position no one in New York is willing to take.

  Callan Reed’s executive assistant.

  The man is a tyrant.

  Incredibly rude.

  Notoriously arrogant.

  Strikingly handsome.

  And as fate would have it, her former childhood best friend.

  Daisy promised herself she’d never speak to the man again after the destruction of their friendship years ago, but she’s desperate. Desperate enough to withstand his cold glares, to follow his impossible tasks to a T, and endure his ridiculous demands.

  The hate and animosity they have for each other is real. The barbs they shoot at each other in the office are effective and all too spiteful. But Daisy is willing to risk it all, even if it means another shattered heart.

  What ensues between them is a chain of events that unravels the secrets in Daisy’s already imperfect life. While struggling to rebuild everything that has crashed around her, Daisy finds herself falling into old habits with Callan. Only this time, she hopes her heart will survive the wreckage. If there’s nothing left of the organ, there’s no heart left to break, right?

  The Seasons of Callan Reed is a full-length second chance office romance with a guaranteed HEA. At the end, I’ve included an excerpt from Hate Thy Neighbor, an enemies-to-lovers standalone romance.

  The Seasons of Callan Reed concludes at around 90% on your device.

  Happy Reading!

  XO, S.M. Soto

  THE CHAOS SERIES

  Deception and Chaos

  Blood and Chaos

  Love and Chaos

  THE SAN DIEGAN SERIES

  Scoring the Quarterback

  Damaged Heart

  THE TWIN LIES DUET

  Kiss Me with Lies

  Bury Me with Lies

  STANDALONE TITLES

  Chasing the Moon: A Second Chance Romance

  Hate Thy Neighbor: An Enemies-to-Lovers Romance

  Ache: A Second Chance Romance

  A Cruel Love: A Dark Enemies-to-Lovers Romance

  COMING SOON

  Jake Wilder: A Fake Fiancé Novel

  The Consequence of Hating You

  Redemption and Chaos

  Corruption and Chaos

  Muerte and Chaos

  Spotify

  Seasons—6LACK, Khalid

  Hurt You—The Weeknd ft. Gesaffelstein

  Say Something—A Great Big World

  None Of Your Concern—Jhené Aiko ft. Big Sean

  Back To December—Taylor Swift

  What You Did—Mahalia ft. Ella Mai

  Ocean—Karol G ft. Jessie Reyez

  Doing It Wrong—Drake

  Better Not—Louis The Child ft. Wafia

  Thinking Out Loud—Ed Sheeran

  Crowded Room—Selena Gomez ft. 6LACK

  Back Home—Trey Songz ft. Summer Walker

  I Like Me Better—Lauv

  Undressed—Merges

  Ends of the Earth—Lord Huron

  Come & Go—Juice WRLD, Marshmello

  Lights Down Low—MAX

  Take You Back—Russ ft. Kehlani

  What About Love—BANKS

  Calling—QUIN

  Meet me in the middle of your story when the soul is worn but wise.—Angie Weiland-Crosby

  For all the readers who like their men mean.

  This one’s for you.

  Do you ever wonder where rock bottom is? Where it truly lies? I think it’s here in this soul-crushing moment. Just three months ago, I had a normal life. Or what I thought was a normal life.

  A loving husband.

  A happy marriage.

  Yet all of that evaporated within seconds.

  Two calls are all it took to ruin my life—one to blow me over and the other to kick me while I was down. I know rock bottom intimately. Chances are, I’ll spend the rest of my life living here.

  “Oh, sweetie.”

  My eyes spring open at hearing the familiar voice. A sob rips through my chest when I spot my best friend, Rosalind, kneeling in the corner of the funeral home, right next to me.

  “I can’t do this, Rose. I can’t,” I cry as she wraps me in her arms. I bask in the comfort of her familiarity. It’s the only thing I have going for me these days.

  “I know, babe. I’m here now, and I’m not going anywhere. Got me?”

  For what feels like the hundredth time since I got that first phone call, I burst into tears. It’s been happening often. I think I have a hold on my emotions, but all it takes is one small thought, one single smell, one tiny thing and my entire world shatters around me
again.

  After my mother’s death, I never thought I’d have to deal with the grief of losing someone I loved so soon. Dean handled her funeral arrangements for me because my father and I were too much of a mess. And that was my husband, the fixer. He fixed things and made them better. For a while.

  And now here I am, burying him.

  It shouldn’t hurt as much as it does. We were separated, and in the process of getting a divorce, but the circumstances are unforgettable. Unforgiveable.

  Not only am I losing my husband of nine years, but I’m also burying my cousin, Skylar—his mistress. Because as the universe would have it, killing my mother, letting my husband have an affair, and then getting another woman pregnant are all perfectly acceptable. I have no one left to be angry with. No one to kick and scream at.

  All that I’m truly left with is pain.

  And their baby.

  Past

  “Daisy.”

  “Daisy Elise Casillas, are you even listening to me?” My best friend Rosalind’s voice pierces through my thoughts. It’s a struggle to peel my gaze away from the window and the sight I’ve fixated on for the past hour or so.

  Down below her window, out in the driveway, is the object of my fixation and every single fantasy. Callan Reed. It might seem premature to say I’m in love with Callan. I mean, hell, I’m only fifteen. What do I know about love and relationships? But the fact of the matter is, I am in love with him—I’m sure of it. I have been since the moment I became best friends with his little sister.

  I fell in love with Callan when he taught me how to ride a bike, swim in a filthy lake, throw a punch, and most importantly, when he taught me how to kiss. Though Rose doesn’t know about that last one, and chances are, she never will. She’s likely to lose her shit if she finds out.

  How horrible of a friend does that make me to be in love with my best friend’s older brother? Because sometimes, I feel that way. I feel like the scum of the earth. The shittiest friend on the planet. Like right now. Rosalind has been telling a story for the past thirty minutes, and instead of listening, I’ve been staring out her window, watching him shoot hoops in the driveway. Even from the second story, I can see the sweat glistening on his bronzed skin. It’s like crystals you can’t look away from. With each dribble and layup, the muscles in his back flex, the sinews tightening, and my mouth grows dry. Swarms of butterflies fill my stomach and my chest with a tightness that makes it hard to breathe.

  Callan Reed is the finest specimen of a boy ever created. That’s just fact.

  Too bad he hates me.

  Sometime during our childhood, he decided our friendship didn’t mean anything to him. We went from best friends, the three of us being the three musketeers, to him despising my existence. In all the years since then, he’s given me the brush-off. When we’re at school, he pretends he doesn’t know me. When we’re out in public, he gives me the cold shoulder. And because I’m an idiot who enjoys pain, his brashness toward me only makes me want him more.

  We always want the things we can’t have, don’t we?

  I heave a deep sigh. “Crap. Sorry, Rosie. I was daydreaming, and I must’ve tuned you out.”

  Rosalind crosses her room with a roll of her eyes, perching next to me on her reading nook in front of the window. She looks down pointedly at her shirtless brother, who is still playing basketball.

  “Mm-hmm. You were daydreaming, all right.”

  I nudge her on the arm, feigning disgust. “Gross. Stop it. I wasn’t even looking at him.”

  Rose laughs, a gut belly laugh that prompts her to toss her head back. “Oh, Daisy. I don’t know why you try to lie about your feelings for my brother when they’re so obvious.”

  I narrow my eyes. “The only feeling I have toward your brother is indifference. I can’t stand him.”

  She purses her lips, trying to hide her smile. “That’s not indifference.”

  “Okay, fine. I hate him. Happy now?”

  Her smirk spreads. “You know what they say about love and hate, don’t you?”

  I shoot her a glare. “Please stop it. I feel nothing for him. And he feels nothing for me. End of story.”

  She shakes her head, obviously not believing a word coming out of my mouth. Damn her. She knows me too well. “I can’t stand the two of you sometimes,” she mumbles as she pushes to her feet. She props her hands on her hips. “How about this, we get pizza somewhere far, far away from my fugly sibling, and then you finally listen to my damn story?”

  I smile, despite myself. “You mean, I’m going to have to relisten to this story all over again?” I tease.

  “Don’t push it, Casillas. You’re on thin ice.”

  She yanks me up by my arm, and I follow her as my laughter echoes around us. The lightness dissipates the second we step outside, not because Callan is out here; it’s because she is.

  My entire body stiffens when I spot my cousin, Skylar, practically dry-humping Callan. I’m being dramatic, but she might as well be. I know my cousin, and I know how vindictive she can be. She’s one of those girls that thrives on everyone else’s misery.

  “Cal!” she whines in her annoying voice as she tries to dribble, rubbing against him in the process. “I need more help. Come show me.”

  With his hands on his hips, Cal watches Sky pretend she doesn’t know how to dribble a damn basketball. It’s not that fucking hard. His chest is still glistening with sweat, and if I’m not mistaken, he looks bored by her antics. But then again, he always has that look on his face. He adopted it a few years back, and it hasn’t changed since. This new version of Callan? I can’t stand him. He’s cold and mean. Gone are his beautiful smiles and the soft twinkle in his gray eyes. Instead, they’ve been replaced by a hardness I can’t comprehend.

  As if noticing our presence, Sky glances at me, and I watch as the flare of evil lights in her eyes. It’s like watching the gates of hell open and seeing the flames eat up her irises. She knows exactly what she’s doing. She doesn’t care about learning how to dribble. Hell, just a few days ago, she said she thought all sports were stupid. She’s doing this because of me. Because she knows how I feel about Callan. I just wish it wasn’t so obvious to her. But that’s just what Skylar does. She seeks out your weakness, and she always finds a way to exploit it. She’s been doing it for the past two years, ever since she moved in with us.

  I didn’t know much about her, other than that she was my mom’s half-sister’s daughter. I never met my aunt. Her relationship with my mother was strained because of drugs. She was an addict, and that eventually killed her.

  My mom tells me to try to understand where my cousin is coming from, and believe me, I have. I know Skylar hasn’t had an easy life. Hell, I even get why she does half the stuff she does, but does it hurt any less?

  Nope.

  I don’t know what it’s like to go your entire life without the love of a father because my father is quite literally the best dad on this earth. I don’t know what it’s like to have a mother who loves drugs more than me because my mother is the most loving and selfless woman on the planet. I’ve never been uprooted from foster home to foster home. I’ve never had to share a room with five other children I wasn’t related to. I didn’t have the life Skylar had, and I won’t even pretend I understand what any of that must’ve been like for her.

  After my aunt’s overdose, my mother spoke to my father and stepped in, making the tough, but necessary, decision to adopt Skylar into our family. It was a difficult transition because I knew next to nothing about her. I’d only met her once or twice over the years, and each encounter wasn’t one I wanted to revisit. She was crass, mean, and vindictive. It was like she saw the life I had, the family I was born into, and hated me for it. Blamed me for her problems. Even though she was only a year older than me, it was like she had lived through just about everything. Her past had made her cynical and jealous. I was the naïve little cousin, and she was the wise one. She thought I was an idiot who didn’t know how the r
eal world worked while I tried to see the best in people. We were opposites in all the ways that mattered.

  “Oh, hey, Daisy.” She smirks, inching closer to Cal. I covertly grit my back teeth together, hating their proximity. “Guess who’s teaching me how to play basketball? Care to join?” She raises a brow in challenge because she knows exactly what my answer is going to be.

  “Oh, for fuck’s sake,” Rosalind mumbles under her breath. There isn’t a person she hates more than Skylar.

  My chest squeezes like it’s in a vise when Skylar sidles up to Callan’s side and fits herself against him as though they’re a couple. The sight makes me sick to my stomach. So much so, I place a trembling hand over my abdomen to hold down my nausea.

  Despite my better judgment, I glance up at Cal to see what he’s thinking and immediately wish I hadn’t. He’s watching me, but it’s not with the same look he used to watch me with when we were friends. Now, it’s with a look akin to disgust. His ice gray-blue eyes are like fire on my skin—it’s such a contradiction. It’s almost as if the sight of me makes him sick. The real blow to the gut is the fact that he hasn’t stepped away from my cousin. Not even once. I want him to push her away, to brush her off the same way he brushes me off.

  I hurriedly avert my gaze, looking at anything but them standing so close to one another. My heart feels heavy in my chest. There’s an icy drizzle down the center that I can’t seem to shake, but I steel myself. I throw on that façade I wear so well as of late.

  “Hard pass.” My voice comes out strong and controlled. And to anyone else, it sounds like I’m telling the truth. My gaze sweeps over both of them one last time before I force myself to turn my back on them. The last thing I see is my cousin rolling her eyes and the muscle in Cal’s jaw clenching with annoyance.

  “You know, I really can’t stand your cousin,” Rose grumbles as we make the trek down the street.

  I blow out a sigh, fighting the urge to look back over my shoulder. “The feeling is entirely mutual.”