Novels by Swan

I bought him that black Ferrari that he loved so much. Funnily enough, he hardly ever drives it. It’s a trophy car and a waste of money, if I’m totally honest. Stace has started a development company. If he had his time again, he would have gone back into The Marines, but now that he has a criminal record, that wasn’t an option. He’s doing well and has four men working for him. Sometimes he flies a helicopter for fun on the weekend if he has the time.Like a whirlwind, they come through the kitchen back door. Seb is bouncing his basketball and Stace is carrying groceries in bags that they have just bought.“Dada!” Molly screams in excitement and he laughs and scoops her up and spins her around in excitement.The ball bounces continually and I shake my head. What is it about ball bouncing that drives me so mad? “Stop bouncing that ball, please, Seb,” I call.“Yeah, okay,” he replies from the lounge room as he turns on the television.Stace puts Molly down and she runs off to play with

I open the blue, arch-shaped door and we walk inside. The flooring is tiled in all different shades of green in big diamond shapes, and the walls are a warm terracotta colour. It is the epitome of South America and exactly why I wanted this house when I first looked at it.It’s warm, earthy, and inviting.“This is the lounge room.” I gesture to the lounge room and we walk through the hallway. “This is the kitchen.”He looks around the timber kitchen and smiles. “Where is the laundry?” he asks.“Oh, through here.” I walk through the hallway and show him the laundry and he looks around. His dark eyes come back to my face.“Where is our bedroom?”Nerves flutter through me. It’s been a long time. “Upstairs,” I whisper.He takes me by my hand, leads me back to the staircase, and we continue upstairs.“Last door on the right,” I murmur.He puts the puppy down and walks me up the hall to our bedroom. His eyes scan the space.There’s a large bed with white linen and timber furnishings. It’s s

Stace nods as he drags me to my feet, his hand holding my jaw the way he wants me and his tongue caressing my lips.Oh God, I’ve missed this.“We need to go home,” he whispers.“Diamonds.” I smile as I wrap my arms around his broad muscular shoulders. He’s much bigger than he was before.He walks me backwards until I am up against the wall, his hands on my face, his hard length up against my stomach. “I couldn’t care less about the diamonds,” he breathes into my mouth. “It’s you that I want.”His mouth drops to my neck and I close my eyes in pleasure as his whiskers dust my skin. We kiss again and he’s right, we really do need to get home. I could come on the spot.“Diamonds and home,” I breathe.He bends and picks up our new family member and we walk into the office and up to reception.“We are here to empty our deposit box,” he says. He hands over his identification and I watch him. He’s different. Harder, yet softer, if that makes sense. His body has changed from all of his weight

“I don’t want you to deal with this alone.”“I have been alone my whole life.”“Shelly,” he whispers sadly. “I fucked up, but I can fix it.”“It’s broken for good, Todd,” I whisper. “We can’t be fixed.”A knock bangs at the door. “Hello, Shelly. My name is Erica and I am a psychologist. We had an appointment booked for this morning.”Grateful for the interruption, I smile. “Yes, of course. Come in, please.”I’ve been in rehab for two weeks. It’s been six weeks since I was shot. I finally got the message through to Todd and he stopped coming to see me, although he still rings me every morning and night. The psychologist has diagnosed me with Stockholm syndrome, and so, for now, I am just playing along and agreeing with themSix long weeks since I lost the other half of me.Does he think about me all the time, like I do him? Sometimes I wake up and I feel like I won’t be able to survive another hour without him.Are they right?Am I crazy?It doesn’t really matter anymore, I suppose, an

I am woken up by Todd. “Good morning, Shelly.” He smiles broadly.“Hi.”“You look better today. How are you feeling?”“Fine.”I stare at him for a moment. I have to know. “What happened to the man?”He frowns. “That animal has been charged with your kidnapping and rape. He has been deported to Columbia for trial.”My face falls.“I hope they give him the death sentence.”“He didn’t rape me.”“Yes, yes, he did. His semen was found in a rape kit test carried out on you. DNA testing has come through.”“It was consensual,” I snap.His face falls. “You don’t know what you are saying, angel.”“Yes, I do.”“No, you don’t. You have been kidnapped and beaten into submission by that freak.”“His name is Stace,” I snap. “Don’t speak about him like that.”His eyes meet mine.“I’m in love with him,” I whisper.He screws up his face. “You’re not in love with him. He has brainwashed you. You are traumatized.”“I’m not in love with you.”“Yes, you are,” he commands. “You have been through a lot.”“I’

A siren rings out from outside, and suddenly, after a commotion, ten policemen come storming through the doors in full swat gear.They run to me. “Roshelle.” The policeman unties me. “Are you okay?” He lifts his face to meet mine. “What happened?”“A man came in and shot him,” I whisper.“What man?” the policeman asks.“He left in a car,” I whisper as my eyes find Stace.The hit men came through.I need to cover for them because they just saved our lives.Iinhale deeplyas I try to get comfortable. I’m half asleep, groggy, and incoherent.“Shelly,” a familiar voice whispers.I frown in the semi-lit room. Who is that?“Shelly,” the voice whispers again. “Come back to me.”I frown as I drag my eyes open and the pain in my leg throbs. It’s semi-dark, dusk, maybe. I glance around at my surroundings. I’m in a hospital room.What? Where am I?“Shelly. Oh my God. I thought I was going to lose you,” he whispers as he drops his head to rest on the bed.I frown. What the hell? “Where?” I stop