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191|Surprises Are More Fun
Last Updated:
2024-10-29 19:42:56
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Save Him 192|Illuminating Experience
When Levi drifted downstairs at the crack of dawn, he didn't expect anyone to be up. But Amber stood in front of the kitchen window, nursing a cup of something hot in her hand."Good morning. Are you also an insomniac, like Nat?"She turned away from the window and smiled into her cup. "Hardly. I just have a lot on my mind. Why are you up? Nat kicked you out of bed?"Levi pulled out a chair and yawned in his hand. "Kind of. She wants pancakes."Mild intrigue stirred in Amber's eyes. "That's weird. She doesn't like pancakes. It must be the kiddos. Congrats, by the way, and on the engagement as well.""Thanks," he said, gently massaging the back of his neck. "She gave me a hell of a hard time, though. Took me six tries to get her to say yes.""I told you she's a runner!" Amber reminded him as she set her cup on the table. "Come on, I'll help you with the pancakes."Levi gladly accepted her offer, and for a little while, they worked in silence, with Amber doing most of the heavy lifting.
Save Him 193|Out Of Her Grasp
Levi kept up with her easily. "Nat, I can't afford to antagonise Andrei more than I already have. I have to think about your safety. And if it means keeping him close, then so be it."Natalie stopped and asked. "When exactly did you invite him to this wedding that I'm pretty sure didn't even exist at the time?""A few weeks ago at The Empress when he gave me the file on Dreams and Vivienne.""That was awfully presumptuous of you, don't you think? I hadn't even agreed to marry you, and yet you were already sending out invitations!"It had been a while since Levi saw her so pissed off, and all he could do was worry about her blood pressure. Dr Neville said she shouldn't be stressed out. Maybe he was a little overzealous when he extended an olive branch to the Russian, and he admitted as much to her. "Look, Love, I should have discussed this with you first, and I'm sorry."Natalie closed her eyes and inhaled and exhaled a couple of times. When she brought her gaze to his again, she didn'
Save Him 194|Beautifully Poetic
Natalie looked up from her screen at the sound of her bedroom door banging shut. But she gazed unseeingly at Levi, stunned disbelief in her eyes.Was it all true?Was this how everything ended?The countless hours of drifting between anger and hate, those endless moments spent ebbing and flowing between shame and grief, propelled forward by the oars of her guilt…Was this what it had all boiled down to?Paul's lifeless body sprawled on some cheap metal table of an overcrowded prison's canteen, his insides spewing out of his fleshy, wobbly stomach like a gutted fish?It seemed so beautifully poetic that for someone who had obsessed over beauty and revelled in degrading women, Paul had been left out in the open, in such a humiliating pose that not only screamed of his vulnerability but the raw ugliness of his final moments, too.The beauty of it all, though, was the message—WOMAN BEATER—tattooed on his chest with what Natalie assumed was a barbaric instrument made in the bowels of some d
Save Him 195|No Real Closure
Supper was a little subdued that night. Amber and Jamie were bummed they were leaving so soon. They thought they still had two more days with them."Something came up at work," Natalie said.Amber nodded, and Jamie stared glumly at his plate."But you guys can always come up to see me," Natalie tried to cheer them up. "In fact, I insist you guys should come up. Make a road trip of it.""Yeah, that would be awesome." Amber grinned. "Heritage Day weekend. We'll drive up. Is that okay with you, Levi?""You're welcome anytime, and my folks would love to meet you, hopefully before the wedding.""It's settled then." Amber bobbed her head.Jamie stirred to life in his seat, his eyes as huge as saucers. "Did you guys see the video of that guy in prison, the one on that metal table? At first, I thought they were performing an autopsy, but it turned out someone shanked him in his stomach, and his insides actually trickled out. Did you guys know your stomach is the size of your fist? But I don't
Save Him 196|Bury An Asshole-Part 1
The only funeral Natalie had ever attended was her mom's, seven years ago.She remembered the days leading up to those final moments so clearly because it rained for a week non-stop in Sparrow Beach, a strange phenomenon for a town that prided itself on its warm weather to match the balmy temperament of its residents.It rained sometimes. Just not often. Just not every day for a week straight like it did back then.It was like Natalie and her siblings didn't have enough tears to express all their grief and sorrow, and the heavens above had decided to intervene and help them out.The rain, relentless and steady in its stubbornness to share in their mourning, was as quietly unobtrusive as the depression that had snuck in soon after the doctors informed them nothing more could be done for June Taylor.No, the rain never bothered Natalie.It was the eerie silence that crept in once the doctors turned their white-coated backs and returned to the business of saving lives or breaking hearts—
Save Him 197|Bury An Asshole-Part 2
Natalie headed to the altar and lit a candle, not for Paul, but for the little girl he left behind.She took out her Rosary from her bag and prayed. When she was done with her Hail Marys, she made her way to her friends' pew.More people had arrived while she was chatting with Meredith, and they were now hovering in the early double digits."What was that?" Emily asked as soon as she sat down."She's just a little girl," Natalie said. "We may hate her father. But he was her whole world, and he's gone now. If I knew he had a little girl, that he was a father, I would never have let things get this far.""You didn't do anything!" Emily scolded her."Didn't I? Sam, Sandra, the investigation, Levi and the Dreams dossier? Didn't I do all of it? And for what? So that little girl could lose her father? No one told me he had a daughter! Someone should have told me he had a child!" Natalie wailed, and they had to get her out of there fast.Colleen gently shook her on the steps. "Nat, we couldn
Save Him 198|Bad Code-Part 1
Across town, in the building owned by the man being laid to rest at West Park Cemetery at that very moment, Levi sat in Linda Swartz's office, wondering if he'd made a mistake.After the usual, standard pleasantries and patient-doctor bullshit was out of the way, Linda had encouraged him to make himself comfortable on her tan leather couch.That was fifteen minutes ago. Nothing else was said since, and Levi was hoping she'd take the lead, or at the very least, give him further instructions. But she seemed awfully happy to just scribble in her brand new journal.What she was scribbling in there was a huge mystery to him since he'd barely said a word.He cleared his throat. Linda looked up from her notebook and smiled at him."I've been thinking," he began. "I've been thinking a lot lately.""Anything in particular?" Linda asked.Levi nodded. "Do you think people are inherently bad?"Linda dropped the pen on her journal, laced her hands together, and weighed his question before asking o
Save Him 199|Bad Code-Part 2
Levi called Natalie to check how the funeral had gone. Colleen picked up, though, explaining his fiancée was fast asleep."Is she okay?" he asked. "Did she eat?""Yeah, yeah, she ate." Colleen quickly brushed him off and gave him a blow by blow account of the funeral, starting with the memorial service."Seriously, Nat has a huge heart. As much as she loathes Paul, she still found it in her to comfort his little girl."Levi stopped at a red traffic light, smiling to himself. It definitely sounded like something Natalie would do. Her selflessness amazed and inspired him every day, and he was so proud and elated she was the mother of his children."Did you hear what I said? Paul's ex pissed on his grave!" Colleen screeched on her end, and Levi was a little disturbed at how thrilled she sounded.The traffic light turned green, he sped off and returned his attention to his twin. "That's great, Leeny—"His words trailed off when he realised that maybe 'great' wasn't the right word choice h
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Save Him 214|Follow The Sun
"Something's different," Natalie murmured as she flicked her gaze through the room.Levi gave her a back hug and kissed the top of her head. "I installed shutters.""Why?""This is our second home, Nat, and I wanted you to feel safe and comfortable.""Thank you," she turned around and hugged him, resting her head on his chest. "The windows don't look as scary and frightening as they did when I first stayed over.""That was the plan. To make them look less frightening." He tapped her nose and asked, "are you hungry?""For something else.""I was hoping you'd say that!" he replied and promptly threw her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes as he carried her to their bedroom."You sexy brute!" Natalie scolded him. "Put me down. The housekeepers will see us!"But he paid her no mind and only set her down once they were in their room."Say it again," he commanded as he moved over her on the bed and nibbled her lower lip. "Tell me all the filthy things you want me to do to you."Natalie
Save Him 213|Precious Love
Natalie had to blink a few times at the picturesque scene before her. It was hard to believe this place, decorated splendidly in ivory and silver motifs, was the same town hall used by Sparrow Beach's residence association to host their weekly meetings."This is amazing," she whispered as she swept her gaze through the room, at all the tiny details, the little things she would never have thought of if she was left to her own devices. Cynthia and the wedding planners had done an incredible job transforming it into a venue fit for a grand wedding reception. Natalie couldn't pry her eyes away from string fairy lights draping the ceiling. But the smell of white lilies permeating the room transported her back to her balcony at The Empress the night Levi proposed to her, and she turned him down. It felt like a lifetime ago, and as she gave him a sidelong glance and caught him looking at her, she couldn't help but be glad he never gave up on her, and she had the sense to say yes on his sixth
Save Him 212|Runaway Bride
At the altar, Seth and Mark seemed to be way more nervous than Levi."Are you sure about this?" Mark asked for the hundredth time, and Levi gritted his teeth for the hundredth time."How many times should I tell you? I love Nat, and I want to spend the rest of my life with her.""Well, I'm just saying marriage is forever, you know." Mark dabbed his forehead with his handkerchief."Why are you sweating? It's not even your wedding," Seth said as he pulled out his own handkerchief and patted his face."Can I have some water?" Liam asked. "God, I need some water. What did that crazy Russian do to me last night?""You fell for his dare again," Mark tried to fill in the blanks for him. "He made you a Russian fuck bomb—that's what he called it. Still don't know what was in it. But you were a goner after you drank that shit, and we had to help Eden carry you back to your room at the B&B.""No wonder she's mad as fuck at me," Liam whispered. "Is she looking at me right now? Guys, I can feel he
Save Him 211|Heart Is At Ease
The weatherman had predicted strong winds and heavy rain. But Natalie's big day dawned bright and sunny. The sky was as blue as the ocean behind her house, with no cloud in sight. Amber and Colleen thought it was a good omen, and Emily, not a believer of anything really, agreed with them."You are the most beautiful bride I've ever seen," Amber said for what felt like the hundredth time since Natalie had stepped into her wedding dress.They were in one of the smaller administration rooms on the chapel's grounds, and the stylists had turned it into a makeshift dressing room."What are you talking about? I'm the only bride you've ever seen!" Natalie teased, but she really was overwhelmed by all the love her sister and friends had shown her, and she was trying so hard not to cry and ruin her makeup."Just accept the compliment already," Colleen scolded her as she fussed over the hem of Natalie's dress."Yeah, Nat, you need to learn to work on accepting compliments graciously," Emily agre
Save Him 210|Cold Feet
"Is everything okay with you two?" Colleen approached him. "I'm sensing a weird vibe. Are you guys getting cold feet?""I don't know about Nat, but I'm not," Levi replied and pushed his hands in his pockets. "How was she today? I don't know…These last two weeks, she's been so calm.""And how is that a bad thing?""Because I know Nat. A wedding is a huge, life-altering event, and she doesn't do life-altering events well. Her knee-jerk reaction is to run. I'm just scared that—Never mind.""No," Colleen refused to let him leave her with half the info. "You're scared of what?""She's too calm, Leeny. The last time she was this way was when she threw you the welcome party. The very next day, she made a run for it without telling me about the twins.""That was months ago!" Colleen reminded him. "You're overthinking this. I've seen the way Nat looks at you. She's crazy about you and your babies. She won't leave you in the lurch! Besides, where would she run to? This is her home town."Right,
Save Him 209|Midnight Rendezvous
Julian and Andrei took it upon themselves to throw Levi the biggest and craziest bachelor party Sparrow Beach had ever seen.And Levi was only happy to blame Mark for everything."What did I do? I followed your 'no bachelor party' rule to the T." His best friend held up his hands as they watched Liam, Jaxon and Matthew try to outdrink each other over a beer pong game."That's exactly why it's your fault. You didn't enforce the rule hard enough," Levi replied, his attention stolen away briefly by Julian and Andrei sipping champagne from the navel of one of the three models-slash-strippers they'd flown in for the occasion.The said model was laid out on the pool table, her half-naked body out on display for everyone to see, and Levi wondered just how Joe had allowed this debauchery to carry on at his family-friendly establishment."Seriously, Mark, as my best man, how do you think Natalie will feel about all this crap?"Ten—maybe even two years ago—this was totally his scene. But now, a
Save Him 208|One Thing Right At Least
In theory, the idea of having twins had sounded fun and appealing. But the reality was far from it, as Natalie and Levi soon learned over the next few weeks.Indeed, it was double the blessing, double the fun, and double the joy. But it was also double the work, and it didn't help that the first week after they brought them home, Juno and Mars decided to go on different sleep schedules.If she and Levi didn't have a strong support system to rely on, Natalie knew they would have lost their minds in those first few weeks.Mrs Ackerman semi-moved in with them, splitting her time between the Blue Mountains and Green Point. It was nice having her around; she was a pro at the never-ending laundry of tiny-sized human clothes and the general upkeep of the house.Levi suggested hiring a nanny full time, but Natalie wasn't sold on the idea. She wanted to be hands-on and involved in the twins' upbringing."Love, it's not working," he said after one particularly difficult night. They were running
Save Him 207|Life's Little Moments
Natalie received a clean bill of health five days after the twins' arrival, and two days later, they were all finally allowed to leave the hospital.After months of being cooped up in bed and eating terrible hospital food, she couldn't get home fast enough.She couldn't stop raving about all the stuff she'd do when they got home, like taking an actual shower and sleeping in her own bed—all the things she used to take for granted before her bed rest.Zachary and Carlos picked them up, and they spent a few minutes gazing at the twins in their double infant stroller, trying to decide who they resembled the most."I really can't tell who they look like," Carlos admitted at last."Neither can we," Levi said with a smile as he covered the twins with a light blanket and turned to Natalie. "Ready to go?"She took one last look around the ward, ensuring they had all their stuff. Satisfied everything was packed away, she nodded. "Yep, let's go home."She hooked her arm around Levi's, and he pus
Save Him 206|Juno and Mars
Levi called his assistant on his way back to the hospital and cancelled all his meetings for the week."Sir," Angela said before they could hang up. "We are all thinking of you. Norah and Natalie's team are beside themselves with worry. But she's a fighter. She'll be out of the hospital in no time.""Thank you," he smiled into the phone, praying with all his heart she was right. He'd lose his mind if anything had to happen to Natalie and their twins. They'd come too far for him to lose her now, especially after everything they'd been through.After he hung up from Angela, he called Amber. She was hysterical, and it took him a long time to calm her down and assure her Natalie, and their babies were fine, and there was no need for them to drive down to Rock Union.He was immensely relieved when he found Natalie sitting up, chatting with his folks and her bestie.Now that he was back, his parents and Emily excused themselves, promising to return later to relieve him."See, I told you I'l
