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23|Bad Idea
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2024-10-29 19:42:56
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Save Him 24|Safe Haven-Part 1
It was Sunday when Natalie opened her eyes again.Groaning, she draped her hand over her face to block out the fluorescent light glaring down at her.She knew she was in a hospital. The sterile smell of antiseptic filling the air couldn't be confused with anything else, and it spurred her to action.She had to leave.Right now.Paul was very clear. No police. No hospitals. Otherwise, he'd fix her up real good."Ugh!" Natalie moaned as she pushed aside the white sheets and placed her feet on the floor, the room shaking violently in front of her. Every part of her ached. Everything felt broken. But it was nothing a couple of aspirins couldn't fix just as soon as she got out of there.So she powered through the pain and looked through the side cabinet, smiling with relief when she found her stuff, feeling grateful everything was still there. Not so much for the clothes and necklace but for her phone inside the clutch. Her purse was also still there, with everything intact— her two hundred
Save Him 25|Safe Haven-Part 2
Natalie flipped through a dozen or so images of bruises in various colours, shapes, and sizes."What is this? Who is this? Am I supposed to know what these mean?" she asked shrilly, dumping the pictures on the bed."That's you, and those are the bruises on your body.""That's a lie!" Natalie shook her head.No, she wasn't the girl in those photos. She didn't get beat up in the back seat of a luxury car for chatting with a stranger at a gala she had no business attending.She wasn't that girl.She was Natalie Taylor, the girl who came to Rock Union to save her brother."I know it's hard to accept—""That's not me!" she cut Sam off. But even as she denied it, she knew it was true. She didn't have to breathe deeply to feel the sharp pain in her lungs and abdomen. It was so constant it was almost a part of her now. But she'd wanted to pretend, just so she could hold on to the last shred of dignity she thought she still had.Confronted with the images, Natalie could no longer deny it.She w
Save Him 26|Bad Timing
They missed each other by mere minutes.When Levi drove in, it never occurred to him that Noelle was in the red sedan pulling away from the entrance. He shot out of the door and ran inside the flat-roof single-story building as soon as Mark killed the engine.Eliza, an overworked and underpaid receptionist, in between mouthfuls of her quarter chicken and chips combo meal, politely informed him Noelle was discharged and had just left."What do you mean she left?" Levi asked, unable to process a word the receptionist had said. For the life of him, he couldn't understand why they'd let her leave when she clearly needed medical attention.Eliza put down her drumstick long enough to glare at him. "I mean exactly that. She jumped in an Uber or a Bolt and left not too long ago!"But Levi wasn't intimidated by her death stare. He scowled right back at her."Listen," he said, trying his damnedest to keep his irritation in check. "I need to speak to someone in charge. Where's the manager?""She'
Save Him 27|Flirt With Death-Part 1
The meds from the women's shelter were better than aspirin any day. They knocked Natalie out for fourteen hours straight. Not surprising since she'd taken more than the recommended dose after she'd spent the rest of her Sunday in bed, tossing and turning because she was terrified to close her eyes and fall asleep.She woke up on Monday, fuzzy-headed and her mouth so dry she thought she'd swallowed cotton balls.She reached for her phone on the side table and regretted it almost immediately when she saw the time. She'd missed work and twenty-six calls—ten from Emily, three from work, and the rest were Amber's.As much as Natalie wanted to curl up under the warm cocoon of her blankets, hiding in her room forever stopped being an option when she saw the missed calls from Chassis.It was time for damage control.She dealt with Anna from Human Resources first.After listening to her sob story about an out-of-town family emergency, Anna nicely informed her she'd have to take a personal day.
Save Him 28|Flirt With Death-Part 2
"Nat? Are you there? If you don't open the door, I'm coming in!""Emily!" Natalie sprung from the couch at lightning speed, regretting it immediately when a sharp pain shot through her midsection. She doubled over and listened to her spare key rattle in the keyhole as Emily unlocked the door."Thank God, you're okay!" her friend squeezed her hard as soon as she let herself inside, almost crushing her bones.Natalie breathed in sharply. Everything still hurt so much. Maybe she really was hovering at death's door."I was so worried about you when you missed work!" Emily followed her to the couch and pulled out a brown envelope from her bag. "Here!"Natalie peeked inside the envelope and asked, "what's this?"She'd never seen so many one hundred Rand notes in one place. All her transactions were paperless. She rarely needed cash, but if she did, she got it at the till at the grocery store when she topped up on her weekly groceries. She couldn't even remember the last time she'd gone insid
Save Him 29|Irrevocably Broken-Part 1
Levi forgot about the envelope Eliza had given him until Monday evening when he was going through the dozens of reports Angela, his assistant, had left on his desk.It was one of those days when he had a lot of shit to get through and too many fires to put out but lacked the motivation.He sat behind his desk, rocking side to side in his executive chair as he gazed at the view outside, at the thousands of skyscrapers in the distance.With a population of just over five million, Rock Union had more skyscrapers than any other city in the country. But then again, it was the economic powerhouse, the Silicon Valley of the country. If you wanted your tech dreams—or any dreams, for that matter— made, there was no better place.Levi thought of another view he'd shared with Noelle two days earlier.Was she now looking at this same view, seeing the same buildings, watching the same stars light up the darkening sky?He wondered where she was and if she was okay.Since leaving Safe Haven, Noelle w
Save Him 30|Irrevocably Broken-Part 2
In the virtual world, Levi was the CEO of a chain of boutique hotels, had mansions all over the country, and holiday homes abroad. He also owned an impressive fleet of cars for every day of the week, a private island somewhere in Europe, and a yacht he had never been on since he bought it.He was happy Seth had stuck close to the truth but embellished a few details. A lot of it would check out, though, if Dreams were to do the security checks they prided themselves on."So, what are you waiting for? Shouldn't we log in?"Now that Levi had the profile, he didn't think they should carry on pursuing their Dreams angle. What if Colleen really was an escort, and worse, there were inappropriate pictures of her on the site?He never wanted to see his sister in that light."I'll do it." Mark took the decision out of his hands.Seth entered the login credentials and drifted to the window, admiring the view outside. Levi leaned away from the laptop. He didn't even want to catch a glimpse of any
Save Him 31|Apologies
Sometime after 1:00 AM, Natalie ran out of sleep, but she stayed in bed, obsessing over the water patch on her ceiling. The incident happened months ago, but she had a sudden urge to walk up the cold flight of stairs, bang hard on Lizbet's door and confront her about the mess she made when she left her bathwater running.Over the past twenty-four hours, Natalie had slowly realised there were many things she wasn't over, things she may never get over, and the stain on the ceiling was one of them.She never got an apology from the old lady or the building manager.Natalie spent a long time thinking about apologies—all the ones she owed people, the ones she never got, and the ones she'd probably never get.Casey, her ex, was high on the list of people she owed an apology to. Looking back, she could have handled their breakup better. She could have eased him into it.But she owed Amber the biggest apology of all for leaving her alone to deal with Jamie.Leaving Sparrow Beach had broken Nat
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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
