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60|Playing Games
Last Updated:
2024-10-29 19:42:56
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Save Him 61|Denial Was So Much Easier
Emily was right on the money about Levi. He wondered what had made Natalie so happy that she just had to dance around the room and ask her friend to marry her. He couldn't ask Mark for hints. They were still recovering from their fight."Since Elektra's out, any ideas on who we can get on board?" Mark asked in between mouthfuls of Mac and Cheese.Levi envied his voracious appetite. Lately, food was the last thing on his mind. He ate because he had to."We'll move on to the next candidate. Dreams approved the contract. It should stand with whoever we settle on. I'll leave that to you." Levi said, trying his best to not gawk at Natalie. A damn near impossible challenge. Every part of him ached for her. Those two minutes he'd held her in his arms were heaven."I found something in one of the chats." Seth looked up from his screen.Returning his focus to his sister and the case, Levi asked, "What?""A user with the handle JWL040393 posted in a 'Where Can I Find' forum for doctors outside
Save Him 62|Haven't Known A Moments Peace
Ten minutes later, Natalie stood just inside the door of his office."Mr Van Holt, you wanted to see me?" she asked, her voice breaking a little when he turned from the window and stared at her, searching her face as if all the answers to his questions were written there."Do you plan to stand over there the whole day?" Levi asked as he leaned on his desk."Is something wrong?"Yes. Everything was so wrong, and she was the only one who could fix it.But he ignored her question and asked one of his own. "Did I stutter, Ms Taylor? How long do you plan to stand over there?"The edge in his voice startled her out of her indecisiveness, and in a flash, Natalie crossed the room and paused in front of him, her intoxicating scent paralysing him.Levi gripped the sides of his desk to stop himself from reaching for her. Even when he was so confused, he still wanted her with a fierceness that shook him to his very core."Who are you?" he asked after a tense minute of silence from him and a bit o
Save Him 63|Is There No Chance At All?
They'd done this dance before, in the meeting room on the third floor. But, Natalie saw the anguish in Levi's eyes for the first time today, and she finally understood what he had been trying to say all along.Paul had not only tainted her life, but he'd poisoned Levi's world, too, with the photos.She wished he hadn't seen them."I—Uh—" She began but stopped herself.She couldn't tell Levi the truth about Paul without sharing all the parts about Emily too. And she couldn't expose her friend's secret and her moonlighting at Dreams."Promise to answer me two things at least?" Levi pleaded, tears glistening in his eyes, and she hated herself for causing him so much agony.She wanted him to be okay, to find peace. She would have given him anything if it meant he'd stop hurting."Alright. I promise." Natalie nodded, seeing their ending play out right in front of her eyes. They were a tragic accident waiting to happen the moment she stepped in front of his car. He'd hit the brakes in time,
Save Him 64|Thirty Days-Part 1
The moment Levi was alone, he went on a rampage, hurling everything from his shelves and desk across the room, papers and files scattered in the air, glass pieces shattered on the floor, accolades of years of hard work attesting to his greatness destroyed in an instant.His laptop and computer screen didn't survive the carnage either.By the time his partner and Angela came in, there was nothing left to salvage.Mark dealt with the aftermath, starting with Angela. He asked her to cancel all Levi's appointments and ensure no staff came to the tenth floor.He got the first aid kit and joined Levi on the floor amongst the broken glass and his shattered dreams."Oh, God!" Levi clutched his chest, blood gushing from his palm. His heart ached so much he thought he was dying. "Mark, what do I do?""Steady there." Mark pressed his hand tightly to stop the bleeding. "Shit was bound to happen. It's better you found out now before you got in too deep."They stayed on the floor until two bottles
Save Him 65|Thirty Days-Part 2
Thirty days passed in a blur for Natalie.She buried herself in her work, and her life returned to the way it was before Levi. She avoided all the places she knew she'd likely run into him—the staff canteen, Rise and Lennie's.For thirty days, she dressed up elegantly, did her hair and went on dinner dates and attended events with men—and women—she had no interest in. She'd talk, dance, laugh and smile when all she wanted to do was fall to pieces.For thirty days, she made enough money to pay off Aunty Viv's debt and put some away for Jamie's medical expenses.For thirty days, Natalie went through all the stages of grief.Denial lasted the longest. She held out hope, prayed and wished Levi would finally calm down and reach out to her. But when her text messages, pleading with him to give her a chance to explain everything about Paul and the assault, went unanswered, she quickly moved on to anger.How dare he judge her choices?How dare he make her feel unworthy of love and happiness s
Save Him 66|If You Can't Have Love
The doctor called Natalie as soon as Amber hung up with some bad news.Unfortunately, her blood type wasn't compatible with Jamie's. So even though she was relatively healthy—but on the underweight side—and as much as she wanted to, she couldn't donate her kidney.Since Amber was a match, though, their brother's chances had improved considerably. Over the next few weeks, her siblings would have to go through a few more tests and meet with various specialists to prepare them for the transplant, which still largely depended on their finances.Natalie was already crunching the numbers while the doctor brought her up to speed; the various specialists he'd mentioned and the transplant team sounded very costly.She was still reeling from the doctor's call, and her eyes still red from crying at Amber's news when she walked into the meeting she normally wouldn't sit in. But Norah had asked her to represent the office support area and take notes for her since she had a clash in her diary.All
Save Him 67|Rules Are Rules
"What have you done now?" Emily asked, and Natalie shrugged.She was pretty sure it had nothing to do with any of her reports. They always went to Angela first before she passed them on to the relevant executive committee member. So if there was something wrong, she would have told her.Would she, though, Scared Natalie wanted to know.It was hard not to get used to the many versions of herself. They all popped up every so often, influencing her day one way or another.She took the elevator instead of the usual stairs. Common sense was in abundance today. Stupid Natalie seemed to have perished in the Battle Royale with Levi last month. She hadn't made an appearance since, and Natalie was okay with that.Angela showed her in after they'd exchanged polite greetings and exhausted all small talk about the horrid weather and the upcoming team-building outing.The first thing Natalie noticed was the luggage—a dark brown leather duffel bag sitting just inside the door. A messenger laptop bag
Save Him 68|Bled For Her
"She's right," Mark said from the window when Levi turned back to his desk. "Your fifteen minutes of barking and growling at her could have been a simple email, you know."Of course, he knew. The whole game proposal was a sham, a way to save face for giving in to his compulsive need to see her, especially after Angela had handed him that bullshit resignation letter.He'd read somewhere it took ninety days to get over someone. Thirty was the longest he could go without Natalie. Anything over that was enough to send him to a white padded room."I'm just saying—" Mark carried on.Levi shot him down with a snarl as he roamed his eyes on the laptop. "Don't say anything!"He didn't know what was worse. Natalie making suggestions about how he should manage his time. Mark's know-it-all attitude. Or the jumbled up mess on his desktop."Fucking hell!" he growled. His files and documents were still syncing from the cloud, making it impossible to find what he needed.Mark sprung from the window a
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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
