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84|Beautiful Mess
Last Updated:
2024-10-29 19:42:56
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Save Him 85|Things Done In The Dark
So this was the motivation Aunty Viv was talking about, Natalie thought, her mind galloping wildly like a herd of feral horses.She closed her eyes, praying the next time she opened them again, she'd be in her bed, and this would all be a terrible nightmare that she could easily shake off with a strong cup of coffee.But when she opened them again, she was still in the middle of her living room, and Amber was outraged."My goodness, Nat! How could you? Why didn't you tell me? Why did you keep this from me? Didn't you think I'd want to know?"Lightheaded, out of breath and weak-kneed, Natalie sank on the couch, convinced if she remained on her feet, they'd give out on her anyway at any moment.She took quick, shallow breaths, unable to understand how her life could go up in flames so quickly and so soon.The very thing that had kept her awake most nights was finally playing out in front of her eyes. The one thing she'd feared—her siblings finding out about her secret life—had finally h
Save Him 86|We All Wear Masks
When Natalie woke up the next morning, the rage she took to bed with her hadn't cooled. She went through her morning routine of getting ready for work and called Aunty Viv on her way to the office.This time her boss picked up, her voice chirpier than ever. "Natalie! Did your siblings like the surprise? Did it bring you back to your senses?""Why would you do that? Why would you send them my photos? What were you trying to do—"Aunty Viv cut her off, "Listen, doll, if you still like making money, you'd get over your outrage and meet me at Heat after work. I'll send a car for you."Sure enough, when Natalie signed out for the day, Aunty Viv's sleek Jaguar was at the entrance, and her driver, the same one who took her to The Empress months ago, was waiting outside the car.He nodded briskly and opened the passenger door for her. Natalie reluctantly jumped in and snapped on her seatbelt, and within seconds they were on the move, and she was oblivious to the dark SUV following behind them
Save Him 87|What Were Good Were Promises
Warning: this chapter mentions illegal substances, implied violence and suicidal thoughts. If you are sensitive to these topics, please exit now. Your mental health comes; first, I'll see you in the next few chapters... *** Natalie didn't need Scottie's pills anymore because the pain in her ribs was almost gone. She only felt it when she pushed herself too hard or did something strenuous, like running up a flight of stairs or lifting something heavy.But after the horror show of an evening, she'd had at Heat with Aunty Viv, she needed something to help her pass out quickly. So she took two of Scottie's strong stuff and downed them with the half-finished bottle of wine Emily had left behind days ago and headed to bed.Hard as Natalie tried to nod off to sleep and forget the nightmare that awaited her in the morning, she couldn't. She'd left the brown package inside her handbag in the living room, but its weight had followed her to bed, keeping her wide awake as thoughts of her meeting
Save Him 88|Huge Gamble
Twenty minutes.That was how long it had been since Levi last made contact with Natalie. After her strange call, he'd tried to get in touch with her, but her phone was now switched off and to say he was sick to his stomach with terror was an understatement.He hadn't known her for long, but the Natalie that had called him not so long ago was a far cry from the sassy, confident woman he'd fallen in love with. She'd sounded like she was at the end of her rope, and he was terrified she'd try to harm herself.After trying one more time and still not getting through, he called Zachary and Carlos.Zachary sounded wide awake when he picked up, even though it was just after 3:30 AM, his time."Where are you?" Levi asked."Beacon Hill, outside your girl's place," Zachary replied."Good, I need you to go up to her apartment right now, right this instant! I think something's wrong with her!""On it!" Zachary said, and a second later, Levi heard what sounded like the car door opening and heavy fo
Save Him 89|Collateral-Part 1
True to her word, bright and early Wednesday morning, Aunty Viv sent Natalie a text with the location pin for the drop-off and followed it up with a phone call."Good morning, doll! Hope you slept well. You'll need all the energy for the day I've planned for you."Tired as hell from lack of sleep, emotionally unstable from everything she'd been through in the past 24 hours, Natalie lost her shit. "Listen here, Aunty Viv, I have a day job! I can't be at your beck and call the whole day. I'll deliver your package after work!""I don't remember giving you a choice. Stay close to your phone. After the delivery, I'll send you new instructions."As soon as she hung up from Aunty Viv, Natalie called Norah and explained she had a family emergency. Something had come up with Jamie, and she needed to head to Sparrow Beach ASAP."Oh, dear! I'm so sorry. Take all the time you need, as long as you keep your laptop close to you. I might need to send you some reports."Her normally aloof manager sou
Save Him 90|Collateral-Part 2
As soon as Natalie stepped out of the gate, she called Aunty Viv. "It's done. I have the envelope.""You've really outdone yourself, doll!" she showered her with compliments she didn't want or need before issuing more instructions. "You're holding a lot of money in your hands. Be careful with it. You have to deliver it to its rightful owner now. I'll send you the location."Natalie didn't know where she plucked up the courage to refuse, but she did. "No, I'm not delivering anything until I get what I want.""Excuse me?" Aunty Viv was outraged by her audacity and flabbergasted that she would dare defy an order.This time Natalie was more adamant and vocal in her refusal. "I said I'm not doing it. I'm not going to the second location until you reactivate my profile.""Are you out of your mind?""I've never been more clear-headed. How do I know you'll stick to your end of the deal? I need some sort of collateral. It's amazing how much one can learn in one morning.""Natalie, Natalie, Nat
Save Him 91|Rosewood Motel-Part 1
Natalie didn't realise how far Rosewood was until they were actually on the road, with Josie splitting her attention between driving and stealing anxious glances at her the whole time.Eventually, Natalie got tired of her unspoken questions. Turning to her, she asked, "what is it?""Rosewood is pretty far.""So?""So, I'm just wondering if you'll be able to pay for all these trips. I mean, I've just been driving you around the whole morning."Natalie laughed and stared outside her window. "Don't worry, I may be an idiot in a lot of ways, but I'm not a thief or a liar. I'll pay you.""That's good."Happy with her assurances, Josie relaxed visibly and increased the volume on the stereo by just a notch. "So why are we going to the back of beyond?"Natalie wasn't in the mood to chat, but she mumbled anyway. "Work.""What kind of work?""The kind I regret."And that shut Josie up.The next time she spoke again was exactly two hours later when they pulled into Rosewood Motel, a shady place
Save Him 92|Rosewood Motel-Part 2
Natalie didn't know how long she stood there and watched Igor and his cleanup crew efficiently wrap Ethan in the now bloody rug and bag him up in black refuse bags.It all felt so surreal. But even in her dreamlike state, she knew she was next. There was no way Andrei would let her leave alive now. Not when she'd just witnessed a murder.Did this make her an accessory to murder?It wasn't hard to figure out where the cops would stop first once Ethan's body turned up somewhere. After all, she'd delivered his finger to his residence. Even with her pathetic disguise, she had no doubt in her mind Mrs Wilson and the housekeeper would easily pick her out in a police lineup. She didn't have that familiar grocery store face look. She stood out in a crowd.While she was still processing the craziness in front of her, the door burst open, and in came two middle-aged men, dressed in casual clothes, with comms pieces looped around their ears and their weapons already drawn.She wanted to shout wi
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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
