Novels by Menah_writes

The black sedan pulled up to the Quinn estate first. Adrian didn’t leave the car; he waited while Lucy hurried inside to change. She chose a modest, cream-colored silk dress that reached her knees, something she knew his mother, Victoria, would approve of. It was modest. When she stepped back into the car, Adrian barely glanced at her. "Better," he muttered. "Looking like a scholarship student is fine for the library, but tonight you are a Matthews.""I’m still a Quinn, Adrian," she said softly, clutching her purse.He laughed coldly. "For now."Adrian sat in the back seat with Lucy, but he didn’t look at her again. He was busy scrolling through his phone, his thumb tapping the screen aggressively. Usually, Lucy would try to fill the silence with small talk, hoping to soften his mood. Tonight, she sat perfectly still, her back straight and her eyes fixed on the passing city lights. She wasn't playing her part, and she could feel him noticing it.“You’re quiet,” Adrian said, not look

Lucy sat at a small wooden desk in the very last row of the history section, in the library. She was at a hidden corner that the overhead lights barely reached her. She kept her head down, her eyes tracing the same line of a textbook for twenty minutes without processing a single word. Every time the heavy front doors creaked open in the distance, her heart jumped. She was hiding, and she knew it.She heard the footsteps before she saw him. She didn't look up, but the air around her suddenly felt charged, a shadow stretched across her open book, and then the chair across from her was pulled back.Jonathan sat down and set a heavy stack of folders on the table and opened his laptop. The blue light of the screen hit his face, making the sharp angles of his jaw look like they were carved from stone. He looked tired, but his eyes were cold."We have three sections left to finish before the weekend," Jonathan said. His voice was flat, completely devoid of the warmth she had felt in his a

Lucy felt as though she had woken up from a dream … or perhaps a nightmare. The morning sun felt too bright for the chaos of last night. She had slipped out of Jonathan’s apartment at dawn, her skin was still humming with the memory of his touch. She was wearing her own dress now, it was dry, wrinkled, and smelling faintly of the detergent he used. Every step she took back to her dorm reminded her that she had betrayed her father’s trust last night. "Lucy! There you are!"She flinched at the sound of Zoe’s voice. Her friend was jogging toward her, looking fresh in a pleated tennis skirt with a latte in both hands."I was so worried! I tried calling you after the storm hit, but your phone was dead," Zoe said as she gave Lucy one of the latte cups. "Did Adrian ever make it to the library? I saw him later that night and he said he was headed your way."The lie was so smooth Lucy almost believed it. Almost."No," Lucy said. "He never showed. I... I found a place to stay dry.""Oh, tha

The atmosphere in the small apartment remained tense, despite the cool rain outside. Jonathan seemed to realize he had pushed too far. He saw the way her lip trembled, the way her eyes searched his for a lie she couldn't find. He sighed in frustration and ran a hand through his damp hair."I’m going to go make some coffee," he muttered, "You can take the bed. I'll stay on the couch until the rain stops."He turned to walk away, the muscles in his back tensing as he tried to put distance between them. He was giving her space; the very thing a "gentleman" was supposed to do.But Lucy didn't want space. For years, space was all she had known. Adrian had given her miles of space, cold and empty, until she felt like she was drifting away. "Jonathan, wait."Her voice was barely a whisper, but it stopped him in his tracks. He didn't turn around immediately. Lucy moved before she could talk herself out of it. Her bare feet were silent on the floor as she reached out and grabbed the hem of h

The ride ended in a narrow alleyway behind a row of old brick buildings. Jonathan put off the engine. "We’re here," he said, his voice raspy.Lucy came down with shaky legs, her knees nearly buckling. Jonathan caught her by the elbow, steadying her as he led her toward a heavy steel door. He fumbled with a set of keys, threw the door open, and ushered her inside.The apartment was small, smelling of old wood, coffee, and the faint, masculine scent of Jonathan’s cologne. It was a modest space, far different from the marble and polished houses Lucy was used to but it felt homely and safe. Jonathan flipped a switch, and the room light came on. He turned to her, and the words he was about to say died in his throat.The rain had been very heavy. Lucy’s light, floral summer dress was completely translucent, plastered to her skin like a second layer. The thin fabric left nothing to the imagination, tracing the soft curves of her waist and the swell of her breasts. Her hair was a dark, tan

8The rain was no longer drizzling, it had become very heavy. Lucy stood at a corner close to the library. She felt like a fool, her floral dress had become wet and was clinging to her skin. Every minute that passed showed how much Adrian didn’t care about her. He had promised to pick her up, just to see if she would wait. “He’s not coming Lucy" Jonathan said."He... he might have had an emergency," Lucy stammered, her voice was trembling from the cold. She clutched her phone, the screen was dark, Adrian had still not responded. "The weather is bad. Maybe the car...""The car is fine. I saw him leave the lounge an hour ago smiling," Jonathan lied, or perhaps he just knew. He didn't care, he only cared about the girl shivering in the dark. He reached into the back compartment of his bike and pulled out a spare black helmet. "Get on. I'm taking you home.""I can’t," she whispered, looking at the sleek but dangerous machine. "I should wait. What if he shows up and I’m gone? It would loo

POV: DamienI could still feel the heat from last night. As we sailed across the sea, I could still feel the weight of Sera’s body against mine from the night before. The way the red emergency lights on the yacht illuminated on her petite body, and the way she had looked me in the eye and taken control. I gripped the steering wheel tighter, my knuckles turning white. That memory was the only thing keeping me sane. "Damien?" Sera’s voice was soft, breaking through my thoughts. She was huddled in her coat, her face looked pale."We’re almost there," I said, forcing my voice to stay steady. "I promise."I looked down at Sera as she moved closer and curled against my chest in the small cabin"We’re ten miles out, boss," Luca’s voice crackled over the ship's intercom. "Time to move."Soon, the yacht stopped at the mainland. We moved our gear from the boat to a heavy, armored transport truck hidden in a cave close to the sea.Sera sat in the passenger seat, staring out at the cliffs. Ev

POV: Damien The yacht sailed through the sea, there were no lights, just the faint green glow of the moon on the water. The island was already gone behind us, ahead was the mainland. Everyone was finally asleep. Gideon was tucked into a bunk in the lower cabin, his body exhausted from the sudden move. Luca and Marrow were trading shifts, staring at thermal screens, waiting for any movement that meant the Council were closing in. I was in the main cabin, staring at a digital map of the mountain range we were heading toward. My hands were steady, but my mind was a mess. I’d pulled her out of one hell only to drop her straight back into another. I’d promised her peace, all I had given her was a different kind of war. The cabin door hissed open. Sera stood there, wrapped in a dark sweater that was far too big for her. The red emergency lights carved shadows under her cheekbones and across her collarbones. She didn’t look frightened, there was this hardness in her eyes, that made b

Damien’s pov:The morning on the island started like any other. The sun was warm against the white sand, and the sound of the waves was rhythmic, it almost made me believe in a world without shadows.Sera was in the kitchen, the smell of fresh coffee and tropical fruit filling the air. She was humming a song her mother used to sing, I was standing on the edge of the dock, my eyes were fixed on a small, black bird circling in the sky. My satellite phone, the one I had sworn never to turn back on, buzzed once in my pocket. It was a one-way signal from Luca. A "code red" that bypassed every firewall I had built.I pulled the device out. There were no words, only a single image: a photo of the message Silas had left on the prison wall.THE BIRD HAS NO WINGS, DAMIEN.My grip on the phone tightened until the casing creaked. The peace hadn't just been broken; it had been shattered. The "Ghost" protocol had hidden me from the Council, but it hadn't hidden me from the man who knew my soul.I

Third person pov:In Cell 402, Silas was waiting. He had been in the jumpsuit for four days. To anyone watching the security cameras, he looked defeated. He sat on the edge of his cot with his head bowed, and his hands resting limply in his lap. But beneath that calm exterior, Silas was counting. He was counting the seconds between the guard rotations, the intervals of the camera sweeps, and the heartbeats of the men who thought they were his masters. He knew that loyalty in his world was a lie. People didn't follow leaders because of respect; they followed them because of fear or greed. And Silas was a master of both. He had spent a decade weaving a web of secret favors and blackmail that extended even into the darkest corners of the Council’s private guard.The breakout started with a sneeze.Down the hallway, a guard named Miller reached up to rub his nose. Miller was twenty-four, a former soldier who had taken the Council’s paycheck because it was better than the meager pension t

Third person pov:The Council’s high-security prison was a cold, underground fortress made of white stone and reinforced steel. There were no windows, no clocks, and no sounds except for the hum of the air vents.In the center of the most secure cell sat Silas. He wasn't wearing his expensive silk suits anymore. He was in a plain gray jumpsuit, his hands and feet shackled to the floor. But even in chains, he didn't look like a prisoner. He sat with his back straight, a calm, bored expression on his face.On the other side of the thick glass stood the three members of the High Table. They were older men and women who stayed in the shadows, pulling the strings of the world. To them, Silas wasn't just a criminal, he was an embarrassment."You went rogue, Silas," the lead Councilman said, his voice echoing through the speakers. "You kidnapped an asset’s family for your own petty games. You cost us millions in damages, and now, our best weapon, Damien, is gone because of you."Silas tilted

POV: DamienThe pre-dawn light was a cold, sickly blue, filtering through the small window of the villa’s back room. My skin was still humming, sensitized by the memory of the night before. Even as I stood over the glowing screens of my equipment, I could still feel the weight of Sera’s body against mine. I could still smell the jasmine in her hair and the faint, sweet scent of her skin that seemed to have bonded to my own.I closed my eyes for a second, letting the memory wash over me. I remembered the way she had looked at me in the dark with her eyes wide and trusting, even as we both knew the world was ending outside our door. I remembered the soft, broken sounds she made when I moved inside her, the way she clung to me. Being with her like that... was a surrender. For a few hours, I wasn't a killer or a target. I was just a man who loved a woman. I wanted to stay in that bed forever. I wanted to wake up with her every morning for the next fifty years and forget that I ever kn