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
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
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
"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
[Three Months Earlier...] 'Money or Fame?' 'Fame!' It was the same set of questions. Same two friends. Todd and Ben. The rules were still the same too. Two choices. Pick an answer. No wasting time. The only difference was they were now fifteen minutes away from their destination. The bus driver had just informed them of their ETA, pretty much the same way a pilot gives a weather update before making a descent. She wouldn't have ordered the ham and cheese sandwich if she knew how close they were. She wasn't hungry anymore. 'Batman or Superman?' Of course, now and then, they switched things up a bit and threw in a random question or two. It was the only way to pass the time without slitting each other's throats. Eight hours in a stiflingly hot bus was enough to turn anyone into a mass murderer. To stay sane, she'd spent her eight hours on the game between the two friends across the aisle and the serial killer paperback she'd picked up on a whim at the bus station. A hundred pages
[Present day...] "The results came back. It's just as we thought, Nat."These weren't the words Natalie Taylor wanted to hear, and it certainly wasn't the news she'd expected."Jamie's's gonna need that new kidney soon."She felt like a steam train had run her over, crushed her chest and squeezed all the air from her lungs as she struggled to breathe. Her fingers turned as rubbery as her legs, and her phone slipped out of her hands, whining as it crashed to the floor at her feet."Nat? Say something. Are you okay?"Her sister's disembodied voice sounded muffled, as though it came from some far-off place. Natalie leaned over to grab the phone, wincing at the huge spiderweb crack on the screen. So much for tempered glass!She brought the damaged iPhone to her ear, mumbling, "Sorry, I dropped my phone.""I thought you fainted," Amber replied. "I was so worried."Natalie ignored her concern as she swayed on her feet and held on to the wall to steady herself. She was very close to passing
Saints was already buzzing with the usual Monday afternoon rowdiness when they arrived. The place was packed, and not just from their colleagues. The bar was a crowd-puller every day—except Sundays because it was closed—attracting an impressive number of patrons from the big five banks and several tech startups in the Central Business District. Natalie clutched Emily's hand, squeezing through the mass of sweaty but smartly-dressed drunken bodies as they made their way to a miraculously free corner booth near the restrooms. "What do you want to drink?" Emily yelled over the blaring music, a catchy tune from last summer but still played to death on all the radio stations. "I'll have a margarita!" Natalie shouted back. Emily said something about hopping over to the bar to get their drinks. Natalie waved her off and checked her emails but quickly closed them when she saw too many zeros in the quote from Amber. There was no way she could afford that on her salary. To her relief, Lennie
Levi Van Holt ran on autopilot for fourteen hours, fuelled by the strongest coffee he could find at various layovers. But he crashed almost immediately under a wave of exhaustion when he reached his office.For a minute or maybe longer, he remained in his seat in the back of the Uber, unable to move, dreading the night ahead."Sir, are we at the right place?" Eyebrow raised, the driver turned in his seat."Yes. Thank you," Levi said as he gathered his messenger bag and luggage and gave the man a generous tip before he slipped out of the car.The ground floor was ablaze with lights, but the rest of the building sat in darkness.Levi trudged to the entrance, his eyes droopy, his shoulders sagged. If someone told him they'd hidden a body in his duffel bag, he'd believe them. But nothing in there would interest law enforcement other than several outfits and shoes. So he couldn't understand why it was so heavy.He stopped to chat with the security guard in the lobby.The older man beamed wi