LOGINNiccola Fairchild
“Let’s get out of here,” he whispers in my ear in the most sensual tone I have ever heard in my life. The way his words travel down my body makes me realise this man can have any woman he wants, and he is freaking choosing me. I nod as I hold on to his tie, pulling him close to me one more time, erasing the distance between us. His hands move to my ass, pressing my front to his, and I can feel his erection against my body.
I was never one for one-night stands. Although all my relationships ended with me being cheated on… I am probably what people call a serial monogamist. I hate being alone, and according to Steph, that is my only flaw. Obviously, that’s not true, but I really don’t know how to be alone, and maybe the fact that I haven’t been in a relationship for more than four months is now making me a one-night stand slut.
“Yes,” I whisper against his lips. Immediately, he pulls away, retrieving his wallet from the inside pocket of his suit jacket that was hanging on the back of a chair, throws several notes onto the table, and holds my hand, pulling me out of the bar.
I can’t help but giggle like a little schoolgirl at the urgency on his steps as he opens the door of a black town car, and I lift a brow, staring at him. Does he really think I am getting into a stranger's car? I know he is the sexiest stranger I have ever seen in my life, but still a stranger. “Get in,” he demands, and I shake my head as one side of his lips lifts into a half smile. He steps towards me, one of his hands holding the back of my neck and the other on my waist, keeping me in place as his eyes meet mine.
“Get in the car, I need to feel your skin against mine, I need to be able to kiss your entire body,” he whispers against my neck before he plants a small kiss that sends shivers all down my spine. “I know you want me as much as I want you,” he adds as his hand slides from my waist to my ass and squeezes lightly. I bite my lower lip, closing my eyes, indulging in his expensive scent.
I do as he says, entering the town car, and he slides next to me, closing the door. He doesn’t say a word to the driver, but he starts driving immediately. “Where are we going?” I finally gather the courage to ask, and his eyes meet mine with an intensity I have never seen before.
“Somewhere where I can get you on your knees while I fuck you,” he says, and his dirty words do something to me. My insides turn. My head starts spinning, and I can’t help but smile at the thought of having him inside of me. His hand moves slowly, resting on my knee and moving up my thighs before he rubs my pussy outside my pants, and I let out a small moan out of my mouth.
I can feel my entire face heat up, but he cradles my face with one of his hands and rubs his thumb over my lip before he leans closer and devours my mouth again, pulling me to straddle him.
“Fuck, you’re the most beautiful woman I have ever seen,” he whispers as he kisses me one more time, and I smile against his lips, enjoying his kiss. The possessiveness I feel is something I have never experienced before. This man is a master in kissing, and I can’t wait to see what else he is a master of. If his fingers moving down my body as he caresses me is anything to go by, he will be freaking amazing.
The car comes to a stop, and my stranger pulls away from me, and I whimper slightly, missing his lips against mine already, and he places a small kiss on my temple as he places me next to him and opens the door. When did we get into a garage? I was so lost in his touch and his kiss; I didn’t even look where we were going. Way to go, Nicci. If you end up a prisoner in his basement and you need to call for help, you can’t even tell where you are. Rookie mistake.
We enter a private lift while my beautiful stranger holds my hand. As soon as the doors close, he presses my back against the wall and pushes his body against mine, trapping me. His leg moves quickly, spreading mine, and he places one of his legs between mine, putting pressure against my pussy with his knee, and I let out a small moan while his lips devour my neck. I close my eyes, resting my head back as my hands grip the back of his suit jacket.
“You’re fucking mine,” he growls against my lips as he pulls me inside the apartment. I don’t even have time to look around before he lifts me bridal style, capturing my lips with his and taking me into his bedroom.
As soon as my body hits the soft bed, I know I am going to have the time of my life with this man. The only man I have ever allowed to make me desire without thinking, without considering any consequences.
Niccola FairchildThe soup tastes like salt and something vaguely familiar, and that feels like an accomplishment. I eat slowly, carefully, like my body might reject the idea of nourishment if I rush it. The tea, on the other hand, tastes like the best thing I have ever tried in my life. I don’t know if it’s because I am dehydrated or because it really is a good tea, but it feels like one of those teas that could heal the world, one cup at a time.Cole sits nearby, pretending not to watch every spoonful like it’s a miracle unfolding in real time. The nurse had smiled when she set the tray down, told me it was good I felt ready to eat. Ready feels generous. But I was hungry in a way that went deeper than my stomach, and this, this is a beginning.By the time I finish, my arms feel heavy, and my eyelids ache. Exhaustion wraps around me, thick and insistent, the kind that settles into your bones aft
Cole SutcliffeNiccola sleeps the way someone sleeps after surviving something they shouldn’t have. Not peacefully, not deeply, but in fragments. Her breathing evens out for a few minutes at a time, then stutters, then steadies again. Her brow furrows even when her eyes stay closed, like her body hasn’t gotten the message that the danger is over.I sit beside her bed and watch every rise and fall of her chest. I don’t blink much. I don’t move unless I have to. The chair beneath me creaks when I shift my weight, and every time it does, my heart jumps, afraid the sound might pull her back into whatever nightmare she’s trapped in now.The hospital room is dim, lit only by the low glow of machines and the faint spill of light from the hallway. The beeping monitor keeps time better than any clock ever could—steady, alive, stubborn.She’s alive. I repeat it silently like a mantra. Alive doesn’t mean untouched. Ali
Cole SutcliffeLeaving the house without Niccola feels wrong in a way I don’t have language for.I stand in the entryway with my coat half on, keys in my hand, staring at Aiden like I’m memorizing him in case the universe decides to take something else from me. He’s awake in my mother’s arms, dark eyes blinking slowly, unaware that his parents have just survived the unthinkable.“I won’t be long,” I murmur, more to myself than to anyone else.Steph hovers close, arms folded tight across her chest, eyes red but steady. Sawyer stands beside her, one hand resting lightly on her shoulder, grounding them both. My father watches silently, jaw set, while my mother sways gently with Aiden, as if movement itself is prayer.“You go,” my mother says softly. “We’ve got him.”I nod, throat tight. “Don’t let anyone in. Not press. Not Monica. No one.”Sawyer me
Niccola FairchildThe ambulance smells like antiseptic and metal and adrenaline.I’m strapped down gently but firmly, like my body might try to escape on its own if they let it. The ceiling above me blurs as the vehicle moves, lights streaking past in rhythmic flashes that make my head throb. Someone keeps saying my name—soft, grounding, over and over again. “Niccola. Stay with us. You’re doing great.”Great feels like a lie, but alive doesn’t. I cling to that instead.My hands shake uncontrollably despite the blankets tucked around me. Shock, they said. My body is catching up to what my mind has been doing for days, running, bracing, surviving. Every muscle aches in a deep, bruised way that makes breathing feel like work. But I’m here. I’m not there anymore. The doors open, and noise crashes in.Shouting. Cameras. Questions hurled like weapons.The hospital entrance is lit up like a stage, and even through the haze, I recognize the
Cole SutcliffeThey tell me to sit.They don’t say it unkindly. They don’t bark it like an order. They say it the way doctors tell families to wait outside operating rooms, firm, practiced, already braced for resistance.“Mr. Sutcliffe, we need you to stay here.”Here is my living room. My house. The place where Niccola should be, where her shoes are still by the door, where her mug sits half-forgotten by the sink like she might come back and finish it. Here is not where she is. I stand anyway.“No,” I say. “I’m coming.”Officer Reynolds meets my gaze. He’s calm. Too calm for a man about to walk into a building where my fiancée is being held.“You go, they change the rules,” he says. “You stay, we keep her alive.”My hands curl into fists so tight my nails bite skin. “You think I don’t know that?” I snap.“I think you know it,” he replies evenly. “I also think it’s killing you.”That lands. Because it is.S
Niccola FairchildTime stops behaving like time after a while.It stretches. Folds. Breaks into pieces I have to stack carefully in my head so I don’t lose myself in the gaps. I don’t know what hour it is, only that my body knows it’s late. Colder. Quieter. The kind of quiet that presses against your ears until your own breathing sounds too loud.I’m sitting on the floor again, back against the wall, knees drawn in as much as my body will allow. My hands ache. My shoulders burn with a deep, relentless soreness that never fully fades. Every movement reminds me of what’s already been taken, and what might still be.I am so tired. Not just sleepy, empty tired. The kind that hollows you out and dares you to lie down and stop caring. I won’t. I won’t give them that.My stomach twists painfully, hunger sharp and insistent. It’s been a while since anyone brought food. Or water. My mouth is dry enough that swallowing hurts, but I force myself to do it anyw







