SAMANTHA“Hello, Angel.”What the hell?I stopped walking. Right there in the hallway, just outside my professor’s office.He called me angel.After eight days of silence. Eight days of pretending I didn’t exist. Eight days of ghosting me like I was just some side chick who got too attached.And now—now he wanted to pretend none of it happened?I clenched the phone so hard my knuckles turned white.Who even texts like that?Like the world didn’t stop spinning when he left me on read. Like I didn’t cry myself to sleep three nights in a row.Like I didn’t see him laughing with Audrey—her lipstick on his mouth, her nails on his chest. Her smirk.I swallowed the knot in my throat.No.I wasn’t doing this again.I didn’t open the message. I didn’t type back. I was not ready for Mason’s stress.Before I could take two steps, a hand wrapped around my arm and yanked me sideways, right into the empty corridor beside the stairwell.“Mason?” I gasped, stumbling as I whipped around. “What the act
MASONThe lounge smelled like sweat!!Practice was starting in ten. Everyone was wired. A month out from playoffs, and every guy in the room was either vibrating with nerves or pretending not to care.I sat on the bench, half-listening to the usual shit-talk.“Bet you miss again today, Collins,” Jake was saying. “Your slapshot couldn’t knock over a toddler.”“Keep dreaming, man,” Collins fired back. “At least I don’t skate like I’m drunk.”They laughed. I didn’t. I wasn’t in the mood.Then my phone buzzed.I almost didn’t look.But then I saw the name.Samantha.One notification. One photo.I tapped it open.And stopped breathing.Red lace. Garter belts. A full view of the body I hadn’t touched in days—her thighs, her waist, her. That look in her eyes. Fucking hell.I got hard immediately.Jaw clenched. Blood boiling.“Jesus Christ,” I muttered, angling the screen away before any of the guys could see.Jake leaned over. “Who’s got you looking like that?”“Mind your business.”“Oh shit
MASONThe lounge smelled like sweat!!Practice was starting in ten. Everyone was wired. A month out from playoffs, and every guy in the room was either vibrating with nerves or pretending not to care.I sat on the bench, half-listening to the usual shit-talk.“Bet you miss again today, Collins,” Jake was saying. “Your slapshot couldn’t knock over a toddler.”“Keep dreaming, man,” Collins fired back. “At least I don’t skate like I’m drunk.”They laughed. I didn’t. I wasn’t in the mood.Then my phone buzzed.I almost didn’t look.But then I saw the name.Samantha.One notification. One photo.I tapped it open.And stopped breathing.Red lace. Garter belts. A full view of the body I hadn’t touched in days—her thighs, her waist, her. That look in her eyes. Fucking hell.I got hard immediately.Jaw clenched. Blood boiling.“Jesus Christ,” I muttered, angling the screen away before any of the guys could see.Jake leaned over. “Who’s got you looking like that?”“Mind your business.”“Oh shit
MASONI skated like I was trying to outrun my own goddamn thoughts.The second I was back on the ice, Coach blew the whistle, and drills started. I didn’t speak. Didn’t joke. Didn’t breathe right.I just hit.Hard.Every puck I launched cracked against the boards like a gunshot. Every turn I took was sharper than it needed to be. I played like I was chasing something that wouldn’t stop moving.Or maybe like it was chasing me.“Damn, Mase!” Tyler shouted, ducking when one of my slapshots rebounded too fast. “You good, bro?”I didn’t answer.I was not good.I was wrecked.My blood was still boiling. My hand still twitched from gripping my phone too tight. And I couldn’t stop seeing her in that red lace, half-dressed in temptation and staring straight at me like she owned my soul.She fucking did.And now I was just trying to survive forty minutes of practice without losing my shit in front of the team.Another shot. Too hard. It hit the net and bounced out with enough force to make the
To my ride-or-die readers...If you’ve made it this far in Samantha and Mason’s story, let me say this loud and clear: I love you. I appreciate you. You are the reason I keep writing.This story wasn’t always easy to write. Emotionally? It gutted me. Romantically? It consumed me. And creatively? It tested every part of me.But then I’d see a comment. A message. A view.And for a while, it kept me going. I was sitting at 75 views a day. Slowly growing. Slowly building.It wasn’t perfect, but it felt like momentum—like this little world I’d built was finally reaching people who felt it the way I did.Then came GoodNovel’s algorithm shift.Suddenly, my story dropped from 75 views a day… to 4.Four.And I’ll be honest—those few days crushed me. I stared at my screen wondering, What’s the point? I felt invisible. Like maybe I wasn’t good enough. Maybe this story wasn’t good enough. Maybe all those nights I stayed up writing scenes that made my chest ache and my heart race… meant nothing.B
SAMANTHAI know what you’re thinking.How foolish can she be?Trust me—I’ve thought it, too. Screamed it at myself, actually. In the mirror. In the shower. Into my pillow at 3 a.m.But this... whatever it is between me and Mason?It’s not normal.It’s not safe.It’s not healthy.It’s obsession.And I’m the idiot who keeps chasing it like it won’t set me on fire.The past week has been hell.He ghosted me. No texts. No calls. Not even one of those half-assed “thinking of you” emojis he used to send when he was pretending not to care too much. Just silence.And I hate how much I noticed it.How I kept checking my phone like it might suddenly ring.Like it might light up and show me his name.God.I’m pathetic.“I’m fine,” I told my best friend, even though my chest ached like he’d put his hands around it and squeezed.I lied through my teeth—said I was over him. Macey still believes I’ve not moved on from the holiday romance I had.Said I deleted his number.I didn’t.I stared at it ins
SAMANTHA“Take your dress off.”His words landed like a command. Not a suggestion. Not an invitation. Mason's voice was smooth and authoritative, as though I had no choice.I didn’t argue.I reached for the straps of my wine-red dress with trembling fingers. The fabric felt so smooth as it slid down my body, pooling at my feet. My skin prickled with a strange mix of shame and desire, as though I were stepping into a role I hadn’t asked for but couldn’t walk away from.I stood there, exposed in nothing but my lace panties. My chest rose and fell with shallow breaths, like I could somehow outrun this moment, like I could stop myself from wanting this.But I didn’t want to stop. I asked for it.Mason’s eyes flicked up slowly, his gaze dark and assessing. His stare lingered on me, unwavering, like a predator studying its prey. I hated how my body reacted—how my heart stuttered in my chest, how my pulse quickened.He looked at me like I was something he already owned.But I didn’t flinch.
SAMANTHAThe morning after always hits the same: a dull ache spreading through my limbs, a ghost of pleasure lingering just beneath my skin. I woke up in my small apartment, the sunlight barely peeking through the dusty blinds. The room smelled like my perfume and burnt toast.My body ached with every move, the soreness settling deep in my muscles. But it wasn’t a bad kind of ache. No, it was the kind that left a strange little shiver behind, the kind that reminded me of him.Unlike my past relationships—where everything was soft, slow, and coated in promises—with Mason, it was different.I craved the control, the way he took without asking but still made me feel wanted. It wasn’t love. It wasn’t gentle. But maybe that’s what made it feel so real. Raw. Sharp around the edges.I pulled the blanket tighter around my body and glanced at the nightstand. The envelope was sitting exactly where I left it—thick, neatly folded, a silent agreement. I reached for it, running my fingers across th
SAMANTHAI know what you’re thinking.How foolish can she be?Trust me—I’ve thought it, too. Screamed it at myself, actually. In the mirror. In the shower. Into my pillow at 3 a.m.But this... whatever it is between me and Mason?It’s not normal.It’s not safe.It’s not healthy.It’s obsession.And I’m the idiot who keeps chasing it like it won’t set me on fire.The past week has been hell.He ghosted me. No texts. No calls. Not even one of those half-assed “thinking of you” emojis he used to send when he was pretending not to care too much. Just silence.And I hate how much I noticed it.How I kept checking my phone like it might suddenly ring.Like it might light up and show me his name.God.I’m pathetic.“I’m fine,” I told my best friend, even though my chest ached like he’d put his hands around it and squeezed.I lied through my teeth—said I was over him. Macey still believes I’ve not moved on from the holiday romance I had.Said I deleted his number.I didn’t.I stared at it ins
To my ride-or-die readers...If you’ve made it this far in Samantha and Mason’s story, let me say this loud and clear: I love you. I appreciate you. You are the reason I keep writing.This story wasn’t always easy to write. Emotionally? It gutted me. Romantically? It consumed me. And creatively? It tested every part of me.But then I’d see a comment. A message. A view.And for a while, it kept me going. I was sitting at 75 views a day. Slowly growing. Slowly building.It wasn’t perfect, but it felt like momentum—like this little world I’d built was finally reaching people who felt it the way I did.Then came GoodNovel’s algorithm shift.Suddenly, my story dropped from 75 views a day… to 4.Four.And I’ll be honest—those few days crushed me. I stared at my screen wondering, What’s the point? I felt invisible. Like maybe I wasn’t good enough. Maybe this story wasn’t good enough. Maybe all those nights I stayed up writing scenes that made my chest ache and my heart race… meant nothing.B
MASONI skated like I was trying to outrun my own goddamn thoughts.The second I was back on the ice, Coach blew the whistle, and drills started. I didn’t speak. Didn’t joke. Didn’t breathe right.I just hit.Hard.Every puck I launched cracked against the boards like a gunshot. Every turn I took was sharper than it needed to be. I played like I was chasing something that wouldn’t stop moving.Or maybe like it was chasing me.“Damn, Mase!” Tyler shouted, ducking when one of my slapshots rebounded too fast. “You good, bro?”I didn’t answer.I was not good.I was wrecked.My blood was still boiling. My hand still twitched from gripping my phone too tight. And I couldn’t stop seeing her in that red lace, half-dressed in temptation and staring straight at me like she owned my soul.She fucking did.And now I was just trying to survive forty minutes of practice without losing my shit in front of the team.Another shot. Too hard. It hit the net and bounced out with enough force to make the
MASONThe lounge smelled like sweat!!Practice was starting in ten. Everyone was wired. A month out from playoffs, and every guy in the room was either vibrating with nerves or pretending not to care.I sat on the bench, half-listening to the usual shit-talk.“Bet you miss again today, Collins,” Jake was saying. “Your slapshot couldn’t knock over a toddler.”“Keep dreaming, man,” Collins fired back. “At least I don’t skate like I’m drunk.”They laughed. I didn’t. I wasn’t in the mood.Then my phone buzzed.I almost didn’t look.But then I saw the name.Samantha.One notification. One photo.I tapped it open.And stopped breathing.Red lace. Garter belts. A full view of the body I hadn’t touched in days—her thighs, her waist, her. That look in her eyes. Fucking hell.I got hard immediately.Jaw clenched. Blood boiling.“Jesus Christ,” I muttered, angling the screen away before any of the guys could see.Jake leaned over. “Who’s got you looking like that?”“Mind your business.”“Oh shit
MASONThe lounge smelled like sweat!!Practice was starting in ten. Everyone was wired. A month out from playoffs, and every guy in the room was either vibrating with nerves or pretending not to care.I sat on the bench, half-listening to the usual shit-talk.“Bet you miss again today, Collins,” Jake was saying. “Your slapshot couldn’t knock over a toddler.”“Keep dreaming, man,” Collins fired back. “At least I don’t skate like I’m drunk.”They laughed. I didn’t. I wasn’t in the mood.Then my phone buzzed.I almost didn’t look.But then I saw the name.Samantha.One notification. One photo.I tapped it open.And stopped breathing.Red lace. Garter belts. A full view of the body I hadn’t touched in days—her thighs, her waist, her. That look in her eyes. Fucking hell.I got hard immediately.Jaw clenched. Blood boiling.“Jesus Christ,” I muttered, angling the screen away before any of the guys could see.Jake leaned over. “Who’s got you looking like that?”“Mind your business.”“Oh shit
SAMANTHA“Hello, Angel.”What the hell?I stopped walking. Right there in the hallway, just outside my professor’s office.He called me angel.After eight days of silence. Eight days of pretending I didn’t exist. Eight days of ghosting me like I was just some side chick who got too attached.And now—now he wanted to pretend none of it happened?I clenched the phone so hard my knuckles turned white.Who even texts like that?Like the world didn’t stop spinning when he left me on read. Like I didn’t cry myself to sleep three nights in a row.Like I didn’t see him laughing with Audrey—her lipstick on his mouth, her nails on his chest. Her smirk.I swallowed the knot in my throat.No.I wasn’t doing this again.I didn’t open the message. I didn’t type back. I was not ready for Mason’s stress.Before I could take two steps, a hand wrapped around my arm and yanked me sideways, right into the empty corridor beside the stairwell.“Mason?” I gasped, stumbling as I whipped around. “What the act
SAMANTHAHe ghosted me.He actually ghosted me.I paced my apartment like a crazy person, bare feet slapping against the cold floor, my phone clenched tight in my hand.A week. Seven full days. No text. No call. Not even a glance on campus. Just... silence.I stopped pacing long enough to glare at my phone. Still nothing."This is worse than when he used to pay me to sleep with him," I muttered, hurling the phone onto my bed like it had personally offended me.At least that had rules. At least I knew where I stood—on my back, on my knees, whatever. But this? This had felt like more. He made it feel like more. And now?Crickets.I dropped onto the edge of my bed, stomach knotted. My chest ached, and not the romantic, swoony kind. The kind that felt like something had hollowed me out and left the shell behind.The following day was supposed to be just another day. Another lecture. Another headache.Three hours of nonstop academic torture and all I wanted was coffee, a nap, and maybe fiv
MASONI gripped the steering wheel tighter, knuckles white.The engine purred, ready to move, but I just sat there—her taste still on my tongue, her scent clinging to my skin like heat I couldn’t shake. My hands still remembered every curve. Every sound she made.Fuck.I didn’t want to go. Not yet. Maybe never.But Audrey was waiting. And I was still that guy, still halfway in, halfway out.My phone buzzed again. Audrey.I ignored it.I could not even give Sam a goodbye kiss.The way she didn’t say anything when I left. She didn’t have to.I slammed my hand against the steering wheel once. Quietly.“Get it together,” I muttered and drove away in silence.The moment I stepped into the apartment, I felt it.That shift. That kind of silence that didn’t feel peaceful. It felt like something waiting to explode.Audrey sat curled on the floor near the couch, her eyes swollen and red, mascara smeared down her cheeks. She didn’t look at me. She didn’t have to.“Don’t even ask,” she whispered
SAMANTHAWe spent the entire day wrapped in each other, laughing, kissing, eating, sleeping, and making love like we couldn't get enough.The world outside ceased to exist; it was just us in our little bubble.We didn’t leave the bed.The sheets were damp with sweat, twisted around our legs like restraints, like reminders of how far we’d gone. How far we kept going.His mouth moved over me like he was trying to erase every man before him—and maybe even himself. He kissed me like he hated me for how much he wanted me. And I let him.“You’re still sore,” he said, dragging his thumb across the bruise on my thigh.“I’m fine.”He smirked, dark and slow. “I like you like this.”“Like what?”“Messy. Ruined. Mine.”I should’ve pulled away. I should’ve said something.But I didn’t.He moved over me again, eyes locked to mine as he pushed in, deeper than before, slower. Crueler.There was something unhinged in the way he held my wrists down, not rough, but enough. Enough to remind me who was in