Two people - broken in their own way - collide. Francesca's life was completely normal up to a couple months ago. Ethan's never known normality. Two people. Carrying a massive weight of secrets. Only time will take for their barriers to break and their walls to fall. Mature content throughout: PTSD, Language, sexual themes, smut, drugs and alcohol. - - - My insides are begging for me to let go, and I don't think I can hold no longer, but for my own dignity, I do, trying to push it down. It's too soon, embarrassingly soon. "Don't you fucking dare." His voice is hard, demeaning, and that alone makes my insides tighten further. The pressure becoming unbearable. Ethan's hand grabs my wet hair, twirling it around his hand before he pulls me up by it, and I wince slightly before sighing as my back hits his chest, his cock still buried into me. He palms my breasts, my nipples hardening further, and he rolls my right one between his fingers before pinching it, and I whine at the feeling. Dickhead. "Cum for me right now, Francesca, or else."

Willow Maverick has a secret. A secret that she wishes she didn’t have to keep. But he’s changed her forever, leaving her with the constant reminders of everything she’s ever done wrong. Even if she tried, no one could begin to understand what’s happened. But the new boy who sits behind her in class is too persistent to let her go down without a fight, no matter what it takes. Even if she’s permanently torn apart.

“Love’s like a bullet. It’s fast. It’s furious. Sometimes you can’t see it coming. You can run from it. But you can’t dodge it. Unless someone stands in your way…” Growing up, Callie Tollson had always admired her older brother, Clay, for being exactly who he wanted to be…despite the consequences he faced doing so. With their roles reversed, Callie had always been the one to stand up for Clay when he was in harm’s way. She always thought this was enough. She thought she was able to protect him. That is until he turned the tables and unleashed harm back on those who had done it to him. She couldn’t understand why, being the one who stood up for him the most, she was the one he picked as the receiver for the final bullet in his gun. Now she’s the most feared girl in school with a haunting family tie to keep her stuck in the halls of Riverton High. As she tries to survive the rest of her junior year as the sister of the boy who brought a gun to school, she soon realizes she owes nothing to the boy who turned on her and everything to the boy who saved her life.

Sometimes all you really need is a place to call home. * * * Being re-written completely as of May 14, 2021