Two years after the tragic death of his wife, Annie, David "Deacon" Kay is finally beginning to find his footing again-juggling life as a single father of four and learning how to feel joy in the little things. But even now, the weight of that day and the trauma it left behind still haunts him. The memory is inescapable-especially when it lives and breathes beside him every day in the form of Taylor Malibu.
Taylor, now 24, was Annie's best friend, the godmother of baby Victoria, and the honorary third parent in the Kay household. Always present to cook meals, bathe kids, or babysit for date nights, she was their constant. But the day of the zoo shooting shattered everything. Taylor, only 22 at the time, fought with everything she had to save Annie and the children. She cleared the danger, helped other families, and even neutralized one of the shooters. But when she returned, Annie was already gone. Found lifeless in a blood-soaked storage room, Annie's death broke Taylor in a way no one could fix. And though Deacon has done everything to help her heal, she's been stuck in a fog of trauma and dissociation, unable to fully accept the loss.
Now, as the shadows of that day begin to lift, a new threat places Taylor in danger-and brings with it long-buried secrets.
Haunted by guilt, tormented by grief, and unsure of her own reality, Taylor is beginning to break under the pressure. Deacon, torn between his loyalty to Annie's memory and the complicated emotions growing for Taylor, must confront the truth of what he feels-and what he's willing to risk.
Can Taylor forgive herself for Annie's death before it destroys her? Can Deacon open his heart to love again, even if it means blurring the lines of grief and healing? And when the past collides with the present, will they find strength in each other-or will it all come crashing down?
David 'Deacon' Kay x Taylor Malibu ❤️
#3 SWAT- 3/28
#2 Rocker- 4/2
#1 Deacon- 4/27
#1 Rocker- 5/19
#4 Barbie- 5/28
#1 Deaconkay- 1
"I..."
"Stop it!" he shouts, stopping me in mid sentence "I hate you."
"B-But why? Why do you hate me?"
"Oh! You know the reason."
"If I would've, then I would've never bothered you."
"Stop! Stop acting so naive and shit!"
"I..."
"I hate you! And that's it!" he turns and starts walking away.
"We used to be best friends!" I was on the verge of tears.
"Absolutely! We USED to be!" he says over his shoulder and dissappears from my sight.
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She rises up forgetting her painful past, that has finally stopped haunting her. She's cannot wish for anything but peace. She tries to forget her bestie Kayden and moves on. She tries to forget her parents and move on. She tries to forget her true self and move one.
And when she thought that she was finally free for her miserable past, her past was thrown back at her face. She finally meets the person who she never knew would guide her to the path of truth behind her bestie Kayden.
Matthew Brown, captured inside the cage of his and Elizabeth's past, struggles to get himself and also someone dear to him free. He cannot decide if his black hair and blue eyes are a blessing or curse.
He wished to never meet Elizabeth again after that day. But fate... No. But circumstances force him to meet her and do something he will surely regret.
He knows everything about her, she wasn't even aware of his presence, until now.
He knows her secret, she doesn't knows his.
He knows what she wants, she has no clue of him.
She wants to get close to him, he wants to get far away.
She loves him. He loves her.
But he doesn't want to....
Can Elizabeth discover the truth behind Matthew's mask?
Because....no matter what happens, no matter how hard it is, "Besties Never Lie" to each other.
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Highest ranking #143 in teen fiction...
Cover by @the_lovable_dork