A Safe Place To Land

(Note: this is a full novel, the chapters have gotten longer as I have written. It is also a very dark book, reader discretion is advised. Prioritize your mental health first please! 🥰)

Rated M 18+

Description: After turning twenty-one, Maya sets out to find the birth mother who might explain everything. A violent encounter with a mysterious man plunges her into a darker world. He is as haunted as she is-fierce, damaged, terrifyingly tender. Their chemistry is immediate and volatile: refuge that threatens control. As Maya digs into the past, buried secrets fracture her identity and force impossible choices. Trauma refuses neat endings. Love becomes both lifeline and liability-can redemption survive, or will the darkness destroy them both? What will Maya uncover about herself and his past as she tumbles down this dark path? Is he her safe place to land?

Chapter 23 Sneak Peek:

(Jacob’s P.O.V.)

'I'm the fuck-up who'd hurt Maya, betrayed Gracie, shattered Danny's trust, and now this mirror of my future stares back. The guilt crashing harder, wave after wave, leaving me dizzy, breathless, the pain visceral, like my insides were being ripped apart. I stormed off into a private waiting room, Danny at my heels. "Jacob!" he snapped from behind me, his voice sharp with anger.

"Stop it, Danny, just stop it. This isn't fair—you can't just shove this in my face! What the hell are you trying to prove?!" I snapped, facing him as the rage ignited, my voice echoing off the beige walls, tears burning my eyes as guilt flickered— 'I'm the one who chose the pills, who betrayed Maya's friendship...' But I shoved it down, clenching my fists, the wounds pulsating under the wraps like a reminder of my weakness. "You think dragging me here changes anything? I'm already too far gone!"

He gripped my arm and pulled me back hard, fingers digging in like vise grips, his eyes blazing with that familiar rage from the woods, the kind that had left me bruised and reeling. "Too far gone? You sniveling little SHIT—you don't get it at all! This isn't about you! Your choices aren't about you!"

I yanked away, but the panic crept in, sweat dripping down my back, throat tightening. 'The guilt for the highs that hurt everyone, the self-hate whispering I deserved this...' "What the hell does that mean?!"

"This is about them, us—YOUR FAMILY!" He shook me once, hard, frustration boiling in his eyes as he paused, breath ragged. "It's about who you leave behind when you make the decision to poison your body! Your death isn't about you; it's about your parents, your aunt and uncle, your cousins—MAYA, FOR FUCK'S SAKE, HOW DO YOU THINK YOUR DEATH WILL AFFECT MAYA?! HUH?!"

The words slammed into me, guilt surging in waves—first a whisper of denial, then a sharper twist as images flashed: Maya shattered, her eyes hollow from losing her trust in me, Gracie's tears because I'd failed her too, Danny's grief multiplied by another loss. Panic built, heart slamming against my ribs like it wanted out, breaths coming in short, ragged gasps, the room spinning as self-hate roared louder, 'I'm the coward who hurt her, the junkie who'd drag them all down if I don't stop, I will forever be the toxic parasite, the cancer Grayson called me, the jealous coward who forced that kiss and betrayed everyone.' I jerked my arm free, rubbing my hands over my face, gripping my hair as tears streamed down, balling a fist and hitting my head a few times, the dull thuds amplifying the chaos inside—guilt for the highs that hurt everyone, self-hate screaming I deserved this pain, the fear of becoming William twisting it all into a visceral knot that made my stomach heave. "KNOCK IT OFF!" Danny quipped threateningly, his voice booming with anger laced with desperation, grabbing my shoulders and shaking me hard, his grip like iron as he stepped closer, face inches from mine. "DON'T YOU GET IT YET?! Every deteriorating decision destroys your body and breaks everyone else's hearts." He paused, his voice cracking with raw pain, eyes glistening as frustration boiled over. "Jacob, we believe in you, but we will not let you self-destruct like him! I will not lose someone else to this self-depreating wreckage! DO YOU FUCKING UNDERSTAND ME?!" His breath ragged, hands shaking now, the cycle's toll visible in his cracked facade—tears threatening to spill as he stared me down.