Page 1 of Shiver

Prologue - Samara

My body shakes as Ishiveragainst the cold tile floors of my bathroom.

I knew this would happen again, but somehow, I kept hoping it would be different this time.

“When am I going to quit putting myself through this?” I mumble to myself between sobs. “If it hasn’t happened by now,” I choke out, “it’s probably not going to.”

More tears fall, leaving hot streaks down my cheeks. I struggle to get air into my lungs, and thick saliva clogs my throat. The salty liquid burns my eyes and chapped lips.

I clutch the piece of plastic like a lifeline, knowing that it won’t change anything but also hoping andprayingthat it will. That it just needsone more minute.

When I look down at it, nothing’s changed.

I feel the fissure, ever present in my heart, crack wider with every passing second as denial starts to clear and realization settles in.

The single line hasn’t magically been joined by a second one, which can only mean one thing.

I’mstillnot pregnant.

“Maybe I’m not cut out to be a mother,” I whisper, my voice shaking.

“Don’t you dare say that!” Vea’s voice booms behind me as she slams the door shut before sliding to join me on the ground.

Her warm arms wrap tightly around my upper torso as she rests her head on my shoulder. “This has nothing to do with how you’ll be as a mother and everything to do with a hormonal imbalance thatyou have no control over.So stop blaming yourself.Please," she pleads quietly.

Her warmth seeps into my frozen body, but I’m not sure that anything could truly defrost the ice-cold block that’s taken root in my chest as I stare at the pile of negative pregnancy tests littering my bathroom floor.

Chapter one

Luca

Wednesday, July 1, 2026

“Oh fuck, Luca,” Veronica shouts, her perky tits bouncing as she rides my cock.

I smirk up at her, reaching up to toy with her nipples. “You look so hot riding me like such a good girl.”

“You know what they say,” she pants out. “Save a horse, ride a goalie.”

I chuckle, tweaking her nipples and tugging on the sensitive buds as I pump my hips upward into her. Trailing one hand down her abdomen, I slip my thumb through her slick heat, watching as our bodies join repeatedly. I apply pressure to her clit, and her back arches. She clamps down around me, and a tingle travels up the base of my spine, though it’s unfulfilling in the way many of these encounters have been for me recently.Or maybe it’s been longer, and I just haven’t allowed myself to realize it yet.

She throws her head back, letting out a choked moan. “Oh my god!”

“I’ve been called that a time or two.”

She leans forward, giggling slightly, but as she moves her body to slap my chest playfully, my cock shifts angles inside of her and hits her exactly where she wants me. I can tell by the way she throws her head back, eyes wide and lips parted on a low moan.

I grip her hips, helping guide her up and down my shaft. She’s milking my cock, the walls of her pussy spasming around my length. Just as I’m about to blow my load into her, I hear the doorbell ring, followed by a loud banging.

My head snaps in the direction of the noise. “What the fuck?” I grumble, guiding Veronica off my lap. She lies back against my pillows, her hand slipping between her pussy lips, fingers circling her clit.

Her eyes are hooded, and she’s clearly more turned on than I seem to be.What the hell happened to the guy who was totally fulfilled by just getting his dick wet?“Come back and fuck me, baby. You can get whatever’s at the door later.” Her face is flushed, dark curls sticking to her sweat-covered skin.

I’m working to pull on a pair of gray sweats. Looking over at her, I grin, ready to follow through with her suggestion, but whoever’s at the door rings the bell three more times in succession.

I call over my shoulder to Veronica as I head out of the room, “I’ll be right back.”

Padding across the hardwood floors, I unlock the front door. Standing on my porch is a well-dressed businessman, likely in his late forties.

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