Crushed: A Novelette

by L.M. Bennett

Santi says they’ve met before. Rae’s pretty sure she’d remember her.
Rae’s Sunday nights at The Mercury are usually low-key.

Pour drinks. Dodge awkward conversations. Pretend the hipster bands don’t exist.

Then Santi walks in—velvet voice, killer stage presence, and a head tilt like she’s clocking Rae as a puzzle she already solved.

She orders water like it’s a test. Hangs at the bar a little too long. Smiles like she knows things Rae doesn’t.

Now Rae’s flubbing drink orders, staring way too hard, and trying to figure out why this stranger makes her feel like she’s forgotten something important.

Or someone she should’ve never forgotten.

Because the way Santi says Rae’s name?

Yeah… that’s definitely not the first time.

82 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 19, 2025

Reviews

[Jamie (TheRebelliousReader) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars. Santi and Rae knew each other in High School but Santi doesn’t remember her. Santi performs at the bar that Rae works and they hit it off. I really liked this a lot. Bennett is able to accomplish so much and such a short amount of pages and it’s so impressive. This had heart and some great heat. Both characters have their things that they have to work through but the chemistry is great between them and I loved the ending. It felt real and left the possibility of more open. Great read.