Novels by Allura.Shaletta

"You..."Serena’s breath caught, stolen by the weight of William’s gaze. That sharp, unblinking stare locked her in place as their faces hovered dangerously close. Their noses were mere centimeters apart, his breath brushing against her lips like a warning.Burning, caged anger radiated off his body like a storm on the edge of breaking. Her heart raced wildly.William had guessed exactly what she was going through. But why? Why now, of all times? When she had no choice and no strength to fight back.This was no longer the William she knew. The change in him was unsettling, sharper, darker, and full of contradictions she couldn’t explain."I would never let my children suffer for this!" Serena breathed out, her voice trembling but determined.William’s low laugh was humorless and dark. He leaned in, his lips nearly brushing her cheek. "Funny… because I can’t help thinking you would!""You—""Ssh!"The soft whisper against her skin sent shivers streaming down Serena's spine. His presenc

William’s eyes narrowed as he stared at yet another photo sent by his most trusted man. A document stamped with his company’s logo was clearly visible.But that wasn’t what bothered him.A partially revealed financial report made his brows knit together. He tried to recall its date, but too many documents had passed through his hands lately. His memory offered him nothing.Who was pulling the strings behind his back?His fists tightened as he fought the urge to explode. He glanced toward Caelric, Caelia, and Caelen, happily enjoying their meal. They were too innocent to witness his rage. He inhaled deeply, again and again, until he managed to rub the tension off his face."Uncle Will, are you coming home with us later?" Caelric suddenly asked, making him turn"Uncle Will doesn’t live with us, Caelric," Caelen replied flatly. "He’s going home to his house!""But Uncle Will can at least drive us home, right?"Hearing Caelen and Caelia join in only made things harder. William scrambled m

"Mommy!""Caelen?"The hurried sound of tiny footsteps made the figure who had been observing Serena and William suddenly turn around. Dark sunglasses covered part of his face, but the gaze behind them was sharp and piercing.Caelen froze. The gray-eyed boy looked up, spellbound by the thin smile that felt like... a subtle threat."Where are Caelric and Caelia, sweetheart? Why are you alone?" Serena’s voice echoed from afar.The man quickly walked away without a sound. In an instant, Caelen felt the air around him grow colder. He clenched his little fists, trying to hold back the sudden discomfort stabbing at his chest."Why are you just standing here, sweetheart?" Serena finally reached him.Caelen didn’t answer. His eyes continued searching for the man in the hat and sunglasses who had vanished like a ghost. Somehow he felt a strange familiarity with that man, but couldn’t recognize him at all."Mommy... What if we just go home now?" he whispered hesitantly. Caelen wrapped his arms

Hearing his twin’s words, Caelric turned to William again. Once more, it was as if he was waiting for the adult man’s response. William eventually nodded, prompting Caelric to let out a quiet sigh."Caelen probably needs to calm down first," William said, pulling Caelric into a brief side hug. "It’s alright, boy. For now, why don’t you sit here and stay with Caelia?"After that, William lowered himself again and focused on Caelia. He gently stroked the top of her head with affection. He wanted to make sure the injury on the little girl’s leg hadn’t gotten worse."How did it start, hmm? Does that boy bother you often?"Without William realizing it, Serena was watching all his actions from behind the window of the teachers’ office. Her concentration shattered when she saw how genuinely attentive the man was toward her children. Her heart tightened again. Tears began to pool in her eyes, especially as she realized that things would only get more complicated from here on out.Yes... terr

Serena and William snapped back to their senses the moment they accidentally blurted out the same word. They stared at each other, and Caelric glanced back and forth between them."Mommy? Daddy?"The moment that small voice reached them, Serena and William froze. Their mouths hung open, as if words were ready to spill out. But nothing came. Everything felt caught in their throats as their hearts thudded faster.Mommy and Daddy...For some reason, that simple address stirred a mess of emotions in both of them. Their breaths tightened, as though they weren’t ready for any of this. Memories from their grim past flickered in and out, but disappeared the second Caelric’s tiny hands reached out and curled around their index fingers."Caelen is fighting with the boy who was teasing Caelia! Please help them! Caelia keeps crying because that boy won’t stop!"Before the sentence fully registered, William was already moving, heading exactly where Caelric pointed. His steps quickened. Serena caug

Cassandra was utterly stunned by what William had just done. Once again, the words she wanted to say failed to escape her lips. Everything felt stuck in her throat, especially when the fake tears she had forced out earlier now flowed freely, completely beyond her control.Her original intention in coming to see William had only been to scare him a little. Cassandra wanted him to stop ignoring her. She wanted the old William back, the William who was always by her side and treated her as his home. She wanted him to always look her way, even though she had always known he wasn’t fond of the idea of marriage in the first place.Yes, that was William. That was why he had once been forced to marry Selena by his mother, especially since his mother had never liked Cassandra at all."This is where our relationship ends, Cassandra. Once again, I’m sorry!"William’s firm declaration snapped her back into reality. When she realized he had taken a step back, Cassandra quickly grabbed his arm, her

"Reyna—""You think you can take him from me? After everything I’ve done? I won’t let you, bitch!"Reyna kept getting closer, forcing Arthur—who had only just realized her presence—to instinctively shield Athena behind him. His eyes widened, just as shocked as Athena. He never imagined that someone he had always treated like a sister would do something so dangerous to the woman he loved."You’re not a killer, Reyna. Put the gun down!" he said, trying to bring her back to her senses, even though he was still torn between belief and disbelief."I won’t let her take you away from me again!" Reyna just gave a faint smile before her gaze turned sharp again. "I can’t lose you! Not after everything I’ve done for you!""Reyna—""Stay out of this!" she screamed. Her face was twisted in hatred and desperation. "You kept ignoring me while I kept falling more in love with you, Arthur! And now she’s pregnant, you’re just going to go back to her like nothing ever happened?!""Reyna, please..." Arth

"Wh–what?"Athena froze. Reyna’s words rang through the hallway like a bullet to the chest. Her breath caught. Her legs trembled. Her heart? Of course, shattered.Athena stared at Arthur, hoping—no, praying—that he’d deny it. That he’d scream it was a lie. But all she saw was confusion. Horror and silence."You... you really did this?" she whispered, barely able to form the words. "How could you—""I didn’t know what happened, dear. I swear! I don’t remember anything. She just..." Arthur stepped forward, reaching for her, but she pulled away.Athena’s tears, the ones she had tried so desperately to hold back, finally poured down her cheeks in torrents. Her body trembled with grief. Reyna, witnessing her pain, sneered with cruelty. Folding her arms across her chest, she stepped closer, her gaze sharp and arrogant."Believe it or not, but your perfect Arthur and I are closer than you think!""Reyna, stop it!""What? I’m just telling her the truth," she replied without a hint of guilt. "

"Hey!"Feeling the gentle caress on his strong jawline, Arthur tried to open his eyes. Still overwhelmed by sleepiness, he reached for the slender waist of the woman who seemed to be resting against his chest—only for his eyes to suddenly narrow sharply as he realized who was actually with him."What the hell is this?!"His heart stopped in an instant. Arthur woke with a pounding head and a mouth dry as ash. He blinked blearily, only to see Reyna lying beside him beneath the sheets, smiling like a cat that had just devoured the canary."You were amazing last night," she said casually, brushing her fingers through her hair. "I didn’t think you had it in you. I like it!"Shaking his head, Arthur then changed his position. With no clothes clinging to his body and the body of the woman beside him, he had expected it. But he quickly tried to deny it. "I don't understand. What are you talking about? How did you get here? And where are we now?!""You don’t remember?" Reyna asked with a tilt

Hearing those words, Arthur shook his head as if denying a truth too painful to accept. He took a step forward, reaching out to grab the wrist of the woman standing before him, but Athena had already stepped back, her eyes silently pleading with him—don’t."We’re over, Arthur. I’m sorry I never got to say goodbye back then. I just… I couldn’t bear to see you hurting and—""And falling apart!" Arthur cut her off sharply, running a hand over his face, overwhelmed. "Goodbye or not, I still felt it! Every inch of it! Don’t you see that?""I’m sorry. I just…""Why?" His voice cracked, raw with pain, as she struggled to find her words. "Why him? Why choose him over me? Hasn’t he done enough? Hasn’t he already broken you, made your life hell, and—""Enough! Please!"Arthur shook his head again, this time more desperately. His eyes locked onto the woman in front of him, her body trembling as she sobbed—just like him, if not even more heartbreakingly.How did it come to this? What made her giv

Throughout the ride, Arthur couldn’t shake his assistant’s words from his mind. Every part of them rang true. No matter how much time passed, Leon, Crystal, and Caroline would never let him or Athena live their lives in peace. They would never be satisfied, not even now when he and the woman he loved were already suffering under the weight of their cruelty.If they truly had joined forces to weave this trap around him, especially with Reyna relentlessly working to tear him away from Athena, he genuinely didn’t know what else he could do. If Athena were still by his side, none of this would feel so overwhelming. He wouldn’t be lost like this, drifting without direction, weak and broken, like a man abandoned for days in a barren, merciless desert."Sir... it seems your persistence has finally paid off."His assistant’s voice pulled him back from the chaos in his mind. Arthur snapped his gaze forward, eyes narrowing slightly at the sight of a woman stepping out of a taxi. Her face was h

"Mr. James! Did you just meet with Mrs. Athena inside? Has she returned? What’s your response to the rumors claiming that Mrs. Athena intentionally dropped her charges against Mr. Leon to reunite with her ex-husband?""Yes, Mr. James! As the person closest to her these past few months, surely you have something to say. Is the news true? Please, Mr. James, we've been struggling to reach her!""Yes, is your visit today connected to all this? Are you planning to cut ties and cancel your company's collaborations with hers out of disappointment? Rumor has it you only pursued the partnership to get close to her. Do you now feel betrayed, Mr. James? Played for a fool?"The flood of questions rained down without pause, each word sharpened by the blinding flash of camera lights. Stepping out of the Athena family’s corporate building, Arthur James hadn't anticipated the swarm of reporters that awaited him, hungry for a headline.Who had tipped them off? And how had the rumors spiraled so viciou