Who Are The Key Characters Featured In The Norton Sampler?

Natalia was born to obey, raised as a bargaining chip to secure peace between packs. It was the way girls were raised in her family. And within powerful families, being an only child, her father was sure to make her know her place since her fate was sealed when he had arranged her marriage to the brutal Alpha of the Crimson Howl pack. But Natalia refuses to be anyone's pawn. She refused to obey, and most importantly, she refused to be controlled. On the day of her wedding, dressed in white and suffocating in expectations, she runs. By the edge of a forgotten river, she finds a stranger. A man with cold eyes and a darker soul, Alpha Nolan. He mocks her at first, calls her dramatic, tells her she’d drown ugly if she jumps. But beneath his sharp tongue lies a haunted alpha with no love, no mercy, and no reason to care… until now.

When I was five, I was kidnapped, and the people behind it memorized my face. To protect me, my older sister, Julianne, said, "Maddie, you need to stay out of sight for your own safety." From then on, she took my place whenever I was supposed to appear with my fiance, Adrian Moretti. At the grand opening of his casino, she said the crowd would be too dangerous, so she wore my dress and cut the ribbon beside him. At the Conti family's victory gala, she claimed our enemies might be lying in wait, so she took my invitation and danced with Adrian. After every event, she would pat my head and say: "Once the two of you are married, I can finally stop worrying." I always believed she was doing it for my sake. Then, before my wedding to Adrian, she put on my wedding gown and publicly stood in for me at the rehearsal. She posted pictures on her social media page. Wearing the gown that was supposed to be mine, she stood at the end of the aisle with her arm linked through Adrian's. The caption read: [I tested everything for Maddie first. It was all perfect.] The first comment underneath was from Adrian. [That dress suits you.] I stared at those words for a long time as my heart slowly turned cold. It was time to end this game of replacing me in the name of protecting me.

“Ti voglio da impazzire… Qui… Ora…” (Ita. - I want you like crazy… Here… Now) An affair to remember… for all eternity! My name is Norah Wilde, I am American and I work for the Gritti family, a very important Italian name in the financial world. They've brought me to Italy from New York to ‘manage’ their important international clients. But soon after my arrival, I got framed, and my name and persona were destroyed in the process. No one believes I’m innocent… No one wants to hear me out… Except for my boss, the hot, mysterious, and untameable Leone Gritti! My name is Leone Gritti. I am Italian and I’m the VP of the most important bank in Italy. Dark forces are trying to destroy the perfect image of my honest family. Our enemies are trying to sink our empire. I will do whatever it takes to protect the Gritti name. I will sacrifice whatever to keep my family safe! But the woman who’s accused of being a spy is… innocent. I can tell just by looking into her scared, stunning dark eyes. Norah and Leone have a common goal: clearing their names. And the only way to do it is for Norah to become Leone’s mistress. Norah is scared but intrigued by his proposal and for Leone, no sacrifice is too great to protect what belongs to him: the Gritti empire and the beautiful Norah!

I grew up abroad. My mother feared I might marry a foreign man, so she arranged an engagement for me with a talented and handsome man in Flodon. She insisted that I return home to get engaged. I came back and started shopping for an engagement dress at a luxury boutique. I selected an off-white strapless gown and decided to try it on. Suddenly, a woman nearby glanced at the dress in my hand and told the saleswoman, “That’s a unique design. Let me try it.” The saleswoman immediately yanked it out of my hands. I protested indignantly, “Excuse me, I was here first. Don’t you understand the principle of ‘first come, first served’? Or do you just not care about common decency?” The woman scoffed and retorted, “This dress costs $188,000. Do you really think a broke nobody like you can even afford it? “I’m Lucas Goodwin’s sister in all but blood. He’s the chairman of Goodwin’s Group. In Flodon, the Goodwin family sets the rules.” What a coincidence! Lucas Goodwin was my fiance! I immediately called him and said, “Hey, your ‘sister in all but blood’ just stole my engagement dress. Do something about it.”

Rachel had never known what the 'ultimate-freshman-torture'would look like until'the-Norbert-Williams-Karter', Winchester college's bad boy takes interest in her. Unable to face the torment from Allison, Norbert's girlfriend, Rachel flees back to her family home.. leaving behind her reputation that had been seriously marred by Allison as 'STALKER'and'SLURT'. But Rachel soon returns the next semester to complete her scholarship after Allison had disappeared as well. Her disappearance gives a single Norbert the chance to flirt and mingle with Rachel who is still trying to save the little dignity of hers left. But the irresistible Norbert comes up with a mischievous, more like devilish plan where they fake date for a week to clear people's mindset of her, while he in turn gets in her pants. What will happen when Allison gets back? Or when Peter-a transferred student takes immediate and intense interest in Rachel? Or when things fall apart??...

Veronica Cruz has been through hell and back. After disconnecting with the world two years ago to be at the side of her dying mother, she’s left alone, unemployed, overweight, and feeling a decade older than her twenty-eight years. When her best friend coaxes her into joining the local gym, she meets Noah. Noah is everything she expected a young trainer to be—perfectly chiseled, supportive and motivating. There's just one glaring problem: Noah is eight years younger.Noah Quintanilla has his eye on a boxing title—someday. Down for a few months with an injury, he is finally given the opportunity to train. Noah stumbles into one of the closest friendships he’s ever known, and before he knows it, he’s in love. But Veronica’s not having it—the age difference is too much. Their platonic relationship means having to watch her date other men—something that would make him crazy.Noah is created by Elizabeth Reyes, an eGlobal Creative Publishing author.