Chifley: A Life

I gave Julian Marchetti thirty years of my life after the war ended. I built his empire, raised his children, and held the family together behind the scenes. But when he died, his will didn’t even mention my name. Half his fortune went to our children. The other half went to Lydia Carter, the daughter of the man who’d saved his life in Normandy. The same Lydia who’d stolen my identity.The same Lydia who’d built her entire life on the ruins of mine. All he left me was a single note, scrawled in his familiar handwriting. I loved you. We had thirty good years. But I owe Lydia. This is the least I can do. I dropped dead of a heart attack right there in his study, clutching that pathetic piece of paper. When I opened my eyes again, I was reborn in 1945, when the war had just ended This time I will not swallow my anger and suffer in silence; I will fight back. And I will take back every single thing that is rightfully mine.

"It's over between us, honey." I said to Clyde, flinging the divorce papers at him. You don't want to be the bad guy, am I right? Well now, you don't have to worry about who the bad guy is." He watched the papers flutter to the floor, dumfounded. They assumed she was still in a coma and so wouldn't see them. Even if she wasn't, this wouldn't be the first time her dear husband would kiss another woman in her presence. She saw nothing. But the slurps and moans woke her from the state of coma. The raptures and gasps had kept her from resting, and their shivers of pleasure caused a tear to drop from her eye. She collapsed making lunch for him. But here he was, making out with a woman she considered to be her best friend. All she could think of was revenge, and she knew who was perfect for the job. Not only was she going to get back at him, she was going to show her true identity now. She comes out of the hospital with his twins inside of her and left him alone with the realization that his life was about to change forever. Whisked away to a different world, Everleigh finds love in the arms of Clyde's arch nemesis. Love, hate, betrayal, resentment, envy and secret babies. It all started with one good kiss on the wrong lips, and a lot of lies to the wrong ears.

Vivienne has always believed she was Ashford’s daughter, never questioning the life she was given—until she is married to Damon Marshal Williams. To her, it’s just another cruel joke that life has thrown at her. To him, it is strategy. Damon knows exactly who she is, and more importantly, what she is worth. What begins as a calculated move soon becomes something neither of them planned. But when Vivienne uncovers the truth behind their marriage, love is no longer enough to make her stay. Faced with a choice between the life she wants and the man she never meant to love; she makes a decision she cannot take back. Years later a kidnapping, forces her back into Damon’s world—one she thought she had escaped. With time, distance, and secrets between them, the lines between past and present begin to blur. And as danger closes in, so does the truth—about the child, about their choices, and about everything they left unfinished. Bound by lies and broken by truth, this is a story of love, power, and harsh decisions that define us.

​Vivian Vance 26 An independent art appraiser searching for the truth behind her father’s sudden death. Arthur Pendelton 46 powerful billionaire philanthropist, Vivian's longtime guardian, and her "godfather." Victor Arthur’s security chief and a trusted associate of Vivian’s late father, secretly working for a hostile corporate syndicate. ​Haunted by her father's unexplained death, Vivian Vance arrives at the coastal Blackwood Manor. She has been summoned by her wealthy godfather, Arthur Pendelton, who has recovered her father's encrypted journal. The journal contains details about a high-value art collection, but Vivian quickly discovers the codes actually hide bank routing numbers and coordinates. Amidst the storm outside and the growing mystery, the years of unspoken, taboo attraction between Vivian and her older guardian ignite, culminating in an intense, passionate night in his study. ​The next morning, Vivian overhears a conversation between Arthur and his security chief, Victor. Arthur claims he is "handling" Vivian to find the hidden ledger and "take care of the rest." Heartbroken and believing she is being used to cover up her father's murder. She seduces Arthur in the estate's subterranean thermal pool to distract him while she secretly decodes the coordinates, locating a hidden wall safe in the manor's library. ​Vivian successfully cracks the safe, finding the incriminating ledger and a digital flash drive. Before she can escape, Victor corners her at gunpoint. He reveals the ultimate betrayal: he murdered Vivian's father, and Arthur was actually trying to protect her by hiding the ledger. ​Just as Victor prepares to shoot Vivian, Arthur launches a surprise tactical ambush. A brutal fight ensues, during which Vivian helps overpower Victor. he knew Victor was monitoring the house, so he had to pretend to use her to keep Victor from killing her before he could secure the evidence to dismantle the syndicate.

Being Mrs. Schrett was supposed to be Shirley's happily ever after. Instead, it became the place where she buried every dream she ever had. When she discovers her husband's years-long affair, Shirley refuses to let her daughters grow up in a home built on deceit. She eventually walks away with nothing but her children and the forgotten talent she once sacrificed for love. Five years later, she returns as the woman behind one of the country's fastest growing luxury jewelry brands. Damien Schrett doesn't recognize the quiet wife he once knew in the confident businesswoman standing before him. He only knows he can't stop thinking about her. Now that fate has brought them together again, can the man who never truly knew his wife earn a second chance, or has he already lost her forever?

On New Year's Eve, the smell of a roast in the oven drifted through the house. My grandmother walked over to me, with an old photograph in her hand, the edges worn soft with age. "Is Zack almost home?" My throat tightened. It had been three years. She could never remember that my younger brother was long gone. I was the one who picked up his ashes. At that moment, my phone rang. The moment I saw the name on the screen, the blood in my veins seemed to freeze. I stepped out onto the balcony before answering, keeping my voice low. "What is it?" The voice on the other end of the line trembled. "It's been three years. Are you still angry? I've been waiting for you to come home. Our son has, too. We're downstairs." Downstairs? I walked over and looked down to see a tall figure and a small one standing together. Through my phone, my son's voice came with a catch in his throat, saying, "Daddy…" My thoughts snapped back into place. I said flatly, "We've been divorced for a long time. He said he didn't want to stay with me." Then, I hung up without another word.