1945 Pulitzer Winning

When my pilot boyfriend canceled our wedding for the 18th time, I finally snapped. The first time, his trainee got her period, and he bailed on me just to take care of her. The second time, she messed up a task, and all he said was, "Jan's upset", before walking out and leaving me to face our wedding guests alone like some kind of joke. We've been together for three years, and every single time she had an issue, he dropped our wedding plans to rush to her side. Finally, it hits me—maybe I never really mattered to him. So I make up my mind to see the world on my own and book a flight to Pavrielle. At least this way, no one will get the chance to leave me behind again.

On the day I get back together with Leo Laycond, he uploads a photo of us on his social media account. I stare at the post for three long minutes until I notice a silver lock icon on the bottom right corner. It turns out that Leo has blocked Lisa Laycand, his younger adopted sister. That sister of his is always the person he cares about the most. I tell Leo calmly, "If you yearn for Lisa even more, I can always cancel the mating ceremony." Leo panics immediately. He deletes the restriction in front of the entire pack so that they can witness our reunion. Half an hour later, Lisa rushes into the training grounds in nothing but a thin dress. Then, she "collapses" in front of Leo. I watch as Leo scoops Lisa into his arms. It's an action that's very familiar to him, as though he's done it hundreds of times. Suddenly, I realize that the engagement with Leo bores me to no end.

By the time I return home from a business trip, it is past midnight. However, my wife, Celeste Beaumont, isn't home. A man's shirt that isn't mine is lying on the couch. When I call her, she tells me that she's working late at the office. "Whose shirt is it on the couch?" I ask, cutting straight to the point. She playfully scolds, "Who else would it be? It's a gift for you, so hurry up and try it on." I skeptically put it on and immediately feel how tight and uncomfortable it is across my shoulders. "This is an L, babe. I've always worn XL." Celeste runs a clothing company. She's the one who handles all my clothes and even uses my body measurements for her menswear line. There's no way she doesn't know my size. The line goes quiet for half a second before she thoughtfully says, "It's from my new menswear collection. "I had pieces custom-made for you and Felix, so I must've grabbed the wrong piece. I'll swap it tomorrow." A beat later, her voice carries a little sob as she continues, "Babe, I've been so exhausted without you these past few days. I've missed you so much…" It's past midnight. As I listen to the undeniable weariness beneath her affectionate, playful words, my heart aches in distress. I can't help chiding myself for overthinking. However, after hanging up, realization hits me. Her brother, Felix Beaumont, and I are about the same build. He's always worn XL.

Three years ago, my fiancé's childhood friends murdered and framed me. They ground my leg bones and turned them into beads to make a bracelet. Then, they gave it to my fiancé after he woke up from an accident. He hated me to the core and wore the bracelet symbolizing his rebirth as he utilized all his resources to find me. He even placed my weak and crazed mother under house arrest to force me to appear. Three years later, during his and his childhood sweetheart's engagement party, a renowned jewel appraiser points out that the bracelet he's had this whole time isn't made of regular bone—it's made of human bone.

In the third year of our marriage, I suddenly received a wedding invitation from my own husband, with the bride being my cousin, Lina. Following the address on the invitation, I flew to America. However, the moment I arrived, I saw my husband, Marco, the youngest Don in Italy, wrapping his arm around Lina as they toasted together. Fireworks burst across the sky, forming both of their names. Inside the chapel, his men laughed and joked. “In Italy, he married Aurora, and in America, he'll marry Lina. The Don really gets the best of both worlds!” “But didn’t he say he didn’t feel anything for Lina?” Marco’s deep voice cut through the noise. “I really didn’t, at first. To me, she was just a kid, but she pursued me for years. She never cared how cold I was, and she even stayed by my side for the two years I was paralyzed, taking care of me. Even if my heart were made of stone, I couldn’t stay unmoved forever.” The two years he was paralyzed… So during those years, while I was out in the desert, eating sand and sleeping under the open sky, fighting exhaustion just to gather rare medicinal extracts to treat his injured spine, my husband had begun his romance with my cousin. I wiped my tears, pulled out the divorce papers Marco had signed when he first got hurt, and added my own signature. If devotion can’t compare to someone simply staying by his side, I don’t need a man who can betray me so easily.

I was the person Henry Johnson, the head of the San Nello mafia, loved more than anyone else. He loved me with absolute devotion. During our three years of marriage, he spoiled me endlessly and treated me like a princess. Yet this same man, who claimed to love me so deeply, divorced me three times, each time for the sake of his childhood sweetheart. The first time, intimate photos of them at the airport went viral. That very night, he placed the divorce papers in front of me. "Selena," he said, "Melanie's father once saved my life. I can't allow her to be condemned as a homewrecker. Let's divorce for now. Once this storm passes, we'll remarry." With my heart in pieces, I signed the papers and prepared to leave. However, at the airport, Henry stopped me. He broke down in front of me and begged, "I've already taken care of the media. Melanie has gone abroad again. I've repaid everything I owed her family. Please don't leave. Let's get married again." His tearful pleas softened my resolve. That was the first time I forgave him. The second time, he came to me looking utterly worn out. "Melanie was implicated by her boyfriend and ended up in prison," he said. "I need to bail her out as her spouse. Once she's free, we'll remarry right away." I believed him. That time, he kept his promise. He returned and remarried me. The third time, he lowered his head and hesitated, unable to look me in the eye. "Melanie is about to give birth," he said. "An unwed pregnancy would destroy her modeling career. I have to help her. This will be the last time. Once the child is settled, we'll remarry. I promise this will never happen again." I looked at him for a long time. In the end, I answered softly, "Okay." However, on the day we were meant to register our marriage again, I never appeared. Any love I still had was worn away bit by bit. In the end, I left for good, taking with me not only a broken heart, but also the unborn heir he would never know.

My mate, Charalambos, was the heir to the Nightshade Pack. To take over as Alpha, he was sent to Noctis City, the capital city, for special training. When he left, my stepsister, Francesca, insisted on going with him. He refused at first, but she forced his hand, threatening a hunger strike until he gave in. Eventually, he allowed her to accompany him as his assistant. This went on for three years. Throughout those three years, our mate bond stayed strong. I never felt the slightest hint of betrayal. He constantly reassured me through our mind-link. "You're the only one for me." At some point, I started receiving photos anonymously. Francesca kissed him in the face, but he never refused. Once, Charalambos and I were on a video call in the dark, and I could hear Francesca’s breathless voice clearly while she whispered his name in the heat of it. Three years later, the day he returned to the pack, I saw her walking behind him. She had been with pup for five months, and there was a smug, victorious smile on her face. He looked at me apologetically. Guilt was written all over his face. "I'm sorry. I’ve only ever loved you. Once the pup comes, you can raise it." I was done. I had waited for three years. I made up my mind to reject him.

As the princess of the merfolk, I can't go ashore by nature. Yet, I've fallen in love with the werewolf Alpha, Silas Walker, who lives on land. In order to be with Silas, I've struck a bargain with the witch of the deep seas. I've traded in my voice for a pair of legs. For the next century or so, Silas and I remain together as an affectionate couple. On my birthday, I find out that he's actually cheating on me with another Omega named Helena Payne. As he holds Helena in his arms, he whispers sweet nothings into her ear. "Haven't I just satisfied you last night? Oh, you little minx…" Meanwhile, Helena clutches the moonstone that's supposed to be mine. She nestles into Silas' arms as she says, "Will the Luna be angry at me when she finds out that you've given her moonstone to me? "I didn't mean to steal from her, to begin with. It's just that I've been feeling uneasy lately, and I need the moonstone to help calm my nerves…" Silas tightens his grip on her hips. "Hmph! I'm only lending the moonstone to you for a few days! You know how important Annelise is to me! If you dare tell her anything about us, I'll definitely screw you over!" This scene completely breaks my heart. After that, I text my mom right away. "Mom, I want to go home now."

I had been trying to get pregnant for six months. Ernest Marino, the Don of the Marinos, would personally make me a herbal brew every day to ensure that my body was properly nurtured. He watched me tenderly as I drank the brew and whispered into my ear, "You're a good girl, Mia. You need to drink this, no matter how bad it tastes, for the sake of our baby." When my full black hair started to fall, and my gums began to bleed for no good reason, I found out that it was not medicine I was drinking. It was an immunosuppressant. Ernest had spent six months showering me with adoration, turning me into the perfect organ donor. The herbal brew I had been consuming would make it so that the recipient, his precious stepsister with uremia, would not experience rejection symptoms. He thought that I was a woman who could be treated anyway he wanted. However, he had no idea that I was a Corleone. I was from Severia's oldest, most ruthless mafia family, the Corleones.

My mate, Raelor Thorne, is the Alpha of the Silvermoon Pack. He once swore that in this lifetime, he would mark only me. Yet one month before our marking ceremony, he insisted that he must first mark with Seraphine Morcant, his late brother's mate. He claimed it was to comfort her and preserve his brother's bloodline. He said he would help her conceive an heir, so the line would not die. I refused. He brought it up every day after that, pressing harder each time, leaving me no room to breathe. Then, half a month before the ceremony, I received a report from the Pack Healing Sanctum. It stated clearly that Seraphine had already been marked and was nearly one month pregnant. In that moment, I finally understood. Raelor had never intended to ask for my consent. So I canceled the marking ceremony. I burned every token that tied us together. On the day we were meant to bind our lives, I left Silvermoon Territory alone. I traveled to the Obsidian Pack to further my mastery of healing arts and formally accepted the position of Chief Healer within their Order. From that day forward, there would be nothing left between Raelor and me. No bond. No mercy. No return.