2nd-glance

At the engagement party, the champagne tower is only half-built when Marcus Harrison answers a phone call. He glances at me and says, "I have to go. Lily collapsed at the airport." I say, "If you leave, we're done." He leaves anyway, in front of 200 guests. He carries Lily Bardot in his arms, wearing the coat I gave him, as he drives away in my car. The next day, he sends me an email that reads, "Lily will be moving into my apartment. She needs me, and I hope you can understand. Once Lily gets better, we'll get married. Please trust me." I stare at the screen and suddenly laugh. So what he wants isn't someone who loves him. It's someone who needs him. And I'm too independent, so I don't make the cut. That evening, I scroll through my contacts and find a number I've never given a second glance to. It belongs to someone who's been waiting for me for 23 years. I dial it. "Tomorrow night, 7:00 pm. Meet me at the restaurant by the sea."

“Will you marry me?” “Hell no.” ––– Isabella Kingston built her empire with cold steel and ruthless determination. At twenty-six, she’s the CEO every man wants to conquer and every woman envies. But when her grandfather’s will took her control away from her, she made a dangerous move—one that could save her legacy or ruin her. Elion Dawson, dark-eyed, devastatingly handsome, and infuriatingly calm, he’s supposed to be nothing more than her assistant. Instead, he’s the man she chooses to marry in a reckless gamble to escape her uncle’s grasp. He was supposed to be another pawn in her games but his touch is addictive, his kisses ruinous, and his intentions anything but innocent. Elion came into her life with a sole purpose, to destroy the family that destroyed his. He was never meant to fall for her… yet every stolen glance, every brush of skin, draws him deeper into a passion that burns hotter than the city skyline at night. In a world where betrayal hides behind every smile and desire can destroy an empire, Isabella must decide—will she fight for her throne, or surrender to the man who could ruin her?

I was just trying to survive my toxic family when I had the hottest one-night stand of my life. Then I found out he's my new stepbrother. And a mafia don. Demetrio DeLeon is dangerous, controlling, and completely off-limits. He's also the only man who's ever made me feel alive. Every stolen touch is forbidden. Every heated glance could destroy us both. But when his enemies come for me, I discover I'm not just some college dropout caught in the crossfire. I'm the missing daughter of the Russian Bratva's most feared pakhan. The girl whose kidnapping twenty years ago started a bloody war between two mafia empires. And now that war is back, with me at the center. Demetrio says he'll burn the world down before he lets me go. My biological brother Alexei wants to take me home to Russia. And I'm caught between two families, two worlds, and a love so consuming it might just kill us all. Some secrets are worth dying for. This one might cost me everything.

Lady Nicole Bradshaw was born to one of the wealthiest families in England and had an arranged marriage since before she was born. She had never laid eyes on Lord Francis Ravenport but she was assured he was a handsome fellow. He had recently moved his company to the West Indies and she wouldn't see him until the wedding. When she gets to travel to London with family friends, she knows she will never lay eyes on the Marquess as her husband. Austin Duncan was not a special man. He was the third son to an Earl and gave everything up to be in His Majesty's Army. He never dreamed of marriage or finding a young lady due to him being a soldier. In 1789, it was a questionable time and he could never marry to just leave a woman widowed. While in London on assignment, he knows he will throw everything out the window. One glance at Lady Nicole and Austin knows he will never be the same. Nicole sees him and thinks for sure being an only child is surely unfair and she would risk her reputation for a few moments alone with him. Could a Scandalous Love bring them closer together or tear them worlds apart?

"Well, well, well," He said, his voice low with a hint of both playfulness and danger in it. I know I am caught like a deer in the headlight but still I did not came out, holding onto a little hope that is crushed long ago. "What do we have here?" His voice was demanding and threatening, forcing my feets to move on their own to come out of the shadows. -- Kirill Volkov, is a 25 years old russian heartthrob with many dark little secrets. His hands are stained with the blood of people whoever discovered his little secret and he never batted another glance to the lifeless bodies he left behind. He is the perfect definition of an emotionless, quiet, arrogant and an inhumane human. Aleeza Aria Russo, is a 23 year old elegant Italian beauty with the dreams of living a life that have nothing to do with her previous one. She wants to taste the freedom in her mouth, not only on the tip of her tongue. But she did not realised she was loosing everything she always wanted while she got involved with Kirill, without even knowing the truth he hides. Aleeza does not realise the pressure and betrayal, Kirill, is going to crush her with, which will leave her with nothing but scars. Happy Reading!

Celeste Virelli is not your typical private investigator. Sleek, calculating, and always three steps ahead, she specializes in one thing: seducing unfaithful husbands to trigger the fidelity clauses in their ironclad prenups. Her clients are wealthy women trapped in golden cages—wives who want out, but only if they can take half the fortune with them. Celeste doesn’t advertise. She doesn’t need to. Her name passes in whispers between yoga mats and charity galas, a whispered promise of justice wrapped in silk and steel. When Vivienne Cross, the young wife of tech mogul Julian Cross, walks into her office, Celeste expects another routine takedown. But Julian isn’t like the others. He’s elusive, calculating, and hiding more than just a wandering eye. As Celeste draws him into her web, she uncovers a deeper game—one that involves offshore accounts, a missing woman, and a secret that could destroy more than a marriage. For the first time, Celeste finds herself questioning the rules she’s lived by. Because this time, the seduction might not be an act. And the most dangerous lies aren’t the ones told in bed—they’re the ones we tell ourselves. The Seduction Clause is a taut, stylish psychological thriller about power, betrayal, and the cost of playing with fire where every glance is a gamble, and every kiss could be a weapon.

⚠️⚠️ Not for readers under 18!!! Mature Content ⚠️⚠️ One Night. No names. No rules. Still raw from an eight-year relationship that ended in betrayal, Aria gives in to a dominant stranger to take her apart in a hotel room, hard, rough, and unforgettable. She gives him her body, her sounds, her shame… and walks away believing it’s over. It isn’t. Because the man who fucked her senseless the night before is her married, untouchable, and very much her strict professor. They swear to erase what happened. To keep their distance. To be professional. But lust doesn’t disappear just because it’s forbidden. Assigned as his teaching assistant, Aria finds herself trapped between her future and her hunger. Every stolen glance feels like a sin. Every closed door is a risk. Every touch could cost her scholarship and his entire career. As the affair deepens into obsession, Aria must decide how much of herself she’s willing to lose for a man who can never fully be hers... while Jason risks destroying the carefully crafted life he built for the one woman who makes him forget all the rules. Because this isn’t love. It’s control. It’s craving. It’s a secret that wants to be exposed. And once you taste something this dark... walking away is the hardest part.

A well-known actor, Ellie Syallis have fans of varying levels— most of them are obsessed, very obsessed. A day awaited by her fans came, where people that won and bought the limited slots came. They finally met their idol face to face, got to shake hands with the female and an autograph on one of her limited-edition DVDs, on cards and on pictures as well. But her once peaceful life will start to take turn for the worse she sees at that very moment. A man wearing a formal business suit with a stoic appearance approached her. She gladly offered her hand and so they shook hands. The male asked for her autograph and she said "yes" with a brimming smile. She couldn't take her eyes of the male. He was undeniably handsome and somehow mysteriously attractive. "Here!" She handed her autograph on the sheet of paper the male gave. “Have a nice day! And oh, please keep on supporting me!” She added and partly bowed. The stranger flashed a smirk that made her heart skip a beat, both in a pinch of threat or fear and in unknown excitement. "You're now my wife. Hello, Mrs. Folster. Can't wait to spend the rest of my days with you." Her facial expressions shifted to surprise, annoyance, fear, melancholy, and into anger as she finally took a glance on the paper she signed. It was a marriage contract!

I gave birth prematurely, just twenty days before the due date. Two hours after I entered the surgery room, I had a stillborn baby. I did not cry at all. I did not even spare a glance at the dead baby. I endured the pain from childbirth and calmly walked into the hospital nursery. After the door was tightly shut, I turned down the temperature of the air-conditioning. The temperature inside the nursery would be too cold for newborns to bear after an hour. The doctors and parents were begging me on their knees to let their babies live. They screamed and cried. They said I was a mother and hoped that I would understand. Instead, I laughed and said, “Yes, I was a mother. But my baby died!” The gynecologist knelt on the floor and begged, “We may be at fault for not being able to save your baby, but these babies are innocent! “Please don’t be reckless just because you lost your baby! You’re so young. You’ll have more babies in the future.” I gritted my teeth and roared, “But my baby isn’t dead! “She’s still alive. I’ll give you one hour. Bring her back to me!” But I was unsure if she would still be alive after an hour.

His mouth found my throat, tongue tracing a hot path down to my pulse. When he closed his lips over my chest, swirling his tongue in slow, torturous circles, pleasure speared through me so sharply I cried out. My body arched into him, craving more, but my mind whispered: You’re giving him everything. There’ll be no hiding after this. ********* I was divorced for another woman. Three years of marriage erased with one signature...because my husband chose his mistress. I thought losing him was the worst betrayal. Then I met his boss. He is hot, powerful and dangerous in a way that makes my pulse race. A billionaire who looks at me like I was never disposable… only claimed too late. He shouldn’t want me. I shouldn’t want him. But every glance lingers. Every touch is a warning. And every secret pulls us closer to ruin. My ex-husband regrets losing me. His mistress fears me. And the man I’m falling for is the one I was never meant to touch. My ex husband thought divorcing me would break me. He was wrong. Now the regret belongs to him. ****Trigger warning*Smut* Smut*Smut