2nd-glance

The bitter chill of rejection pierces my heart once again as Gray turns his back on me without a word. The mate the moon goddess has sent to me as my only source of joy doesn't even spare me a glance as he walks away, off to join the mate his council has chosen for him. Not me. Never me. My father, the Alpha, sees me as a waste. My packmates sneer and jeer, enjoying my pain. And my fated mate Gray, whose rejection cuts deeper than any wound. I thought I knew heartbreak when my mother died birthing me but this agony is so much worse. Every day I pray to the Moon Goddess for a family to call my own, for acceptance, for love. My prayers go unanswered. Each day, there are whispers that I am cursed, that my existence brings misfortune to the pack. If only they knew the turmoil steaming inside me. But I will endure. Even as assassins ambush me and Silver Fang soldiers see me as a threat. Even as I find myself mysteriously pregnant with no father in sight. Even as wolves come to me claiming friendship while concealing wicked motives. I have survived worse. I am stronger than they know. There are secrets about me, truths my so-called pack tries to bury. My identity. My power. My purpose - all hidden from me by lies. But I will uncover it all. The course of my life is changing, veering into unpredictable territory. But I am ready for whatever comes. My story has only just begun. I am Lyra, the Omega without a wolf but not without a purpose and I would fulfill it! I will shock my pack, I will shock my father, I will shock my mate. This is how I rise!

Sarah Reynolds, a gifted artist, opens her new gallery exhibition amid the sun-drenched streets of Spain, where passion burns like a summer storm. Her breathtaking beauty attracts attention from all directions, but she is fully captured by the mysterious Damian Thorne, who is twice her age and has a captivating presence and heavenly charm. What starts out as a single drink turns into a memorable one-night affair that leaves both parties speechless and wanting more. Sarah is unaware that Eleanor, her mother, is covertly seeing Damian. After the hectic affair, Sarah returns to the Philippines and attempts to get rid of the heat from that evening. Two weeks later, her lively mother, Eleanor, talks nonstop about her new lover's imposing charm and alluring allure, creating an impression that is unintentionally false. Three weeks after their meeting, Eleanor proudly introduces Damian as her lover, and the truth falls apart. Sarah is shocked, but they both pretend to be calm, hiding the electric tension with courteous grins, even though Damian's ravenous glance shows how desperate he is to get her back. Sarah struggles between loyalty and desire since she doesn't want to break her mother's heart. However, destiny weaves its complex web: Eleanor and Damian become family when they get married in an expensive ceremony a month later. The forbidden flame rekindles behind the façade of domestic contentment. Sarah and Damian give in to moments of intense love that have been taken—secret affairs in dark places where guilt feeds the flames and every touch puts everything at risk. Sarah must manage the seductive attraction of the older man who now shares her mother's bed in this web of secrets, love, lust, and lies while protecting an affair that might destroy their entire world.

"I don't do commitments, Sophie. Especially not with my best friend's sister." Isang gabi. Isang pagkakamali. What was meant to be a masked one-night escape turns into a lifetime secret when Sophie discovers her mystery lover is Jace Velez—the ruthless billionaire CEO and her brother’s best friend. She runs, carrying the child of a man who doesn’t believe in love. Five years later, Sophie is a struggling single mom to Xavi, surviving with the help of a mysterious benefactor known only as “LJV.” From lavish gifts to prepaid school fees, LJV has been their silent guardian. She never expected to cross paths with Jace again—until she’s forced to work at Velez Corp. Jace is still cold, commanding, and dangerously magnetic. He acts like he doesn’t remember her, but his eyes say otherwise. Every glance burns with possessiveness. Every order feels personal. And every message from LJV grows more invasive—knowing things no stranger should. As Sophie falls deeper into the web of secrets, she faces a terrifying truth: Jace isn’t just the Ice King. He might be LJV. But someone else claims that title too—someone watching her and Xavi from the shadows. Ngunit ang dalaga ay tila nahuhulog na sa “ninong” na nagsilbing ama ni Xavi sa mga panahong wala si Jace. Hindi pa man niya ito nakikita ay tila tanggap na ito ng kanyang pusong patuloy na inaangkin ng isang Velez. Sa mundo na ang pag-ibig ay isang laro, sino ang mas matimbang para kay Sophie — ang isang anino na tanggap ang buong pagkatao niya o ang lalaking may puwang parin sa puso niya?

Lila Reid’s life of privilege has always felt like a gilded cage. As the wallflower daughter of the powerful Richard Reid, she has always shy away from the cameras due to her traumatic experience when she was a kid. But when a series of sinister threats against her family emerge, her father hires his best friend, Caleb Marshall to be her bodyguard. Caleb Marshall with his commanding presence and rugged good looks, awakens something dark and primal within Lila. She can't help but be drawn to the way his eyes linger on her, the subtle brush of his hand against hers that sends shivers down her spine. The forbidden nature of their attraction only intensifies her desire. Every stolen glance and accidental touch fuels a hunger she’s never felt before, a need she knows is dangerous but impossible to resist. Caleb Marshall known in his other life as Alpha Marshall has always been a man of honor, fiercely loyal to his best friend Richard Reid. Protecting Richard’s daughter, Lila, was supposed to be a straightforward task, but the moment he saw her, he felt an overwhelming pull. She is his second chance mate, a bond he thought he’d never feel again. The fact that Lila is human and already promised to another man only adds to the torment. Every moment he spends with Lila is a test of his restraint. Her scent, her closeness, the way she looks at him with a mix of innocence and desire—it drives him to the edge. He is consumed by a dark, primal need to claim her, to mark her as his despite knowing the consequences. The forbidden nature of their attraction gnaws at his control, making every touch, every heated gaze a battle against his deepest instincts

“You're my mate," Kyle whispered, his eyes flashing gold in the dim light. I stumbled backward. "That's impossible. We're about to be family." "I know. But the bond doesn't care about that." He's supposed to be her future stepbrother. In four weeks, their parents are moving in together, and Kyle will be family. Off-limits. Forbidden. The bond between them is instant. It's the kind of love that can't be ignored, can't be denied. When Kyle looks at her, Ella feels it in her bones, this is forever. This is fate. Except fate has never been crueler. How can they be together when being together means destroying their family? When every stolen glance across the dinner table is a secret they have to keep? When loving each other means breaking their parents' hearts? She has two mates. A Triad Bond. So rare, most wolves think it's just a myth. But it's real, and it's hers, and now Ella has an impossible choice to make. Kyle is her first bond, her strongest connection. Losing him could break them both. But loving him means hiding, lying, living in the shadows of their own family. Jason offers her something different. With him, there are no secrets. No forbidden touches. No family dinners where she has to pretend her heart doesn't belong to the boy sitting across from her. Jason can give her everything Kyle can't, a normal life, a real future, a love she doesn't have to hide. But choosing one mate means hurting the other. And the full moon is coming and time is running out. And Ella is about to learn that when you're bonded to two Alphas, love isn't about choosing the right person.

In the late stages of her pregnancy, my wife slipped away into the mountains with her childhood sweetheart, seeking some reckless thrill under the open sky. Fate, however, had other plans. She suffered a massive hemorrhage, and the two were rushed to the hospital. As a doctor, I took one glance at her condition and instructed the nurse to prepare for the cremation. In my previous life, I had risked everything to save her. On that very operating table, she and the child inside her perished together. Her childhood sweetheart, overcome with grief and fury, rallied others to accuse me of seeking personal revenge. Their rage was relentless, and they broke my hands. "A butcher like you, without medical ethics, deserves nothing less than eternal damnation!" they shouted, their words burning like brands on my soul. Yet I distinctly remembered—the surgery had been a success. Her vital signs had stabilized. Clinging to hope, I begged my in-laws to conduct an autopsy, to uncover the truth buried beneath the accusations. Instead, they called the police, who swiftly charged me with performing surgery under the influence of alcohol. Stripped of my rights, I was thrown into prison, where suffering became my only companion. Years later, upon release, I stumbled across a sight that tore what was left of my heart to shreds—my wife, alive and well, behind the wheel of a luxury car, accompanied by her childhood sweetheart and their child, living off the fortune I had worked tirelessly to build. Their betrayal didn't end there. Coldly and methodically, they lured me into a trap, casting me into a cement mixer to erase every trace of my existence. When I next opened my eyes, time had rewound itself. I was back on that fateful day, the one when her hemorrhage began.

"So you're the famous journalist who goes around snooping out for information from celebrities, huh?" "Y..yes," I managed to utter. Apart from being the man I am going to be interviewing, no one knew he's the reason I've been getting wet dreams almost every night for the past five years. "Who do we have here, brother?" I quickly turned my gaze to the direction of the person who had just spoken, only to be met by three other guys, who looked exactly like the man in front of me. Rumour has it that he lived many lives, and that is exactly what I came to find out, but seeing these three other men looking like another him, I became confused to the point my knee suddenly gave up, instantly. "Hey, hold it in, pretty boy, we won't bite." One of them said, wrapping his arm around my waist just when I was about to fall to the ground. "E.. excuse me, w..who are you?" I asked while staring at all four of them. "You mean, I, or the four of us?" Turstin asked in a deep husky voice. "I think he's confused!" The one holding me said allowed. "Well, we are the Barclay brothers, pretty boy, and my name is Thale," the one holding me said. "Since you want to interview Turstin, we can make you the most famous journalist for free, by letting you interview the four of us," the one standing beside Turstin said. "But that comes with a price, Pretty boy." I took a quick glance at the last one who seemed like he was the youngest of all four. Gael has a secret, and so does the Barclay brothers. What will happen when these secrets find their way out in the open?

Damon spared him a glance before turning to me. “Do you want his head, little mouse?” *** Sabrina thought nothing could be worse than being deceived by the man she loved the most—until the day he shattered her world completely. “Elena is my mate, and I’ve deceived you this entire time. We recognized each other the moment she turned eighteen. Dating you was all a game my mate wanted, and it was fun taking part in it.” Heartbroken and betrayed, Sabrina believed she had hit rock bottom. But she was wrong. When her family and pack offered her as a sacrifice to the most feared Alpha in existence, she realized her nightmare was only beginning. *** Alpha Damon Blackthorn, a thousand years old beast cursed by a witch, a ruthless leader no one dared to defy. Yet, from the moment he laid his eyes on Sabrina, something snapped. Mate. His wolf yearned for her, yet she couldn’t recognize him. She was wolfless. *** Sabrina wanted an escape. Ever since she came to the blackthorn pack, something changed. It felt like she was hallucinating and was on the verge of going mad. She had crazy dreams. Dreams so vivid they bled into reality, warning her of what was to come. A connection between her and Damon simmered beneath the surface, dangerous, forbidden, and impossible to ignore. But the truth is far darker than either of them realize. Sabrina wasn’t just a sacrifice…she was the key to breaking Damon’s curse. And with war looming and ancient forces stirring, Sabrina must decide: escape and save herself, or embrace the darkness and risk losing her soul to the cursed Alpha who might just be her fate. Note: This book is a slow burn. Main Leads don’t fall in love till later.

Jace Steadman. My best friend’s father. Older. Controlled. Quiet in a way that makes my pulse stutter. A man who never looks twice at anyone… Except this time, he looked at me. One glance at my ruined makeup and shaking breath, and suddenly he felt too close. Too warm. Too dangerous. His voice was gentle when everyone else had been cruel. And when he sat beside me beneath the glow of the fire, I felt something I hadn’t felt in years: Wanted. Not sweetly. Not politely. But with a quiet, restrained hunger that made my heart slam against my ribs. To distract me from the pain—and to stop himself from touching me—we made a game of it: Twelve days. Twelve dares. No rules… except the ones we couldn’t stop breaking. A whispered challenge in the dark became a dare. A dare became a touch that lingered too long. A touch became a pull neither of us knew how to resist. He shouldn’t crave me. I shouldn’t crave him back. But the more we tried to stay respectable, the more our restraint fell apart. The lodge turned into a minefield of temptation—Christmas lights, stolen glances, near-kisses that burned hotter than the fire. Jace wasn’t just a man I wanted. He became the man I couldn’t stop fighting—and falling—for. If anyone finds out, my life falls apart. His reputation shatters. Everything explodes. But desire doesn’t care about consequences. And this Christmas, I’m done being careful. Done being quiet. Done pretending I don’t want the man who looks at me like I’m the first real taste of life he’s had in years. Twelve days. Twelve dares. One forbidden man I can’t walk away from… even if he ruins me.

“You’re mine now,” Nero’s voice was low, rough velvet that sent chills down her spine. “No one touches what’s mine. No one even thinks about touching what he can't afford- his life.” A flicker of heat curled through Amara’s body despite herself. “Don’t kid yourself ” she shot back. “This marriage exists only because of our children.” He gave a short, dangerous laugh. “Is that what you tell yourself to sleep at night whenever I hear you orgasm at the thought of me every night?” ~~~~~~~~~` Two years earlier, Amara had spent a single reckless night with Nero De Santoro — the man whispered about as the most ruthless crime lord in Italy. That night left her with more than regret; it left her with his twins Determined to keep her children safe from his violent world, she vanished without a trace, raising her daughter in the shadows. But when her children fell dangerously ill, Amara’s desperate search for help forced her to face the one man she swore she’d never see again. Nero was stunned to learn he had a daughter — and cruelly clear about his terms. If Amara wanted his support, she would have to marry him. What began as a cold-blooded arrangement soon twisted into something neither could control. Amara expected to despise him, but behind the walls of his power, she glimpsed pieces of a man she didn’t recognize — protective, haunted, almost tender. Every argument, every stolen glance, every night they shared blurred the line between hate and hunger. Until Amara uncovered a devastating secret — a connection between Nero De Santoro, her husband, and the tragedy that had destroyed her family years ago. A tragedy that had made her turn her back on her Mafia bloodline..........