Proud

********** I lay helpless, tears streaming down my face, as Angelo ravished me. His pleasure was all that mattered. Afterward, I lay still, exhausted, covered in the scent of sex. Angelo caught his breath, his eyes cold and detached. "Today is our last night together," he said. "I want to end this marriage." I felt punched in the gut. "You're willing to throw away everything we've built?" I asked, my voice trembling. "It means nothing to me," Angelo spat, his eyes filled with hate. "I'm done with you, Annika.” ******** Annika's world is shattered when her husband, Angelo, cheats on her with his ex-girlfriend, Lissa, and demands a divorce, ending their four-year marriage. But there's a shocking twist: Annika is pregnant with Angelo's child, a secret she keeps hidden until the divorce is finalized. When Annika reveals her pregnancy, Angelo denies the child, and Lissa pressures her to abort the baby. But Annika refuses to give up, and with the help of Jonathan Blackwood Jr., she escapes to Los Angeles to start anew. Five years later, Annika has transformed into a successful CEO, fashion stylist, and entrepreneur. She's also a proud mother of twins. But her newfound success is fueled by a burning desire for revenge against Angelo and Lissa, who destroyed her life. When Annika confronts her past at a fashion exhibition in Germany, she's faced with a choice: forgive Angelo and Lissa for their betrayal or make them pay for the pain they inflicted. Will Annika choose revenge or redemption?

Daphne has fought her whole life to survive. After escaping an abusive marriage, she made sure to protect her child, even if it means taking risks. So, when an opportunity comes her way, she doesn’t hesitate, ready to do whatever it takes.Arthur,proud and used to getting everything his way, has always been in control of his life. But when his father, on his deathbed, refuses to hand over his shares unless Arthur is married, his world starts to fall apart. Marrying a woman he barely knows seems like the solution. A simple arrangement, nothing attached. But one wild night changes everything.Suddenly, their marriage is under threat from secrets and Arthur is forced to face a future he never wanted. Daphne faces a choice that could change everything, either keep the baby, and risk everything she’s worked so hard for, or walk away . As if things weren’t complicated enough, Arthur falls seriously ill. For the first time, the proud man who’s always relied on himself is forced to lean on someone else. Despite her past, Daphne’s emotional self step’s up to care for him and shows a side of herself Arthur never saw coming. What started as a pen in paper marriage begins to look like something deeper.As they push through their connection, they struggle to admit their feelings. Arthur’s fear of being seen as vulnerable. The contract that brought them together no longer feels simple but complicated.With Daphne’s past threatening to tear them apart and Arthur’s health hanging by a thread, their marriage is put to the test. Will they survive the effect of the secrets ? Or will their differences destroy what little connection they’ve found? In the end, can they find something real?

***Warning: this book contains explicit content and graphical descriptions. I'll put a disclaimer on any chapter that's 18+ and note that every part of this novel is entirely fictional and will be a coincidence with anyone's*** "You're petite, feeble, and gay. All shades of wrong, and I'll crush you, Rhett." His tone is vile. "Your boner says otherwise, King Kael. I'm a chick with sharp features, full pink lips, sexy, snatched body, small waist, and I'm that dude you want riding you to cloud nine all night!" I didn't stop there. I added. "I'm that proud gay man you're too ashamed to become, and I see how you want to rip through my clothes and fuck me, but guess what? I'll never allow your homophobic ass." He was once a slave without voice or freedom, raped by his master. As if that trauma wasn't enough, he was turned into a vampire by a monster. For seven years, he resisted the transition and abstained from blood until his sister was murdered by witches. All hell broke loose, he drank her blood to take back revenge but the darkness overcame him. His tyranny birthed the Fifth Throne where he ruled with bloodlust and spite... but when a tech-nerd, proud gay man stumbles into his world, an obsession arises. Rhett is everything he despises: unapologetic, troublesome, and accepting of his sexuality. However, when Rhett's life is entangled in a supernatural war between vampires, witches, and hunters, the Vampire King must protect him. But how does one love a man who claims he doesn't love men? Who would rather kill you than kiss you? And what happens when that man starts craving your touch more than blood? In a world full of monsters, such bond doesn't go without spiralling a brutal war.

What is the taste of betrayal? It’s bitter, like the fading fragrance of wilted roses. Camille, a talented yet proud perfumer, suddenly loses her sense of smell after a fateful accident. On the verge of despair and the collapse of her family’s fragrance brand, she is forced to collaborate with Antoine Moreau, a digital scent developer. Amidst the splendor of Paris, in a clash between tradition and technology, new scents begin to emerge – not only from the perfume bottles but also from Camille's heart, which she thought had long been closed.

Eleanor Gitz has always lived in the shadow of her sister, Delilah. It wasn't like this until when a rogue attacked the pack and left Eleanor gravely injured and barren, she became a permanent stain on her family’s reputation, now seen as a liability rather than a daughter to be proud of. But everything changes when Nickolas Volkov, the ruthless Alpha of the Shadowood pack and a tech billionaire, breaks off his engagement with Delilah to claim Eleanor as his mate. The scandal shatters her family, and Eleanor is sent out of her pack. Will she find her place beside Nickolas, or will the past and the pressures of her new life tear them apart forever?

Maria Addison, an orphan adopted by the noble Barnet family, was betrothed since she was little to one of their family’s descendants, a handsome man named Miller Barnet. The heir who was always relied on, praised, and proud of by his family as a perfect figure without any flaws at all. However, a week before Maria and Miller’s wedding, an unfortunate event occurred. A big fight caused the two of them to have a car accident which resulted in Miller suffering a head injury which put him in a coma. Feeling guilty towards the Barnet family, Maria was confused as hell, she hid the fact of Miller’s coma by taking a stupid way that was beyond everyone’s expectations. She was asking for help from another figure whose face was exactly the same as Miller to temporarily replace Miller as the groom and become the heir to the Barnet family business. The man was Alvin Barnet, Miller’s twin brother who had been hidden by his mother. All the twists and turns began, the ambition to get the Barnet family inheritance by using Alvin suddenly changed. Alvin’s attitude that Maria thought was so cold and arrogant turned out to always treat her warmly and attentively, and of course that made Maria start to hesitate. The love in her heart grew, until finally Maria decided to help Alvin seize what was rightfully his. So, will all those plans go smoothly?

After ten years together, Aiden, my Alpha, my first and only love, finally promised to hold the mating ceremony with me during the Spring Hunt Festival. I was overjoyed. That night, at the festival party, I downed a few extra glasses of wine. However, Aiden, who had always been so gentle with me, suddenly became someone I didn't recognize. He scolded me, said I was unfit to be the future Luna if I couldn’t even follow the rules, and shoved me out of the car. Drunk and dazed, I was left alone in the dangerous Shadow Forest. Terrified but unwilling to break, I walked through that forest for five hours in the dead of night. When I finally made it back to our home, I heard him in the other room, sending a voice message to Seraphina, his first love. "If you’re willing to come back," he said, his voice soft and warm, "I’ll do anything for you." Seraphina replied, "Even cancel the mating ceremony?" Time stopped. I silently counted to thirteen. Then, I heard his answer: "Yes." Listening to that voice—the one that used to whisper promises to me—I cried. If that was what he truly wanted, then maybe calling off the ceremony was for the best. So, to spare him the choice, I fled. On the day of our mating ceremony, I disappeared. No one expected what came next. The proud, composed Alpha Aiden went mad trying to find me.

I am Aria, once a proud Luna. I stood beside Alpha Kael, my mate, and led the pack with love and strength. I thought he would love me forever. But I was wrong. He came back with another woman and said she was his true mate. In front of everyone, he took away my title and threw me out like I was nothing. I lost everything—my home, my place, and my heart. I had nowhere to go… until Lucien found me. He didn’t love me. He only saw someone who looked like his past. But he gave me a place to stay. I tried to stay strong, but pain followed me. Kael wanted me back. Lucien’s first love returned. His family hated me. I felt alone again.

"Everything was fine, until it wasn't. And that was because I was carrying a billionaire's baby from a one-night stand. A cold-hearted billionaire with an enormous ego. The question is, will that baby be my escape from my narcissistic parents, or will it bring even more complications, as I strike a deal with a billionaire? "I am your typical billionaire, the kind who walks around with a proud aura. A one-night with a woman brings me a solution to all of my troubles. But the problem was, I couldn't understand if this woman was bringing me another chance at happiness, or she was just karma, here for a payback."

"I don't know why you hate me so much. I just know that you are my first and last love. You are just mine. You are my craziness, my stubbornness. And you know only that person seems beautiful to us who we love. And to me, only and only you seem beautiful because you are my love and you are just mine. You only belong to Shah Mir Malik...." Shah Mir is the king of the mafia. He is known as a cruel, heartless, and arrogant man. His single death glare is enough to instil fear in the people around him. Aleezay is a feisty, proud, and egoistic girl, who is the daughter of the lord of the king. She doesn't give a fuck to what others say or made her do it. She is the worst pampered and spoiled daughter of her father. Ever since Shah Mir laid his eyes on Aleezay, he has been hell-bent on naming her to himself. But the haughty Aleezay isn't interested in him to accept him or his love. How things will accelerate between both when they are poles apart from each other? Join the spectacular voyage of Shah Mir and Aleezay to experience a boost of emotions that will make you grin in excitement and next moment pull out your hair in frustration.