A City Without Walls

I loved Liam with everything I had, waiting for the day he'd finally accept me wholeheartedly as his wife. I watched him bring his mistress to our home without complaining. And I had no intention to complain as our marriage was obviously an arranged one even though I loved him. Hence I waited patiently for the day he'd finally see through my sincerity and show me even the tiniest bit of affection. However, five years down the line, nothing had changed. Liam was still the same, bringing his mistress into our home, and frolicking around the city with her. I endured it all for the sake of Grandma Helen. But when Grandma Helen died, I had no reason to remain in the marriage anymore and must give him a divorce. I gave you enough chance to love me as your woman but since you couldn't do that, I’d be gone from your life for good.

Kate's perfect life shattered into pieces on the day she received the news that her parents had died, leaving her alone with a failing business and the family's reputation hanging by a tiny thread. The day her parents died was the day the Drays invested in her parents' company, and the Drays were on the verge of reaching the next level when the disaster happened. After the tragedy, the Drays were at risk of losing a significant profit and project. Mr. Carlos, Kate's uncle, then decided with the rest of the family, without Kate's awareness, that due to the family's reputation and the business, Kate must marry William Dray. When Kate found out, she was devastated and didn't want to give in, but the family threatened and forced her into marrying the cold billionaire, William Dray. She reluctantly agreed and accepted the loveless marriage with William, holding onto the hope that this marriage might somehow lead to something she had never imagined. William Dray has only one goal With the marriage: to protect his billion-dollar investment, even if it means marrying a woman he didn't know or love. Kate, determined to reclaim her parents' legacy, vows to endure the icy walls Of the union. But with William's cold and ruthless demeanor, he keeps a secret that could unveil everything Kate thought she knew about her family, as well as the truth and secrets behind her parents' deaths.

In the shadows of the city’s most notorious club, where danger and desire intertwine, he sees her. Valerio Moretti—ruthless, feared, and untouchable—is the most dangerous name in the criminal underworld. He owns the city, one blood-soaked deal at a time. Women throw themselves at his feet, yet none have ever caught his eye... until her. Sera Devlin is an enigma behind red velvet curtains. A stripper who doesn’t belong. Her stiff movements, wide eyes, and barely concealed fear as men paw at her set her apart from the others. She's innocent—too innocent for a place like this. And that's what draws Valerio in like a flame. One night, Valerio breaks the rules—his own rules—and barges into her dressing room. Half-dressed and startled, Sera throws him out without a second thought, unaware she's just challenged the devil himself. Now, Valerio is obsessed. She doesn’t know who he is. She doesn’t want him. But he always gets what he wants—and he wants her. As their worlds collide in a twisted game of dominance, secrets, and forbidden desire, Sera finds herself caught in a cage made of diamonds and danger. But behind Valerio’s control lies a man with a dark past... and behind Sera’s fear, a secret that could shatter them both. He’s her captor. She’s his temptation. And in this game, love could be their ultimate ruin.

When 22-year-old Aria, an art student struggling to keep her life afloat, signs a surrogacy contract for the powerful and notoriously private billionaire Luca De Rossi, she expects a simple transaction not a story that will change everything she thought she knew about love, loyalty, and herself. But what begins as an arrangement soon blurs into something deeper. Luca isn’t the cold man the headlines describe; behind his control and empire lies a heart scarred by loss and trust built on careful walls. And Aria…gentle, stubborn, disarmingly honest starts breaking those walls without meaning to. When a single photograph exposes their secret to the world, the contract becomes a scandal, and Aria becomes the headline: The Mistress, the Billionaire, and the Baby. With the media frenzy threatening everything Luca built and Aria’s pregnancy advancing under relentless pressure, both must decide whether to hide behind duty or fight for a love neither expected. As betrayals surface in the boardroom and Luca’s empire trembles under corporate fire, Aria finds herself caught between the life she left behind and the dangerous world she’s come to belong to. Every choice she makes echoes louder for her child, for her heart, and for the man who swore to protect both. Set against the breathtaking Italian Riviera, this is a story of forbidden love, fierce loyalty, and the courage to stand tall when the world wants you to fall. A romance that begins with a contract… and ends with a fight for forever.

Everything had always come easy for Crystal. Her life was easy, loving parents and a brother who would stand by her through thick and thin. Unfortunately her life came crashing down when her parents died in an unfortunate car accident, following that, years later the heartless billionaire, Ryke Sterling forces her into a contract marriage. She tries to adjust to her new life as Ryke battles with his demons. She finds out a new world exists, one of sex, power, money and betrayal. Her once perfect life is completely turned upside down as it changes pattern like a kaleidoscope. Demons from Ryke's past threaten to destroy everything he had built. He struggles to overcome them while trying to keep the walls he built around himself up He watches as she tries to peel the layers off him while battling with the biggest form of betrayal from the people she loved the most. He realizes that he can't move forward if he doesn't stop running and faces his past and without it, he can't have a future to look forward to. He knows he has to make a choice, either set Crystal who could possibly be his future free or let the demons of his past consume them both. He fears he might ruin her but can you really ruin someone that already lived in ruins?

In the coastal quiet of Baler, a studio is born—not of architecture, but of intention.* Founded by Yam, a poet whose words cradle pain gently, and Franc, an artist who paints tenderness into walls, the studio becomes a refuge for those learning to stay—with grief, love, longing, and themselves. As visitors arrive, they leave behind more than footprints: a sigh recorded in bamboo, a poem tucked into the “Found Letters” shelf, a mural painted in crooked lines. Through zines, tea, silence, and sketchbooks, the studio teaches softness as revolution. Ren creates the *Window of Soft Returns*, an installation of anonymous voice recordings—each whisper forming a community of echoes. Drew builds the *Staircase With No Wrong Turns*, inviting people to walk through emotions without shame. Franc offers brushstrokes as brave work, and Yam curates writing circles that map healing in half sentences. Together, they host festivals that feel like hugs, and they begin traveling their archive, letting softness cross oceans. Even those who once left—like Miguel—return, discovering that some doors never truly close. Others, like Tala, capture the studio’s sound and turn it into a podcast of breath and becoming. Over seventy chapters, the studio transforms into something larger than itself: a mural of memory, a sanctuary for second chances, a place where return is sacred and voice is proof of survival. In the final bloom, the studio stands not as a monument—but as a reminder: > *“Staying isn’t easy. > But chosen together, > it becomes home.”*

I’m trouble for anyone who crosses my path. I am heartless and selfish. I don’t care about anyone or anything in this world. When you grow up in a house full of lies, distress and abuse, those walls go up high and thick. Anyone with any sense knows not to get involved with me. I hurt people and destroy their lives without a care in the world. The world has given me nothing. Why should I give it anything? I am comfortable with who I am, and if people have an issue with it, that’s their problem, not mine. Unlike others, I don’t pretend to be someone I’m not. What you see is what you get with me. When Aubrey unexpectedly enters my life, all I desire is to have her as my own. I should steer clear. She is my brother’s wife’s cousin. The fact that she is off-limits only increases my desire for her. She is sweet and nice. She has already been through a lot. It should be enough to keep me away, but it isn’t. I will do whatever it takes. Aubrey will be mine, even if just for one night, regardless of what I have to do. Nothing and no one can stand in my way. I thought I would ruin her life, but she ended up changing mine. Cover by Covers By Sophie Update Schedule: Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

Night Stalker Series 3: Forrest Wood is an enigmatic tattooed bartender who lives in two worlds to protect someone he loves. He never questions his self-control over temptations while searching for answers for half his life. Until something has changed in a woman, he’s been keeping tabs for a while. When he’s finally ready to deal with his feelings, he knows nothing can be easy in his life—it only complicates his plans and his secrets that Megan might not accept who truly he is. A flirty, blunt, and funny, Megan Simons built her walls over relationships until her life crumbles down in front of her. Forrest comes to the rescue. She finds him intriguing and beyond attractive. When she starts bringing her walls down, she finds herself in a situation where Forrest Wood is more than what meets the eye.

Vienna Carter’s life is a living hell and her home is Earth’s chapter of Tartarus. But when her husband goes on a month-long business trip, she seizes the opportunity to know something other than her world of pain. She joins the passengers on Queen Odette, a cruise ship that promises her the best month of her life. As she takes in the elegance of the ship and is pampered by their first-class services, she starts to believe that the promise will be fulfilled. But her hopes of a perfect vacation are thrown overboard when she finds out the man staying in the suite next to hers is none other than the love of her life,Ex-boyfriend and reason for all her suffering. Only a psychopath would choose to be hunched over a desk, working for hours on end over the deckchairs of a luxurious cruise ship, watching the sunset on the Atlantic Horizon. Hans Griffin is that psychopath. He craves his office’s cold glass walls and despises his luxurious suite aboard Queen Odette and is beginning to despise his best friend for convincing him to do this. Work helped him forget his demons but this ship is made to tear down the walls he spent the last two years rebuilding and after meeting the woman staying in the suite next to his, he fears those walls might be reduced to nothing but piles of rubble before the month is over. How will Hans endure one month with just a wall separating him and the woman who scarred him? How will Vienna keep her distance from the one man she’s forbidden to be with when she’s stuck on this cruise with him? But most importantly, what secrets will be revealed before the thirty days are over?

Amelia Carter never expected her life to collide with Dominic Blackwood — the grumpy billionaire, ruthless CEO, and her brother’s best friend. Once the carefree boy who teased her like a little sister, Dominic has become a man shrouded in power, secrets, and a dangerous edge she can’t ignore. Desperate for a fresh start, Amelia takes a job as Dominic’s executive assistant, stepping into a world of high stakes and cold luxury. But working for Dominic is a battle of wills—he’s as demanding as he is infuriating, pushing her to her limits with biting comments and piercing gazes that stir something deep within her. As days turn into nights and business bleeds into temptation, the line between professional and personal blurs. Beneath Dominic’s gruff exterior lies a storm of pain and passion, and Amelia soon discovers that the man she thought she knew is far more complex—and broken—than she ever imagined. Their connection ignites into a fierce, unrelenting fire, forcing Amelia to confront her own desires and the dark past Dominic hides. But loving Dominic Blackwood comes at a price, and surrendering to him could ruin them both. In a world of power, secrets, and shattered trust, can Amelia break through Dominic’s walls without losing herself? Or will their love destroy everything in its wake? Ruin Me, Blackwood is a dark, steamy modern romance of forbidden passion, emotional scars, and the fierce battle to find redemption in the arms of a man who refuses to be tamed.