A Father's Betrayal

Upang maipagamot ang inang may cancer ay napilitan si Caress na magtrabaho bilang isang escort service. Subalit dahil sa mga lumalalang kalagayan ng ina ay tuluyan siyang nalubog sa utang. Napilitan siyang ibenta ang sariling katawan sa mga mayayamang customer—from a simple escort service she turned into a high paid prostitute. Subalit isang araw ay dumating si Carlos sa buhay niya. And he was different from her past customers. Bukod sa ipinakita nitong respeto sa kanya ay napakabait nito. Binayaran nito ang lahat ng utang niya at tinulungan siyang makapagsimula ng bagong buhay. Sa kabila ng kaalamang may asawa ang lalaki ay hindi niya mapigilan ang sariling mahulog rito. But Caress knew her place. Wala sa plano niya ang agawin si Carlos sa asawa nito. Kontento na siya sa oras na ibinibigay sa kanya ng lalaki. Sa isang banda, Craig was living in New York when he received a call from his mother telling him his father was asking for annulment. Ang dahilan—may ibang babae ang ama niya. Hindi niya matatanggap na masisira lang ang matagal na taon na pagsasama ng mga magulang niya dahil sa isang babae. Napilitang umuwi si Craig sa Pilipinas para isakatuparan ang plano niya. And his plan: to seduce his father's mistress.

During my father's funeral, my husband pants heavily while pulling my cousin's legs around his waist in the morgue. She holds him saucily and asks, "How did it feel? I left my first time for you." He pulls her close, looking sated. "It felt mindblowing." She asks coquettishly, "When will you marry me, then?" His expression turns serious. "I can give you as much money as you want, but your cousin is the only woman who can be my wife. The company we've established together is going public soon." I record all of this. On the day the company becomes publicly listed, a video of their intimacy in the office is played on a humongous screen. Then, I sell my shares and travel around the world. That's when my ex-husband weeps and begs me to return.

I died not knowing Rowan had fallen for another. So, I made a deal with the witch, exchanging my wolf heart for seven days of life. Seven years ago, during a territorial conflict between wolf tribes, I lost my sight while saving Rowan. My deal with the witch not only gave me seven days but also restored my vision. Overjoyed, I rushed to Rowan’s home under the moonlight. I was eager to share my miracle with him, even if I had only seven days left.  However, he was in the arms of another woman. Rowan’s cruel words echoed in my mind: "You know how to please me so much better than that blind princess ever did." "I’ve had enough of her lifeless eyes. Every time I look at her, I feel like I’m shackled by chains of duty and morality. I can’t breathe around her!" His harsh words and the sounds of their intimacy crushed the last of my hope. I was going to die soon, and with the short life I had traded the wolf heart of a Moonshadow Wolf Tribe Princess for, I had only lived long enough to witness Rowan’s betrayal.

Everyone seems to be in love but me. Why is that? Relationship after relationship, and nothing. I’m always the bridesmaid, but never the bride. It’s getting old. Fast. And just when I start to give up, he walks into my life. Sexy, strong, older. The father of one of my students. It’s against the rules to feel the way I do about him, but I can’t help myself. A single father with a sexy demeanor and deep pockets. But that’s not what gets me about him. It’s the way he looks at me. As if he already owns me. The relationship can be our little secret. Or can it?

On Father's Day, I received a heartwarming gift. My one-year-old son called me Dad for the first time. But moments later, he convulsed, foamed at the mouth, and died before we could reach the hospital. My wife was shattered, and I was devastated. The doctors couldn't identify the cause of his death. Three years later, my wife emerged from her grief, and we welcomed our second child. But the moment this child called me Dad, they, too, died instantly. To spare her further pain, I suggested adoption. Yet, even our adopted children met the same fate. Unable to bear the losses, my wife divorced me. Everyone said I was cursed, never meant to be a father. Defiant, I remarried and had another child, vowing never to let them call me Dad. For years, we adhered to this rule. But when our daughter turned four, she came home from preschool, eager to celebrate Father's Day. Holding a card, she read aloud, "Dad."

After a fatal fall, Amelia wakes in a stranger's care. wounded, memory fractured, and haunted by dreams of a silver-haired woman whispering, "Remember." As fragments of her past return, so do questions darker than the silence surrounding her. Who was she before the fall... and who must she become to face the truth waiting in the shadows?

She has been married for five years to her Mate, the Alpha of Crescent. Little does she know that on the very day she discovers they are finally going to be parents, her Mate has called a council meeting to ask for a divorce and presents his pregnant lover to take her place. Humiliated and heartbroken, she ends up aimlessly exiled and a famous Alpha rescues her without imagining that this man would give her the second chance she deserves. The problem is, she doesn't know at what cost.

After my third dive in search of my missing boyfriend, I suffer a miscarriage. When I wake up in the hospital and find out he's still alive, I rip out the IV and drag myself home. But as I approach the house, I overhear Beck Wilder talking to his friends. "Maren had a child with her ex-husband. Who knows if she's really over him? "I can't go through with the wedding without being sure. I'd rather set a trap to see if she'd risk everything for me." Someone hesitates. "What if she finds out you lied? She might get furious and leave you." Beck chuckles confidently. "She's a breeze to manipulate. I'll make her sign the marriage papers and host a lavish wedding. She'll be as meek as a kitten." Two weeks later, I leave the miscarriage report on the wedding dress and walk away. The once-proud heir of the Wilder family is left in tears, scouring every inch of Larkspur in desperate search of his runaway bride.

For five years, she lived in limbo….caught between hope and grief, waiting for the day her mother might wake up. When that day finally comes, joy floods her chest, too overwhelming to contain. She races home, desperate to share the miracle with the man she loves. But instead of open arms, she finds open betrayal. Her husband. Her Best cousin sister. Twisted in the sheets of the life she thought was hers. With her world in ruins, she runs…into the night, into the arms of a stranger, into anything that isn’t this. For one night, she doesn’t want to feel. For one night, she wants to forget. But when the morning comes, will she still recognize the woman staring back at her? Will she able to face the consequences of her action?

Five years after we broke up, my ex bought the company I worked for and suddenly became my direct boss. The project plan I'd stayed up nights working on—nearly killing myself to finish—was handed to someone else without a word. My teammates were split apart, and I became his go-to example when he wanted to tear someone down. I was the laughingstock of the office. Shawn Lubbard said it was the price I had to pay for betraying him. Finally, I asked him what it would take for him to leave me alone. His reply? "Only if you die." Feeling crushed, I drove a knife into my chest right in front of him. Maybe this terrible life should have ended long ago.