A Minute To Midnight Novels & Stories

At three in the morning, I stare at the unknown transaction record on my phone screen, my fingertips turning cold. The record is for a payment of 2980 dollars, made for an executive suite at the Wisteria. The time of payment was 8:00 pm last night. My husband, Tristan Griffin, is a detective. He was on the night shift last night. I clutch my phone, my knuckles turning white as I text Tristan, "I just saw your credit card bill for a hotel stay last night. What's up with that?" His reply is instant. "Our team had to work overtime at the last minute, so they put us up at the hotel. I forgot to tell you about it." I scan the text and sputter. The Wisteria is located in the western region of the city, which is on the other end from where his squad is stationed. I don't press him for more details and click on the bank app on my phone. Having found the vendor's address through the payment record, I sent it to my best friend, Rowena Sheffield, who works as a private detective. She replies instantly with an "OK" emoji and follows up with, "Give me a second. I'll find out everything you want in a jiffy!"

I’m the princess of the Hillrose Family. He’s Blair Falcone, Don of the Falcone Family. A perfect match. We were New York's power couple, the envy of everyone in the underworld. Until three days before our wedding. One minute, we were lost in each other, his body moving inside me, his lips trailing fire across my skin. The next, he calmly announces, "Flora, there's something I have to tell you." "Legally, I already have a wife. The old man married me off to her six years ago. She's the daughter of a man who took a bullet for him." "If you can live with it," he continued, "our marriage is still on. As planned." I stared at him in disbelief. "What about me? What were our six years?" He took a slow drag from his cigar. "I know what this is. So, what's it gonna be?" My hand instinctively went to my stomach. He didn't know. I was going to tell him my happy secret tonight: I was pregnant. But now, I wasn't going to tell him a damn thing.

I have what everyone calls a perfect marriage. A rich, charismatic husband who adores me openly, supports me, and makes even romance books look like child’s play. He is every woman’s dream and to me, it is the perfect love story. That is until I catch him kissing his so-called cousin, right after I finish donating blood to her child! As if that isn’t devastating enough, next minute, the doctor’s words hit me, “Mrs. Whitmore. The DNA results came back identical three times. You are the mother of Alia Cassel.” In one heartbeat, I realize my husband isn't just cheating with his cousin. They have the child I supposedly lost and buried years ago. Reality is cruel, but I will not let this betrayal slide. I will serve karma on a golden platter and retrieve everything I lost in this marriage. Most importantly… my daughter. Even if it means making a deal with the devil himself—Ronan Throne, my husband’s archenemy. And oh… my brother-in-law. …. Ronan’s grip on my waist tightens, his lips curling into a smirk. “She was your wife, now she’s mine.”

My mind, my soul, my heart are all stone. Tears, pain and sorrow all dwell in me, inside one body. I'm numb, I'm brusied I'm a broken part. Fifteen years ago, I lost every reason to live. Fifteen years ago the bone crushing hands of the universe fell on my two shoulder. I lost everything!!! Dove...Dove Rivera, I was once a happy, child with my baby brother Kevin by my side. I knew all the happiness in the world. My dad, a prominent and honest politician and my mom a renowned lawyer. A family of four living the best life. But..it all came to a standstill in just one night...one cool night. "Dove!!!" Mom screamed. "Dove wake up" "My dear, the house is on fire" "Run!!!" Mom screamed tearily. Those were the only words , I remembered and she was the only and last person I saw that night. I managed to escape but they didn't. Even as a child...I knew that it was no ordinary fire, it was an attack. And all my nights, days, minutes, hours all I think of is revenge. It whisper in my head every minute "Revenge! Revenge!! Revenge!!!"

Cole Miller was recuperating after a covert operation when his father's lawyer came knocking on his door, and as soon as he saw the old man he knew he was bringing a ton of trouble his way only he didn’t know of the magnitude. Forced to go back to his family estate to bury his father, Cole discovered he had inherited his family's ill-gotten fortune, his grandfather's oil wells and an enslaved female his father termed 'the merchandise', a woman who was already sold and was to be picked up by a cruel mafia boss he knew too well. After spending a steamy night with her and discovering what she was, Cole understood better why Rufus wanted her. And despite knowing the trouble he would bring his way if he stopped her sale, he tried to help her regardless. When his family estate was attacked by unknown assailants, Cole engineered an escape and found himself in a changing tide of danger, one minute he was captured, chained, and in the den of wolves who hated humans, and next, he was on the run to protect a woman who was not entirely woman and who claimed to be his mate.

"He owns you. Whatever he tells you to do, you do". One year. No future. A past that won't go away. Lennox "Nox" Demetri broke his own rule by making a deal. It may not have been directly with the devil, but that doesn't mean Satan himself isn't watching. Was it fate that brought Charli into his life and his bed? What will happen when rules are broken and secrets are revealed? "New rules...my rules." Alex "Charli" Collins found pleasure with Nox like she'd never known. That was before she knew his last name. Now that Infidelity is involved and the rules have changed, what will result when real life and fantasy collide? Is it really cheating if you're doing it to yourself? From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Aleatha Romig comes a sexy, new dominant hero who knows what he wants and a strong-willed heroine who has plans of her own. With classic Aleatha Romig twists, turns, deceptions, and devotions, the depth of this new, epic dark romance reaches new levels and will have readers swooning one minute and screaming the next. Have you been Aleatha'd?

I was pregnant and due any day. Austin Revelstone, my husband, had a sugar baby named Tawny Sully. Each time they renewed their arrangement, money came into my mother’s special care account. One day, he stayed a little longer to talk to me. Because of it, he was one minute late for his date with Tawny. Tawny was upset. She threw a tantrum and threatened to terminate their agreement. She would only stay if I aborted my baby. So, Austin slid the abortion form and a check for three million dollars across the table to me. “Please, just sign it. We can always have another kid. If Tawny cries anymore, she’ll get wrinkles.” He looked calm and unbothered. It was as if he were just talking about the weather. I raised my head and looked at him in disbelief. I trembled for a long time. Then, I finally signed my name on the abortion form. I wiped my tears and gave the check back to him. I made one additional request. “Let’s make that fake divorce certificate real this time.” I no longer needed his financial support for my mother’s surgery.

“You’ll move in with me and your sister will be taken care of. You'll tell your sister that I'm your new boss.” He spelled out. “You'll wait for me every night on my bed so I can fuck you mercilessly for making me set my eyes on you after seven years. I hate you. You have no fucking idea.” I wanted to burst into tears. It was f**king over. I am giving the next three years of my life to this man, just so I can save my sister and clear my debts. ……. My life has been a rollercoaster of suffering with no end. It became worse the very minute I was at my lowest, and I locked eyes with my high school bully. I had no idea how he found me but now that we were all grown, I knew he would never leave me alone. After seven years, he still didn't change. He was still a thorn in my flesh, and he always managed to make me wet and weak in the knees. I ran. I ran. I ran, but he always found me.

Sienna Valeria Storm thought her only crime was surviving. As the last Ruby Wolf, she has been hunted, accused of murdering an Alpha, and forced into hiding. But when she stumbles into the path of Kieran Draven Wolfe, the most feared Alpha of the Shadowfang Pack, her fate is sealed. He offers her a choice—stand trial and face execution or become his mate to break his deadly curse. But Kieran isn’t the only one drawn to her. Ronan Voss, an assassin from her forgotten past, has been ordered to kill her, yet his heart refuses. Caius Blackthorne, a vampire prince, offers her power in exchange for her loyalty. As the Celestial Trials force her to choose a mate, dark forces rise, and secrets long buried begin to surface. Because the Midnight Syndicate doesn’t just want her dead—they want her power. And the truth? If she bonds with the wrong mate, she could doom them all. She was born a legend. She will die a queen—or a monster.

In the gleaming metropolis of Garden Metro, where secrets bloom like midnight roses, Elara Quinn is just a broken girl trying to survive the scars of relentless bullying and a world that turned its back on her. Until Damien Vale, the city’s most feared mafia boss, walks into her shattered world—unexpectedly saving her from a brutal attack. Terrified and confused, Elara is convinced this man of violence and sin will only deepen her pain. But Damien isn’t just a monster—he’s a man with a past, a heart, and a soft spot he thought he buried long ago. As Elara slowly begins to heal, she discovers a strength she never thought she possessed—and a chance to take back everything stolen from her. With Damien’s protection and her rising resolve, Elara sets out to confront her demons and exact justice on those who broke her. But can she survive the darkness that clings to Damien’s world... and can love bloom in blood-soaked soil?