After Hardin Novels & Stories

The silver blade sliced across my throat, and I collapsed in a spreading pool of blood. I called Ethan ninety-nine times. My brother ignored every single call, but on the ninety-ninth try, he finally picked up. “What now?” Irritation dripped from every word. “Haven’t you caused enough trouble already? I’m in the middle of planning Lyra’s coming-of-age ceremony, and if you don’t show up, I’ll make you regret it.” “Ethan, please—help me—” My voice came out broken and ragged. He hung up. I tried reaching through our blood bond, desperate for him to feel something—anything at all—but he’d severed that connection two years ago. My phone battery was dying, and I watched the last bar flicker before the screen went black. I stopped struggling. The silver blade pierced my heart, and my wolf let out one final whimper before she died with me. Days later, the patrol found a body. The face was destroyed beyond recognition, torn apart and mangled. But Ethan still recognized the scar on the wrist—the one he’d sworn he would never forget.By then, it was too late.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

The day Naomi Blake would be the happiest of her life turned out to be the worst and it changed everything. Dumped by her fiancée two hours before their engagement party, Naomi drowned her heartbreak in alcohol. She woke up the next morning hungover…with a stranger in her bed. Desperate to forget the night, she left him a note calling him the worst mistake of her life and walked away certain she'd never see him again. But fate had other plans… Weeks later, the same man appears with a contract that could erase her family's crushing debts if she agrees to marry him, now Naomi is caught between danger and desperation. Six months. That's all rehearsal requires: six months of marriage, six months of pretending. No falling in love, no digging into his past, no breaking the contact, the rules are simple enough. Will Naomi be able to walk away after six months or will this dangerous arrangement turn into something real she can't escape?

Celeste Costa-Allegra was raised to be the perfect woman and the ideal wife for Darson Allegra. All her achievements as a woman were dedicated to her husband. One day, Darson brought a mistress into their home, even though Celeste was already four months pregnant. Her husband soon divorced her and callously abandoned her in a dangerous place after the mistreatment she had endured, while her in-laws stripped her of everything she had. Filled with hatred and resentment, she vowed to seek revenge against them. Little did she expect that, in that perilous situation, she would accidentally save the life of the infamous and ruthless Primo Semion Lombardi, who would then unexpectedly offer her a marriage proposal!

My sister, Laura Ward, died the year we were ten, the year we snuck out of school to play. From that day forward, my mother’s grief turned into a burning hatred for me, convinced that I was the reason my sister was gone. She treated me like a servant, like an unwanted burden, and filled the void by adopting a perfect, obedient daughter to replace my sister. She took everything from me without a second thought — my rights, my freedom, my very existence — and even demanded that I give up a kidney for her precious adopted girl. Alright, Mother, if you want a life, I’ll give you mine! But it was only when my body lay cold, my breath long gone, that she finally turned and looked at me.

Lucy's love for Logan was without question. She had built her life around him. But her heart is broken into a thousand pieces after she found out about his affair with her secretary and their plot to take everything she has from her. As Lucy’s perfect marriage and life shatter, she swears to have her revenge. But everything takes a weird turn when a mysterious ally appears and offers to help, and his price was just one date. But what will happen when Lucy learns that he is not just an ally? He’s her ex-husband’s estranged half-brother. As lines blur between loyalty and love, Lucy must decide: can she trust a man driven by vengeance... especially when her heart is on the line?

The full moon hangs high in the night sky at 1:00 am. My mate, Alpha Chris Dalton of the Southern Gray Wolf pack has just returned from a patrol around the border. It has been three days since he last slept. He still smells of blood and rust from the times he had fought against packs of Rogues. When we're about to rest, Chris hears Emily Gibson's cries coming from his mind-link. "Alpha Chris, I think I smell a Rogue near my house. I'm so scared…" Chris shifts into a huge wolf and dashes out of our home without hesitation. He only returns the next day at dawnbreak, his exhaustion evident on his face. "Emily suffered from a fright last night, so I had to keep her company the whole night." When Chris notices the way I sit on the edge of the bed quietly without moving in to kiss him as usual, he approaches me in exasperation. Then, he wraps an arm around my shoulders before nuzzling his head against my neck affectionately, as though he were a huge dog who had made a mistake. "Emily is the mate of a Beta who has sacrificed himself for the pack, Selena. Not to mention, she's with pup at the moment. As the pack's Alpha, I'm obligated to take care of her. But I promise that I'll reduce the visitation times in the future, so please stop being unhappy with me, okay?" With red-rimmed eyes, I push Chris' arm away. "Alpha Chris, let's sever our mate bond."

"Mrs. Sterling, are you sure you're ready to end this marriage of twenty years and give up the custody?" "Yes. File it. I’m done." I said calmly through the phone as I scrubbed at a stubborn grease stain on the granite island. For twenty years, I poured my entire being into this family. I managed the households, handled the children's education , and stood by my husband's side, supporting his rise in the syndicate without complaint. But my husband Alexander brought his young adopted sister Chloe to the interview, saying, "My success today is all thanks to my adopted sister." Even my own children looked down on me, calling me common and crude housewife. They had formed an alliance with his ever-present "auntie," the woman who seemed to think she was the true lady of the house. I signed the divorce papers and walked away, leaving them to become the "perfect family" they clearly wanted. But that when the family panicked…

I spent five years pursuing Jaden Montgomery with every ounce of my strength. After my 100th confession, he finally went from being my best friend's brother to my fiancé. On a night with a full moon, as I stood there in my dress, ready for our mating ceremony, I overheard his conversation with a friend. "Jaden, are you really going to hold a mating ceremony with Arabella?" "Of course. Lillian's a fragile Omega carrying my pup, and my Alpha father is quite displeased about this situation. Holding the ceremony with Arabella will put his mind at ease." Jaden laughed carelessly. "Aren't you worried that Arabella will find out and go after your precious Omega? She's the princess of the Northern Silver Wolf Pack, after all." "She won't. She loves me to death and would never harm my pup. Besides, she's gentle and obedient. Making her my future Luna will ensure my precious Omega stays safe." My mind went blank. In my desperate flight from the scene, I accidentally wandered into a patch of wolfsbane. When I woke up, I remembered every wolf except Jaden. So, when my parents called to tell me to return for the arranged mating, I immediately arranged to leave in five days.

My CEO boyfriend promised that if I gave the billion-dollar project to his first love, he would marry me immediately. I agreed without hesitation. However, on the day we were supposed to register our marriage, he never showed up. I called him ninety-nine times, yet still could not reach him. Just as I was about to give up, his first love posted a photograph of the two of them holding their marriage certificate. [From school uniforms to wedding vows, our love's never changed.] I silently liked the post. Suddenly, the boyfriend who had been missing all day finally called me. “Whitney got into a car accident trying to save me and lost her memory. The doctor said we need to keep stimulating her memories so she can recover. “Don’t worry. Once she gets better, we’ll get married right away. You’re the one I truly love.” What he did not know was that there was no future for us anymore. I was bound to a mission system, and the moment he failed to show up for our marriage registration, the system declared my mission a failure. I would be completely erased in seven days.

Genius medical student Chris Green saved Jessica Wilder during a car pileup. Out of gratitude, the Wilder family paid for the medical expenses of Chris’s mother, who had also been injured in the crash. In that moment, two lives that should have remained like parallel lines became unexpectedly intertwined. To repay the Wilders for their kindness—and surrendered to Jessica’s tears—Chris agreed to marry her. Though they shared the same bed for five years, their hearts were never truly close. And their marriage came to an end when Jessica’s first love returned to the country—with his child. After the divorce, Chris believed Jessica was relieved to be free of him. But to his surprise, she began chasing after him—from home to abroad. Jessica didn’t want him to leave. Chris had depleted all his love. But for Jessica, her feelings for him were only just beginning to grow. Life without Chris felt impossible, and she began to pursue him with all her heart. However, after everything had shattered, could they get back together?