After The Storm Comes The Calm

At one in the morning, the general manager posted the project assignments in the group chat and tagged everyone. I reviewed my responsibilities carefully, going through each detail to make sure I understood exactly what was expected of me. When I was done, I typed a simple "OK" and hit send. Two seconds later, my phone rang. It was him. As soon as I answered, his voice came through, icy and sharp, filled with unmistakable disgust. "Eric, I'm very disappointed in you. I must have been blind to trust you with anything important." My mind went completely blank. "What… what do you mean?" I asked, the words slipping out before I could stop them. What he said next was something I never could have imagined.

Once upon a time, Leonard truly loved me. In order to establish a Mate Bond with me, he confessed 99 times. On the 99th time, I was finally moved. On the day of our Marking Ceremony, I gave him 99 forgiveness coupons. I promised him that I would forgive him 99 times. As long as he still had coupons left over, I would forgive him and stay with him no matter what he did. We were bonded for six years. In the first five years of our Mate Bond, I rarely ever used the forgiveness coupons. Since his childhood friend Judy returned, however, I started burning through the coupons. When I tore up the 98th coupon, Leonard noticed that I had changed. I no longer made a fuss or fought him over Judy. I simply asked him calmly, “If you go to Judy, can I use up one forgiveness coupon?” Leonard paused and then recovered his cool. “Sure. I only used up slightly over half, so use another if you want.” I stayed silent as he left the house. As it turned out, he had no idea he had just lost his 98th coupon. He only had one chance left. After that, I would leave him forever.

"Let's renew the contract. Be my bedmate whenever and wherever I want." Lydia had finally made it through her one-year marriage contract and was officially divorced, so she should be free to live her life as usual. But the opposite was true. Lydia became entangled again with Reino, her playboy ex-contract husband. Reino Andersen never saw his ex-wife as a woman worthy of his company. But after the events of that night, the body that had always been insulted by her thinness became his opium.

Amanda's life shattered on her daughter Kendall's second birthday when her husband James vanished. A cryptic message revealed a shocking truth, forcing Amanda to confront a dark family secret that put her life in danger. As Amanda struggles to rebuild her life, James reappears, demanding custody of Kendall. Their bitter fight leads to a devastating court battle, leaving Amanda desperate to protect her daughter. But when tragedy strikes, Amanda's world is turned upside down. With time running out, she must join forces with James to uncover the truth behind their daughter's disappearance. As they navigate the treacherous landscape of their past, Amanda and James must confront the painful secrets that tore their family apart. Can they put aside their differences to save their daughter, or will the truth destroy what's left of their shattered family?

I'm having a mental breakdown as I face a clogged drain with my feverish and fussing daughter in my arms. Meanwhile, my husband has reserved a hotel to celebrate another woman's birthday. My mother-in-law spits on the floor. "This is what you deserve. You can't even capture a man's heart!" I clench a fist around the winning lottery ticket in my pocket. I want to get a divorce.

When I was 18, I was abducted and assaulted. Leonardo Ferrante stormed into the hideout with explosives strapped to his body and saved me. As a result, he lost a leg. After getting a prosthetic, he gently wiped away my tears and comforted me. "Don't be silly, Camilla Marino. It's just one leg. Why are you crying over this? I said I will protect you for a lifetime. I won't break my promise." After that, he even risked his life to take revenge for me. No one in the whole wide world dared to provoke me. I once thought I would stay happy like this forever... until his mistress, Vittoria Greco, hands me an invitation to their engagement banquet. "Do you really think he will marry an assaulted woman like you? Leonardo says you're rotten inside and out. Only I deserve to marry him. We're getting engaged next week. Make sure you come join us for the celebration." I stare at the fancy font on the invitation. Then I swing it backhand and slap her across the face 100 times until she bleeds. After that, I have my men call Leonardo. "I will make a bet with you. If you win, you can take your mistress away. But if you lose, I will claim her life!"

　　Eight years into my time with the Moretti family, I was both their most capable core member and Don Dominic's wife of three years—but we'd never actually signed the marriage contract. 　　Every single time we were about to go to City Hall to register, he'd ditch me for his female subordinate. 　　The first time, he left me waiting on the side of the road all day because she was sick and weak. 　　The second time, he dumped me halfway there because of one phone call from her. 　　After that, I got stood up again and again. 　　After being stood up for the seventeenth time, I decided to give them what they wanted. 　　I accepted the invitation to a top-tier medical project in Paris, packed my bags, and boarded a plane. 　　But when I actually left, he lost his mind...

Because of a last-minute business trip, my husband missed the Thanksgiving family dinner. I spent the entire day helping out at my in-laws' place in the countryside with our five-year-old son, only to receive a complaint from the downstairs neighbor just before dinner. "Ari, could you please close your kitchen window when you're cooking? I can smell the hot sauce from all the way here. My husband has a lung condition—he can't handle it." My neighbor's words shocked me, and I immediately called my husband, who was allergic to chili peppers. "Honey, did someone break into the house? The neighbor said there was smoke coming from the kitchen." His breathing hitched for a second before he let out a casual laugh. "No break-in. My flight got canceled, so I was home alone cooking. When are you two coming back? I really miss you." I smiled and told him we'd stay a couple more days, but in the middle of the night, I packed up our son and drove straight home.

The day she died, Julia Knight called her husband, Atlas Volkan 57 times while a masked man strangled her. As air finally drained from her lungs, his voice filtered through accompanied by hers. His first love whom his priorities lied with, the one he cherished - The one for whom, he would never be able to love her. In this life, she was constantly blamed for pushing his brother to death, snatching her sister's rights, and treated like a doormat in her own home. She was her mother's slave, her sister's puppet and her husband's clown. So, as Julia breathed her last breath, she begged for one chance- just one more chance to live life for herself. When she is reborn, she immediately asks for a divorce. To her surprise, her cold dominating husband refused and went insane trying to win her back.

Alpha Kael Blackthorn’s childhood sweetheart was pregnant. On the night of our ninth anniversary, he brought her home and spoke as if assigning ordinary household matters. “She’s carrying a pureblood heir. Her appetite is delicate, so her meals can’t repeat.” “She startles easily at night. Clear out your things and move into the guest room.” I said nothing. I picked up the suitcase I had packed long ago and walked toward the door. The house steward looked ready to stop me, but Kael only laughed. “Let her go.” “She won’t last three days before she comes crawling back.” That made everyone laugh. Right in front of me, they placed a ten-million wager that I would be back before morning, begging him to let me in. After all, for nine years, no matter how much he hurt me, I always came back. But this time, the black sedan outside had already been arranged. This time, I was really leaving.