Apple Cheeks Smile

Eleanor played by the rules while her husband broke every one. So when she spent one unforgettable night with a stranger, she thought she could walk away. She thought wrong. Because now he’s standing in her husband’s office with a knowing smile and a dangerous question: “Mrs. Turner, what a surprise. Have we met before?”

He needs a wife. I need a miracle. Our marriage is fake, but the danger is real. Lucien Stone, billionaire, cold, and heartless offers me a deal I can’t refuse. I just have to obey, smile, and never let him find out the truth. But some secrets don’t stay buried. Especially when the past wears a child’s face.

Four months pregnant. I was alone when a rival family came for me.. A searing pain tore through my stomach. I couldn't reach my husband, Don Lorenzo. His phone was off. I woke up in a sterile hospital bed. Three days had passed. And the baby... was gone. That’s when I heard the nurses gossiping. “Heard Don Lorenzo cleared out a block of Fifth Avenue for his mistress three days ago. Had his phone off so they wouldn't be disturbed.” Tears rolled down my cheeks, but my heart was empty. I gave up my career, my whole life, for him. The Don who promised me forever… he shattered that promise just days before our fifth anniversary. Back home, I dug out an old phone and made a call. A number I hadn't touched in five years. "The European tour you mentioned…" I said, my voice hollow. "I'm in. I can be ready in a week."

One silly dare in a crowded club. One clumsy puff of his cigarette. One choking cough that turned innocent giggles into something dangerous. Grace thought she was just playing a game with her friends. She never expected the man in the shadows, the one with the cold eyes and the lighter that flicked like a promise, would watch her every second after that. Adrian Valente doesn’t chase women. He claims them. Ruthless mafia king. Owner of the night. The kind of man who makes rooms go silent when he walks in, whose name alone is a warning carved in fear. She ran back to her table laughing. He stayed seated, cigarette forgotten, staring at the spot she’d left like she’d stolen something vital from his chest. Now he knows her name. Her laugh. The way her cheeks flush when she’s embarrassed. And Adrian Valente never forgets what belongs to him. One dare started it.One look sealed it. She has no idea the devil just decided she’s his. And devils don’t let go.

He is called the EMPEROR of the business world, he is filthy rich name it he has it all except his empress. A god-like human, it’s like God sculpt him perfectly. Possessing a dark blue tantalizing eye that held so many secret, has a jet black hair that makes him more look divine, sharp jaws that looks like God carve it himself, a pale heart shape pink lips, and a sharp well carved pointy nose. Ladies flocked to get his attention but they only receive a sharp dangerous glare. She came from an abusive, a heartless family who is insecure on what she has, jealous on the gift she has. Only her dad and granddad treated her well. She possesses a sweet smile that can melt a frozen heart. A heart shaped goddess like face, that god has sculpture her beauty with care and perfection, possessing a silver dark eyes that shouts so many emotions, a small pointy nose and a pouty natural red small lips. What happen if the cold, ruthless, and dangerous emperor laid his dark blue eye on a girl who possesses a sweet smile and a goddess like face? Fate has a plan for them, destiny is just around the corner and cupid is ready to match. “Love, keep your smile for me that is exclusively mine only,” Zhane sweetly told her wife his dark blue eyes shows so much love while looking at his goddess wife. Shayne nod smiling sweetly to his husband. The whole room was quite, mouth-wide open, eyes popping and shock written in their faces. They couldn’t believe what they have witnessed they just saw and heard their master in a different aura, gone the cold, dangerous aura, deadly eyes, emotionless face and cold as ice voice of their master.

Alpha Brent Wilson looks breathtaking in his three-piece dark suit as he waits at the altar. He’s smiling and I smile back. Only for that smile to vanish when I realize he isn’t smiling for me. He stopped smiling for me the day he realized I was his mate. I follow where he is looking and bite my lower lip when I see that his gaze lands on the tall, blonde woman standing on the front pew, the lucky woman who owns his heart. Rosie. I know that if he could choose, without a doubt, he would choose to marry her in a heartbeat. However, as an alpha, he has duties and responsibilities that can only be fulfilled with an omega by his side. It doesn’t mean he has given her up though. Because there she is, smiling gracefully and beautifully. I’m the one marrying the alpha, but she’s the one with the winning smile, glowing more than the bride. Can’t he hear it? Can’t he feel anything? The howls of our wolves. Their broken pleas. The screaming straight from our souls. Because I hear it all. I feel it all. But he remains looking at her. Just her. That day, I walked straight into the flames and let myself burn, believing my mate will realize my worth one day… which never happened. I gave and gave until I had nothing more to give. Until I grew tired of fighting for the mate who didn’t want me. Until I snapped. Until I was strong enough to finally reject our bond and walk away. But when I did, something unexpected happened. He hunted me. He chased me. And this time, he was the one who refused to let me go.

On the day I get released from prison, Joshua Caldwell's adoptive sister, Madeline Caldwell, hosts a live stream to welcome me home. She makes sure to shove the phone right in my face. "This is my older sister, Victoria. Even though she has gotten violated by 13 people, she still has the courage to continue living in this world." The comment section explodes instantly. Joshua frowns slightly, but Madeline merely sticks her tongue out at him with a cute smile on her face. Instead of going hysterical like I did three years ago, I just smile at everyone. "A woman's body is never her weakness. The offenders are the ones who deserve to die, not me." After returning home, I don't stop Joshua from letting Madeline visit our parents' graves on their death anniversary on my behalf. I don't mind Joshua giving my room away to Madeline and telling me to stay in the storeroom. Even when Madeline pushes me into the water once again, Joshua chooses to save her despite her knowing how to swim. After I get rescued by a passerby, I just go home on my own silently. Mixed feelings swirl in Joshua's eyes as he looks at me. "That three-year sentence has changed you for good, Vicky." I just smile softly in response. All I've done is finally see reality for what it is and not harbor any hopes for him at all. Moreover, the system, which I've lost contact with, has finally returned three days ago. It told me that it could take me home in seven days. But why is it that Joshua loses his mind after I've left this world for real?

Eranthe and Colin's story began with a ludicrous act of revenge. The next time she saw Colin was at her boyfriend's birthday party. She knew him only as a wealthy man with high status, and he was captivated by her beauty. They engaged in a game of mutual manipulation, beginning an adult game. Eranthe: I took the initiative to call Colin and had a one-night stand with him, deliberately allowing my boyfriend to catch us. Seeing his angry and frustrated reaction was so satisfying and joyful. I had finally taken revenge on that cheating scoundrel. But why did things start slipping out of my control? The one-night stand with Colin was just an adult game, so why take it seriously? I found that I couldn't get rid of you. Alright, let the game continue. If you can't submit to me, there will be no survivors in this game. Colin: Eranthe thought I was just a tool she used to get back at her ex-boyfriend for betraying her. No, she was wrong! In reality, I don't belong to the human world. I blend among humans in the hope of finding my Luna. At first, I used a little trick to make her approach me and fall into my love trap. She didn't know that I had loved her for many, many years. She's the only one in my heart, the apple in my eyes. I've always longed to be with her, to win her heart. My lifelong wish is to have her as my Luna, be with her forever, and be the mother of my Alpha child.

I am in such a rush to pick up my daughter, Ava Pennington, from school that I don't have time to change out of my work attire. At the kindergarten gates, I run into the mother of one of her classmates, Candice Austin. She sizes me up from head to toe and says, "You must be Ava Pennington's mom." I politely nod. Just as I am about to say hello, her expression suddenly sours. "It's no wonder your daughter dresses so skimpily at school. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree, does it?" I am so mad that I nearly forgot to respond. "What nonsense are you talking about?" Candice clicks her tongue and grows even more aggressive. "Nonsense? Your daughter wears skirts to school every day. She's distracting my son so much that his grades have slipped." Her words leave me utterly speechless. How is her son's failing grades somehow Ava's fault? When I don't respond, she gets bolder. "Look at you dressed from head to toe in cheap junk; how can you afford to send your daughter to this elite kindergarten? You must have pulled some shady strings to sneak her in through the back door, didn't you?" Has she lost her mind? Since when does Ava need strings to attend the school I built?

When the village chief delivered the items for my wedding, my fiancé's adopted sister, who was the apple of his eye, suddenly burst into tears. She cut my wedding dress and smashed the wardrobe that my older brother made for me. Every time I was about to lose my temper, my fiancé, who was also my childhood sweetheart, would immediately side with her. He claimed that she was still young and did not understand jealousy; she was just insecure. Even my own brother defended her, saying I had a birth brother who doted on me. It would not hurt to give in to her. When an earthquake happened, they both ran to her and protected her tightly beneath their bodies. Meanwhile, I was trapped under the ruins for three days and three nights. My brother and fiancé tried every possible way to cheer up her, leaving the villagers to rescue me instead. When they looked at me with wounds all over my body, they only said, "Don't overthink it. Jenn is timid and frightened. We couldn't leave her alone." I was on bed rest for a month, but not once did I see them. Only the village chief came to see me. He tried to persuade me, saying, "You're the first college student in our village. Are you really going to give up on your studies just to get married? This—" I interrupted him, "I made my decision before you came. I'll report to the college on time!"