Awkward Flirting

All her life, Calla Hayes has been invisible, the awkward neighbor girl with tangled hair and a frame too skinny to be noticed. Until the night of her eighteenth birthday, when the Moon Goddess reveals her fated mate: her arrogant stepbrother, Lucas Blackwell, the pack’s golden bad boy. But instead of claiming her, he rejects her in front of everyone. Humiliated and heartbroken, Calla runs only to awaken a power inside her no one in the pack can ignore. Now, two dangerous men want her. On hand there’s Lucas, the stepbrother who spurned her, now unable to resist her new strength, and Darius, her childhood neighbor and best friend’s protective older brother, whoshe has always crushed on. One is her fated mate. The other is her forbidden desire. Both are willing to burn the pack to have her. Calla’s no longer the ugly duckling. She’s the storm that will either break their world or remake it.

Henry Rosales has three rules in life: work hard, save every peso, and keep his bedridden mother alive. He doesn't care about luxury, fashion, or fame. So when he accidentally becomes a human shield for Veronica Lores—the ruthless "Ice Queen" of the fashion industry—he isn't trying to be a hero. He just wanted to save her expensive suit because he couldn't afford to pay for the dry cleaning. ​Amused by his pragmatism and desperate for a loyal protector, Veronica hires him on the spot. The offer? A salary that could solve all his problems. The condition? He must belong to her—exclusively. ​But Henry is dense. He thinks "exclusive" means no moonlighting as a delivery rider. He doesn't realize that he has just walked into a war zone. Not only does he have to protect Veronica from corporate saboteurs, but he also has to survive the aggressive flirting of her rival, the fashion diva Anastasia Altino. ​Caught between a boss who claims him as property and a rival who wants to buy him with a Ferrari, Henry only has one question: ​"Ma'am, does this job come with a rice subsidy and 13th-month pay?"

Jane Winters moves to Los Avalos with her mother, Sarah, who is getting married to the Alpha, Kyle Heiden. Once there, Jane realizes that her new stepbrothers are the two boys who used to bully her. They had lived with their mother for two semesters and had made Jane's life hell. Now faced with having to live in the same house as them, Jane makes two new friends. Freya is bubbly and just what Jane needs. Sebastian likes her as she is and wants more than just friendship. When Jane turns eighteen she realizes that her mates are Reid and Ryan Heiden, her stepbrothers and bullies. Jane is convinced they're playing a mean trick on her when they tell her they want her. Follow Jane's story as she stumbles through awkward teenage phases, tries to sort reality from fantasy with her twin mates and Sebastian's declaration of love. Who are the good guys and who are the bad guys? Will Jane make the right choice? Who will she choose?

Welcome back to Clifton Heights. Sheriff Chris Baker and Father Ward meet for a Saturday morning breakfast at The Skylark Diner to once again commiserate over the weird and terrifying secrets surrounding their town. Sheriff Baker shares with Father Ward the story of a journal discovered in the ruins of what was once an elaborate koi pond and flower garden, which regales a tale of regret, buried pain, and unfulfilled debt: “Sophan” – Jake Burns has always been a bit...off. Rude, awkward, sometimes brutish, he's tolerated by Nate Slocum and his friends because he hits a mean line drive, and because they all know but don't discuss the abuse he faces at the hands of his troubled father, a Vietnam veteran consumed by his demons. But Jake is suffering something far worse than domestic abuse, and when Nate discovers what, he faces an impossible choice: help Jake and put himself in the path of evil, or abandon him, only to damn himself in the process. ©️ Crystal Lake Publishing

Claire thought her life couldn’t get any worse when her boyfriend broke her heart, but a night out with her best friends turned her world upside down. A spiked drink, an unforgettable one-night stand, and an awkward morning-after encounter lead her straight into the arms of Mackenzie Allister—a powerful CEO and the man who now claims she’s destined to be his wife. Mack’s offer seems absurd, but his charm, persistence, and a shocking family rivalry involving her ex-boyfriend, Liam, pull Claire into a whirlwind of passion, deceit, and schemes. Forced into a marriage of convenience, Claire navigates the complications of corporate power plays, bitter betrayals from her closest friends, and a family determined to tear her apart from Mack. As enemies close in, Claire must decide who she can trust and whether she’s willing to risk her heart for a man whose motives may not be entirely pure. Will she succumb to the chaos of revenge and ambition, or can love and loyalty triumph against all odds?

David Lee was supposed to be dead. Nineteen years old, terminal cancer, nothing left but hospital beds and webtoons about gang fights, brotherhood, and underdog heroes. But when he opens his eyes again, he’s not David anymore. He’s Seo Joonwoo — fifteen, awkward, quiet, and newly enrolled in the most infamous school in the city: Taeyang Technical High, where fists rule the halls and teachers look the other way. It should’ve been a nightmare. Instead… it’s everything David used to dream of. And when his first fight begins, a strange blue screen appears before his eyes: [Romanticism System Activated.] “The stronger your conviction… the stronger your punch.” Now, armed with a second chance, Joonwoo isn’t just here to survive. He’s here to live the kind of story he once only read about — a story of loyalty, friendship, fights under flickering lights… and maybe even love. This isn’t just delinquency. This is romanticism.

In her past life, Calla Greystone was the fat, awkward daughter of a disgraced Beta who sold her out for a pack alliance. Trapped in a miserable marriage to the cold and distant Alpha Lucien Thorne—who thought she was part of her father’s scheme—Calla was ignored, insulted, and cast aside. She gave birth alone, lived without love, and died in a tragic accident… or so everyone thought. But fate gave her a do-over. Calla wakes up on the same night her life derailed—the night she and Lucien were drugged and pushed into a mating scandal. Only this time, she’s done being a pawn. She stops her father from forcing a marriage, refuses to be Lucien’s regret, and walks away from a future she knows all too well. Can Calla survive the game long enough to rewrite the rules? Will Lucien finally fight for the mate he once failed? Or will the past devour them both before the truth comes to light?

All her life, Maxine lived in the shadow of her glamorous stepsister, Coreen. So, at age 18, she was awkward, nerdy, and wolf-power-less, making her an easy target for mockery. She gets the dare to kiss Alph Damore—the handsome alpha of Hanton University—at Coreen's party, and her world spins 180 degrees. Just after this, Maxine's family is evicted on a falsely accused infidelity charge. Months later, her life is going to turn another turn when her mother brings home her new stepfather—Alph's father. The different world to which she is cast, one of power and money, is not what Maxine had expected; now, she will have to contend with Coreen's envy and take up the role of half-sister to Alph. Problems ensue when she learns that Alph has been her fated mate all along. Is Maxine able to sail through this turbulent new life and the hidden bond between her and Alph, or will the chaos consume her? Will she ever find the wolf inside herself that turns everything favor to her?

“I am sorry, Mr. Thomas, but I am married—" "To an asshole," Thomas interrupted, his voice dripping with disdain. My eyes flashed with anger. "To my husband," I corrected. Thomas raised an eyebrow. "Your husband doesn't know or care that you're crying because he's in there flirting with another woman." My face burned with shame. "He's just socializing," I defended, frustration betraying my words Thomas snorted. "By trying to get into her pants." He smirked, moving closer while I retreated, the space between us shrinking with every step. "I am sorry, Mr. Thomas, but my marital life is none of your business." "Only I can decide that." He said, his smirk twisting into a snarl I opened my mouth to protest, but he cut me off. “Say one more word and I'll have you right here and now" he said, his voice a low, husky growl. His finger traced the curve of my face, my heart racing and I felt my defenses crumbling. In a lightning-fast move, his lips slammed into mine, crushing me with a kiss that was both savage and intoxicating. ****** Two people, different worlds, with just one thing in common - Secrets. What happens when formidable sparks begin to brew and secrets threatens to unravel?

Tessa Sterling's life was never Meant to be this complicated. Once the daughter of privilege, she now works double shifts to keep her little sister in school after her stepmother seized control of her late mother's inheritance. When her sister begged her to pick her up from a celebrity concert, Tessa expects nothing but chaos. Instead, she runs into Kingsley Voss–international superstar, billionaire CEO, a global icon and every woman's fantasy. But Kingsley is not what the camera show. Behind his fame hides a secret that could destroy his career–a daughter, whose existence no one must ever know. When fate throws Tessa into his world again, this time as a potential nanny, sparks fly and tempers flare, she loathes his arrogance, his charm, his shameless flirting–but she can't resist the bond she forms with his daughter. Kingsley is torn between protecting his secret and protecting the woman who's turning his world upside down. But the closer Tessa gets to his daughter...the closer she gets to uncovering the secret he's sworn to hide. And when love collides with lies, someone's heart will have to pay the price. Behind every secrets lies a forbidden truth– and behind every man like Kingsley Voss, a woman strong enough to bring him to his knees.