Barely Synonym

One childhood crush. One unbreakable rule. One mansion where every hallway feels like a trap. For fifteen years, Leighton Hayes has loved Noah Knight from afar, the untouchable older brother of her best friend Chloe. Now twenty-three, broke, and freshly homeless, Leighton has nowhere to go but the sprawling estate of the man who once barely noticed her. Noah remembers her all too well. The billionaire who built an empire from nothing has spent the last six months trying to become a better man, and the shy girl in oversized hoodies who just moved into his guest wing is the most dangerous temptation he’s ever faced. Chloe’s single rule was always clear: her friends are off-limits. Especially to Noah, the reformed Playboy who used to burn through supermodels and headlines. But late nights, shared secrets, and one stolen shirt ignite a fire neither of them can extinguish. What begins as whispered confessions and almost-kisses explodes into a secret affair neither wants to end, even as the lies stack higher. When Chloe discovers the truth, the betrayal threatens to destroy the only family each of them has ever known. Leighton must decide if love is worth losing her best friend. Noah must prove he’s finally ready to risk everything for the one woman he swore he’d never touch. Some rules are made to be broken. Some hearts refuse to stay forbidden.

There was blood on his hands, and something worse in his eyes. And it terrified her to death. --- Crystal Peterson's only crime was to fall in love with her brother's best friend, Jaden Astor. She thought he loved her, too. Until he came back home one day with Valerie, the woman he was going to marry in two weeks. Already pregnant and disowned by her adoptive family, Crystal ran away from home without even a word to Jaden. Five years later, Crystal and her son, who had a terminal illness, were barely surviving and trying to make ends meet when she answered a knock on her door one day and found the one man she would rather stay away from all her life standing there and begging for her forgiveness. But forgiveness was something Crystal never had to offer Jaden. Not when she had to sell one of her twins just to keep the other twin alive. Not after being disowned and mocked by her family and everyone she once held dear, loosing everything she ever worked for, including her education. But what happens when she finds out who had actually bought one of her twins four years ago? Does she have a place for Jaden in her heart anymore, or she'd rather stick to Noah, the only man who was ever there for her when her world crumbled to the ground? *** Obsession. Possession. Love. Betrayal.

“I can’t let go of you, Mia. You’re my addiction, and I’m not ready to let go of my addiction.” Josh lowers his face, his lips barely brushing Mia’s, as his hands roam her body. “But…but we’re…we’re siblings…everyone will judge us, they…won’t understand..” Mia stutters, pleasure hitting her in every part where Josh’s hands land. “I don’t care about the world, Mia. As long as we’re together, nobody else matters.” He states and closes his lips on hers. ***** Mia was smitten by her brother the minute she set her eyes on him, and she couldn’t understand why him, out of all the men in the world. They soon started a forbidden relationship, that is, until a guy who was practically “obsessed” with her kept trying to do everything within his capacity to separate them. Will Mia end whatever is going on between them? Will Josh let go of her? Will the “villain” succeed in ending their forbidden love story? Find out in this book of love, hate, forbidden relationship, obsession and so on… ***** “You belong to me, and only me. No one is allowed to know how you taste and how you feel, no one is allowed to hear you moan. Anyone who tries to take you away from me will breathe his last.” He tells her and inserts himself into her, earning only a loud moan as her response.

“Let. Me. Go!” She said, trying to run away from the man who now had her cornered. A familiar scent filled her nostrils, but she could barely find it in her to speak let alone call for HIS help. “You are mine now,” he glared at her, his eyes filled with rage. Her heart raced, and she tried moving away from his tight grip as he wrapped his hand around her neck, choking her. “I will show you what it is to try and run away from your Alpha.” Her breathing ragged, and her eyes rolled to the back of her head before the man’s hand loosened around her neck. His green eyes met hers in the darkness, and it was seconds later before his tattooed arms wrapped around her, holding her to his chest. “And that is what you get for messing with my MATE, Stefano…” ********************************* What if everything was nothing more than a lie? What if what you know was not more than a game? What if what you held onto was the one thing that was to drop you? When Alpha Diego is given a task by his father, he is forced to play the ONE game he hates most. The game of love. And the one thing that makes it even worse is that he forced to play it against the one person that he is supposed to cherish. His mate, Lea Auditore…

Fresh out of college, Clara Stewart asked me to take on a $500,000 mortgage for her. When I refused, she turned around and bought an $800,000 villa in full, for another guy. Holding up the property deed, she told me: "Jayden, the truth is, I'm actually rich. I've been pretending to be poor to test you. Unfortunately, you failed. I'm disappointed in you. Let's break up." I simply smiled and walked away without a second thought. The irony? I'm the son of the richest man in the country. I was pretending to be broke, too. Fast forward four years, we met again at the National Wealth Summit. Clara had just barely made it into the top 50 on the list, clinging to the arm of Henry Brown as they entered. She spotted me in simple clothes with no visible brand, holding a child in one arm and the keys to a Porsche Cayenne in the other. Thinking I was someone's driver, she sneered: "Jayden, you really went all out just to see me again? Let's be real, you're just a driver now, and I'm on the wealth list. We live in completely different worlds. Don't waste your time fantasizing." I did not bother replying. Honestly, I was only there because my billionaire dad insisted. I had finally cleared a day to spend with my son and now I had to waste it on that.

Alexander Hawthorne doesn’t date. He doesn’t have time. At thirty-five, his life revolves around HawStone Global Engineering and his ten-year-old son, Jack. Work is demanding, parenting is exhausting, and now that Jack’s mother is moving to New Jersey with her new husband, Alex is left to manage it all alone. Exhausted, overworked, and barely keeping it together, he’s desperate for help. Celine Stone, his partner’s niece, a brilliant graduate student taking a break from her thesis in cybersecurity. Ten years younger, stunning, compassionate, and completely off-limits. Celine becomes Jack’s new nanny. From the very first moment, Alex is captivated. She's Gorgeous. She’s patient with Jack, smart, funny, and utterly irresistible. And the more time they spend together, the harder it becomes to deny the attraction that’s simmering between them. He knows he shouldn’t. She’s his partner’s niece. She’s just 25 years old, ten years younger than him. And he’s a father who must put his son first. But some desires don’t wait for perfect timing… and some connections refuse to be ignored. As their forbidden attraction grows, Alex and Celine must navigate their feelings, their responsibilities, and the world that insists they stay apart. Because falling for the nanny isn’t just risky it could change everything.

It was Hana Verlice’s engagement party — but the only thing she could think about was that night six months ago. The night Dante Carter pinned her against the backseat window of his car,cheeks pressed to the glass, her dress lifted to her waists, with his mouth buried between her legs. Now, she was hours away from marrying his older brother. Elijah Osborne Carter — the perfect man, heir to Osborne Pharmaceuticals, and her father’s last hope of saving their crumbling empire. But as she slipped into her designer dress, her mind couldn't stop thinking about the one man she could never have. Dante. The mistake she was supposed to forget. The temptation she swore never to touch again. The younger brother who disappeared after that night and was never supposed to come back. But as she stepped out of her dressing room to join her soon-to-be husband at the party, there he was. Leaning at the foot of the stairs like raw sin. Messy hair. Dark eyes. That cocky mouth that once had her moaning his name in ecstacy. Her pulse quickened as her knees threatened to give out. She tried to breathe. To stay still. But one look at him… and she knew she was in trouble. “What the hell are you doing here?” she whispered, her voice barely holding. He smirked, slow and knowing as his gaze dropped shamelessly to her lips. “Did you miss me, cookie?”

Calla Winthrop thought she had it all—a devoted husband, a beautiful home, and a baby on the way. But on the night of their anniversary, everything shattered. A hidden mistress. A plan to steal her unborn child. And then the final betrayal… he killed her. But death didn’t take her soul—it gave her a second chance. She awakens in the body of Isadora Kane—a woman whispered about in fear, hated for her venomous tongue, cold cruelty, and ruthless past. Isadora’s name alone can curdle blood… especially her husband Madden’s. Cold, distant, dangerously powerful—he can barely stand the sight of her. But beneath the loathing is something darker... hungrier. Now trapped in the life of a woman everyone wants to see fall, Calla must play a deadly game. She must become the villainess the world believes she is—outsmart enemies she’s never met, unravel Isadora’s dangerous secrets, and resist the searing pull of a husband who wants nothing to do with her… until he starts to want everything. She’s got one goal: Take back her stolen child. Destroy the man who murdered her. But in a world where enemies wear the sweetest smiles, and the truth is tangled in seduction and lies, Calla’s second chance could become her final downfall. Because someone knows she’s not Isadora. And they're watching. Let the revenge begin….

"Limits, Charli. I'm going to f**k you like you've never been f**ked. Tell me now if I've crossed that limit. Tell me now if you don't want this." Words didn't form; instead, I pushed my ass backwards until it brushed against his erection. Sometime during his speech he'd freed it from the confines of his slacks. "Last chance, Charli." "Please." My word was barely audible. He tugged my hair again. "What did you say?" "Please, Nox. I want you. Take me." He didn't need to be sure I was ready. The evidence glistened under the awful fluorescent lights. The sound of the condom package tearing was soon replaced by my whimper as he plunged... *** One Week. No Last Names. No Regrets. Alexandria "Charli" Collins is done playing the perfect Southern heiress. At an exclusive California resort, she meets Nox Demetri—a billionaire as enigmatic as he is irresistible. When he boldly claims her as his "wife" to ward off an unwanted admirer, their explosive chemistry ignites a no-strings affair that quickly spirals beyond either of their control. But Nox is hiding dangerous secrets, and Charli's past won't stay buried. As their week of passion draws to a close, reality comes crashing in. Can a temporary escape survive the real world—or will the truth destroy them both?

She was afraid to fall in love. He never lowered the walls of his heart, afraid to face betrayal. Both were busy chasing away the demons of their sleepless nights not knowing when their lives entangled and they crashed into each other, seeking solace from the treacherous world. Valerie Ambrose bumped into Damon Lysander at a downtown club. Eyes met, sparks flew, heat rose, and they ended up having a one-night stand. _ "I don't have cash on me. I forgot my wallet." He slurred, his crystal blue eyes bloodshot red as he stared directly into my eyes, for a moment I thought he was sober, but then he leaned in and whispered in my ear, his breath fanning my neck. "Now are you still interested?" Although the music was blasting through the speakers, but I caught up on his hidden implication. I shook my head in exhaustion "You're drunk Damon. Come I will drop you home." "I don't want to go back there. It hurts Val." He mumbled dryly, but his moist eyes said it all, and I couldn't help but pity him. When I failed to respond he pressed his lips to the side of my neck and inhaled deeply. "Please don't leave me alone." He was barely audible and looked like a mess, a beautiful mess. "I can't bear this anymore." And with that said, he pressed his lips to mine.