Before We Drowned Novels & Stories

At the celebration where Lorenzo Alvarez is crowned the new mafia boss, his men arrange a few performances. A dancer in a backless top and short skirt twists around the pole under the lights. "Don't look," he murmurs, covering my eyes with his hand. "This kind of cheap entertainment isn't worthy of you." His men jump in immediately. "Lorenzo still spoils Ms. Valenti after all these years. That kind of devotion is rare. We're so jealous." "A man as loyal and single-minded as Lorenzo is hard to find." I rest a hand on my belly, planning to tell him tonight that I am pregnant. But when I return from the restroom, I see the same man who had just held me in his arms leaning back in his chair while the dancer straddles his lap. Lorenzo slips his business card and a thick fold of cash into the waistband of her skirt. He laughs, relaxed and unbothered. "Isabella is wonderful, sure, but life needs a little passion. This ragazza is just something new. A bit of fun. "Keep your mouths shut. Don't go running to Isabella and upset her. Otherwise, you'll have a problem." Cold rushes through me. I do not approach or confront Lorenzo. I simply take out my phone and answer the email I have been avoiding for days. "I agree to participate in the confidential experiment."

"Get the fuck out of my wedding, Rainer." One sentence. Every lie Jose built his life on, suddenly visible. Camille gave him everything his past never could. Stability. A future. The kind of love that doesn't ask questions. But on the night he finally chose her, his foster brother stood up in the back of the church and called her a murderer. And the grave they buried their youngest brother in three years ago? Empty. Elias isn't dead. He's been hiding. And he came back angrier than any of them are ready for. Now Jose is caught between the wife who built him a life and the brother who reminds him who he was before he let her. Between the story he chose and the truth he buried. Some loves don't save you. They just make sure you can never find your way back to what you were before them.

On my girlfriend's birthday, I was in the middle of preparing a surprise for her when the property management office of our marital home called first. "Sir, we've received a complaint from another resident," the staff member said. "They claim there's been… quite a bit of noise coming from your unit at night. From you and your wife." I frowned. The only person I had given a key to that apartment was my girlfriend. I called her immediately. She answered with a soft, teasing tone, "They must have made a mistake. I'm at my best friend's place." "Alright," I said evenly. "Enjoy yourself." After hanging up, I opened the smart home system without hesitation and remotely locked every door and window from the outside. Then I dialed the police. "Hello, I'd like to report an unlawful entry."

Dylan Edwards, a wealthy CEO, broke off his relationship with Cassidy Aarvi six years ago and pressured her into signing divorce papers. However, Dylan had mistaken Cassidy for someone else that day, and she could not correct the misunderstanding. Cassidy is now a single mother to two delightful five-year-old children who are curious about their father. Her primary aim is to uncover the truth about their parentage and possibly reconnect with the man she was mistaken for. Can the children discover the identity of their father? What creative plans will they come up with to accomplish their mission?

What do you do when the only safe place left belongs to the man who’s been lying to you? I’m twelve weeks pregnant with my abusive ex’s baby. He's been tracking my phone, controlling my life. And when I finally run, there's only one door left to knock on — his best friend's apartment. Jeremy took me in. No questions. No judgment. Just his bed, his quiet presence, and one reckless lie: at the hospital, he'll say the baby is his. For the first time in years, I feel safe. But I’m starting to realize: the man who saved me might be the reason I needed saving. Because Jeremy’s been in love with me for three years—and he never said a word. Because my best friend Reina has been sleeping with Ryan behind my back—and she’s not done destroying me yet. Because Ryan just found out about the pregnancy—and he’s coming for his child. The question is: can I survive the truth—or will it destroy me faster than Ryan ever could?

On the day I return to the pack once again, my future mate, Kellan Cohen, throws a fancy banquet for me. My younger sister, Lia Smith, asks me loudly while holding a champagne flute, "Ella, I heard that you were exiled to the wilderness where the lowly inbreds roamed instead of patrolling the borders. Is that true?" Everyone gasps in surprise upon hearing Lia's question. Kellan shoots Lia a glare immediately. If this were to happen a year ago, I would've taught Lia a lesson right there and then. But instead of getting mad at her, I even take off the bracelet, which is a family heirloom, and put it onto her wrist just to thank her for showing her "concern" toward me. Not only that, but I also bring up the fact that I want Lia to replace me as a candidate to host the next day's offering ceremony with Kellan. Mom is happy to see me behaving like this. As she pats me on the head, she says, "It seems that Ella finally has learned how to play nice." But Kellan just stares at me with mixed emotions swirling in his eyes. "Didn't you claim that you'd rather die than hand over the position to Lia?" I just sigh quietly on the inside. He's right, but the truth is, I'm about to die.

"No! Please" "Please, don't touch me down there, Jian Ying" I said to him with a rather high tone. He looked me straight in the eye with his hand still on my thigh and replied. "I like it there!" "You...you can't do that" I wriggled out of his hold and that got him angry. "You are my wife and every single part of your body is mine! Including...down there! So keep that mouth shut! Spread your legs wide for me and lie there!" He shouted at me with a serious expression. I had never seen anyone who was more shameless than him. "I'm not your wife yet Jian Ying and besides, I'm still young" I was perspiring all over. He smirked at me and said with his dominant voice. "Oh, yes you are!" "You are at the ripe age for it and besides, in a few days time, our marriage will commence. So, why wait?!" And before I knew it... "Ahhh....!" ____ Follow Chen Lijuan and Jian Ying to Love's web! A wet dream mate who becomes the lost betrothed wife! ***** Happy Reading Everyone! Please, stay safe. #For me and for all. Love from Author Elaami.

I was the stand-in who looked most like my husband's first love. He put me through countless plastic surgeries, both major and minor ones, until I became her exact likeness. But then, she came back from the dead. All it took was her saying, "I don't like anyone looking like me," and he sent me right back to the operating table once more. I begged him, telling him that my body couldn't handle it anymore. Alas, he only looked at me with irritation. "Seeing that cheap imitation of her face just disgusts me," he sneered. "No matter how close you come, you'll never be her." In the end, I died on that operating table. Yet, he went mad, trying desperately to recall what I once looked like.

On our wedding night, Zach received a phone call and left my side. From then on, I knew that all of my efforts over the years had gone to waste. After all, the person he loved had returned. “Cassia, let’s get a divorce.” “But we just got married two days ago.” “You know that I don’t love you, and I never will.”

In the day, Evelyn Jefferson is Warren Larkin's elegant and capable executive secretary. At night, she's his alluring bedfellow.After three years of such an arrangement, she thinks he loves her. But when she proposes to him, he says, "It's just a game—we fuck, not make love. Did you really think I'd take you seriously?"She loses hope in him and leaves without another word. From that day on, her life is transformed, and her career skyrockets. She becomes a renowned lawyer that no one in the industry dares offend. Countless suitors swarm her.He regrets his decision and pins her to the wall, his eyes bloodshot. "I'm yours in heart, mind, and soul. Will you marry me, please?"She smiles seductively. "Sorry, but you're standing in the way of my Mr. Right."