Before We Drowned Novels & Stories

My in-laws were old-fashioned. They insisted that spending New Year's in their hometown was a must for a smooth year ahead. We could not get train tickets, so we decided to drive back. When my wife’s first love heard about it, he insisted on coming with us. He even brazenly took the front passenger seat from me. “Charles, I get carsick easily. I can only sit in the front.” Evan shot me a disdainful look. "It's just a seat. Why are you being so touchy?" “If you knew how to drive, would this even be an issue?” My in-laws chimed in as well. “You’re a grown man. Why are you making such a fuss over something so small?” Outnumbered, I had no choice but to squeeze into the back seat with my in-laws. Then, when we were passing a toll booth, Yvonne spotted a stray dog and was suddenly overcome with compassion. “That poor dog. Let’s bring it home with us.” I immediately objected, “The car is already full. If we bring a dog too, we’ll be over the limit. We won’t even be allowed on the road.” Before I had even finished speaking, Evan turned on me without hesitation. “Charles, in that case, why don’t you give up your seat for the dog? You can just take a cab back!”

As Dad lies on his death bed, he rasps to me that his only wish is to watch me get married. I keep crying to the point that my sobs come out silent. My entire family turns to look at Whitney Pearson, who stands behind me. She lets out a small sigh before wiping my tears away for me gently. Then, she leads me out of the ward. But as soon as the door is closed behind us, Whitney's expression turns icy. "Joseph, we've been dating for seven years. You of all people should know very well that I hate getting coerced into doing something the most. "Love is all about going with the flow. We shouldn't let others determine how our relationship should progress." Then, she caresses my cheek reassuringly. "Let's not rush our marriage. We'll talk more about this once things settle down after my company goes public. What do you think? "Anyway, I still have a meeting to get to tonight. You should deal with your family as you see fit. I'll bring a gift for you when I come home later." Before I can say anything, Whitney spins on her heel and leaves with her secretary, Kaiden Xavier. The moment both of them disappear into the elevator, I witness Kaiden bending over slightly to brush Whitney's hair from her face for her. She makes no move to stop him at all. After drying my tears, I return to the ward and take Dad's hand with a smile. "Don't worry, Dad. I'll get married in three days. In fact, I'm still waiting for you to do my tie for me before the start of the ceremony."

"We had a one-night stand and that was it. Goodbye to you." She stated carelessly before grabbing her G-string and exiting the suite. He stood up from the bed, exposing his ten-inch dick, and pulled her to his chest before curling his lips and announcing, "I am the one who says it's over. And I didn't say I am done with you yet." She was intoxicated but began to sober up after hearing his strange words. Her vision was still blurry, but his body odor and colegone became increasingly familiar. She exclaimed, "No!" as she began to recognize him. " No way. That's you!" Before pushing her back to bed, he nodded and smiled and confirmed, "Yes, I am your future stepdad. The person you dislike most." “fuck!”

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?”

"Let's end this. It can't go on any longer." Those words left my lips just as my heart caved in. Tears dropped from her eyes. She pleaded with me. But my mind was made up. More like 'I had no choice.' She might be my mate. But there are a lot of things keeping us from being together. First, she's an Omega. And I'm an Alpha. A union between an Alpha and an Omega was forbidden. My family will never accept her either. Second, she's from Blueberry Pack. And my pack has been at war with her pack for decades. It's like a vendetta. So I can never be with a girl from her pack. But I loved her so much that I was willing to give it a try. See as long as it goes. Too bad our love story was very short-lived. I rejected her on the spot and we never saw each other again. Four years later, our paths crossed. This time, she looks more radiant than ever and has a son. And I never got over my feelings for her. Being away from her put me through hell. I drowned in regrets and missed her terribly. Now I'm ready to risk it all for her, but how do I make her fall in love with me again? How do I convince her that I can be a great mate to her and a great father to our son and that I'm ready to fight for our love? How do I convince her not to fall in love with another? How do I stop her from falling for the CEO Alpha trying relentlessly to win her heart?

The moment our yacht capsized, my childhood friend, Eric, tightly gripped my hand. But I shoved him toward my sister, Lily, and let myself sink into the freezing ocean. In my past life, Eric chose to save me. Lily drowned, her body lost to the sea forever. Though Eric mated with me, he hid a bitter resentment behind a mask of indifference, subjecting me to endless torment. “If it weren’t for you, Lily wouldn’t have died!” he would sneer. Broken by his cruelty, I spiraled into severe depression and died. When I opened my eyes again, I was back on that sinking yacht. Without hesitation, I gave the chance of survival to Lily, stepping aside to let them be together. But I didn’t die. At death’s door, I was rescued by Jason, the most powerful True Alpha of the Northern Packs. I chose him to be my fated mate, and together, we built a life and raised our pup. Three years later, I accompanied Jason to the Alpha Summit. When an urgent boundary dispute called Jason away, he arranged for the local pack to pick me up at the harbor. To my shock, the wolf waiting for me was Eric—someone I hadn’t seen in three years. His eyes lit up with sudden fervor the moment he saw me. “I knew you weren’t dead!” Then, his gaze turned arrogant. “Though Lily and I are already mated, I don’t mind taking you back to the pack. For old times’ sake, I can make you my mistress.”

I have always been interested in nature and loved taking care of animals but never thought this little interest of mine will land me into a world , I never knew about. I have always been a practical nerd working my way up to make my dream my reality, living in my own small world untill I met him. He was the one who introduced me to this world making me realize how we love among other creatures too. No, not animals or birds but werewolves, vampires, elves and what not. We always say world is so small but at the same time we forget how big it can be hiding all kinds of secrets beneath it or maybe purposefully hidden from us. Seeing him for the first time I knew it's not our first meeting... But how??? I never met him before so why my heart keeps telling me otherwise.

My husband and I scratched off a five-million-dollar lottery ticket at a lottery shop. Before we even had time to celebrate, the rosary I had worn since childhood suddenly snapped, a single bead cracking clean off the chain. Without another word, I grabbed him and tried to buy tickets that very night to flee back to the southwestern mountains. The lottery shop owner stared at me in shock. My husband clung to the metal shutter and roared, "Have you lost your mind?" But I gripped that broken wooden bead tightly. "We leave now." My husband flung my hand away, his eyes bloodshot. "I'm claiming this prize today. If you dare run, we're getting divorced!" I nodded without hesitation. "Fine. The five million, plus the used car at home, all go to you. I'll leave with nothing... "But tonight, I have to leave this city."

It was a national holiday and we decided to drive back to my husband's hometown to spend the holidays. One day before we left, my husband's childhood crush came crying to him that she had not managed to buy train tickets home. My husband immediately decided to let her have my seat in the car and insisted that I take the train instead. I looked at him in disbelief. There was shock in my eyes. Even my son insisted I take the train. "Mommy, Aunt Rosie is so pretty. How could you make her take the train?" I did not argue. I booked my train ticket right in front of them. However, it was to my own hometown. I no longer wanted a biased husband and a disloyal son.

We're both heartbroken. Ella lost a fiancé, and I lost a wife. Our paths crossed when I was trying to move on, and she in her denial stage. I thought we could help each other heal our broken hearts, so I tried to remove the guards I had been trying to secure around myself. And before I knew who she really was, I found myself falling in love again. However, fate always slaps me with its irony. Because I found out that all along, she was the secret enemy that had set out to destroy me. All because I was the one who caused her heartaches — the one who killed her fiancé.