Better Than Before Lynn Painter Novels & Stories

(COMPLETED) Krystal Hunter died with a broken heart, a knife in her back, and one regret—she finally won the damn lottery right before she died. Ten million dollars, untouched, deposited in the bank… wasted. Or so she thought. Because when Krystal wakes up in a hospital bed—very much not dead—the world has gone to economic hell. The global economy has collapsed, the dollar has depreciated into dust... and her forgotten bank account? Now worth one hundred billion. With the world burning and billionaires falling like flies, Krystal is no longer the girl they betrayed. She’s richer than empires, hungrier than ever, and back to collect what she’s owed—with interest. Ex-lovers, fake friends, and bloodthirsty siblings beware: She died once. She’s not dying quietly again. A deliciously savage romantic revenge comedy about wealth, power, payback, and kissing someone hot while the economy collapses.

There was an open secret among upper-class society. The wealthy man, Brandon Anderson, loved his wife to death. However, he was addicted to cheating on her. He would give everything those young women wanted from him, but he had one strict rule for them: not to expose anything to his wife. Everyone knew that he had loved his wife for ten years, and he had put in a lot of effort to marry her. He had once said that if his wife died, he would not survive. However, this latest mistress did not follow his instruction. She came to me because he doted on her. She sent me a lot of photos of condoms and his sleeping face. “Ms. Lowe, this brand is too good. I was screaming the whole night. Has Mr. Anderson ever used that with you?” It was that moment that I realized the young man who was infatuated with me had given his heart to me, but his body to other people. When I saw the photos, I cried so hard that I had no more tears. Then, I drafted a divorce agreement and signed it. I turned around and saw Brandon, seventeen again, crying as he stared at me.

I married her because I was forced to… I treated her like a stranger… And now, I’m losing her forever. Hannah was my wife. My mother forced me into the marriage, yet I ignored the woman who loved me more than anyone ever could. I pushed her away, rejected her, and watched her devotion crumble while I remained blind to what mattered most. She left. Five years ago. And at that moment, I didn’t care. I thought I could live without her. I was warned I’d regret losing her forever. I thought it was just words. I was wrong. Now, she’s back. Not the timid girl I once knew. Not the woman I could control. She’s a force to be reckoned with…a CEO, a business mogul, untouchable, admired by everyone…and utterly beyond my reach. And as if my regret wasn’t enough, another man steps into her life: a billionaire… my friend, the one who warned me all those years ago. The one who now holds her attention, her trust… maybe even her heart. I watch, helpless, as the woman I abandoned thrives without me. My empire is crumbling, my pride shattered, and my heart…irreversibly hers. I lost her once. I cannot lose her again. But can I win back the woman who no longer belongs to me…or will I watch the love of my life slip into the arms of the man who already deserved her?

"You kill so wonderfully well, little Raven," he murmured, his voice incredibly smooth, "but you did a terrible job hiding yourself. That beautiful scent of yours... wood, jasmine, and blood. It's unmistakable." Thirteen years ago, ten-year-old Romy Hawthorne hid in the vineyard and watched the Supreme Alpha, Rowan Ashwing-Kael Vexley, pull a bloodied blade from her sister’s chest as her home burned. Now, Romy is "Viper"—a lethal, wolf-less assassin. When a twenty-million-dollar bounty drops on the man known as the Beast of Flames, she eagerly takes the job. Her mission: infiltrate his territory, plunge a silver knife into his heart, and avenge her family. But her target is a dangerously powerful Fire Lord who has spent the last decade hunting the real syndicate that murdered his fiancée. When Romy breaks into his stronghold, he doesn't find a victim, he finds the surviving little sister of the woman he lost. And to their absolute horror, she is his fated mate. Bound by an agonizing supernatural tether where every ounce of physical pain she inflicts on him is violently mirrored in her own body, Romy is completely trapped. With enemies closing in, she must make a choice: Will she fulfill her lifelong vow and kill the monster who ruined her life? Or will she surrender to the intoxicating fire of the Alpha who would burn the world down to keep her safe? #Enemies to Lovers #Fated Mates #Assassin/Alpha #Touch Her and Die #Revenge #Forced Proximity, #Misunderstanding #Hidden Identity #Steamy.

Vampires only ever took one mate in their lifetime. And yet, my vampire husband refused to acknowledge me—his human wife, bound to him through an arranged marriage. On the night of our tenth wedding anniversary, Jason brought another woman into my bed. She was wearing my nightgown. She was carrying his child. And in my hand, I held a pregnancy test I'd just had confirmed. "Be reasonable, Elena. Jessica just conceived my child. She needs me." "Go sleep in the guest room. I'm sorry for the inconvenience." My husband shielded the other woman, his smile polished and gentlemanly, though his eyes held the same icy indifference they always did. When he saw me frozen in the doorway, Jason assumed I was going to do what I always did. Scream. Cry. Demand to know why he kept doing this to me. But he didn't know—this time was different. The ten-year contract had come due, and I was finally leaving him for good.

The day before the ceremony, my Alpha Heir mate Lysander brought home an Omega who still bore an old mark — and insisted she become his Luna. The beautiful, fragile-looking Omega leaned against his chest, her eyes red. "I can't. If you keep me, my mate will die without me." Lysander answered lightly, "Then I'll give up my Luna-to-be. We'll trade. I'll order him to break your mark at once." The Omega laughed softly. "That’s for the best. But are you sure you don't mind?" Lysander smiled back. "A dull puppet who spent her whole life waiting to be marked by me. How could she compare to you?" She glanced around the chamber and pouted. "I don't like any of this. It was all prepared for her." Lysander kissed her forehead. "I'll replace all of it. Something better. For you." Their love story became the talk of the realm. And no one cared that I was the "dull puppet" who had been traded away.

Marcus Blackwood was sent to kill me. He was supposed to get close, earn my trust, and end my life before I ever discovered what I truly am. But neither of us expected the bond, it happened so fast. At thirty, I thought I had everything, being the CEO of my family’s billion-dollar empire, flawless reputation, a future perfectly mapped out. The world saw a brilliant businessman. They didn’t see the nightmares, the struggles for being lonely and sex starved. Keeping the facade of being a perfect son and a perfect CEO. The woman drenched with blood calling my name. The wolves howling beneath a crimson moon. I was never meant to live in the human world. I am the forbidden son of a vampire princess and a werewolf beta,the hidden heir whose birth once nearly destroyed both clans. A living prophecy powerful enough to reignite a war buried in blood. And Marcus? He was raised by the Vampire Elders to obey without question. His mission is simple: Find me. Understand me, and kill me. But the closer he gets, the more dangerous everything becomes. Because he doesn’t look at me like a target. He looks at me like I belong to him. And when enemies begin to crave each other, when assassins hesitate, when fate binds two men who should never touch… War is no longer the greatest threat, but love is..... And if he has to choose between his orders and my life I don’t know if he’ll kiss me… Or finish the job.

In my past life, I was the ladder they used to climb to paradise. In this life… I am the abyss they will fall into.” Elena Vane died in the freezing ruins of Oakhaven Central Infirmary—betrayed by her husband, Julian, and her stepsister, Lydia. They stole her fortune, destroyed her family… and took the Lunar Ring—the only key to surviving the coming apocalypse. As monsters clawed their way to her door, Elena realized too late— her greatest mistake was trusting them. [DING! Regression successful.] She wakes up eighteen months before Day Zero. This time, the naive heiress is gone. Armed with the Sovereign Space, Elena begins her quiet war: To destroy the man who once owned her future. To ruin the woman who stole her life. To take back everything before the world falls apart. But her most dangerous move may be Caleb Thorne—the infamous Ice King… a man who looks at her like he already knows how this story ends. The frost is coming. And this time— Elena Vane won’t just survive. She will make sure they don’t.

At our high school reunion, my ex announced he was getting married. In the middle of the congratulations, someone piped up. “Hey, where’s Wren tonight? She didn’t show?” The whole room cracked up. “Wren? Probably still earning her keep in some rich guy’s bed.” “She dumped James for money, and now look at him. He’s the wealthiest guy in New York. Bet she’s kicking herself.” Someone snickered. “I heard the guy’s some fat old man. God, how does she even stomach it.” I broke up with James Thorne the year he loved me the most, and walked straight into the arms of another man, a man with money. Now he had a new girlfriend, he’d taken over Thorne Capital, and he was one of New York’s most talked-about young executives. He’d organized this reunion because he couldn’t wait to show off how good his life had turned out. “Enough. Drop it.” In the middle of the laughter, James spoke up. “I have a better life now. Whether Wren is dead or alive has nothing to do with me anymore.” “What if she really were dead?” The room went silent.

WE'RE BACK! Yes, your favorite cousins are back at it again, but this time it ain't about me. So, buckle up and grab your wine glasses, because it's gonna be crazy! Mina’s POV: Wait a damn minute. Am I in hell? Because if I am, I need to speak to HR. I didn't even get a chance to plead my case, give a reference or something. I'm about to start freaking out because, I'm not a “go to hell” and mean it type of person. I can't do heat for five minutes let alone an eternity. I feel like giving my life to save a baby and a man should have gotten me at least joint visitation six months in heaven and six months in hell. “Mina, are you awake?” I heard the voice quietly say next to my ear. I tried opening my eyes, but it felt like I had sand in them. I decided to try speaking, but only let out something that sounded like a sick animal. "Wait right there let me get you some water.” I heard a voice whisper again. Who the hell is that? I have heard that voice before but couldn't figure out who the hell it was. “! We need to move; they've found us.” The voice came again. Wait, what? Who the hell are they? I tried opening my eyes again, this time I managed to get them open enough to see the figure picking me up bridal style. Then the stranger turned his head to look directly in my eyes and I knew instantly who it was. “Blaze? You gotta be shitting me.” I said, obviously shocked. “Hey, can we join the party? I hope you are serving food because we are famished.” I heard a man say.