Blank Featureless Mask

During the holiday, my six-year-old son received his cleft-lip surgery. He wore a mask and sat quietly in our family bookstore, engrossed in a picture book. A young man came in, pinching his nose dramatically as he swaggered up to the manager. "Why did you let someone with an infectious disease in here?" he demanded loudly. "Get them out!" The manager winced. "Sir, I'm sorry, but I don't have the authority to remove other customers." Undeterred, the man marched up to me. "Be wise and get out of here. My girlfriend is Imogen Slater, CEO of the Slater Group. You don't want to mess with me." I froze in stunned silence. Imogen despised all men except me, and this guy claimed she was his girlfriend.

"My life was ash. Burned to the ground. Razed with no chance of rebuilding.Empty.Alone.Just as I had to be.No one else was going to get hurt because of me. No more deaths.For years I’ve secluded myself, stayed in the darkness, and tried to melt into the background. Hiding in plain sight.Taking a new job, working in close confines with a new partner, is risky, and I thought I was up to the task. So I hide behind a mask of my own making, a façade for the world.The problem is, I can’t stop thinking about my new partner. I hate her, but I crave her like she’s the most intoxicating thing I’ve ever encountered.It’s maddening, but I need to stay away. I have to stay away.I can’t love anyone ever again."

What if fate will play two strangers in the most difficult time of their lives? A man who mostly treat killing as a habit and a woman that one's survived death, been saved and now...fate is teasing her life again. What if there's someone wearing a mask of vengeance just to lure her? What if trusting him will make her defeated. Paano ba mahalin ang isang kriminal na gaya ni Peruvian El Fuego? Paano ba magmahal ng totoo? May lalaki pa kayang magmamahal sa babaeng nabalo na at may isang step-daughter na 'sing edad lang niya? Paano kung magiging hadlang din ang estado ng pagkatao at nakaraan nila sa isa't-isa? May puwang pa ba ang salitang 'pagmamahal?' ~ Peruvian El Fuego and Romary Aquisa Jaranilla

“Do you still remember me, Doll? I am Aidan, the fat boy you insulted in high school. The boy that you hate is now back to life. This marriage will be your hell!” Aidan hissed at his newlywed’s wife, Malikha. Aidan hunts down his high school bullies one by one. He saves the last one as an icing on top; she is Malikha Swan. Despite her being his first love, Aidan did not let go of his rage toward her. He frames her into love and marriage. Moreover, Aidan finds that his stepfather, Brandon, is in love with Malikha’s mother. He prompts him as a betrayal. After some efforts, Aidan finally marries Malikha. On their first night, Aidan reveals his mask and his pain towards Malikha, who must pay the price.

Hunter Vaugh, very known in the circuit of clandestine fights as The Sickle, was suspended form UFC for being a very unstable fighter and not being able to restrain his anger out of the rings. He is back to Portland and now dedicates himself to his bar, but he can’t adapt to this slow life. He’s a man who likes the sound of his Harley Davidson and to ride the curves of beautiful women. But behind that bad boy mask, all he desires is to have a woman that’s only his who will accept the beast that lives in him. Margareth Hanks is a veterinarian who just arrived in town, by a blow from destiny she sees herself face to face with Hunter turned into a wolf… He tasted Maggie’s soft skin, seduced by the her tempting scent, now Hunter is obsessed with this woman, he needs to have her at all cost.

Evelyn Rose never imagined her first taste of forbidden pleasure would come at a masquerade ball, hidden behind a mask and lost in the arms of a stranger. But one night with Sebastian Kane, a billionaire CEO, addict, and master of control, leaves her craving more than just his touch. Sebastian doesn’t do love. He does domination. Sex is his escape, his weapon, his addiction. And Evelyn? She’s a temptation he can’t resist, a flame he’s desperate to consume. Their chemistry would ignite a dangerous game of power, pleasure, and obsession. A scandal that could destroy them both. But even as the world tries to tear them apart, Sebastian and Evelyn can’t deny the raw, primal connection that binds them. Not until….. Warning: This book contains explicit scenes, morally complex characters, and a love story that will leave you in suspense.

She was meant to marry Kaelen, the heir of the white pack, that would unite their clans in peace. But she defiles tradition and enters the Pack tournament as a male and one mistake changes everything. Her mask falls…and her fate is claimed by Draven, the ruthless Alpha heir of Duskbane Pack. Bound by the mate bond she never wanted, Liora finds herself torn between loyalty and desire, between the boy who once promised her forever and the wolf who marks her as his. But her secret hides something far greater than the tournament—inside her lies a dormant power the Moon Goddess herself has kept bound. A power that could cure or destroy. As war brews between packs, betrayals fracture the people she thought she could trust. Liora must decide: follow the path the Goddess carved for her… or burn it all to the ground to claim her own destiny.

Savannah Blakemore never wanted to move across the country. New town, new school, and no friends, everything feels unfamiliar. On her first day, she accidentally bumps into Chase Lockwood, the school's star linebacker. One brief moment leaves her heart racing... until his girlfriend turns Savannah into the school's newest target. But fate keeps bringing them together. Through music and unexpected moments, Savannah begins to see the real Chase behind the confident athlete everyone admires. At the same time, the two unknowingly begin forming a connection through an anonymous college chatroom. When they finally agree to meet at the winter masquerade, neither realizes the person behind the mask is the one they've been thinking about all along. Sometimes love appears when you least expect it... and sometimes all it takes is a little Cinderella moment.

On my son’s birthday, my husband had asked his first love to pick our son up from our home. While I stubbornly refused to let him go, a huge fire broke out in the hallway during our standoff. I was struck by falling debris, and blood started streaming from my head. However, my son was unharmed as he lay beneath me. My husband, who was a firefighter, came forward to rescue us. But he handed the only gas mask he had to his first love. “Miss Leia has a weaker constitution. Dad, please get her out first. Mom, wait for the other firefighters to save you!” I watched them leave with a faint, bitter smile. It appeared that they had both forgotten my severe asthma and the fact that I would die without a gas mask.

This is the ninth year Dante and I have honored the Month of No Masters. The Corinni family's heir apparent believes this will make our relationship last longer. For one month after our dating anniversary each year, he is free, and we stay out of each other's lives. If either of us finds someone more suitable, we are to wish them well. If not, we go back to the way things were after a month. Around me, the men of the family are spraying champagne with abandon. "To another year of freedom! Congratulations to our Underboss on reclaiming his bachelor status!" "The family betting pool is open! Place your bets on the left if you think they'll still get married, and on the right if you think it's over for good!" Through the hazy cigar smoke, I sat on the corner of a leather sofa, a cold observer, as if this whole farce had nothing to do with me. Dante's hand was curled around Scarlett's waist as he brushed past me, whispering, "Don't get any ideas. You'll always be my only Donna." "I'm a kite. No matter how far I fly, the string is always in your hand." I pressed my cold fingers against the gentle swell of my belly, my expression a blank mask. Dante, this time at the family's betting table, I'm putting my money on "the end." I'm going to vanish from your world completely. That kite string you're so proud of? Tonight, I'm cutting it myself.