Bloodborne Picture

After two years abroad in seclusion as I recovered, I received a selfie from my daughter, Lila Ashford. She was sitting on a bike, dressed in a work uniform. "Mom, you’ll be home soon, right? I miss you so much." My heart softened as I thought about how my girl had grown up. She understood that she needed to start from the bottom and work her way up. I was about to praise her when I noticed her skin seemed tanner, and her fitted shirt was the same one I’d bought her three years ago. It was frayed and worn thin, yet she still hadn’t thrown it away. As a child of the wealthiest family, Lila shouldn’t have to live like this, not even for "life experience". I zoomed in on the picture again. Her shoes were falling apart, the front gaping wide open. The more I looked, the more uneasy I became. The next second, I stumbled across Serena Ashford, my adopted daughter’s posts on social media. She was showing off male models, luxury cars, and on her wrist, the global limited-edition diamond bracelet I had given Lila. What shocked me most was the car that appeared in nearly every photo, the very one I had gifted Lila for her college graduation. How the hell had it ended up with her instead?!

I had a unique profession. I was a breakup specialist. I did not need to go to court or write any contracts for that. That was a lawyer’s job. Everyone kept saying that love was priceless, but a couple who professed their love to each other for an entire night could be paying me tons to break their relationship up the following day. I was shaking my head upon those matters when I received a message from my husband, Matthew Grant, asking me to pick our wedding anniversary’s destination. A few seconds after that, a beautiful woman walked into my office. She appeared timid and had to take a lot of time to summon the courage to speak. “I’d like to hire your services for my boyfriend. He has decided to divorce his wife.” I made no comment as I picked up the documents she had handed me, only to see Matthew’s name on the paper. I froze, while the woman sitting in front of me ducked her head and continued, “My boyfriend says that his wife is a good person and that he doesn’t want to hurt her.” I smiled as I stared at the picture; it clearly was Matthew, but I had the strange feeling of seeing a foreign person too. My heart throbbed, and I could only lament. This was my third year as a breakup specialist, and I was actually hired to break up my own relationship.

In the midst of a bustling city, a young and ambitious CEO, Maya, finds herself entangled in a web of deceit, betrayal and love. As the only child of a multi-millionaire, Maya took over her father's cosmetic company, Stanbic Corporation after he fell ill. As Maya navigates the challenges of being a CEO, she faces opposition from Mike, a ruthless businessman known as the "Red Devil" of the cosmetic world. Mike has been trying to acquire Stanbic Corporation for years but Maya's father had always managed to stay one step ahead. With Maya's father out of the picture, Mike sees an opportunity to finally get what he wants. Meanwhile, Maya meets Alexander, the son of the president, in a coffee shop. Despite their instant attraction, Alexander keeps his true identity a secret, preferring to live a humble life but their relationship is put to the test when Mike discovers Alexander's true identity and begins to use it against him. As the story unfolds, Maya's world is turned upside down. She discovers that her father had an illegitimate child, Christi, who has been seeking revenge against Maya and her family. Christi forms an alliance with Mike, and together they hatch a plan to destroy Maya's reputation and take over Stanbic Corporation. As Maya fights to clear her name and protect her company, she must also confront the demons of her past.

At our wedding, my wife's assistant "accidentally" uploaded the wrong photo. The big screen was supposed to display our wedding portraits. Instead, it was a picture of my wife and him in full wedding attire. Their fingers were laced together, their eyes locked in a soft, intimate gaze, looking every bit like a blissfully happy couple. The entire venue erupted in shocked whispers. The assistant froze in shock, acting like he had no idea why he was in the photo. He started panicking, asking if we should just postpone the ceremony. My wife, however, stayed surprisingly calm. She whispered her solution, “Everyone’s here. Postponing now would be humiliating and, honestly, a bad omen. Beside, most people here don’t even know what the groom looks like. Why don’t we just let him stand in for you?” Our friends were dumbfounded. They all thought I’d explode in anger and jealousy after hearing something so outrageous. Instead, I nodded, saying it was actually a great idea. Seeing how composed I remained, my wife looked pleased with herself. She told me that since we were legally married anyway, she’d make it up to me later with another ceremony. However, she seemed to have forgotten one thing: she had just signed the divorce papers.

I go to the city where my online boyfriend, Logan Wright, lives to surprise him without telling him first. Instead, I overhear him talking with his friends. "So what if her voice is nice? She's probably ugly as hell if she's reluctant to even send a picture. If the hottest girl on campus hadn't turned me down, I wouldn't even bother messing around with someone like her. "Not only is she ugly, but she's also horny as hell. She keeps saying she has to see what I'm packing down there before we even meet." One of his friends snickers. "So did you show her?" Logan let out a low grunt in agreement. "But it wasn't mine. It was Troy's." His friend blurts, "What the hell? Troy Levine? Your roommate? You said he was at least eight inches. Were you serious?" "Of course. Why would I lie to you? Troy is a real bro. Seeing that I didn't want to send that kind of picture, he offered to do it for me." They freeze for a second, then all burst out laughing. I laugh too. I've heard of body doubles in Showbiz. This is the first time I've seen a body double in online romance. I want every detail on Troy, and I want them in the next three minutes!

"Stay awake," he ordered softly, deadly. "Stay, or I swear I’ll fuck you alive right here just to keep your heart beating." *** She signed her submission. Now she has to surrender her soul. Aria Valente is the picture of perfection, billionaire heiress, tech mogul, mafia princess. But beneath the steel facade lies a secret desire to surrender in a world where control is an absolute necessity for survival. To submit. One night at the infamous Crimson Vault BDSM club, she meets a masked dangerous man who makes her knees weak with one command his name is Dominus. Their chemistry is dangerous, their sessions addictive so she agrees to become his submissive under a strict contract. He never shows his face. He gives no name. Only rules. Only touch. Only pleasure. She is summoned by her family and finds out that she was betrothed at birth to the Don of a powerful Moretti mafia this is meant to merge bloodlines and end an old vendetta. Refusal means losing her shares, her company, her freedom. She vows to destroy the union. Until she meets her future husband ,Nero Moretti, the youngest, most feared Don in Italy. And when she sees him she freezes. Because Nero… Is Dominus. Now bound by blood, lust, and secrets, Aria must play his game or lose everything. But what if she doesn’t want to win anymore?

She got pregnant by the man she loved, but he left her. To protect the image of their family, Ayana Salma De’Mario was grounded and hidden, like a bad omen, together with her child. She knows only the walls of her room, her sweet five-year-old girl, her paintings, the young student she is teaching, and this mysterious ghost lover whom she has never met. But a tragedy strikes their family empire. In need of a savior, her family decided to trade the black sheep of the family to save their company. And in the picture is the cold-hearted Adam Stone De'Leon, the most notorious heartbreaker the country has ever had. But the moment he meets Ayana, something changes—something that leaves his walls in shambles. His heart starts beating only for this girl. But Ayana is done being tossed like an object. She yearns for freedom, especially to save her deprived child. But while she battles over what to do, the billionaire baby Daddy returns to claim what he believes is his. As if that is not enough tangle, her ghost lover finally reveals himself—the one whom she thought would take her out of the cage. But he turns out to be the one person she wouldn't have expected—her student. Three smoking hot billionaires, after one lost, desperate, and confused soul. And the tangle begins! Who will win Ayana's heart?  

Sofia Carson is flunking out of college, partying too hard, and one test away from losing everything. So when her friends suggest stealing the answer sheet from the hottest—and most feared—professor on campus, she takes the bait. But Professor Lucien Drake, famously known as Professor Grumpy Pants, isn’t just strict… he’s dangerously attentive. And he's been watching her. He catches her. Cornered, humiliated, and expecting punishment—he gives her a choice instead. One that’s filthy, wrong… and impossible to forget. Now Sofia is living a double life: wild party girl by day, obedient student by night. Lucien demands discipline, and she finds herself craving every forbidden touch, every teasing smirk, every wicked command. What started as a deal turns into something deeper. Something obsessive. Something neither of them are ready to admit. But secrets never stay hidden. With jealous rivals, her golden-boy crush suddenly noticing her, and Lucien’s icy ex back in the picture, the heat becomes a wildfire. And Sofia has to ask herself: Is this just lust? Or is she falling for the one man who could ruin her… forever? She was supposed to hate him. She wasn’t supposed to crave him. She definitely wasn’t supposed to fall in love. He was supposed to teach her a lesson. She never expected to want more. Spicy. Scandalous. Addictive.

Na-bankrupt ang pamilya ni Dianne, iniwan sa kaniya ang mga malalaking utang. Upang mabuhay at makabayad sa utang ay tinanggap niya ang isang offer ng isang bilyonaryo. Kapalit ng 30 million pesos ay magiging asawa siya nito sa loob ng tatlong taon. Si Axl Tyler Chavez, ang pangalawang anak ng Chavez Group. Siya ang naging tagapagmana nang mamatay ang kaniyang kapatid. Upang pangalagaan ang pwesto sa company at pwesto ng first love niya sa kaniyang buhay ay kumuha siya ng isang CONTRACTED WIFE. Ngunit matapos ang dalawang taon at siyam na buwan ay pinutol na niya ang kontrata at binayaran si Dianne. Paano kung malaman niyang buntis si Dianne ng kambal at siya ang ama? Paano kung lumayas si Dianne at itago ang kanilang anak. Handa nga ba si Tyler na iwan ang first Love para sa kaniyang dugo at laman? o handa siyang ipalaglag ang bata mapanatili lang ang magandang relasyon sa First Love. o baka naman, akuin nila ni First Love ang bata at mawala sa picture ang tunay na ina at ang kaniyang ex- contracted wife... is the cassanova having his regret? o he enjoy his life with his first Love?

Before the company Ruby Lane and I built finally landed a multimillion-dollar funding, she had agreed that we would get married once the deal closed. But when I rushed to the celebration party that night, I saw Ruby kissing the investor, Jack Hunter, in front of everyone. Then, she proudly held up their marriage certificate. Jack took the microphone and said, "To prove I'm serious, I didn't just invest money into the company, I gave myself too! My wife will lead this company to even greater heights!" My colleagues all looked at me, expecting me to cause a scene. Instead, all I did was smile as I clapped. "That's great news! I wish both of you a happy life from now on and hope that the company goes public soon!" The entire room went into an uproar. After the party, Ruby pulled me aside to explain what happened. "Jack throws money at this project like it's nothing to him. He just wants to know what marriage feels like, that's all. Did you really have to act that childishly just now? "Once the company goes public, I'll divorce him. Then, I'll make it up to you by doubling the amount of shares you'll get. You can see the big picture, right?" I smiled and stepped back. "Don't bother. The share price would have crashed. We're done, Ruby."