Cantik Itu Luka

The silence stretched between us, heavy and cold. My heart was beating so loudly it felt like he could hear it. I kept my eyes on his, waiting for him to get angry, waiting for him to do something worse. To my surprise, he leaned away But then, he leaned in close, his breath hot against my ear. "Don't think this is over," he whispered, his voice low and menacing. "You may have gotten lucky this time, but mark my words, Denise - I will fuck you soon. Hard. Whenever and however I like. And you will enjoy it because you belong to me. Every part of you. Your mouth. Your pussy. Your ass." Dahlia Rivera has spent her life in her twin sister’s shadow. But when Denise vanishes on the night of her arranged marriage to ruthless mafia don Luca Romano, Dahlia is forced to walk down the aisle in her place. What begins as a sacrifice soon turns into a prison. Cold and unforgiving, Luca reveals she was given to him not for love, but as payment for her father’s debts. Trapped in his mansion, Dahlia braces herself for a loveless marriage—until she glimpses the man behind the don. As danger closes in and passion ignites, Dahlia finds herself falling for the husband she was never meant to have. But Luca doesn’t believe in love—and his silence could break her more than any enemy’s bullet. And when Denise returns, demanding to reclaim what was “hers,” Dahlia must risk everything—not only for Luca’s love, but for her very life.

BLURB ."Ever have that feeling nothing you ever do matters?" This is Lila Vitale's story, being overshadowed by her elder sister all her life no matter the efforts she puts in. Finally, she is put in the spotlight when her elder sister, Lily, abandons her husband because he went blind, and she ( Lila) has to be the replacement by pretending to be her. Lila is not happy about this at first but steps up to the challenge as she is finally seen and relied on by those she cares about. Lucien, a year later regains his eyesight due to surgery. Lila, hopeful to be set free by the truth, gets disappointed when her sister Lily miraculously appears to take back the place she abandoned and the man Lila had grown to love. To make matters worse, Lila realizes she was just a pawn being used all along and overhears death plots about her unborn child. As the betrayal deepens, Lila tries reaching out to Lucien who treats her like a pest, hurting and giving her no choice but to disappear. Not too long after, Lucien figures out the truth and seeks out for her but isn't he too late? Will Lila ever want to let him back into her life again, especially when she is hell-bent on revenge?

"You're so cheap. And you don't even have a basic sense of shame." "I am not cheap at all. You are my first man. But for her, you aren't." He cupped my neck with his hand directly and asked word by word, "What did you say?" I reached out and pinched his waist gently with my fingers, pretending to be cynical. Then I added, "And I'm clean. I don't have any other man but you. You can enjoy me as much as you want." *********************** Every woman was looking forward to marrying her beloved man. So was I. I married Patrick Cowell, the man who I had a crush on for twelve years, in the name of my sister. My sister Caroline and I were twins, but she grew up in a rich and noble family while I grew up in an orphanage. She begged me to marry Patrick as her substitute because she didn't want to marry him. I agreed sweetly. Patrick was the only heir of the richest family in this city. Handsome, rich, and powerful. However, I didn't expect that he treated me cruelly in bed as if I was his enemy. Because he knew I was not his bride? Oh no!!!

England, 1876. Twenty-year-old Maraina Blackwood has always struggled to adhere to the restrictive standards of Victorian society, denying the courage and desire that burn within her soul. But after a terrifying supernatural encounter, Maraina's instincts compel her to action. Maraina soon discovers a plot to unleash a new world—one of demonic aristocrats, bloody rituals, and nightmarish monsters. Putting her upbringing aside, Maraina vows to fight the dark forces assuming control of England. But as her world transforms, Maraina finds that she too must transform...and what she becomes will bring out all that she once buried. ©️ Crystal Lake Publishing

He wanted a replacement. I was the original. For three years, I was Evie, a woman with no past, saved from a tragic accident by the devastatingly powerful Nathaniel Blackwood. He gave me a name, a home, and a purpose as his contract lover. I thought it was love. The night he proposed in a shower of gardenias, I believed my fairy tale had come true. Until she walked back into his life. Serena Sterling. His missing first love. The woman whose face is my mirror image. In a single moment, my world shatters. I discover I’m not his beloved, I’m her gilded substitute. Every detail of my life, from my perfume to my smile, was curated to match her. And now that the original has returned, the copy is discarded. Heartbroken and betrayed, I vanish from his penthouse with nothing but the clothes I wore when I woke up in the hospital three years ago. But my escape uncovers a truth more dangerous than his deception. I am not a nobody. I am Alessandra Vanderbilt, the missing heiress to a billion-dollar empire. The accident that stole my memory wasn’t random, it was an attempt on my life. And the woman who shares my face may have been the one who ordered the hit. Now, I have two battles to fight: reclaiming my legacy from the aunt who wants me gone, and resisting Nathaniel Blackwood, who has realized too late that the woman he threw away is the only one he truly craves. He’s using every resource from ruthless business deals, public grand gestures, and soul-baring groveling to win me back. But how do you trust a man who loved you only as a reflection of another?

For over a hundred years, the human town has provided the next mate for the reigning beasts and this year, a bride is required. Paisley and Nevaeh are from the family mandated to provide the next bride for the reigning beast. Nevaeh has been selected as the eldest daughter while Paisley is engaged to a man she loves. What happens when Nevaeh runs away the night before her collection and Paisley is asked to go in place of her sister to be the bride of the beast.

Dahlia thought that she would be marrying the man of her dreams when she took her twin sister’s place in a political marriage. After spending a passionate night with her groom, she wakes up to find that he wasn’t who she thought he was. Instead of marrying her twin’s fiancé who was her first and forbidden love, she ended up marrying Bradon, the man known as the Mafia King of the underworld. With her sister gone after eloping with her lover and with the country’s economic stability at stake, Dahlia has no choice but to continue playing the role of Bradon’s willing wife. Little does she know that being the Mafia King’s wife would be so physically and emotionally demanding. Being married to the cold, calculating, and dominant Mafia King changes Dahlia’s life forever as his seductive touches tame her body and ignites her soul. With each and caress, he teaches her of pleasures unlike any she has ever known and shows her a way to escape her dark past. Shunned by society and her parents since childhood for always being second to her twin sister, Dahlia’s life had never been easy. With no one to take her side, Dahlia was used to fending for herself, but what if her only way to survive this time around is to find the key to unlock her husband’s cold heart? My other books: Love Slave to the Mafia Boss's Passion, Forbidden Heat, Love Slave to My Devil CEO Boss, Conquering the Emperor, The Alpha Prince's Purchased Maid, and Lust Contracts

“They say every Alpha has a shadow. I was his—a pale imitation of the woman he truly loved. And our sick daughter? An inconvenient reminder of his mistake.” Alpha King Kairi promised Sze forever, but she was just a substitute—a cheaper version of the goddess he truly desired. After years of living a lie, Sze discovers his cruel plan to send her and their sick child away. Broke, desperate, and humiliated, she will do anything to save her daughter, even beg from the monsters of her past. But when Kairi storms back into her life, his protection feels as dangerous as his rejection. Is his sudden change of heart real, or just another game to keep his secrets buried?

Ivy, the overlooked and unloved daughter, never expected to marry into the Hale family—especially not as a stand-in for her perfect sister. Forced into a contract marriage with Rowan Hale, a once-proud heir now confined to a wheelchair, Ivy faces a man whose charm has been replaced by bitterness and whose trust has been shattered by betrayal. Rowan sees Ivy as nothing more than a pawn, another person scheming against him in a world that turned its back on him after his accident. But Ivy sees something different—a man whose wounds run deeper than his legs, a man worth saving. Armed with her secret knowledge of medicine and her unshakable determination, Ivy makes a bold promise: Your legs can be healed. Despite his doubt, Rowan reluctantly lets her in, unaware that her care will not only bring him back to his feet but also restore his will to fight for his place in the world. As Ivy helps Rowan reclaim his life and his legacy, their bond grows stronger, but the shadows of betrayal, family secrets, and a cunning rival threaten to tear them apart. In a battle of hearts and power, can Ivy prove she is more than just a substitute bride? And can Rowan realize that in saving him, Ivy might be the one person who can save herself too?

Ava Parker, the daughter of a notorious American mafia family, is about to marry Riccardo De Lucca, her late sister’s fiancé. He’s the guy she’s secretly loved since the first moment she saw him ten years ago when she was only fourteen years old. After two years apart, she’s shocked to find he’s not the same man she fell for. The Riccardo in front of her is a ruthless figure, ready to turn her life into a nightmare. All she’s ever wanted is to break free. Living in her sister’s shadow has never been easy for her. But fate has other plans for her so it seems. Riccardo has his own reasons for wanting to marry Ava. He’s out for revenge against those who caused his fiancée's death and is willing to go to any lengths to achieve it, even if it means hurting the wrong person. He always thought Ava was meek, but he quickly discovers there’s a fiery spirit in her that drives him wild. As the barriers between them start to crumble, their connection becomes something neither can control. Ava has to navigate the dangerous world of the mafia while grappling with her undeniable attraction to the man she vowed to never love again. And Riccardo? He’s determined to claim her completely—body, mind, and soul.