Characters Of The Last Leaf By O Henry

RACHEL:I was supposed to be a bride. Instead, I became a tragedy in a white dress. When your mother dies the same night your groom disappears, you stop believing in happy endings. Then came him. A man with no warmth, no promises and eyes that watched me like I was a puzzle he didn’t want to solve. He saved me once. Now I live under his roof, cooking meals for a stranger whose silence speaks louder than comfort. Then there is Chris, the charming CEO who drowns me in the kind of affection I always dreamt of. And there is Liam, my ex fiance who came crawling back, begging for another chance. But the heart is a stupid thing. Even when it’s broken, it still learns to give second chances. Even for the wrong man. DAMIAN: She was a disaster I didn’t ask for. One I couldn’t ignore. I don’t do emotions, and I sure as hell don’t do strays. But I let her in, just for a while. Rachel Hart is not my responsibility. But she keeps showing up in places I can’t ignore, my company, my home, my thoughts. Now her presence lingers. Her scent. Her voice. Her past. She doesn’t belong in my world. But I find myself rearranging it anyway. And when someone else tries to claim her, They’ll learn the hard way I don’t let go of what’s mine.

Gwyneth Windsor spent her entire life trying to "function normally," but this hard-won, delicate pattern is instantly shattered when she is mysteriously pulled into an infinitely complex interstellar empire. She must suddenly learn new common sense in a world where near-immortal shifters view anyone under 100 as a minor. To her confusion, Gwyneth, despite her adult body, becomes the empire's most coveted 'BABY.' Luckily, she finds a doting family that spoils her utterly, even securing her the lordship of a small, 12-planet galaxy. Yet, Gwyneth's arrival is no accident. While Gwyneth navigates the absurdity of being a pampered 'minor' in an adult body, the universe itself is in peril. Emperor Alaric Lykos, the last of the powerful Royal Fenrir Clan, is the sole anchor of the universe. An ancient prophecy warns that if his line falls, all will collapse. Though pressured to marry, the Fenrir Clan's unique bloodline will only settle for its destined bond, a soulmate whose identity has remained a ghost in the cosmic radar... Until now.

She gave her heart, her loyalty, and her soul to the man who promised her forever. As the perfect Luna, Nicole devoted herself to her pack protecting them, healing them, loving them more than she ever loved herself. But forever shattered the night he returned… holding another woman’s hand. His fated mate. With her heart breaking and her people turning against her, Nicole’s world collapses into a nightmare of betrayal, lies, and a deadly trap set to destroy her. Stripped of her title, cast out, and left for dead, she discovers a dangerous truth, her bloodline carries a power that could change the balance of the werewolf world. Now the woman they tried to erase is back. Stronger. Deadlier. No longer a Luna in the shadows, but a force the moon itself answers to. And this time, she’s not fighting for love. She’s fighting for vengeance. Will she burn them to the ground… or will she let one man prove he’s worthy of the heart they broke?

I was supposed to marry his brother. But on my wedding day, the wrong Alpha showed up. When Calla Winters is forced into a political marriage to secure peace between rival packs, she expects a cold simple life with the gentle Beta, Theo Black. But at the altar, it's not Theo waiting for her, it's Dominic Black, the ruthless, notorious Alpha known for shattering enemies and hearts alike. With her fate sealed by a single signature, Calla finds herself bound to a man she fears and secretly craves for. But Dominic didn't marry her for love. He married her to break her. But how can she resist?.

In a world where dragon shifters once ruled alongside humans in a delicate magical monarchy, a catastrophic war 300 years ago left the dragons nearly extinct. Now, in modern-day Seattle, 25-year-old Maya Chen discovers she's the last fertile female dragon shifter when she spontaneously shifts during a panic attack at her corporate job. The twist: There are only seven male dragon shifters left worldwide, each bound by ancient magic to different elements (fire, ice, storm, earth, shadow, light, and void). Maya's emergence triggers a supernatural召唤 summoning that compels all seven to converge on Seattle, their dragon instincts screaming that the survival of their species depends on her. But Maya isn't interested in being anyone's salvation. She's a fiercely independent software engineer who just learned that her chronic anxiety and "weird dreams" were actually her dragon trying to emerge. As the males arrive—each incredibly powerful, devastatingly attractive, and convinced they're destined to be her mate—Maya must navigate not only her new abilities but also the political intrigue of a hidden supernatural world. The complication: An ancient enemy, the Order of the Silver Chain, has been hunting dragons for centuries and will stop at nothing to eliminate this last chance for the species to survive. Meanwhile, Maya discovers that the seven males can't all survive—the magic binding them means that when she chooses her mate(s), the others will lose their dragon forever. The story blends urban fantasy with romantic tension, found family dynamics, and the pressure of being the key to an entire species' survival while trying to figure out who you really are. However, what if all seven of them were her mates? Would that allow them to save their kind?

As panic sweeps through the city and everyday streets collapse into chaos, Ciprian is driven by one unshakable instinct: protect Adam at all costs. When an unexplained catastrophe turns the urban landscape into a pressure cooker of fear and survival, nothing matters more than keeping his best friend alive. In this fast-paced short story, a sudden crisis forces two friends to confront more than danger. As tension rises and the city descends into disorder, buried emotions, unspoken attraction, and complicated feelings come to the surface. What begins as survival quickly becomes something deeper, binding their fates together in ways neither of them expected. Set against a backdrop of urban collapse, panic, and uncertainty, this emotional short fiction explores friendship, loyalty, and love under pressure. Perfect for readers who enjoy character-driven stories, disaster scenarios, slow-burn emotion, LGBTQ+ themes, and intimate moments set during world-altering events. A gripping short story about connection, courage, and the fragile line between friendship and something more—meant to be read in one sitting, but felt long after.

Buxton Corp's CEO got his ex back. The cost? His pregnant wife vanished without a word. Month One: Calvin didn't flinch. Too busy worshiping his so-called true love. Month Two: His buddies placed bets on when Angela would come crawling home. Month Three: Panic hit. He sent scouts everywhere to find me. Nothing. Not a whisper. After that, "Angela Astor" turned into a curse word in Auremburg. But what no one saw? He missed her so bad at night, it nearly broke him.

The day I found out I was dying, I ran into my ex-husband—yeah, the richest guy in the country—and his three-months-pregnant wife. He asked if I regretted leaving him when he got sick. I just asked for twenty grand. He told me I didn't deserve to live. What he never knew? Back then, when he was fighting leukemia, the only bone marrow match he had... was me.

My bones felt as if they were on fire, my body was burning, my throat hurts and my eyes felt as if it was about to be pulled out of my skull. I've never been this sick before in my life. Something was happening to me, I was sure of that. My teeth were clenched together and I was scared that I might not made it to the morning. *********************************************It all started in the year 1104, when Tiana Sargon betrayed our race. We were all cursed and we've been ruled by the wicked vampire king, Amara Conrad, who sees us as nothing but animals. Eight princesses had came and fought but they all losed to him. Now it's my turn, I am the last princess

Cane Lorenzo, a Mafia boss in Francisco City, entered into a contract marriage with Rachael, an enemy's daughter, for a truce. He manipulated Rachael into falling in love and made her easy to access information. When he divorced her, he felt empty and unintentionally grew fond of her. Rachael, determined to find a new heart, refused to accept Cane back into her life. Cane is on a mission to stabilize his mafia business and get his woman back.