Cherry Blossom In The Winter

My father bought twin brothers from the black market to serve as bodyguards for me and my sister. My sister chose the tall, strong older brother, leaving me with the frail, mute younger one. Feeling sorry for him, I kept him close, seeking doctors for his silence and maintaining distance to respect his apparent OCD. I thought trauma had shaped him that way. But when our father's enemies kidnapped us, he abandoned me without hesitation, choosing to die shielding my sister. In his final moments, he spoke for the first time. "You finally see me." To me, he said, "In the next life, please don't choose me." I realized then that he was neither mute nor afflicted with OCD. His silence and aversion were directed solely at me. When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day we chose the bodyguards. This time, I'd grant his wish.

Gumuho ang mundo ni Cherry Villafuerte sa paulit-ulit at harap-harapang pagtataksil ng kanyang nobyo. Dahil sa pagkabigo, parang nawalan ng direksyon ang buhay niya, at napilitang mag-leave sa trabaho. Ngunit sa kanyang pagkalugmok, isang lalaki ang biglang pumasok sa buhay niya—si Reynan Cuevas, ang dating masungit at suplado niyang pasyente, siya ang tila naging ilaw sa madilim niyang mundo. Sa kanilang hindi inaasahang pagkikita, may kakaibang alok sa kanya si Reynan. Isang solusyon na maaaring magpapalaya sa kanya mula sa sakit—isang kasal na kontrakwal. Ngunit handa ba siyang sumugal sa kasanduang kasal na hindi tiyak ang kahihinatnan? O mananatili siyang magpapagapos sa relasyon na siya lang ang nagmamahal?

Celeste Winters was born chosen, marked by the Moon Goddess, destined for power, and tied to a future she never fully wanted. But when a cursed moonstone dagger strikes her down, it doesn’t just nearly kill her; it erases her. Her memories vanish, her bond to her mate is severed, and the power that once defined her is ripped away, leaving behind someone unrecognizable, even to herself. In a desperate attempt to save her, those closest to her turn to the Moonwell, an ancient force said to heal what cannot be fixed. The water answers, but not with mercy. Instead of restoring Celeste, it changes her. What the moonstone stole, it replaced, twisting something inside her into its opposite. Now, Celeste is caught in a battle she cannot control. One moment, she seems almost like herself, quiet, distant, but there. The next, something darker takes over. The air around her grows heavy, her presence sharp and unfamiliar, and the world itself begins to react to her in ways it never has before. She knows something is wrong, but trying to remember only causes pain, forcing her further into the unknown version of herself she’s becoming. As the truth unfolds, it becomes clear that the moonstone obeyed an ancient balance, stripping her of her light and replacing it with darkness. And now, that darkness is winning. With time running out, Silas must find a way to reach the girl he lost before she’s gone for good. Because if Celeste fully becomes what the moonstone made her… There may be nothing left to save.

EZREN: Kiss or kill. Those were always the two options left.. until the past walks back into my life in the form of blue eyes, ginger curls, and a tattoo he swears I should remember. Knox Graye. A diagnosed psychopath. Says he was my brother’s boyfriend. That I left him to die and that I hold the only truth to his death. He is everywhere. Digging up my lies. Ruining what’s left of my life. Call me ‘Cherry’ like it means something. I swear I hate it. I hate him. I don’t know if he wants closure, revenge, or just someone to break. Either way, I’m his target and his third option. KNOX: Everyone thinks I’ve got a loose screw in the head but they're wrong. I lost the whole damn toolbox, buried six feet under with the only person I ever loved. I've spent six years grieving. Dying in pieces while he rots away in a grave but now? Now someone else walk around in his bones, smiling with his lips like he fuckin’ owns it. Like I wouldn’t recognize my own goddamn Cherry. Except now he calls himself Ezren. Cute. He thinks he has been hiding behind top grades and golden-boy charm, but I built his whole damn maze. And now that he's close? I’m done with subtlety. I want chaos in his veins, his secrets peeled off like skin. I want to crawl into the part of his head where he still hears his brother’s laugh and whisper: “You were always mine." He doesn’t know it yet, but I’m going to dismantle him. Brick by fucking brick. And when he finally breaks, I’ll be there to offer him a choice. “Kiss or kill, Cherry?”

"You've been in denial for so long, Addison ndria." His voice was husky and heavy with lust. "Do you really want me to stop?" I could not bring myself to say no. My best friend's stepdad was like the devil, making me find so much pleasure in sin. "You can't even say no," he chuckled, letting go of my hand finally. They moved to my face and he stared into my eyes, while his other hand still worked wonders between my legs. "Don't make me do this," I finally said, moaning the words out. "Please." "Tell me to stop one more time and I will," he mumbled. "Please, st—" I didn't complete my words because he captured my lips with his.  *+*+*+*+*+*+* Addison Rodriguez never expected to feel any sexual tension or fall in love with her best friend's stepdad. As she surrenders to the sexual tension, her loyalty to her best friend wavers, especially when she finds out that he is secretly a Mafia Lord trying to hide in plain sight and that her best friend's life is in danger, her loyalty is tested even further. Would she reveal his secret to protect her best friend, or keep it to protect her love?

My dad is a fan of tough love parenting. When I was a kid, there was a time when I obtained full marks on two subjects. But he told me, "Your grades don't mean anything in life. If you were a true man, you'd leap down five floors without batting an eyelash." Some time later, I was awarded for my act of bravery. But Dad scoffed in my face. "Not even a hair is harmed on your head. Why should you be awarded anyway?" I thought Dad wanted me to go through more training in life. On Christmas Eve, he ditched me on a snowy mountain under the guise of wanting me to go through more training. He didn't give me a tent or a lighter. Later on, Dad even brags about his parenting method to his relatives and friends. "A real man should survive and thrive in a desperate situation! I told Julian that he can forget about being my son if he can't even make his way back to the summit!" But the red dot on the GPS tracker installed in his phone hasn't moved for the past three hours. The truth is, I've already frozen to death in the mountains. Trapped in my fist is a crumpled, torn scrap of paper. Meanwhile, my soul is currently floating above the dining table while watching Dad brag about his tough love parenting.

With his hair as white as snow, blue eyes carrying weight as deep as the ocean and porcelain skin that looks almost translucent under the sun, Gavin has become his pack's subject of ridicule and abuse. At first it was just because of his appearance, and then he presented as an omega, the lowest of ranks, and it just only became worse. On top of that, he’s the only one who couldn’t even shift, a disgrace of a shifter who cannot even embrace their wolf. Living his whole life like this, he has come to accept it, and acknowledged that maybe this is really just his fate.A news of a pack visiting to look for their pack alpha’s son’s mate spreads like wild fire and soon after, everyone in his pack prepared of it. Everyone waited with bated breaths only for them to be beyond disappointed when the alpha’s eyes landed on Gavin, eyes glinting gold. With both packs unhappy with the turn of events, how would Gavin’s life turn out now? If only they knew who he really is, if only he knew, would he have allowed them to look down on him like this?In between disapproving looks and attempts to get rid of him, Gavin finds love whom he had ever only heard of before, the kind of love that people wrote and sang about, cried for, and died for.“Has anyone ever told you that you resemble snow? Your voice reminds me of it, gentle, almost crooning, but still cold. Even your scent, cinnamon and a bit like molasses. You greatly remind me of winter.”“Really? That’s lovely to hear. I love winter.”He smiles.“So do I.”

“I'm not a tool to satisfy your sexual cravings!" I yelled. But the moment I spilled those word as it stirred up something in him. “You are mine! Mine to keep, to rule. Your body, your soul, everything about you belongs to me!" He growled, pinning me against the wall. His hands traced every inch of my skin and I shiver at the thought of things he could do to me. ★★★ On the night of her 20th birthday, everything changed. In a bid to get out of her miserable life, Jasmine decides to run away from her abusive family into the arms of her mate/boyfriend, justin. The man she had trusted, the man she had given everything. He betrayed her in the most brutal way. Drugged, violated, and sold like property, she woke up in a dimly lit room, hands and feet bound. She wasn’t alone. Other women sat in silence, some sobbing, others too broken and hurt to react. It was only when she was dragged into a grand hall that the horrifying truth became clear. She was being auctioned and bought by a mysterious bidder. Alpha Jemah was everything the rumors said that he was, cold, calculating, and dangerously controlling. At the auction, the moment he set his eyes on Jasmine, he knew there was something special about her and immediately bought her. His rules were simple, a contract relationship in exchange for freedom. No feelings attached, No bridging of contract. With tension rising and chains breaking forbidden desires pull them closer but dark hidden secrets threaten to sever their bond.

The news that Angelo Rizzo was becoming the new Don of Brucklin District had spread throughout the entire family. Everyone knew except me, Lila Bennett, his fiancee. He had always thought I was childish, like an irritating tail he couldn't shake off, sticking to him wherever he went. "I've only managed to bag Brucklin District all thanks to Cyrus." The study door was ajar as the scent of cigar smoke drifted out along with his voice. "Lila? Why bring her up? She's annoying. Like a piece of gum stuck to your hair." I crouched on the hallway carpet, lost in thought. Before, it was always Angelo leaving first and me realizing it too late. This time, I wanted to surprise him by going to Brucklin ahead of him. When he saw me there first, he'd realize that I was smart. But the next day, at the bus station, when the driver asked where I was going, I mixed Brucklin and Mannattan up. The driver grew impatient. Afraid he'd call me an idiot like Angelo would, I hurriedly shove the money at him. "To Mannattan! I'm going to Mannattan District!"

Bloom, a 25 year-old single mom, loses her low paying job and must find a way to not just get herself a new job to cater for her 5 year-old son, but also landing one that pays much better than the one she was practically kicked out of. Plain, shy and antisocial Bloom Santiago is forced by her big brother to take up a job interview at W.M Companies to fill in the position of the C.E.O's secretary. But this shy 'Fluffy Little Rabbit' is lured and caught up in a whole new dangerous world that threatens the peace and tranquility of her little innocent world when she unfortunately attracts the desolate eyes of the Ice King, Hayes Warren. He's cold-hearted, introvertive and always seems to walk around bearing an ominous aura that reflects the void of his soul. Lost in the looming narrow corridors of his past, he chases after a woman he only met once. But what is this? Why does this little fluffy rabbit intrigue him so much? "You're hired" After his encounter with her, this little Rabbit successfully begins to hole her way into his heart with a relentless force he's never experienced before. Will the emotions the Ice King decisively buried away into the deepest abyss of his soul, ever be revived again? And will Bloom be able to survive in his resplendent, desolate abyss and save him from himself?