Chipmunk Cheeks

Before my crazy grandmother died, she gave me three walnuts. According to her last wish, I cracked open the first walnut on my twenty-fifth birthday. Inside the walnut was a slip of paper. 'Go to the skybridge and grovel at the first beggar you meet' was the instruction written on it. When I looked at the note, I could feel my cheeks burning with embarrassment. Still, I did as told. To my surprise, the beggar turned out to be an undercover cop. Only later did I learn that I had long been targeted by human traffickers, and the bow had saved my life. As for the second walnut, my grandmother told me to crack it open before I got married. When I put on my wedding dress, ready to marry the policeman who saved me, I happily opened it. This time, there was a crumpled old photograph inside. In the photo, my fiancé was smiling as he strangled another bride.

"I love you, Evelyn..." "Don't you dare tell me that. Your mom fucking killed my parents. Even if she didn't want us together, why the hell did she have to kill my parents?" Tears drips down her cheeks as she stares at him with resentment. This is the same man she used to love with everything in her, the man that used to be the source of her happiness, but now all she feels for him is hatred. "I won't spare you or your mom, Jayden. Your family will pay for this pain you have caused me!" She screams as she falls to her knees and cries her eyes out. Evelyn's relationship with her boss was the craziest that ever existed, but they never knew that they'd eventually fall in love with each other, until the feelings set in and they couldn't control it. However, things went bad as the biggest obstacle in their relationship surfaces, and lives had to be sacrificed. Will this relationship last forever?

The sound of church bells, melancholy but resounding, reached the heart of a nearby girl during a sacred marriage in progress. In the middle of the church is a couple of bride and groom saying their vows, the bride's gentle face smiling. The groom is tall and stylish, lightly kissing the bride's cheeks, with a loving expression this scene is so happy, it makes many people dream. However, she was the only person in the lonely and lonely hall, silently mourning and heartbreaking. Can she not be heartbroken the person she loves is getting married, and the bride is not her. Didn't I say I liked you didn't I say I wanted to live with you why did I go to hug another woman after the night of my confession. You say that you like me is cheating, joking, or acting, but how can my heart love you take it back. The beautiful girl's eyes are sparkling transparent tears slowly fall to the music of the wedding, is there any more painful moment like this?..

I'd been engaged to Ivan since we were kids. When he went off to the military, I stayed behind—ten years of caring for his paralyzed mom, putting my whole life on pause. By the time he came back, I was at the age where most women were settling down. And he showed up with someone else. Ivan laid it out, stone cold: "Nadia's my comrade's widow. If you want to marry me, you'll have to accept her too. Most of my pay goes to her. I promised I'd take care of her. She gets first pick of everything in the house. Don't like it? Then forget about getting married." I looked past him. Nadia stood there, tears dripping down her cheeks, playing the poor little victim. Right then, I ended it. No drama. No regrets. Signed up for the Rural Teaching Support Program the same day. Left love behind. Threw everything I had into teaching.

Vanessa, a timid yet strong she-wolf decides to take a job as the personal maid to the Prince Alpha Noah to save enough to pay back a money lender her family is deeply indebted to. She was determined to keep it strictly professional, but when she looks into his eyes and her nose tingles with his musky aroma, will she be able to keep that promise? She falls head first for a playboy who loved seeing the color rise in her cheeks and her eyes flutter with lust. He thought he could never fall in love, let alone with a commoner. When she wanted him to mate with her, he rejected her. Dejected, Venessa returns home but her journey to love was hardly over. The money lender, in the shape of a tall, mysterious man appears and he intends to collect his debt in kind. He wants Vanessa. How will the over-possessive Noah react to another man claiming who he thought belonged only to him, to be played and toyed with as he wished? Vanessa has the two most powerful and handsome men fight tooth and nail for her...who will she choose?

In her right state of mind, she would never have even been in a strangers car more less kissing him deeply at the backseat, but she wasn't in her right state of mind. Jeff's hand came down her face, to her neck, he held her waist gently and she let out a soft moan. She had nothing on but a silk gown that had thin straps. “Sir, ma'm we're here" Walter said out loud. They hadn't noticed the car had stopped some minutes ago. Emily's cheeks flushed with embarrassment and she quickly sat upright, and picked her purse and heels. …. They had a misunderstanding when they met, an intimate moment the second time they met. All a big misunderstanding and they swore to never cross paths again. Little did Emily know Jeff was her new boss and the first son of Frank Aston, Billionaire and Head of Aston corporations. Third time’s the charm, but not for these two who knew they had fallen for each other but couldn’t be together.

Gideon Hart, a man known for keeping every woman at arm's length, gets drugged and wakes up in a hotel with me lying beside him. Afterward, he comes to me and offers ten million as compensation. When I remain silent, my best friend, Lena Quimby, jumps in like she's been waiting for her cue. She snaps that money can't buy everything, trying to reject the offer on my behalf. Before I can say a word, comments start flashing before me like a live stream chat. "Here we go! The male lead, the female lead, and the side character are all on screen together!" "Lena's so classy. Way better than that gold-digger Evelyn." "Watch Evelyn reject the money and still get clowned!" "Who wouldn't pick the sweet, innocent heroine?" Glancing at Lena's flushed cheeks and the way her eyes stick to Gideon, I almost let out a cold laugh. Then, I turn to the man in front of me and hold up my Venmo QR code. "Sure. Wire it!"

Due to my husband's unique status, I did not reveal his identity to my mother after we secretly married. My family was about to be relocated during the holidays, and I took the opportunity to visit my hometown. When I got home, my mother locked me in my stepbrother's room. I questioned my mother about it, and she said, "We're about to be relocated. If you get pregnant, the baby will be counted as an extra person. We'll be compensated with one more house and millions of dollars extra." I begged my mother to release me, but she said that it was better for me to stay in the family than marry into another one. "You and your brother aren't related, anyway. We can even save on dowry." I refused, so my mother got my brother to beat me up until I bled. As the date for the entire town to relocate approached, the developers arrived to distribute the compensation. My husband was among those who arrived. When he saw my bruised cheeks and the bump on my stomach, he went crazy.

Blurb Five years ago, the 18-year-old Mia was the most naive Italian teenager ever. The people she trusted took away her inheritance, identity, and fiance. Finally, she was thrown into the bed of a stranger. That night changed everything in her life. Five years later, she returned to Italy as a world-class model with a secret child. "Mommy, take a quick peek at that handsome uncle", the small girl with a ponytail cupped her cheeks and had a dreamy look on her face. Mia sighed and replied, "Chiara, don't forget our agreement. Anyway, that stranger is not half as handsome as your Dad". The said stranger had a darkened expression on his face. His subordinates felt the urge to laugh but his oppressive aura wouldn't let them do it. That was the first time their boss met a woman who wasn't afraid of offending him. Mia's goals upon her return are only three. One, bring down her enemies and take back her inheritance. Two, Restore her identity as an Arturo. Three, Find the man from that night. What if fate has other plans for her?

[WARNING: MATURE CONTENT] BDSM. NO CHEATING! My wedding was a day I looked forward to the most throughout my teen. I couldn't contain my joy at the prospect of marrying the man who had been the object of my affection for such a long time—my future husband. But who would have thought I was merely a naive girl believing we shared similar emotions? My entire world came crashing down when my wedding night turned out to be the most horrifying night of my whole life. **** "Untie these cuffs!" I was in so much pain that I couldn't move, nor could I bear it any longer. "Why on earth would I do that? We aren't yet finished here." His tone was hostile. “What?” I was shocked beyond belief. He reached out and grabbed me by the restraint he had used to tie me up and pulled me closer to himself. Then he stroked my cheeks soothingly while staring me dead in the eyes. “Oh, honey. We have not yet had our first night!!"