Cicero Library Hours Novels & Stories

For 1,095 days, Maya Vance was a ghost. She cooked three-star meals for a man who didn't know her favorite color and kept his failing shipping empire afloat with anonymous billions. She was the "Safe Choice." The "Placeholder." On their anniversary, Lucian Blackwood brought home his "White Moonlight," Cynthia Thorne. With a cold flick of a pen, he handed Maya a divorce decree. "She’s back. I don't need a substitute maid anymore. Get out." Maya didn't cry. She smiled—a smile that should have terrified him. Within twenty-four hours, the Blackwood name is erased from the stock exchange. The mysterious "Phoenix," the world’s youngest tech trillionaire, emerges from the of shadows to dismantle Lucian’s life piece by piece. When Lucian finally tracks down the woman ruining him, he doesn't find his "homely" ex-wife. He finds an Empress on a throne of his broken dreams. Now, he’s on his knees in the rain, begging for a second chance. But Maya Vance doesn't give second chances. She only gives invoices.

I thought I was the Conti family's "legitimate wife." Until the day I saw it with my own eyes, my husband, Christian, resting his hand on my stepsister Emma's bump belly, gentle like he was cradling the future. Everyone told me to be "big-heated": when the baby was born, they'd put it under my name, make him call me Mom, because the family needed an "heir." Even the private doctor they hired announced it in front of everyone—steady heartbeat, and from the ultrasound, it looked like a boy. I didn't cry and didn't make a scene. I just picked up the phone and told my lawyer to initiate the divestment. Twenty-four hours later, Christian's cards were frozen, his projects got their loans yanked, and assets started getting seized— That's when he finally understood: he hadn't betrayed a wife. He'd betrayed the lifeline of the entire family. But what I really wanted to know was— When he dropped to his knees and begged me to come back, would I tell him— I had already picked out his grave?

Kimberly White got a job in one of the biggest company in Germany after she ran away from her stepfather and stepbrother who made life miserable for her. She was to be the secretary of a strange CEO who left his seat vacant for almost a year and half. When the staffs have a problem, they take it to his mansion to sort it out. Some of the new staffs haven't seen his face before. Damien Anton is the CEO of the company, no one knows why he decided not to come to his company. But at last, he came back looking more cold and inhuman all of a sudden. He needed a new secretary and eventually employed Kimberly because he met her few hours to her interview. It was a very bad meeting. Damien made life difficult for her but Kimberly being a no-nonsense girl would sometimes talk to him back not caring about loosing her job. Kimberly knew something was wrong when she found out Damien many weakness. Darkness has been surrounding him. She decided to find out what happened to him and will do her very best to bring him out of darkness?

She was supposed to be a just another girl behind the bar. He was never supposed to remember her just another night to forget. But that one night... changed everything. Aria Lane has known pain for as long as she can remember. Orphaned in a tragic accident and taken in by a family that sees her only as a burden with a price tag, she works long hours just to survive. When a mysterious, powerful stranger walks into the bar one stormy evening, she doesn't expect him to notice her. Let alone offer her something that feels both wrong and irresistible. Damien West... young, dangerously handsome, and heir to a billion-dollar empire has secrets buried deeper than his pockets. One night with Aria was supposed to be a mistake he could walk away from. But Aria can’t walk away not when she finds herself pregnant and alone. With no money, no support, and no way to find the man who changed her life with a single touch, she must fight to protect her unborn child... and herself. What happens when their paths collide again? Will the truth tear them apart or bind them forever?

The day my father was kidnapped, I called my billionaire husband in tears, begging him to save my father. After listening, he chuckled lightly. "I already transferred three million to you. Make sure you stop bothering Luna." I hurriedly agreed, and the money was immediately sent to the kidnappers' account. But just as they were about to untie my father, my husband used his influence not only to reverse the ransom payment, but also to freeze the kidnappers' account. Feeling deceived, the kidnappers completely snapped. They tortured my father for three straight hours before finally killing him. On the way to collect my father's ashes, I saw every giant advertising screen across the city covered with photos of him and his newly hired assistant, Luna Henderson. After returning home and settling my father's ashes, I called my husband. "Let's get divorced." On the other end of the line came his teasing laughter with Luna. "This again? Luna said you've been spending too recklessly, so I punished you a little. You're not actually mad over something this small, are you?"

Synopsis - Isabelle Ellwood, a plain, fuller-figured 19-year-old, hides her poetic soul and dreams of teaching behind dry wit, overshadowed by her beautiful sister who is counted as a family jewel for her grace and beauty and an ambitious father dreaming of snagging a royal title. When Prince Sebastian Nathaniel Winthorne, a bold, dark, and formidable warrior-king at 30, announces a bride-selection season at Cresthaven Palace, Isabelle dares to hope—not for love, but to glimpse the scarred-handed savior of her childhood. Unbeknownst to her, and him, he’s Sebastian, whose commanding presence and passionate heart blind him to her worth, fixated instead on the angelic Amelia Everhart, Isabelle's dearest friend. A secret library meeting shatters Isabelle’s illusions: Sebastian seeks her help to woo Amelia, praising her mind yet oblivious to her love. Their friendship deepens—his admiration grows, her longing festers—culminating in a rain-soaked confrontation where the lavender and breeze ignites his primal desire, clashing with her insecurities. Public scorn and familial cruelty drive Isabelle to flee, forcing Sebastian to confront the void she leaves. As time apart unravels his obsession with Amelia, he pursues Isabelle, his awakening raw and relentless. Their reunion at a glittering ball sparks a dance of resentment and longing, leading to a climactic confession where love triumphs over doubt. Isabelle’s journey from invisible dreamer to empowered princess, and Sebastian’s shift from idealized obsession to soul-deep love, crafts a tale of unseen hearts finding their place—a fiercely unique love story for readers craving wit, angst, and romance. In the opulent yet unforgiving world of Regency-inspired Eldoria, The Crown's Wrong Kiss weaves a slow-burn romance of unrequited love, repressed desire, and transformative self-worth.

Grandpa Arthur Bennett was taken to court after being accused of using violence and coercion to commit rape. Yet I lounged at home, idly scrolling on my phone while watching a livestream. In my previous life, determined to uncover the truth, I had volunteered to serve as the plaintiff’s lawyer and investigated the case in depth. I had even contacted my brother, Ethan Bennett, praised as a genius lawyer, and urged him to defend Grandpa. But he believed the story I told was absurd—a lie meant to stop him, my best friend, and my mom from going on their trip to Moonlake together—and he blocked all my contact information. In the end, Grandpa was sentenced to life in prison and suffered a fatal heart attack in the courtroom. My family believed I had deliberately helped the plaintiff and disregarded my own kin. They blamed Grandpa’s conviction and death on me. When my Mom returned and saw Grandpa’s body, she collapsed in grief. Overcome with emotion, she got into her car and drove it straight into me, killing me. When I awoke with a start, I realized I had returned to three hours before Grandpa was taken to court.

Stolen hours after birth, a baby meant to die survives the impossible. Raised on lies and vengeance, Scar Icegard grows into a lethal hybrid. A vampire and werewolf, trained to hunt the very pack he was born into. The very pack he was born to lead as Alpha. His mission is simple: destroy Silvaton Ridge from within. But fate intervenes. When Emerald Ford, a resident doctor/ healer forced to lead after her Alpha father’s death, saved a stranger who should not have been alive, her usually chaotic world becomes more chaotic. Literally. Unknown to her that the stranger was her enemy. Unknown to her that he was her fated mate, the stolen Alpha from years ago. And unknown to her that the stranger carried her father’s blood on his hands. As the outcasts plan rebellion against the packs, war looms, love collides with betrayal, truth shatters loyalty. And the stolen Alpha must choose between the lie that raised him and the destiny that calls him home. And Emerald, Emerald must choose if she must continue to lead as Alpha or if she must forgive this Alpha that lost his way, even before he learned to speak his first words.

My online boyfriend is my university professor and the future werewolf king, Sarek. And me? I’m Mila—just a human hunter’s descendant scraping by in the cracks of an era where species coexist in uneasy peace. What he doesn’t know is that his online girlfriend, whom he wishes to tear apart a thousand times over, is sitting in the very last row of his classroom. The online relationship was never meant to be real. It started as revenge to get back at him for failing me. But who would’ve thought this werewolf was so starved for affection that he’d fall deeper and deeper in love? Again and again, he pushed to meet in person. However, if we ever really met face to face, I’d be torn apart and swallowed whole—bones and all. To save my life, I made a split-second decision and broke up with him. The result? The “abandoned” werewolf king lost his mind. Classes dragged on for three extra hours, and homework increased fivefold. For the sake of my classmates’ mental and physical health, getting back together… wasn’t entirely impossible. There was only one condition: he could never find out who I really am.

I only meant to spite my ex. I didn’t mean to blow up my entire life. Catching my boyfriend cheating backstage was the script from hell. Kissing the first guy I saw to prove I didn't care? That was just bad acting. But I didn't know the "stranger" was Cole Donovan, the campus’s resident tech genius who’s about as emotional as a calculator. Now, a video of that kiss is sitting in my mother’s inbox. She’s gone from "divorced" to "devout," and if I don't prove this mystery guy is my serious, respectable boyfriend, she’s pulling my tuition. I have forty-eight hours to track down a man I don't know, convince him to lie to my mother, and hope he doesn't realize how desperate I actually am. But Cole Donovan doesn't do favors, and he definitely doesn't do drama. I’m an actress, but this is one role I never rehearsed for. And if I can’t convince the campus’s coldest genius to play along, my mother is pulling me out of theater, and my dream is over before the final curtain.