Closed Syllable Exception

Halo Remington has spent her entire life in the shadows of her perfect twin sister, Scarlet, the golden child, the chosen one, the family's heiress. No one ever sees Halo, and that’s just the way her family prefers it. Until Talon Ashwood walks into their home with a contract and a choice that was never meant to be hers. Talon needs a bride, quickly. His father had made it clear, no marriage, no inheriting the Ashwood empire. Choosing Scarlet should be simple, expected. But when a single glance at an old portrait reveals a hidden twin, Talon makes a last-minute decision that shatters the room’s expectations. He no longer wants the golden daughter. No, he wants the quiet lamb hidden in the shadows. Pulled from her place behind the closed doors of her room, Halo is thrust into a deal she never saw coming. Marry him, and she would finally be free of her family’s control. Walk away, and she would remain unseen and unwanted, a ghost in her own life and a shadow in the footsteps of her sister. After coming to a decision and going through with it, Halo steps into a world of power, deception, and an attraction she never anticipated. But as secrets unravel and ruthless tactics ensue, Halo realizes that this marriage harboured far more than just a business deal. It was the cost of being chosen by an Ashwood.

On the train back home, I found a scathing post online. [My sister-in-law is pushing thirty but isn’t married yet. She comes home all the time. Would you be bothered by it?] The comments were numerous and ran the gamut of opinions. The post got wildly popular, and there was an argument between the poster and commenters. [It’s bad enough that she won’t get married. She wants to stay with us when she’s home. Shouldn’t she feel ashamed? I’m at the end of my rope. She even drank all my lemonade last time she was here. I really hate her. [She has no boundaries. I’ve been wanting to teach her a lesson for ages. I turned her bedroom into my walk-in closet. Let’s see if she can still stay here.] When I got to this point, I closed the post. It was lucky that I bought the house where my parents and brother live. Because of that, I would not be at risk of losing my own room. But when I got out of the train station, I received a text from my mother. [Sweetie, I booked you a hotel room. You don’t have to come home and stay this time.]

This isn’t your typical medieval romance. My name is Penelope Ernaut, the first daughter of the Ernaut Dukedom. I once had it all—status, power, a future. Until one betrayal shattered everything. My pack fell. My bloodline crumbled. And I ran, dragging my sister with me, hoping we could escape it all. However, we didn’t. She left me. Just like everyone else. After dying in the hands of my sister who returned and my mate who saw me as a toy, I was giving another chance to live again and I came back to make them bleed... But I never expected the Lycan King. Dain Zevryn—His Majesty. To come into my life. He was cold, dangerous, and beautiful in all the ways that make you ache. To the world, we were nothing more than allies and business partners. But behind closed doors, I was his only sweet toy, stripped bare for his sinful duties. I thought this time I was taking control of my story. But the deeper I fell into his world, the more I realized—I didn’t escape the cage. I just stepped into a prettier one and would I ever escape it this time?

Augustina Darius never planned to marry—especially not a man known for breaking enemies without mercy. But refusing Alpha Kael Dravaryn isn’t an option. It’s a death sentence. Bound by pack law and political necessity, Augustina is forced into a marriage where obedience is survival. In public, she plays the perfect Luna—quiet, graceful, compliant. Behind closed doors, she walks on invisible fault lines, knowing one wrong step could destroy her. Kael Dravaryn is everything the rumors claim: powerful, ruthless, and emotionally untouchable. His mansion is ruled by silence and secrets, and the shadow of his late wife lingers in every corridor. There are rooms Augustina is forbidden to enter. Questions she is warned never to ask. A past that refuses to stay buried. Then Kael’s five-year-old son says something that turns her blood cold. “I still see my mommy at night.” What begins as a child’s whisper becomes a trail of impossible truths—hidden doors, locked memories, and a death that may not have been an accident at all. As Augustina digs deeper into the Obsidian Vale estate, she realizes the greatest danger isn’t her husband’s reputation… It’s what he’s protecting. Because some secrets don’t just ruin marriages. They kill the women who uncover them.

“Well, hello, darling. I do believe you lost,” Timothy murmured in my ear. I closed my eyes, wanting to just disappear into the ground. He licked my neck and I shuddered. “I won. Do you know what that means?” I nodded. “You are in charge,” I whispered. He gently bit my neck as he began to tug my shorts and underwear down. He moved between my legs and began to rub my pussy as he kissed my neck again. “My, my ,my. What do we have here? Nice and ready for me.” “Timothy, please.” He moved again and the next thing I knew he was rubbing his cock where his fingers had been seconds before. “Yes, princess?” “I’m a virgin.” He laughed in my ear. “Oh, I know. I promise to be gentle.” *** Natasha is an 18-year-old young woman who just graduated from high school. She has to figure out how to navigate through life with a war raging around her in which she is the driving force behind the conflict. Will this pending war change her world for the better? Can she find a way to keep those she loves safe, or will she have to choose to sacrifice someone for the greater good?

Jessie Stewart spent twelve years as an orphan before she was finally brought home to the Stewart family. For the first time in her life, she had parents and brothers. But the very people who promised to love and protect her turned against her. Bruce Stewart, her father, who once vowed she'd be his cherished daughter, told her that if she had any conscience at all, she wouldn't fight Mia Stewart, her adoptive sister, for a man. Her brothers, who swore they'd spoil her rotten, dragged her onto an operating table just to draw blood for Mia. As for her fiancé, Henry Lawson, every time things got dangerous, he chose to protect Mia instead of her. Three years later, Jessie's parents were on their knees in tears. Her once arrogant brothers slapped themselves in shame. Even her arrogant ex-fiancé knelt at her feet. They all begged her to come back. Little did they know, Jessie's heart had long since been closed off during those countless nights of pain and betrayal. She had already met the love of her life. In the years to come, she would never again be alone. He tended to her every need. To him, Jessie was everything and more.

Raymond, brillant avocat promis à une carrière d’exception, voit sa vie s’effondrer du jour au lendemain. Accusé du meurtre de son associé, il se retrouve au cœur d’un complot méticuleusement orchestré par une organisation criminelle. Libéré sous caution grâce à un tour de force juridique, il croit entrevoir une chanc... jusqu’au moment où un second drame le frappe : le corps de son ami est retrouvé, et lui, debout à côté, un pistolet à la main. Le temps de comprendre, la police intervient. Accusé d’un second meurtre, il est condamné à la prison à vie. Derrière les barreaux, Raymond doit apprendre vite. Les alliances sont fragiles, et la trahison rôde. Un jour, il sauve la vie d’un parrain de la mafia, prenant une balle destinée à ce dernier. Reconnaissant, le parrain le prend sous sa protection et lui ouvre les portes d’un cercle restreint de pouvoir et d’influence en prison. À force de sang-froid et d’intelligence, Raymond devient un leader respecté parmi les détenus. Sa bonne conduite lui permet d’obtenir une libération anticipée. Dehors, il n’a plus qu’un but : détruire la Triade qui a brisé sa vie. Pour atteindre ses ennemis, il s’engage dans une manipulation risquée : séduire Isabella, la fille du parrain, afin de gagner un accès privilégié aux réseaux criminels. Ce qui devait être une manœuvre froide se transforme en un véritable lien, un amour qui complique ses plans. Pris entre vengeance et passion, Raymond devra choisir : protéger la femme qui a conquis son cœur ou achever le plan qui pourrait enfin mettre à bas l’organisation qui l’a piégé. Piégé par la Mafia est un thriller captivant mêlant complot, survie, et un amour né dans les ombres, où chaque décision peut être la dernière.

The most popular girl in school, Mona Culver, could only apply for the city's worst community college because of her poor school results. My childhood friend, James Holden, got our entire class to fill out application forms for community college too. It was his attempt to negotiate with Northrind University's admissions department to make an exception for Mona to study there. The top thirty students in the city shared pictures of their amended application forms to community college. Back in my past lifetime, I tried my best to talk them out of it. The application submission deadline was the next day, and no amendments would be allowed after that. If they wasted their time threatening Northrind by applying to community college, and the deadline passed, nothing could be done to change the results, even if they were the city's top thirty students. Their dreams of attending an Ivy League school would be quashed after ten years of hard work, and no one knew what their future would hold after that. James got angry and berated me, "You're just afraid Mona will be better than you once we start classes at Northrind. Stop pretending like you're doing this for us!" The rest of my classmates were also upset with me, and they turned their fury on me. "Our high school results mean nothing. With our abilities, we would still be able to attend Northrind next year if we repeat the year. You should just mind your own business!" We had been classmates for three years, and I could not let them compromise their futures. I informed our principal and their parents of their plans, and their application forms were amended. I managed to stop them from threatening Northrind's admissions department. All of them were accepted by Northrind in the end, and they became elites in their respective industries with bright futures ahead. Mona ended up getting pregnant with a thug's child while in community college, and she suffered from both physical and mental issues. She fell into deep depression and even attempted suicide several times. James broke down when he learned the truth, and he blamed it all on me. He worked with our classmates to fabricate evidence that I committed plagiarism, and they poisoned my drink. Even my parents were burned to death by a patient from a mental hospital. When I was reborn into this lifetime, I saw James change our group chat's name into 'Fight for True Love! Let's Go to Northrind Together!' I left the group without hesitation and blocked everyone's numbers.

"Mine", he growled. Caleb pushed me to the locker and made me trip and fall and land straight on my bum. “Ouch!", I yelled out of pain. My angry eyes looked straight into his dark brown orbs. I could hear people snicker and laugh. All this embarrassment for what? For him to growl like a dog! “What is wrong with you?”, I whisper yelled as he inched closer to me. I could still see people laughing, especially my best friends who would pass out any moment now because of laughing too hard. I was about to snap at this idiot again, but then his actions took everyone by surprise, including my reflex system. I swear it was a reflex! His face seemed a little too close suddenly. People were watching us with great anticipation now. He closed his eyes and started to bring his face closer to mine. But before our lips could meet my legs moved on their own accord and met his abs with quite a boom! In a second the anticipation in the crowd's eyes was changed to shock as they saw their student body president lying on the ground, groaning in pain. Well! I swear it was a reflex and at least I didn't hit where it hurts more! This is a love story of a luna who keeps falling and an alpha who happens to be there to catch his luna every single time. Hop on to this dramatic ride and unravel the secrets of the Adolf family!

My boyfriend, Karl Boone, was one of the adopted sons my father took in. Before he left, he vowed solemnly, "If I lose this battle, I'm not worthy of marrying you. And if I win, I'll rent out Disneyland and throw a grand wedding for you." I tore up all the marriage contracts from the local noble heirs and waited for him for two full years. But when he returned, he knelt before my father, with a pregnant woman hiding behind him. "I'll sacrifice everything I gained overseas to marry Karen," he said, shielding the woman. "She's innocent and fragile, having suffered through hardships in the slums. She's not like Tabitha, who has had everything from birth." My father's gaze swept over me, and the entire room fell silent. Everyone knew that when I lost my temper, I could tear down the house and make them pay dearly. But instead, I greeted the woman with a sweet smile. "Hi there." That night, I closed my eyes and picked one of the blind boxes containing names of potential suitors. As luck would have it, I picked Karl's arch-enemy. On our wedding day, Karl barged in wearing a bomb strapped to his body. "Tabitha, if you dare marry him, we'll die together!"