Collapsing

When Noémie Rochester wakes up naked in bed with her boss, with no recollection of the previous night, she's more than just shocked—she's heartbroken. Never had she imagined, in the worst of her nightmares, that her boss, with whom she had been in love for three long years, would do something so awful to her. To avoid all the questions, confrontations, and humiliation, she runs off as far as she can. But little does she know, there's more than meets the eye. The truth is not as straightforward as it seems, and their lives are about to become more twisted in the precarious game of the unknown. {Excerpt} The cold water poured down her naked body, washing away all the evidence of what had happened to her—what he had done to her—all night. However, what it couldn't wash away was her aggrieved heart and the pain in her chest. The shock of being betrayed by a man she was willing to go to any extent for. "I loved you, Mr. Halest," she sobbed, collapsing on the floor as the water pounded on her head. "And you ruined me!"

“I-I Denise Soleil Shadowstone, r-reject you as my mate,” she uttered candidly, lowering her head. Cole’s eyes widened in disbelief, “Repeat! Say it again!” Gentle clasps turn into possessive ones, waking up the dominant Alpha in him. “How dare y—” “I reject you,” she firmly said. Facing him with a full decision and denial of their mate bond makes Cole rage furiously in anger. Grasping tightly on her shoulders, he pinned her to a tree. During their staring contest, Denise saw how Cole’s eyes turned red. Then out of a sudden, her eyelids closed like its intentionally shut down by him. The last she felt was her own body collapsing, held by those cold arms of his. Denise Soleil Shadowstone, with her ambition of becoming the first female alpha, would take the risk. Independent woman that swears to never ever be needing a man in her life. For the war they must win, will she learn to accept their mate bond? Can love change her principle? In a war of truth and deceptions, unexpected twists and turns, would you step in?

Selene Morie watches as the world starts crumbling, the stars are falling and people were dying. She was ready to die that moment, or maybe she indeed died that time but then she heard a voice asking her If the world is ending what would she do? She answered consciously and before she knew it, she entered a white blank space and was told that she can redeem her world and past life back if she can successfully finish the mission that will be given to her. It is to prevent a world from collapsing. •• When Selene Morie became Selene Aphelion also known as the Kingdom's moon and the Duke's daughter, she knew things aren't as easy as she expected. The moment she woke up, she appeared in a mysterious world of Immortals, Sorcery, Beasts, and War. She was told that her mission is to prevent the world from collapsing, how can she do that if she can't even save her own world? Furthermore, she became the destined woman of an immortal. Her soulmate is the same man who will declare war in the future. To prevent that tragic end, she must tame and unblackened the notorious Monarch of the Underworld, Azrael.

When brilliant New York attorney Alex Cromwell is sent to Chicago to find a billionaire’s missing daughter, it’s supposed to be purely business and not personal. His mission is to bring her home and save his father’s collapsing law firm. But Lily Smith isn’t missing. She’s building a new life far from the man who once tried to control her. Smart, guarded, and determined, she wants nothing more than to forget her past until Alex walks in, with a goal to send her back to the past she’s tried to avoid. What begins as obligation soon becomes something neither expected; quiet laughter, late-night talks, and a connection that feels dangerously real. Yet when the truth surfaces that Alex was sent by her father love turns to betrayal. Torn between redemption and heartbreak, Alex returns home to face his failure. Until one day, Lily walks into his office, ready to forgive, ready to begin again. Because sometimes love beats betrayal And the hardest cases are the ones the heart must win.

On the night of my awakening, which was also my 18th birthday, my parents locked me in a silver cage in the basement while my foster sister Emma prepared for her ceremony upstairs. Then, the Blood Moon Eclipse struck, forcing every member of the pack to evacuate. Emma urged our parents to help. My heart warmed, and I thought they would come to save me. However, the only thing my father carried out was Emma’s stuffed wolf doll. They clutched Emma and fled for their lives, leaving me behind in the collapsing basement. When I crawled out of the ruins, they were already in the safehouse, celebrating Emma’s successful awakening as a White Wolf. Ten years later, I became the heir to Blackstone Consortium, controlling half of the werewolf world’s economy. When we met again, the former leader of the Silvermoon Pack knelt before me. “I've finally found you, my daughter.” My gaze was cold as I faced the stranger in front of me. “You’ve got the wrong person.”

Videl Walker gave a man everything and was repaid with betrayal. For three years, she stood behind Eric Walker, quietly saving his collapsing empire, lifting him into power while the world crowned him a billionaire. In return, he cheated, discarded her, and erased her existence as if she had meant nothing. He thought she was weak. He was wrong. Videl is not just a discarded wife. She is a trained leader, raised in blood and discipline, forged by loss long before Eric ever entered her life. Eight years ago, her parents were murdered, her homeland Goma Island was sealed from the world, and revenge became the only thing keeping her alive. Now she is back. Eric Walker’s success was built on her sacrifice, and she intends to reclaim everything, piece by piece. But Eric is only the beginning. Beyond him lies a greater enemy, a locked island, and a debt written in blood. Videl is done being silent. Done being merciful. Done being invisible. This time, she will not beg. She will not forgive. She will destroy.

Fuck, I couldn’t look at him. The guilt was eating me alive, and no matter how much I tried to shove it down, it kept crawling back up. I knew the truth. And I wasn’t telling him. Not now. Not ever. “And Silas?” His voice rang softly in my ear. I kept my eyes on the road. “What?” “I’m never leaving.” The corner of my mouth twitched, but I swallowed down whatever stupid response was about to come out. Yeah, he could say that now. But he didn’t know. If he did? He’d be gone. Some things weren’t meant to be shared. Some things stayed buried. This was one of them. ~~~ Accused of killing his Alpha and on the run, Riley barely escapes his pack before collapsing at a stranger’s doorstep. Silas, a human haunted by a past scarred by werewolves, takes him in—only to uncover secrets he never wanted to face. But as danger closes in, love and vengeance blur, and the line between hunter and hunted fades. In a world built on betrayal, Riley and Silas must decide if trust is worth the risk—and if love can survive when the truth could tear them apart.

Rafael Achilles Cordova is the notoriously cold CEO of Cordova Industries, unrivaled in the business world. Raised as the successor of his father's company, he poured his life into preparing to inherit the company and grew up with no other interests. No care for women, money, or life in general. For all 29 years of his life, he lived purely for the sake of carrying out his duty without divulging into a single frivolity. And yet, why couldn't he get his mind off of the bright violet eyes of a particular little lady who randomly entered his life one day? Why was there a fuzzy feeling in his chest at a mere glimpse of her? Why did it feel like his entire world was collapsing with only a single tear running down her cheek? Where were all these feelings coming from? Unfamiliar feelings that he had not once ever felt before in his entire life. Little did he know that those were the feelings of a king who finally found his queen, one who he would lay his entire empire down to stay by her side.

The day my husband's first love shows up at my house, I catch a faint, cloyingly sweet scent of gardenias in the air. My genetically-linked asthma flares violently at the scent of gardenias. As expected, halfway through the meal, my chest suddenly tightens. I can barely draw a breath before collapsing onto the couch. My younger brother sprints into my bedroom like he's lost his mind, grabs an inhaler, and shoves it straight to my mouth. "Tess!" he roars. "Why the hell is there gardenia perfume?" Everyone panics. My dad grabs a liquor bottle. My mom lunges forward, grabbing the woman by the hair. And my husband positions himself in front of her, protecting his beloved first love as she trembles. Amid the chaos, I muster the last of my strength. I reach into the crack of the couch, grab another inhaler, take a deep breath, and slowly push myself upright. I let out a cold laugh as I fix my gaze on the woman cowering behind my husband. "Finished with your little performance? It's my turn now."

Cassidy Knowles—the daughter of a maid—loved her half-sister’s boyfriend, Ashton Pierce, in silence. A love she never dared confess. A hope she never allowed to breathe. Until one drunken morning destroyed everything. She woke up beside him… naked. Branded a villainess. Condemned as a betrayer. Cast out and disowned by the very family she had spent her life trying to please. What none of them knew was that she left carrying Ashton Pierce’s child. Six years later, Cassidy returns—not as the disgraced girl they threw away, but as the mysterious, untouchable CEO of the empire her collapsing family now desperately needs. And Ashton? The man who once turned his back on her now stands directly in her path—still cold, distant, and unrelenting. But Cassidy is no longer the girl who begged to be believed. She has mastered her own power. She fights back. This time, she holds all the leverage. She is the woman the world envies—the woman even Ashton Pierce finds himself vying for. Yet what happens when she uncovers the truth—that the tragedy six years ago was no accident, but a scheme… orchestrated by Ashton himself? Will she finally walk away—or remain Bound by a Broken Night?