Comforting Drawings

Keira buried her face in his chest, her voice trembling. “Maybe I’m not good enough for you.” He ran his fingers through her hair, then whispered. “You’re perfect for me. One walking disaster in this relationship is enough.” She sniffled, a small laugh breaking through. “Are you comforting me or mocking me?” He tilted her chin up, his lips hovering just above hers. “Both,” he whispered. And then he kissed her. ****** Keira Small has spent her life in the shadow of her family’s legacy as the daughter of the prestigious owner of Small Solutions Tech. But instead of following in her father’s footsteps, she chooses to keep her identity a secret and work elsewhere—all to be closer to the one man she’s never forgotten. When she’s sent to deliver documents to her enigmatic boss, the CEO of Dawnborne Inc., she doesn’t expect to find him intoxicated—or to end up in the bed of the one man she had never expected to have: her childhood crush. But one night of passion isn’t so easily forgotten, as an investigation was held by the CEO to find who the woman he slept with was. Buried feelings begin to resurface and secrets threaten to unravel, Keira must decide: will she continue to hide who she really is, or risk everything for the man she’s always wanted?

She was light; they were darkness. She is innocent; they were cunning. She was optimistic; they were pessimistic. She was not what they wanted as their mate and yet they craved her. They hated her for what she was and yet they wanted all of her for themselves. They tormented her to break her and yet they felt like dying when they saw her in pain. They were trapped with her in a twisted game of fate. Will they be able to win this game, or will the cruelty of the world pull them apart? This was not just about winning the game. This was about their fate entangled with her. Fate was always cruel to her and yet she faced every hurdle with a new determination and smile. Will she be able to smile with the same determination when the secrets of their lives start revealing themselves to her? ----------------------------------------------------------- "Don't be afraid. It will be over soon. I am here with you..... always," he whispered comforting words in her ear while holding her wounded body tightly in his embrace. "You are an illusion, Gabriel. You will be gone once I open my eyes." She murmured weakly, her eyelids heavy. "No, my love.. I am not an illusion, and I will prove that to you," he replied in a determined tone before pulling her body up into his embrace and running towards his car, determined to save her and show her that this world is not just all about hate and bitterness. This world is also filled with love. He regretted coming late to save her. She did nothing wrong. Yet she is the only one who paid the price for others' faults. Life was never fair to her, but Gabriel was now determined to make everything right for her.

Xenia Lewis, the nepotism junior, is eager to craft an image of herself as a prodigy. To prove her talent, she requests to take the lead in court. But when confronted by the plaintiff's attorney's sharp questioning, she falters. Our defense unravels, instantly putting us at a disadvantage. After the verdict is announced, Xenia tearfully throws herself into the arms of my fiance, Zayne Scott. Her voice trembles with excuses. "The plaintiff's attorney was too harsh. It was my first time in court, and I was just too nervous!" Due to her incompetence, the defendant, who could have been acquitted, ends up behind bars. Yet, Zayne and my junior colleague, Hugo Wilkinson, indulge her with comforting words. "Don't be upset. No one wins every case." "With your cleverness, Xenia, you'll surely hold your own next time." Furious, I snap, "The court is a place to seek truth and uphold justice. It's not a playground for make-believe. Because of your mistake, an innocent person has been wronged. How can you live with yourself?" Feeling humiliated, Xenia breaks down, sobbing and threatening to harm herself. Resentful that I've hurt her, Zayne and Hugo distort the truth, shifting all the blame onto me. I end up as the scapegoat for her mistakes. Not only am I forced to resign in disgrace, but I also face disbarment. With nowhere to turn, my spirit shatters. While crossing the street, distraught and distracted, I'm hit by a car and killed. Then, when I wake up, I find myself reborn on the very day Xenia and I are set to appear in court.

Life is so unpredictable. Who could have thought that the man, Zelica Luna Guerrero’s been dreaming for, would shockingly be her supposed step brother? It just happened, as if it was really destined to meet him, Hideo Eito Takahashi, in a peculiar way. The decision of their parents made a huge impact on their lives. Is this going to create a strong bond or a massive wall between them? How could Zelica live with Hideo on just one roof? He is a nonchalant person, sobrang ilap nito at malimit kumausap ng tao. Ultimo mga kaibigan nito ay para bang napipilitan pa nitong kausapin. In an instant, his attitude towards her suddenly changed. The way he looks at her, comforting her, and being with her all the time. Pero alam niya ring mali ito dahil may fiancé ang binata dahil sa arranged marriage na plano ng ama ni Hideo. She frantically asked herself. “What the hell is going on with my life? Is the universe being with me?” But little did she know, behind his impeccable face and captivating actions, he is planning something that would certainly change her whole life. What if she falls into his trap and starts to deeply love him more than herself? In the eyes of society, it is sinful to be with him, and it is morally wrong to be with her step brother. She continued to forbid herself and resist the blazing temptation from him. Would she let herself build an indestructible wall between them or would she set aside everything and be unwavered enough to be with him?

My name is Dakota Wetherby. On the very day my husband, Theodore Aldridge, and I get legally married, he brings his ex-girlfriend, Sofia Moretti, into our home. "Sofia recently suffered a miscarriage, so she's going through a very difficult time. I'm genuinely worried about her," he says. "We're just friends. It's only natural for friends to comfort each other," he adds. Sofia is Theodore's college sweetheart. Rumor has it they separated on good terms when she went abroad for further studies. Clad in Theodore's jacket, she curls up on our bed. Her pale, ashen face is streaked with tears. "I'm so sorry, Dakota. I had no idea you two were getting married today. "I was too upset and didn't know who else to reach out to, so I called Theo. "He was only comforting me because I lost my child. It's completely my fault for overstepping and ruining your wedding day. "You can ask for whatever compensation you want. Just please don't blame Theo for this." I hold the freshly issued marriage certificate from the courthouse and walk up to her. "Since you've brought it up, I suppose I'll reluctantly accept your compensation. "Theodore and I are married for business reasons, with billions in projects hanging in the balance. "Tell me, how exactly do you plan to make up for all of that?"

My mate Jackson died saving me in the great fire. I couldn't accept the truth that he was gone, so I decided to end my life by jumping into the silver pit. But the Alpha David saved me—twice—while making his rounds among the soldiers. He stayed by my side, comforting me, afraid I might try to take my life again. Slowly, I began to accept the idea of being claimed by him. But then, at his birthday party, I overheard something that shattered me. "I want to claim her as my Luna," he said, "but I still can't compete with her deceased mate, even after being with her for three years. She always pulls away when I get close, and I give up each time because I don't want to force her. But if she were to die for me... my wolf would be overjoyed—he would finally have found his fated mate, someone willing to die for him." I was stunned—especially by the plan he revealed next. So, before he could put it into action, I decided to fake my own death. That day, dressed in a wedding gown, I walked into the sea right in front of him. Later, I heard he went mad, deploying every soldier he could to search for me. But when all efforts failed, he was left alone, kneeling by the shore, sobbing like a broken mate— the sea answering him with only silence.

Ian Tost was the prince of the notorious underworld. Everyone in Harbor City knew he spoiled me rotten. He even went so far as to hire ninety-nine female bodyguards to keep me from harm. It did not prevent a kidnapping attempt on me. One of those bodyguards, Cece Yates, ended up with nothing more than a scratch. Ian immediately brought in the nation’s top medical specialists to treat her. To comfort her, he even took her to the Maldives for a vacation and gifted her an island. Not long after they returned from their trip, Beatrix Kazinsky, my mother, suddenly suffered a stroke and was hospitalized. Then, Michael Kazinsky, my younger brother, died in an accident during a competition. I burst into the morgue while in tears, only to overhear Ian comforting Cece. “All right now, it was my fault you got hurt last time. I’ve made Mira’s family pay for it. You’ve got too much grace to hold a grudge against her.” With my nails digging into my palms, I finally realized everything that had happened to my family was Ian’s doing. It was all just because his precious bodyguard got hurt because of me! I stumbled out of the hospital with my brother’s death certificate in a daze. On my phone, messages from that person kept coming. It added up to ninety-nine share transfer agreements, along with his promise. [As long as you want me, my arms will always be open for you.]

“I wish to leave- No, I will leave" I bravely stated, my eyes looking straight at my mate, the man I thought I could finally be happy with.“I forbid you” my alpha threateningly said as he leaned in for a forceful yet passionate kiss. I tried to push him lightly but his hands took hold of my hand pushing him and encircle it to his neck. As I let myself sink to the sweetness of his lips, I felt his hand caress my cheek gently, tenderly. He then reached for my hair, stroking it as he pulled me closer further deepening this ecstatic exchange. “I would even chase you to the pits of hell if I had to… Do you seriously think I will let you leave? You won't, right love?” he said in between kisses. Intoxicated, I simply nodded earning a smirk from him. I am aware that all this – this kiss, this feeling, this bond might be a trap further endangering my peace but how can I stop when this very moment felt so comforting, warm, so… right. —----- Anastasia Mayhem, a human blessed with an unfortunate fate. Betrayed, abandoned, heartbreaks after heartbreaks. The seemingly unending chain of misfortune continued to circle her life until she met Rozen. Rozen Wright, the ruthless alpha of the Blood Moon pack. Thrown in an unfamiliar world with unfamiliar people and an unfamiliar way of living, will Anastasia be able to finally escape her terrible fate or will she have a worse life with the werewolves – with her alpha. Book 1 of the Defiance Trilogy.

Charlie Wayne’s life is perfect. Or it was. As a VP who commands boardrooms and a playboy who elegantly ends every date at his door by 3 AM, Charlie’s world is built on control. But lately, his system has a glitch. A streak of bizarre, comically bad luck—flat tires at dawn, mysterious fire alarms, untimely food poisoning—keeps derailing his plans. His flawless exit strategy is in shambles. Carly Dorrington’s life is a lie. But a necessary one. After a blowout fight with her father over their family companies’ merger, Carly needs a place to stay. Where better than with her childhood best friend, Charlie? It’s just temporary. Just two best friends sharing a space. It has nothing to do with the two decades she’s spent loving him from the sidelines, or the quiet hope that maybe, just maybe, proximity will make the world’s most oblivious man finally see her. Now, under his roof, the "coincidences" multiply. Charlie’s chaotic love life grinds to a halt just as Carly’s presence becomes a permanent, comforting fixture. His sacred rules don’t seem to apply to her. His peaceful solitude feels warmer with her in it. As the lines of their friendship blur, Charlie is left to wonder: Is Carly the calm in the center of his storm… or is she the one who’s been stirring it up all along? Note: This is a slow-burn, dual-POV story about best friends, blurred lines, and the long game. If you find yourself wondering"where is this going?" in the early chapters... keep reading. Everything becomes clear in Chapter 4. The foundation is being laid for a reason. Thank you for trusting the process.

At my three-year anniversary dinner with Vincent Hartwell, his secretary deliberately poured red wine over my head. I finally reached my breaking point and slapped her in front of all the guests. That very night, the incident spread like wildfire through high society circles. When my mother saw the leaked bedroom photographs of the two of them, the shock triggered a heart attack. She collapsed and died on the spot. When I learned the news, I sank to the floor and cried all night. Meanwhile, Vincent stayed by his secretary's side, comforting her. When he came home, he brushed past my disheveled state without a glance, loosened his tie, and spoke in that careless tone of his. "I've already buried the story. Don't let it happen again. "I have a meeting tonight. Pull yourself together and get to the villa within thirty minutes. Madison needs you." As he walked toward the door, he added over his shoulder, "She's fragile right now because of the pregnancy. If you do anything to harm my only child, I won't forgive you." I listened without crying or arguing. However, after he left, I pulled the divorce agreement from my drawer that I had prepared weeks ago. Beneath it lay my own positive pregnancy test. 'Vincent, I'll leave to find my biological father in three days.' This time, I was really leaving. I would make sure my father paid for every grievance I had endured over the last few years.