Common Reads Novels & Stories

On Christmas night, I've roasted a whole turkey and paired it with the finest red wine. Then, I quietly wait for my boyfriend, Don Carlo Carlione from the Carlione family, to come home to me. When Carlo steps through the front door, he doesn't even spare me a glance. Instead, he throws his blood-stained coat onto the couch and starts undoing his cufflinks. "Something important is going on at the family HQ tonight, so I can't celebrate Christmas with you tonight." He sounds very casual, as though he's talking about the weather. I don't respond to him at all. Instead, I just slice my turkey quietly. Later on at 1:00 am, Carlo's ex-girlfriend, Lucia Caruso, uploads a social media post right on time. In the photo, she can be seen resting her head against Carlo's shoulder. The background shows a night sky filled with fireworks overcasting a grand bridge. The caption reads, "He told me he can always keep me company as long as I say the word." I don't hurl my phone in a fit of anger, nor do I call Carlo to demand for answers hysterically. Instead, I just leave a like on the post. 30 seconds later, Carlo calls me. For once, his voice is tinged with a hint of alarm. "This is just a misunderstanding! I'll definitely celebrate next Christmas with you!" I just shake my head with a soft sigh. "It's a shame that there's no next Christmas for us ever again."

Ella is her name. She's just an ordinary girl. Oh, wait, is she really as ordinary as we presumed about her? Allora, you can't guess it right. For she herself didn't know about her true identity. Living in a ramshackle hut with an old man with whom she had no blood relation. There's nothing extraordinary about her lifestyle or even her. She wakes up, prepares breakfast for both of them, and then the old man leaves of food hunting. They're living an extremely poor life which is a common status in her surroundings. And one day she had a mysterious dream, the one she had never thought of. Not even in her dreams! Her 18th birthday was coming right after two days and she's having his dream as a present. Well, a present worth it all. Forest, wolves, handcuffed maiden, and the demand. A two-word demand, asking for the keys. What keys those strange, voiced creatures were asking for? Whose keys? She didn't know but soon she will know.

The day I land a hundred-million-dollar deal for the company, my girlfriend—Paisley Needham, the CEO—finally agrees to marry me. The next day, I wait at the city hall until it closes. She never shows up. Instead, what I get is her official announcement with her assistant, Jude Grayford. In the photo, she nestles in his arms. A crisp marriage license sits in her hand, impossible to miss. The caption reads, "My CEO, Ms. Paisley Needham, couldn't bear to see me going on blind dates, so she just went ahead and got the marriage license with me today. I'm so happy!" My colleagues gossip, assuming I'll be jealous and furious. I don't. I just like the post and comment, "So, when's the ceremony? Don't forget to invite me!" Paisley calls immediately, cursing me out. "I just didn't want to see him being pressured into blind dates by his parents, so I agreed to get married on paper to keep them off his back. It's not like we're actually married. Do you really have to be so petty? "Delete your comment right now and get on your knees to apologize to Jude. If you don't, I'll never marry you." I laughed bitterly. "Even better," I say. "I hope you two have a long, happy life together… and have lots of kids."

On my birthday, I go out to eat with my family. I make a wish, hoping that we will always stay happily together. When I open my eyes, I see my son, Luigi Marino, holding up his tablet. On the screen, a line of text reads, "Dad, Maria says she's pregnant with your baby. Am I going to get a new mom?" Giovanni Marino is busy taking pictures of me with a Polaroid. He glances at the screen casually before writing a reply on the back of the photo. "No. I made a promise with your mom. If either of us betrays the other, we will have to disappear from the other's life forever. I can't live without your mom. So, you have to help me keep this from her. Even if Maria's baby is born, they will never appear in front of your mom." After writing that, he looks at me and asks in a gentle voice, "What's wrong, my love? Why are your eyes red? Did the smoke from the candles irritate them?" My tears are about to fall, but I force a smile and reply, "I'm fine. The birthday gift you all prepared for me is wonderful. I'm so touched that I can't help but cry." He doesn't know that my dyslexia was cured a week ago. It seems I no longer have to hesitate about the job offer from a well-known international nonprofit that teaches children with dyslexia how to read. The paperwork will be done in seven days. When that time comes, I will disappear from their world completely.

Alessia Ferrari is the Don of the Italian Mafia. She is a dangerous killer. Ace Hernandez is the boss of the American mafia. He is cold hearted and downright ruthless. What happens when the two are forced to marry? Will they kill each other or find some common ground? "I don't recall signing up for strip poker." She replied. Her full lips frowned softly but her eyes were filled with anmusement. She knew she couldn't beat me, not at this game. "Are you auitting? Are you a quitter?" I mocked getting under her skin. Her lips twitched before she pursed them tightly. The blues of her eyes deeperned and she threw me a dangerous smirk. She shuffled and pulled off one of her sandals. Fuck. So we're doing this the long way. She raised it in the air, dangling it off her finger before tossing it aside. She raised a brow at me, she challenged me. I knew I got under her skin. Just as I had anticipated.

Blurb. Daddy’s Dirty Secrets is a collection of stories where temptation never knocks—it walks straight in. Every tale explores the thrill of forbidden attraction, dangerous choices, hidden affairs, and desires too powerful to ignore. Here, love isn’t always innocent, heroes aren’t always good, and the lines between right and wrong blur with every stolen moment. Whether it’s a ruthless billionaire guarding more than his fortune, a mafia king with a dangerous obsession, an alpha who refuses to let go, or strangers whose lives collide at exactly the wrong time, every story offers a new escape into a world where passion and consequences go hand in hand. No two stories are alike, but they all have one thing in common: Everyone has a secret. The only question is… whose will be exposed first? Reader Discretion: This collection is intended for readers 18+ and contains explicit sexual content, strong language, mature themes, morally complex relationships, power imbalances, and emotionally intense situations. Some secrets are buried.
These ones are waiting to be read.

When Natasha, a young werewolf princess experiences her father’s dethronement following a coup by a supposed love interest, she is forced to live in the common world. Her paths cross with that of a budding young warrior, Raul with great destiny to lead the rebels against the corrupt leadership Their alliance turns romantic and a formidable force is created, evolving Natasha from the once weak, pitiful princess to a stronger and determined warrior under his tutelage, A one-night stand between them leads to a secret pregnancy and now, she has to decide which is more important; her mission to reclaim her father’s position or helping him achieve his? Natasha is torn into more dilemmas when her heart falls for another amidst the chaos. What happens when the man responsible for her father’s downfall offers her a return home? A home for her unborn children? Does she take the chance, and live as royalty again, or is she destined to live among the rebels? Where does her new love interest lead? Is it a crime to be emotionally tied to three men, but unable to choose any?

In university, it was common to play games and spice up the school life. But at work? Oh hell no! Reigna Amethyst was a typical office worker, not until she found her boyfriend cheating with her older sister. And, with a little twist, her heartbroken self was picked up by a cute kid who led her to her boss, the cold and detached CEO of XCC corp., Carlisle Amoroso. "I have to keep an eye on you." intimidatingly, he closed their distance, a gleam of malice and threat evident in his piercing green orbs. "Speak about my son and you'll regret it your entire life." To keep his secret to the world, along with the newfound spark of entertainment by messing with the innocent Reigna, Carlisle made themselves a player of the game '7 minutes in heaven' to have all sorts of reason to keep her close. "Secretaries don't do this, sir..." flustered, she sat on his lap with hesitancy in her flushed face. Can her gentle heart keep up with the lust incarnate himself? And oh...what if there's another twist? Carlisle's ex, the birth mother, returns?

BOOK TWO OF THE MAFIA MEN SERIES. *** He taught her how to live. She taught him how to love. *** Everyone called him a monster even the people who were close to him. But I was the only one who saw the troubled man hiding demons from his past. They called him a killing machine; he took lives without a second thought. But he saved mine, he saved me. I had no idea my savior would come in the form of a scarred face, covered in tattoos, who can't—or choose not to—speak a word to me. But I decided to take a risk. I opened the cage where his demons lived and I set them free. And then... I handed my heart to the monster to do as he pleased. TRIGGER WARNING: This book is provocative. It is categorized as DARK ROMANCE for a reason. It will not be for everyone. If you are a reader with certain triggers or sensitivities common to the dark romance genre then know that this book contains: a very dirty talker hero, sexual degradation, dubcon, rough play, and s&m themes

I was the illegitimate daughter of Alpha Kris of Dark Moon. He raped a human slave 18 years ago and that was my mom. I became a disgrace and a shame to my family. They punished me and locked me up in the basement all day except to let me out to complete my daily routine as a slave. Yes. I looked like any common slave of the pack house. No one would expect me as the Alphas's daughter. As a hybrid, I hadn't been able to shift, but I could hear their thoughts. It's not a good thing though, for me, it's a nightmare. Most of what I've heard were my half-sisters' curses and insults. "CLAUDIA! Hurry up and get in here!" I knew Elly was going to scream my name long before her shrill voice echoed out of her room and into the hallway where I waited. This was the daily ritual, every afternoon. She would call for me, and while she sat at her vanity table, I brushed her long hair like a servant to her satisfaction. No one would guess she was my half-sister, nor Maria in the other bedroom...