Cricket Betting Tips Novels & Stories

The morning was cold and I was currency. My father handed me to Dimitri Volkov, Bratva, like I was a contract clause. I said no at the altar. Loud enough for everyone to hear. The priest kept going. Dimitri didn’t even blink. That was fact one: I was married without consent, in Chicago, to a man who accepted silence as agreement. I left him later. Not in rage. In clarity, after I saw another girl get caught in his world with no choice, just like me. Then I went to war. Law school had taught me precision, so I used it. Civil suits. Asset forfeiture. Anonymous tips to the right agencies. I took apart everything legitimate he’d built, piece by piece, until he bled territories and pride. He showed up bruised once, signed over forty percent of his clean empire to my name, brought therapy receipts. That was fact two: I dismantled the man who caged me, on paper, without firing a shot. I still have the necklace. The one he left in my lap that first night. I wore it through the worst, through the year I rebuilt alone, through every hearing. Last month I was pregnant in a courtroom, arguing a case I won. He was in the gallery. The diamonds sat above my collar. No one asked. I never explained. That was fact three: I took something from that night and made it mine. It doesn’t belong to him anymore. It doesn’t belong to what he did. It belongs to me.

Isidora Moretti always appeared to be a chess player, overseeing her family’s massive enterprise and grappling with the city’s menacing mafia clans. Her father orders her to marry the Vescari heir, and she discovers that theirs is not romance that would involve love-it is of power and obedience. Declining could be her last word so she thinks of an escape-engagement, a lie she is betting would work. She teams up with Dante Romano,the boy who beats her every time in school. He is good looking, cold, smart and has chased the same deal she wants. He often mocks her stubborn ways and never offers real help. Still, he oddly agrees to act as her fiancé. The agreement sees only looks, no real feeling involved. It may mean just a clever contract. Business agreement looks clean, no feelings. But Dante seizes Isidora at the engagement party and kisses her in front of the city. Everything becomes upside down. Rivalry and obsession — everything seems to blur. Others soon witness Isidora as Dante’s Achilles’ heel. In another world, weakness is a weapon. Maybe they both have this tilt, not just one side. With threats growing closer-in business offices ,back alleys, and mob hits, both find they need to stand up together. As they fight, they come closer and closer, and each threat reduces the boundaries they’ve constructed between them on their feelings. As danger narrows in on Isidora, Dante’s left to contemplate the sacrifices he’ll make just to keep her safe. He’ll do anything he can to protect her, to make her his, even if it’s damaging everything in his path. In the end, the promises they’ve made, no matter how unserious, appear to be the only thing they can reasonably believe.

In the Corvona underworld, there is one unspoken rule. When a Don keeps a new woman by his side for three consecutive months, the Donna must personally remove the signet ring symbolizing her power and place it on the new woman's finger before the entire family. When my husband, Luca, the Don of the Bellini family, announced he would take Mia alone on a three-month business trip, the entire Corvona underworld waited for me to have a meltdown. I had been with Luca Bellini for seven years. I followed him everywhere, refusing to leave his side. I would even wake up in the middle of the night to touch him, needing to know he was there to feel secure. They were all aware of my clinginess and were betting I would never let go. But when Mia extended her hand to me, her voice dripping with saccharine, I didn't shed a single tear. I calmly removed the signet ring engraved with the family crest and slid it onto her ring finger. Luca, lounging in the leather chair at the head of the table, swirled the whiskey in his glass, satisfaction gleaming in his cold blue eyes. "Elara, you've finally learned your place." I lowered my gaze to my bare finger, saying nothing in return. What Luca didn't know was that a month ago, I had recovered all seven years of my lost memories. I wasn't some street orphan at all, but the long-lost Principessa of the Rossi family, the most powerful of the Old World families. In three days, my brother's armed convoy would roll into Corvona to take me home.

As the end of the year approaches, my wife, Sylvia Small, who is five months into her pregnancy, accidentally falls into a lake. Our neighbor who is a police officer, Raven Weber, jumps in and rescues her. Unfortunately, she slips into a coma after her heroic feat. As I rush over, I see that a crowd has gathered at the scene. Sylvia is drenched from head to toe, wrapped up tightly in a blanket. Water droplets keep dripping from the tips of her hair. "Are you alright, Sylvia?" I ask, drawing near. The moment Sylvia sees me, she moves toward me and burrows herself into my arms. She clings to me like she is clinging for dear life. "You're finally here, Zach!" she exclaims emotionally. I frown and push her away. "Just say what you have to say. This suit is expensive. Don't dirty it," I said indifferently. My words make Sylvia's eyes go wide with disbelief and shock. But that only lasts for a second before an anxious look replaces it. She holds my arms firmly and says in a choked voice, "Officer Weber is in a coma because of me. Please transfer a sum of money to me so that I can thank her for saving my life." I glance at Sylvia impatiently and reply, "What's that got to do with me? Why should I transfer you my money so that you can give it to her?"

Jada prayed and asked God to provide a miracle that would be a solution to her family’s problems. They had always been poor, but this was the worst situation they had ever been in. Her father had to be taken to the hospital two weeks ago, and she had become the sole provider for their home. Marilou had given them what money she had that she could to help, but she wasn’t exactly rolling in money herself. The young girl had a huge responsibility placed upon her shoulders, but she was determined not to lose their home or have the children sent to foster care. She had been waiting tables and using her tips to buy gas and groceries, but it was barely enough most days. Her paycheck had not been enough to pay all the bills since her father had let them get so far behind. Mrs. DeRoya cleared her throat, signaling that she would answer the girl. “Miss Pence, I only had one child, my son Brayden here. My husband was also an only child. So, unless Brayden produces an heir, our bloodline here in the United States is lost. What we need is a surrogate to carry the child. If you sign the contract, when the child is born you will receive one million dollars to take your siblings and go have a good life,” she said, staring at her without emotion.

"Stop squirming, Babydoll. I won't let you go," he said without blinking his eyes, frightening Pearl as he restrained her body. "Who are you? I don't know you," Pearl answered fearfully. He stroked Pearl's flawless skin with the tips of his fingers, then took hold of her jaw. Pearl opened her eyes wide at once. Her breath stopped. This time, she will die. "You know me well, doll. You are my mate.” *** Pearl Rosental has one big dream: to get the best position at a famous design company, The Excellor Enterprise. Therefore, she worked hard to get the opportunity to participate in their internship program. Unfortunately, her father and stepmother forced her to marry Kellent’s only heir, Taggart. Pearl rejected Taggart as her mate despite his urgent need to imprint her. Later, she learns that Taggart is The Excellor's president and owner. Taggart never stepped back from his obsession when he found out about her. Pearl is more than just a mate; she also keeps a big secret about her blood, which captivates Taggart's cousin, Damian. Damian and his father, Matthew, have been trying to steal the Alpha’s crown for a hundred years. Damian falls for Pearl, leading him one step closer to becoming the next Alpha.

I was his one weakness. Don Alex, the king of New York. And I was his queen. But days before our child was due, I was thrown into the Dockside Deathmatch—a cruel game broadcast for the underground world’s entertainment. The bullets flew, hidden traps lay in wait, and my every terrified, pathetic attempt to survive was broadcast live on giant screens. Then, I heard his second-in-command on the loudspeaker. "Boss, your wife's about to pop. You sure you wanna be here?" I froze. Alex was here? A moment later, a woman’s sugary voice dripped through the speakers. "Forget that bitch. Alex told me the only thing that mattered today was being here with me. Right, honey?" It was Scarlett. The Chicago Outfit's princess. Alex's childhood sweetheart from Chicago, a woman he had always pampered and shown a distinct bias towards. He had turned down her advances for years, but he never refused her whims. Today, she was in a bad mood and insisted on watching the deathmatch, so he was here to keep her company. I screamed for Alex, begged him for help, but he was convinced I was an assassin in disguise. Because Scarlett laughed and said the game needed to be more exciting. So he pressed the button. Vicious patrol dogs hunted me. My water broke, mixing with blood on the ground. I was in agony. The game hit its climax as more dogs and gunmen closed in from all sides. Everyone was betting on who would be the next to die. Alex smiled, his voice a low, careless drawl, "I’ll bet on that filthy pregnant woman to die." He didn't know the truth until I bled out on an operating table, our child dead with me. They say the ruthless Godfather shattered. Broke completely.

"You just shifted," was how the King responded, a fire in his eyes that seemed to make Kendra feel like she was melting. "Y-yes sir," she stammered before standing up fully, though she kept her eyes down again. She wasn't sure where to look. "I was confirming, not asking," he says, though his voice is not unkind, but curious. "Incredible. A female Alpha. A thing not even of legends." He stood up, and crossed the space between them in an instant. The mouthwatering scent was now overwhelming her. He lifted her chin with the tips of his fingers. Electricity spread from the spots where his fingers touched, and her breath hitched. Their eyes met, and his was now as wide as hers. She finally heard her wolf, confirming what was starting to dawn on her. Mate. Kendra was the daughter of the Beta of her Pack, and while she had that strong wolf blood in her veins, she hadn’t shifted at 13. Rather than despairing, she threw herself into her future, where she would be an Advocate amongst humans, asking for wolf rights and hoping that being unable to shift would put them at ease. However, on her 18th birthday, something unheard of happened- she shifted. Now, she has to juggle handling her newfound responsibilities, her conflicting feelings with the former Gamma’s son, Derek, and on top of all of it, her mate bond with Lycan King Kenzo, who despite being cold and distant to many, grew to be warm and kind to her. Will she be able to disregard her feelings for Derek and live happily with Kenzo, or will she reject her mate bond, and risk losing everything, to be with a man who seems to be hiding a secret from her?

My sister has awakened her mermaid bloodline, but it is incomplete. Her skin is her curse. A single touch, too hard, and it cracks. For her, everything hard in our house has been thrown away. I love to dance, but the hard tips of ballet shoes are forbidden. I love music, but the strings of a guitar or the keys of a piano are too dangerous. Every dream I've ever had has been strangled in its cradle because of my sister's condition. My brother, Liam, who raised us both, always looks at me with tired, pleading eyes. "Elara is fragile, Isla. You have to be understanding." But I was only eighteen the first time I truly understood. I came home from my high school graduation ceremony, the scent of sunshine and excitement still on my clothes. The moment I stepped inside, Elara's hand connected with my cheek. Hard. For no reason at all. Everyone rushed to her. Liam pointed a furious finger at me. "Look what you've done! You've hurt her hand! How could you be so careless?" He shoved me aside and rushed out with Elara to find a doctor. I fell back against the glass coffee table, the impact jarring. And then, a strange, cold pain bloomed across my back. I felt my skin... tear. It was then I remembered the doctor's words from my last check-up: "You carry the Siren's Gene, Isla. It could manifest at any time." As my vision blurred, my own blood pooling on the pristine white floor, I finally understood. The curse wasn't just my sister's. It was mine, too.

His eyes locked on mine wide and wild, he moved towards me and put his hand on my shoulder, lessening the distance between us. I could feel the tension in my own body, the effort of not giving in at that moment, of not letting him pull me against him. Not letting myself take that one chance, however formidable and absurd and unwise, and kissing him the way I had thought, I would never in my life. I had never wanted like this before. I understood him, smiled a little when he smiled. I saw through the defenses he put up to what was underneath. There was no Eric James Winslet more real than the one I saw in his eyes when I looked up at him. "You can close your eyes," He whispered in my ear. My eyes fluttered shut, his mouth came down on mine. And that was it. All the self-control I had exerted over the weeks went by. My arms came up around his neck and he pulled me against him. His hands flattened against my back. I was up on the tips of my toes, kissing him as fiercely as I could. I didn't know what I should have done or said next if it would have been something I could never have pretended away or taken back, but I heard a soft hiss of laughter. ************* Eric James Winslet a ruthless businessman who has already completed 27 yrs of his life being the king of his territory. Scarlett Miller, a business administration student; with the spice of fashion designing. Want to know how their lives get entangled with hatred, possession, & love. A heartbreaking story that will keep you at the edge. Are you ready to be on this journey? Purva Narang (Your author)