Crimson Aesthetics

At only 5'2", it's hard to believe that Scarlett Lobo is an Alpha. Yet she is. Scarlett is the Alpha of the Crimson Snow Pack. In fact, she is one of the only female Alphas in the country. Leading her own pack, combined with the fact that as an Alpha her fated mated can only be another Alpha, and despite her petite stature people find her intimidating (okay, some people find her intimidating. Other people still resent the idea of a female Alpha), she has yet to meet her fated mate. She's nearly given up, tempted to take a chosen mate, but every time she brings it up, her family talks her out of it. So, she waits, having the occasional fun with her warriors or with unmated Alphas from other packs. That, along with the satisfaction she gets from being a powerful Alpha, leading her own pack is nearly enough for Scarlett to accept the idea that she may just go unmated. Except for that pesky little problem of needing an heir. But, then the Congress of Werewolves and Shifters (COWS) call their first national conference in nearly a quarter of a century, ordering all Alphas to attend. Annoyed to have to leave her pack, but curious as to why this conference is being called, Scarlett attends expecting several days of rather dull meetings, debates and workshops, thinking her only enjoyment would come in the form of her occasional bed buddy, Raul Farkas the Alpha of the Dark Sun Pack. What she doesn't expect is for Ruby, her wolf, to begin driving her nuts on the plane on the way to the conference. And she really wasn't expecting the overwhelming scent of leather, tobacco and parchment to hit her as she checked into her hotel. Enter Alpha Grey Badar.

Seraphina Ashford was born to kill supernatural creatures. A deadly assassin, she had spent years hunting vampires and werewolves, wiping them out without mercy. But beneath her ruthless exterior lay a woman who had suffered too much, a former wolf now trapped in a human body. By day, she lived as a high school teacher, blending into the human world. By night, she was a relentless predator, taking revenge on the creatures who destroyed her life. She despised them—every last one. But fate was cruel. On a school trip deep in the forest, her world shattered when she met *him*. Damien Alexander Blackwood. Alpha of the Blood Eclipse Pack. A monster feared by all. He was not just a wolf—he was a hybrid, a deadly fusion of vampire and werewolf, making him nearly unstoppable. His pack was infamous for their brutality, treating mates as nothing more than possessions. Damien was the worst of them all, a merciless ruler who crushed anyone who defied him. And now, Seraphina was his mate. She hated him. She wanted him dead. But Damien did not accept rejection. He wanted her—body, mind, and soul—and he would have her. When she defied him, he bared his fangs. When she resisted, he found a way to break her. And when she shut her eyes to avoid his hypnotic gaze, he forced them open. A sharp pain tore through her neck as his fangs sank deep, sealing her fate. Her blood coated his lips, his crimson eyes locking onto hers with a victorious smirk. She had fallen into his trap. And now, she knew—there was no escape. She was his. Forever.

For three hundreds under vampire rule, the Blood Prince has drawn a new bride from his realms every fifty years. In my previous life, Seraphina was chosen,Lucian’s childhood sweetheart. The night before our bonding ceremony, she burst into our chamber, tears streaming. “Lucian, I’ve been chosen as the Blood Prince’s seventh bride!” she sobbed. “They say he loses control on his wedding night, drains every drop of blood from his bride. None of the first six lived to see dawn. I don’t want to die—please, claim me as your mate!” But Lucian had already claimed me. And by wolf law, an Alpha may bind only one mate at a time. So I step forward, and refused her. The next day, at the altar, Seraphina slit her throat with a silver dagger. Lucian didn’t flinch. He ordered the blood scrubbed from the stones—and proceeded with our ceremony as nothing had happened. However,on our honeymoon, he pushed me into starving wolves. His eyes burned crimson as he snarled, “If you hadn’t tricked me into marking you earlier, Seraphina would be alive. You killed her.” Over a dozen of wolves with gleaming eyes swarmed me in, tore me limb from limb. Then I woke, back on the day the mate-hunger hex seized Lucian. This time, I dragged Seraph-the girl Lucian cherished as most precious jewel,from her house myself, and shoved her into Lucian’s chamber. “Be his cure, and I’ll take your place as the Blood Prince’s bride instead.

My father was the most feared Don in all of Sicelia. He ran every illicit arms deal and casino in the underworld, his name alone sent shivers through the Mafia world. He worried that, as his only heir, I might fall for the wrong man. So he ordered every family to send a representative, and I would choose my marriage partner by lot. I drew Bernardo Vito, heir of the Vito family. It was an arranged marriage, but I still wanted to meet him in person. To keep up appearances before the evening banquet, I stopped by a haute couture boutique. The moment I stepped inside, my eyes landed on a deep crimson velvet gown. Just as I reached for it, a sharp voice pierced the air. "I want that dress she's holding. Wrap it up for me." Before I could even react, a clerk snatched it from my hands. I clenched my jaw, forcing myself to stay calm. "I saw this dress first, and I was ready to pay. Is this how you treat your customers?" The woman laughed, as if I had just told the world's funniest joke. Her gaze roamed me with contempt, and she sneered: "This dress is worth five million dollars. A country bumpkin like you can only look. "Me? I am Bernardo Vito's favorite assistant. In this city, nothing I want is ever taken from me!" I could not help but laugh. Bernardo Vito? The very man I had drawn in the marriage lot? I pulled out my phone and dialed. "Bernardo, your favorite assistant just stole the dress I had my eye on. What are you going to do about it?"

Just one week before my marking ceremony with Lucien, I discovered his heart already belonged to someone else. His secretary, Anika, walked out of his office with a smirk that was a little too knowing. Her blouse was askew, her usually neat hair a tangled mess, and only the faintest trace of her crimson lipstick remained. My heart seized in my chest, and my fingers went cold on the doorknob. Two years ago, she had been a timid girl fresh from the countryside. All that pretense of innocence had vanished, replaced by a brazen ambition written across her face. Her relentless eagerness around Lucien had always grated on my nerves, and I had asked him more than once. "Lucien, can't you replace her?" His smile would always fade. "Anika saved my life," he'd say. "I can't be so heartless." Now, that single triumphant smirk was all it took for me to understand. What others once envied in me had already been trampled beneath her heels. My phone vibrated. It was a new proposal from the event planner. [The marking ceremony plan is nearly perfect. Can we finalize it?] I refused to be consumed by sorrow. I wiped a tear from my cheek and made one last adjustment to the document.——Replaced the bride's name withAnika I didn't want a false love, or a fake Alpha Lucien. Let them have the marking ceremony. Let Anika stand at his side as his Luna, his chosen mate. In seven days, I would be gone with my pup.

BOOK 1 OF THE FATED LUNA SERIES Lennox Haney was born for greatness, but all of that was taken away from her the day her father mysteriously died. After that she became nothing more than a slave to her stepmother and stepsister. Growing fed up with their daily torture she decides to escape so that she can one day come back and reclaim all that was once meant to be hers. Six years later she returns stronger than she was as a child and determined to take back everything that belonged to her while destroying the two women who took it all from her in the first place. However all her plans are turned upside down when she meets the dangerous and handsome alpha of Crimson Tides. "He isn’t good enough for you." He whispered, sending fire racing through my very veins. "And he won't be able to help you achieve what you're trying to achieve." "And you can?" I demanded, pulling away. "Sure," he responded easily. "Under one condition." "Condition?" I repeated, frowning. "That's right, sweetheart." Remaining silent, I considered what Silas was saying. I wasn't sure if I should even allow him to go any further, but it was a little unnerving that he seemed to know what I came here to do. Maybe I could hear him out. "I'm listening." I said slowly, bracing myself. "What's that condition?" "It's pretty simple." He beamed, causing my heart to constrict painfully. "All you have to do is pretend to be my fiance. What do you say?"

As I was about to leave The Crimson Curtain, my brother Corvus's elite vampire club, a woman who claimed to be the manager stopped me. "Ma'am, you just helped yourself to a priceless vial of Elder's Blood. You have to pay." I looked at the unfamiliar face, sensing the weak blood of a lesser vampire. She must be a fledgling, I thought, new to the club and unaware of who I was. "Your boss approved it," I said flatly. "Take it up with him." But the woman just sneered at me. "Plenty of women try to get close to our boss. If every one of you took what you wanted, how would we stay in business?" She shoved a copy of the club rules at me. Anyone who takes Elder's Blood without permission pays with three times the amount in heart's blood. Or they don't leave. Vampire guards started to close in, some even drawing silver blades, ready to take me down. I laughed, a cold, sharp sound. I couldn't believe Corvus's club had such an insane rule. "I am the Lord of House Volkov. Corvus's own sister. If he needs compensation, he can come to me himself." But her mockery only sharpened. "You look like some low-born stray. Claiming ties to a noble house? Pathetic. Hand over the heart's blood. Now." My patience snapped. I sent a message to the family elders through our bloodline. "Tell Corvus to either make this woman disappear forever, or I'm taking back ownership of this club. All of it."

Isaac held her hand with the depleting energy in him, his body shaking as he felt the steady stream of crimson fluid pumping out of his heart and flowing down his skin, staining his vest. She tried to pull the scissors out again, but he held on tighter, squeezing his face at the searing pain. "Love," He mumbled, looking into her cold eyes. Natalie pulled at the scissors, but he held on with every little energy he had in him, shaking his head in plea that she'd stop. She didn't, and his tenacity made her twist the tool, and he let out a painful groan, a hot drop of tear escaping his eyes. ... As he laid there with four bleeding puncture wounds in his body, his bloodshot eyes fell on her unconscious body, and more painful tears trickled down his face. He had failed. He had failed his wife and son. *** Natalie Cabel's life changes from bitter to bittersweet after a one-night stand with Isaac Bardekk, heir apparent to the throne of Bardaen. His love was contagious and bewitching, and she found herself helplessly wanting him in her forever. But a lady without roots could never be a crown princess of such a powerful kingdom, especially not one who lived a promiscuous life. Isaac, however, was not ready to give up as he promised her a new identity, prestige, and immunity in return for her being a faithful wife. For how long, though, and to what extent can she remain immune to hate and adversity from the queen consort? The queen mother? Her father-in-law, the king? And the subjects? If so, can she really uphold her faithfulness and be free from her husband's hate? Even when Vincent, Isaac's stepbrother, targets that?

“Let me go!” He laughed, crimson bleeding into his irises and his fangs glinting with delight. Wrapping her legs around himself he cupped her behind that peeked from under the shorts she had on, licking at her ear, purring. “Did you like my presents?” Nyx scowled, pushing hard at his chest, hating the way her breath hitched in her throat from his touch, hating the little gasps that left her lips from the tingles she felt when his hands continued to graze her skin. “The flimsy clothes or the fact that you just turned me a feeder?” “Both. I thought you'd appreciate my gifts.” “Give me the antidote,” Draven cocked a brow, almost laughing at her pinced expression. Slowly bringing his face closer to hers, their lips merely inches apart he spoke, “Beg for it,” “You promised! You said you would give it to me!” “I didn't say when, did I? Maybe if you try to be a good little girl, I might as well be generous and offer you the cure you so desperately seek.” ††★★†† On the verge of the 21th century with vampires seizing power from humans, domineering them and plunging them back into the medieval times, Nyx a human hunter struggling to adapt to having the undead around becomes a vampire killer herself. Until she crosses path with the ever-so-deadly King of vampires, Draven. Claiming her under the ruse of a mate bond and condemning her to a life of slavery, he makes her the empire's whore. But as the pair grows close, Nyx slowly begins to pry off his bravado and shatter his world, opening the cold hearted vampire to a new kind of emotion. When the court demands a pure blooded queen, he knows he has more to protect than just the empire.

Eighteen year old Hannah Ayala makes the ultimate sacrifice to protect her mate, future Alpha of the crimson pack, Coby Brady, by taking the fall for a crime she didn't commit. Believeing in Coby's promise to free her once he becomes Alpha. She hopes for a future together, however, her world crumble when Coby reject her, labeling her a murderer and choosing her step-sister Vivian as his luna. Imprisoned and abandoned to rot, Hannah discovers she is pregnant with Coby's child. When her pack is attacked, Hannah seizes the opportunity to escape, only to be captured by Xavier Bonnet, the most feared lycan king alive. Xavier, cursed by the moon goddess for his ruthlessness has been searching for a pure soul to break his immortality curse. But he never expected Hannah, a woman marked by betrayal and carrying another man's child to be the one to heal the darkness within him. Yet for Hannaah's sake, Xavier is willing to forsake everything, even his own redemption. **EXCERPT** "Coby please," I gasped, trying to speak but my voice was barely audible. With bloodshot eyes, Coby began to speak over me, his voice cold and detached. "I, Alpha Coby Brady, hereby reject you, Hannah Ayala, as my mate and future luna. I hope you rot her in prison for all eternity" I couldn't breathe, not because his hands were still choking my windpipe, but because the connection binding us as fated mates had been snapped in two. I felt vunerable and gasping for air, the pain ripping through my chest totally unbearable. But i wasn't going to let him have the last word. With a voice that was loud and clearer than i thought possible, i told him, "I, Hannah Ayala, hereby accept your rejection,"