Crystal Shoes

“Why, Caspian?” Valerie Belmont asked her husband, staring at the divorce papers on the table. “What did I do wrong?” “Sign them, Valerie,” he said, his voice as cold as his icy gaze. Her heart sank as she glanced at her purse, mind racing with thoughts. He watched as she picked up the pen and signed the papers, her hand trembling. “It’s for her, isn’t it?” she asked, ignoring the tight, aching clench in her chest. He didn’t respond, but his silence was all the confirmation she needed. Setting the pen down, she exhaled shakily. “Goodbye, Alpha Caspian…” *************************************** Loyal, devoted, obedient. Valerie Belmont, the daughter of the Pakhan and an Alpha herself, is forced to accept a divorce she never wanted. But when Capo dei Capi, Alpha Caspian Ashford, discovers that she’s carrying his child, their story takes a turn neither of them could have foreseen…

Quedé embarazada de Alessio Moretti, el mejor amigo de mi hermano y el Don más joven y atractivo de Nueva York. Justo entonces regresó Bianca, su antigua amante… la misma que lo había dejado sin decir una sola palabra. Pensé que me dejaría por ella, pero él solo sonrió con esa calma arrogante. —Se fue sin dar explicaciones. No hay vuelta atrás. Mi hermano, Gianni Ricci, fue aún más frío: —Ella ya no es una Ricci. Mi única hermana eres tú. Les creí. Durante tres años, me dieron un cariño y una calidez que jamás había conocido. Pero todo se vino abajo cuando un video de mi padre adoptivo, borracho y golpeándome, se volvió viral. El mundo entero se burló de la “intocable princesa Ricci” … la misma que alguna vez fue tratada peor que una mendiga. Me rompí por dentro y corrí a buscar a las dos únicas personas en las que confiaba… pero me detuve en seco frente a la puerta de su despacho al escuchar la voz empalagosa de Bianca. —Gianni, Alessio… ¿filtrar ese video? ¿No fue demasiado cruel? Marcella está embarazada… La respuesta de mi hermano llegó al instante: —Justamente de eso se trataba. El embarazo debería ablandarla… pero ha estado paseándose como si fuera la dueña de todo, manteniéndote a ti al margen. Alessio soltó una risa suave: —No te preocupes por Marcella. No puede hacernos nada… y es demasiado blanda como para hacerle daño a nuestro hijo. Las lágrimas comenzaron a caer sin control y un dolor agudo me atravesó el pecho de golpe. "Tiene razón… este bebé es mi tesoro. Jamás le haría daño", pensé. Pero tú, Alessio… no voy a dejar que me controles. Me di la vuelta, sintiéndome entumecida, compré un vuelo y tomé una decisión. "Voy a desaparecer… me llevaré a mi bebé y saldré de su mundo para siempre", pensé.

"Crystal Anderson thought she knew the Connors, but a family vacation in the woods reveals a terrifying truth. Trapped with her husband Dylan and his parents, Betty and Jake, Crystal uncovers dark secrets, faces impossible choices, and witnesses the unthinkable. Hearts will break, and blood will be spilled. Can she escape the family's deadly legacy, or is she already doomed?"

On the day of the wedding, my best friend, Elena Hartman, can't bear to part with me, so she threads my wedding shoes with a string and ties them snugly around her slim waist. The groomsmen turn the whole place upside down, and we end up late for the ceremony. She eventually cracks up and tugs at her billowy bridesmaid dress, revealing the outline of the shoes at her waist. "I dare you to come take them. As long as I'm here, she's not getting married!" My fiancé, Miles Lawson, shakes his head and chuckles. "You just love tormenting us, don't you?" Miles exchanges a look with the groomsmen, and they charge at her at the same time. She squeals as she falls back onto the bed, squirming under her layers of tulle. "Don't be so rough! I'm ticklish…" The groomsmen flush bright red. Miles' ears turn scarlet as he feels around her waist. She giggles even louder. "How are you going to undo it through all these layers? Use your head!" Then, she gasped. "That tickles!" Her theatrics make my temper flare. I spring to my feet, lift her skirt, and rip the wedding shoes right off her. "If you're that ticklish, smack yourself with a slipper. Drop the act, or I'll yank out the nerves that make you ticklish!"

After eighteen year old Omega, Crystal Thorne is rejected by her mate, Leo Fernandez, she feels her life will be over. However, the moon goddess has other plans for her as she is given a second chance mate in the person of Xavier, Leo's step brother. Crystal finds herself in the middle of an epic battle between two step brothers and sworn enemies. But the brothers are not just fighting to win the throne this time. They are fighting to win her heart!

Crystal Blues, a young woman from a low-class family, endured the tragic loss of her parents when she was just twelve years old. Left with the weighty responsibility of caring for her younger sisters, she faced a challenging path ahead. Fortune smiled upon her when her path crossed with an archangel in the name of Mervin Brooklyn who offered his assistance, thus lightening the burden she bore. As fate would have it, Crystal eventually obtained evidence pointing to her parents' murderers, only to discover that they were part of a formidable and powerful family. Life took an even more complicated turn when she found herself entangled in a complex love triangle. Her affections were torn between Mervin, her guardian archangel, and the daughter of the family responsible for her parents' demise. Fuelled by a burning desire to bring the responsible family to justice, Crystal made the bold decision to reveal the damning evidence she held against them. However, the tables quickly turned, and Crystal's loved ones were thrust into jeopardy, becoming bargaining chips in exchange for the proof of the family's wrongdoing. Now, she stands at a harrowing crossroads, forced to make a life-altering choice that could either rescue her from impending tragedy or condemn her to a painful repetition of history.

"You belong to me, Crystal. And I’m going to remind you of that.” His husky breath fanned her ear. Crystal Lin is drowning in the debt her father left behind, a deadly 10 million dirham IOU to a ruthless Dubai loan shark. With just two months left before her organs become the payment, Crystal juggles two lives: waitress by day, stripper by night. But everything spirals when she unknowingly gives a lap dance to the heir of the Al-Fayad empire. Amir who is a cold, commanding, and dangerously powerful. Amir doesn’t want love. He wants an heir. And he’s offering Crystal a marriage contract worth millions to get it. Desperate to survive, she agrees. But fate has one more cruel twist, Ahmad. Amir’s kind-hearted twin who turns out to be the mysterious stranger who once stirred her heart with a glance. Now he’s her husband’s brother and he's the man she can't stop thinking about. Torn between duty and desire, caught in a billionaire’s twisted game, Crystal must decide. To lose the life she’s barely clinging to, or risk it all for a love that was never part of the deal.

Crystal Bennett learned early that the world shows mercy to no one. Life has made her strong, cautious, and quiet. She doesn’t complain, she doesn’t ask for help, and she expects nothing from anyone. The only person who truly knows her past is Greta, her best friend—the only family she has left. Then Axel Valenti enters her life. CEO of the Aurelian Group, Axel is a man built on control: power, business, discipline. Cold and impenetrable, he trusts no one. In his world, there is no room for love—only for success. When Axel chooses Crystal as his personal assistant, she steps into a world of wealth, secrets, and ruthless decisions. As time passes, Crystal begins to realize that behind the man made of ice lies something far darker. And Axel, in turn, starts to see in her something he has never considered necessary before: a weakness.

My neighbors across the hall had a nasty habit of stealing. This included my food deliveries, my shoes from the cabinet, and even my clothes drying on the rooftop. Nothing was safe from them. I had enough. One day, I placed a pair of shoes borrowed from my friend, who was battling an extreme case of athlete’s foot, outside my door. Not long after they stole them, they came banging on my door in the middle of the night, furious about the outbreak on their feet. They even filed a complaint at the hospital where I work. I was so furious that I invited a few homeless patients to move in. A muscular man with HIV, an elderly woman with syphilis, and a young man with severe mental health issues became their new neighbors. The thieves could not handle it and begged the landlord to evict them. However, the joke was on them. My family owned the entire building. If anyone was leaving, it certainly was not me.

“I don’t want you. I hate you.” Those words from her only son slice deeper than any blade. Sarah returns from the hospital expecting love, only to find her place at the family table stolen. Her husband, James, stands arm in arm with Tiana — his late brother’s widow, while her son clings to the other woman’s waist, rejecting his own mother. The betrayal does not end there. After a confrontation with Tiana, she woke up in an abandoned building, her hands tied, and mouth taped. Beside her was Tiana too. Tied. James stood, his confused gaze darting from Tiana to Sarah. And then came the baritone voice from one of the kidnappers: “One life. One choice. You can only save one. Choose!” Sarah turned, seeing how Tiana was communicating with the kidnappers with her eyes. She struggled to let James see the truth; that this was all a setup. But she couldn’t. Her mouth was tapped. But then, like a match striking steel, James’ voice came brittle and final. “Tiana.” He chose his ex over his own wife. Over the mother of his child. Sarah was abandoned in the warehouse. Immediately they left, the warehouse exploded, covered in flames. And Sarah’s screams and cries inside, filled the night. Did Sarah survive the fire outbreak? If she did, can they stand her revenge when she finally returns?