Do Groundhogs Play Dead Novels & Stories

I’d just set sail to escort the cargo to the border when a Category 8 typhoon warning suddenly blared. I steer the ship back in the direction of the harbor, only to realize that the ship has run out of fuel. The distress beacon has been dismantled, too. Immediately, I pick up the radio and call the maritime rescuers for help. As soon as the call gets connected, I hear my wife, Melanie Watkins' mocking laughter instead. "I've already rewired the emergency number so that you can never reach the rescuers. Have fun surviving in the ocean!" Her student, Darell Parker, is with her as well. "Remember when you made fun of me for not knowing how to swim, Clifton? Well, now you're given the chance to show off your swimming skills! You can swim all the way back to the shore on your own! You'd better not be as slow as the sea turtles!" The waves have almost capsized the cargo ship. If I can't get rescued anytime soon, I'll end up dying in the sea. I can only grit my teeth before pleading to Melanie, "No one can possibly swim back to shore! Help me call the maritime rescuers—" But she laughs coldly in return. "Why do you need the rescuers' help? Didn't you say one must learn how to protect themselves? Now swim! "If you think the waters are too cold, then swim faster! Maybe you'll feel warmer the faster you swim!" I give up on arguing with Melanie. After that, I head toward the cargo area with a blade in hand and get ready to sever the ropes tying the cargo down. Said cargo contains the ransom money that's capable of saving Ella Zimmerman, the daughter of Hugh Zimmerman, the wealthiest man in Starbury.

Ten years with Don Maximus. I went from the crazy girl who demanded his "undying loyalty" at gunpoint to Chicago's perfect Donna. When Maximus took the casino's hottest stripper to his private room, I didn't lose my mind. Instead, I tossed the woman the keys to a Manhattan penthouse. When Maximus's new flame threw a tantrum at a yacht party, I didn't bat an eye. Instead, after she slapped a waiter in a fit of pique, I made the police problem go away. When Maximus fought with one of his girls, I'd even send her a limited-edition Birkin to smooth things over. And today, Maximus is busy fucking his hot new toy in the study, while another pregnant mistress stands on the estate's rooftop, threatening to jump just to see him. And I'm still the one in my red-bottom heels, calmly going to clean up his mess. The mistress screamed, desperate. "I'm not having this baby! Get Maximus!" I took a sip of my wine, my voice bored. "He's busy today. You have the baby, and I'll make sure seven figures show up in your offshore account." My indifference set her off. She grabbed my wrist, her grip like iron. "You're pathetic, Angelina! There was a time he wouldn't even look at another woman because of you. He slaughtered an entire family for you. When you were shot, he knelt in the pouring rain outside a church, begging God to take his life for yours! But now? You can't even get into his bed. All you can do is stand here and play the gracious Donna!" Her nails left red marks on my skin, but the smile on my face didn't crack. Did she really think a little drama would change anything? I wasn't playing the gracious Donna. I was just done. And I was finally ready to let Maximus go.

“Now. Listen,” King Dane said. “You can come with me and be my sex slave where you’d get to satisfy your lewd urges or you can leave my car and go back to that pitiful life you have.” “The choice is yours.” At the age of ten, Princess Lusia Slater had watched her parents die before her. As a punishment for being blamed for their murder, her wolf is sealed away making her powerless and a slave to her uncontrollable heat. Not being able to be banished because of her royal status, she is turned into a slave by her elder brother, Finn Slater who assumes the role of the Alpha of the Silvermoon pack. Her life takes a turn when she meets Dane Haynes, the Lycan king of the Ironclaw pack who is also an enemy of the Silvermoon pack. He offers her freedom and a way to redemption in exchange for being his sex slave. Lusia is seduced by the deal and accepts it immediately, not knowing what lies ahead for her outside the walls of her pack. She soon later realizes that King Dane has hidden dark secrets, especially about her pack. Will Lusia find out about the secrets? And will she be able to break the curse that had been placed on her as a child?

Vincent has only one mission, and that is to fix his boss' daughter, Gabrielle. Will things remain the same or change? Can a stranger tame the playgirl?

Cassie Baker, an ordinary girl, and dedicated nurse, Life takes an unexpected turn when destiny leads her to William, an intelligent and charming historian working at a nearby museum. Their newfound love blossoms, filling the void in Cassie's heart. Tragedy strikes when a home invasion claims William's life, leaving Cassie shattered. However, fate has other plans. Aided by her close-knit circle of friends and family, along with a ground-breaking secret government experiment, Cassie embarks on an extraordinary journey to bring her true love back. But as shadows creep closer, lurking threats seek to tear them apart once more. Will their love withstand the test of time? Only fate will tell in this gripping tale of romance and mystery.

His steely gaze bore into mine, an abyss of emotionless darkness. "Marc-" "SHUT UP!" I flinched, a shudder coursing through me. He came on closer, his fingers tightening around my neck, a cruel parody of a caress. I met his frightening stare, I stared at him breathing heavily. "Just be still." I lowered my face, eyelids fluttering shut, as if seeking solace in the darkness. "I own you." His declaration resounding heavy in the air, an unbreakable chain binding me to this desire’s. In that moment, I knew - there was no escaping the clutches of this man who held me captive, body and soul. **************** In the heart of a city shrouded in shadows and secrets, Elena Santiago's life takes a dangerous plunge. Her father's debts drag them to the doorstep of Don Marco De Luca, an astute and enigmatic mafia overlord, thrusting Elena into a world of scary gambles and lethal allure. Boundaries blur between allegiance and survival as Elena must survive through a web of deception, where every move becomes a battle cry. With her family's future teetering on a razor's edge, she finds herself torn between defying the merciless Don and submitting to a life of total servitude. ******** Will she succumb to his desires… or hers?!

After one reckless night he can’t remember, Narat wakes up in a stranger’s bed—only to discover that stranger is Kasit, the cold, arrogant CEO who now holds his future in his hands. Desperate for money to save his sister, Narat agrees to a deal. One condition. Marriage. But it’s a trap. Kasit wants revenge. He plans to make Narat fall, use him, then destroy him. Narat has his own plan—take the money, play the game, and walk away untouched. Two straight men. One dangerous lie. A battle of pride, manipulation… and forbidden desire. But when hate starts to feel like love— who will lose first?

I am Alpha Asher's fated mate. His Luna, blessed by the Moon Goddess. But when I started bleeding out, our pup's life hanging by a thread, Asher was at a party for her son—Seraphina's son—celebrating his first shift. I cried out to him through our mind-link, begging for help. He just sounded annoyed. "Bleeding? How long are you going to keep up this act? Last time it was a headache that turned out to be nothing. Now it's bleeding. Aurora, enough is enough. I'm at Leo's first shift party. This is a huge day for him. I can't just leave." Then I heard Seraphina's child call him "Daddy," and Asher's voice, so full of love, answer him. Before I could say anything else, he ruthlessly severed the link. Three hours later, the doctors declared my pup dead. I sent Asher the wolfstone that held our pup's shattered soul, then went to the pack elders alone. "Asher has betrayed me. I demand the severing of our mate bond."

Torn between guilt and survival, Alessia faces an impossible choice: avenging her family’s brutal murder or fleeing from the deadly grasps of the mafia. Her life was turned upside down the night she defied her father’s orders and snuck out of the mansion with her friend, Ella, for a night of clubbing. Returning home after a heartbreaking one-night stand with Dominic, who discarded her like a whore, she found her family brutally murdered. As the sole survivor, Alessia is haunted by the horrific events of that night. The weight of hidden truths and unanswered questions becomes almost unbearable as she struggles to piece together the shattered fragments of her life. Who could have committed such a heinous act? And will she be able to forgive once she uncovers the truth? Join Alessia on a harrowing journey to uncover the secrets behind her family’s murder and discover what it truly means to be a mafia princess.

It was considered a curse in the werewolf world when a child was born with a black birthmark. Jennifer was one of those unfortunate wolves born with that mark. Her mother died as soon as she released her from her womb and officially displayed her as a cursed wolf. Her step-family abused her and forced her to serve the whole pack after her father’s death. She was sold off as a Luna to one of the most dread packs and made to marry an Alpha who got poisoned from war and became a vegetative werewolf, having only a few months left to live. Jennifer had to marry Alpha Raymond, who was known to be a ruthless and powerful wolf, one whom everyone was frightened of like death.