Dredging Lights

Three men. One heart. Maya’s bl‌ueprint for lo⁠v‌e. May​a Al​v⁠are‍z thought‍ she was on the safest and fulfilled path, a loyal boyfriend, a promis‌ing career, an​d a life free of drama. Till a s‍tormy‌ night and a s⁠tole‍n kiss und‌er the gallery lights shat‍tered everything. Humiliated‌ but unbro⁠ken, Maya threw herself into wor​k mindlessly, only to clash wi⁠th Zane Cro‌ss: a ruthless b‍illionaire client, whose smirk is as dangerous as his secr‍ets. Th⁠ei​r s‍parks igni‌te b‍o⁠ardrooms and headl⁠ines, and soo‍n the city is whisperin⁠g abo‌ut the fire between th‌em. When a scanda‍l threatens t⁠o wr‍e‌ck her care​er and all she’d worked for, M‍ay⁠a makes​ a desperate move.She begins to notice Lucas, the⁠ charming​ Doctor, willing to fake-date her, to cal​m the rumor and get her mat⁠c​h‍making f‌amily’s pressure off her. B​ut fak⁠e dates soon b‍ecom‍e real gl​ances, and r‌eal glances stir old fee⁠lings Maya wasn't prepared for. As corpo​rate sabot‍age, family meddling, and city gossip swirl, Maya begins⁠ to wonder if love is w​orth the risk at all and questions where​ h​e‍r salvatio‌n truly lies, to be fully ready to recieve the love she wants and deserves.

“I can't be with you. We aren't made to be. I'm broken and you ruin everything in your path” I murmur against his lips in a daze. Kian’s hands around my waist tightens “That's why we are made for each other, dimples. You are already broken so I can't ruin you. We can only heal each other from this point on “I can't” But I can’t move away. His touch lights up a trail of fire as his fingers travels down my spine. “You don't have a choice, dimples. You are mine and I'm never letting you go” Alora has demons who whisper to her every day. After being bullied brutally in high school for being fat, she decides to lose weight to regain confidence but that also came with its own baggage. Kian is the heir to the Baston Hotel chain. He loves control and is addicted to it. He is as devastatingly handsome just as he is cruel. Kian hates the fake person Alora has become. He despises the mask on her face and wants to rip it off to shreds. He wants to mess her up and make her his. Alora can never hide from Kian. She wants to fight the pull to him but it's impossible when he breathes under her skin. Kian is the only one who can teach Alora what true love is and Alora is the only one who can calm the storm in Kian.

He leaned back confidently, the glow from the lights catching his grey eyes. “But if you ever want something simple,” he said, “something that won’t demand feelings or promises. Something free. Fun. Uncomplicated.” I swallowed. “Like what, exactly…” He leaned forward again, eyes never leaving mine. “Like being each other’s fuck partner,” he said calmly… like it was the most natural proposal in the world. *** Raised by a single mother abandoned by love, Annabelle Brown vowed to save sex for marriage. Until the night she caught her boyfriend cheating, and his reason—no relationship can last without sex. Heartbroken and furious, Anna walked into a bar… and into the most outrageous proposal of her life. *** Alessandro Miller wanted nothing complicated. Scarred by a loveless home, he swore off marriage and emotional attachments. All he wanted was simple: sex, no feelings, no future. *** Against everything she believed in, Anna said yes to Alessandro's proposal. Their rules were clear: No emotions, no personal questions, no strings. Until months later, when Anna walked into a conference room and saw him—the same man she'd been sharing her weekends with, now standing at the head of the company board as the CEO. Worse, Alessandro was the heir to a powerful family… and already promised to another woman. Bound by duty, divided by power, yet consumed by desire, neither of them could walk away. He was her partner in sin. Her boss. And the one man she was never supposed to fall for.

When Lily is forced to move to a quiet town after her mother remarries, she feels like her entire world has fallen apart. The city lights, her friends, her freedom all gone. Now she must adjust to a life she never wanted, trapped between a new stepfamily that barely tolerates her and the eerie calm of a forest that seems to whisper her name. But destiny has already begun to weave its threads around her. At Gateway University, Lily meets Byrain, a mysterious, charming, yet distant student who always seems to appear when she least expects him. There’s something about him, his intense gaze, the quiet strength in his voice, the way he looks at her as if he’s known her forever. What Lily doesn’t know is that Byrain is not entirely human. Byrain has lived with a secret. Behind his calm eyes and perfect smile hides the soul of a werewolf the same massive creature that once watched over Lily from the shadows. He has loved her silently, protected her from dangers she never even knew existed, and fought against his own nature just to keep her safe. But when fate draws them together again, his control begins to crumble. Lily is pulled into a world she never believed was real. The truth about Byrain’s identity and their long-hidden connection threatens to change everything she knows about love, destiny, and herself. Now, she must decide: Will she run from the darkness… or embrace the beast who has loved her all along?

As Jimmy investigates an abandoned car, he finds a journal that sheds light on a mystery from twenty years before. As he explores his memories he discovers the truth behind the city and the supernaturals who run it. ~~~ Inside of each of us is the darkness wanting out. But what if that darkness is the ending and the beginning of us all? The full moon hung like a ghost in the night sky as Yada overlooked the lights of the city below from her tenth-floor apartment. She studied the diamond twilight for over an hour before turning away--No longer able to stomach the sight. It had been nearly a month since she had been home, having stayed in the coven’s inner chambers since the city fell under siege to a rival house a little over three weeks ago. Over the years, the city had seen many battles for control of the streets. To date, the two bloodiest battles took place within the last fifteen years. The Badens orchestrated both attacks. Led by Darius, the Badens seemed hell-bent on ruling the city with little regard for the Michelsons. The Michelsons governed the streets for nearly two hundred years and were a formidable force. Led by Gabriel, the Michelsons protected the city, and it survived unscathed. The streets were free from the blood deals, which went unnoticed by the public eye, normally. However, this last battle proved more difficult to keep quiet. It had been an all-out war for control, drawing innocent people into the blood feud as the Badens raided the streets for warriors to fortify their numbers. The Michelsons retaliated through unusual ventures to keep the war silent.

If you and his first love were in a car accident at the same time, who would your husband save? When Hunter Ford lifted his first love into his arms and walked away, Stella Spencer felt her life slipping away. Along with her unborn child, her heart died in that moment too. It began as a transaction, a deal that finally allowed Stella to marry the man she loved. But in the eyes of the world, she was the villain who tore Hunter away from his first love. Stella believed time would change everything. She believed devotion could soften a man’s heart. That if she waited long enough, he would eventually turn around and see her. She was wrong. It was not until she buried the child she had carried for three months that she finally woke up. “Let’s get a divorce.” One signed agreement ended everything between them. Three months later, beneath the glittering lights of an elite gala, Stella stood on stage to accept an award. In the crowd, Hunter froze. After a brief pause, he smiled calmly and said to those around him, “Yes. That’s my wife.” “Your wife?” Stella smiled and pressed the divorce papers into his hand. “Sorry, Mr. Ford. I’m your ex-wife.” The man who had always been cold and composed finally lost control. His eyes reddened. His voice shook. “What do you mean by ex-wife? I never agreed to that.”

Victoria never wanted the spotlight. She wanted a quiet life with King Adeyemi,the self-made billionaire who's proposed three times and been refused three times because of a secret she couldn't afford to spill. But when Chief Donald Okereke her father,dies under suspicious circumstances 8 weeks before his crucial election, she is dragged into a world of power, politics, and forbidden desire. Seeing her brother shattered and her family's legacy crumbling, Victoria must choose either to run from her destiny or claim the Senate seat her father died fighting for. King has loved Victoria obsessively for three years. Every rejection cuts deeper, but he won't stop pursuing the only woman who's ever made him feel alive. When her father's death pulls her into the ruthless political machine King knows too well, he'll use every resource in his billion-dollar empire to protect her,even if it means exposing the dangerous connection between his business and her father's enemies. As Christmas lights flicker over a city drowning in corruption, Victoria discovers that politics is foreplay and power is the ultimate aphrodisiac. The man she loves might be her salvation or her destruction.In the middle of the noise, Victoria stood still,her heart cracked only when her secrets leaked and love was tested. Apparently obsession becomes the only thing standing between her and ruin,will it protect her or become the weapon that destroys her?

The music made the speakers tremble, the floor vibrated with the rumble of the sound and the jumps of the crazy people. Each one in their own world, dancing together, dancing separately. Enjoying music, company and alcohol. I danced alone, with a drink in hand. Gliding, moving my hips to the rhythm of the music, not paying much attention to anything or anyone around me. Just enjoying that moment of inner peace that I was needing and he was giving it to me. It was a respite, a window that I opened myself in my own cage to let in air and I knew that as soon as I left the club the window would close and I would lock myself back in my world without fresh air. Therefore, he enjoyed everything he could. Alone. With eyes closed. Sweating the bad energy that others left me and breathing the good vibes that I had to give myself. They were approaching me. I drove them away. They invited me. I rejected them. they spoke to me I silenced them. I just wanted to dance and they were going to have to respect that. It was amazing how loud music could be my oxygen tank. It silenced my thoughts, freed me from tensions. There was nothing more relaxing in my life than dancing with my eyes closed and the volume turned up to a thousand. I twirled, I jumped, I wiggled, I hummed, and I sang. The brightly colored lights flickered making it difficult to see, but it was what I liked the most, going blind for an instant, forgetting that I had the ability to see the world, a false, disastrous and difficult world.

I’m a moaning mess as Sebastian slams into me from behind. His hips hit me hard, and each deep thrust sends shockwaves through my body. Celestia was never a daughter to those who raised her; she was a transaction. At just eighteen, she was sold to the cold and powerful Sinclair family to settle her father’s mounting gambling debts, a heartless deal orchestrated by both her father and her stepmother. After escaping the initial humiliation and betrayal of her family cage, Celestia disappeared into the shadows. By twenty, she was living a life they would never imagine, working as a stripper at the gritty New Bay Bar. It was there, under the neon lights, that Sebastian Sinclair the ruthless billionaire playboy first set his eyes on her. He didn't realize she was the girl his family had already "bought" until the truth crashed down. Now, at twenty-one, the ultimate betrayal is set in stone. Celestia isn't marrying the man who stalks her dreams and haunts her touch. Instead, she is set to marry Sebastian’s elder brother, Marco Sinclair. Trapped between the brother she is legally bound to and the brother who is dangerously addicted to her, Celestia is playing a lethal game of revenge. What begins as a calculated move to destroy the Sinclairs from within quickly spirals into a dark obsession. Sebastian doesn't just break the rules for her; he rewrites them, and he has no intention of letting his brother keep what he considers his. Can she survive the price of being a Sinclair bride? Or will the fire between her and Sebastian burn the entire empire down?

In my final year of high school, my parents died, leaving me nothing but a crumbling brick house. And yet, I somehow got myself a younger brother. He was a second-year student at our school, at the top of his grade. But no one respected him. Even when he was bullied, the teachers turned a blind eye. Why? Because even if others didn't beat him, his drunken father did it every day, while his cowardly mother never dared to fight back. I dragged him home with all my strength, patched up his wounds, and kept him with me for several days. Later, when his mother was beaten to death, I called the police and had his father arrested. "Hey," I told him, "from now on, live with me. I don't have any family left. Call me sister, and I'll put you through school." He dreamed of getting into a prestigious university. So I dropped out, set up a street stall, sold my own blood, and even took illegal jobs just to support him. When he graduated, he said he wanted to start a business. I gave him every cent of my savings. And then one day, I watched him stand beneath the dazzling lights, a radiant girl at his side, holding a trophy for a youth entrepreneurship award. I looked down at the cancer diagnosis in my hands. A bitter smile tugged at my lips. In the end, I had raised him into someone I could no longer reach. It was time for me to leave the stage.