Dull Ache Under Left Shoulder Blade

“I'm so sorry, Leo,” I rasped, my voice barely a whisper. Tears of guilt and self-blame streamed down my cheeks as I stood before him, eyes cast downward. Despite the fact that I was his prisoner and he was my warden, I couldn't bear the thought of anything bad happening to him. I told him, “It's my fault. I shouldn't have let you go-” “Damn it, Alessandra. I don't want your apology,” Leonardo snapped, lifting my chin with a firm finger, forcing me to meet his gaze. His voice was hard as steel as he continued, “I want you to write a fucking essay about how much you think about me. How you crave my touch. I want to hear you say you love me, because I swear it in this life, mia principessa, there won't be anyone else but me.” ----------------------------------------------------- When Alessandra Scavelli is forced into marrying Leonardo De Castello, her childhood sweetheart turned feared mafia kingpin, her world is thrown into chaos. Leonardo, still madly in love with her, sees this as a chance to reclaim their lost romance. Alessandra, however, is torn by a secret mission handed to her by her family: infiltrate Leonardo's syndicate and bring it down from within. As she delves into Leonardo's dangerous world, Alessandra finds herself conflicted between her family’s demands and the undeniable pull of her own heart. The once clear lines between loyalty and love blur, and she must navigate a treacherous path where betrayal lurks at every corner. Will Alessandra follow through with her family's plan, or will she surrender to the passion that threatens to consume her?

On her anniversary, Evelyn is diagnosed with cancer—only to come home and find her husband cheating with their son’s teacher. Worse, her little boy calls the other woman “Mommy” and calls Evelyn “a bad woman.” Abandoned by the man she loved and the child she raised, Evelyn signs the divorce papers with tears in her eyes. Just when she’s ready to give up, a strange little girl calls her “Mom”—and her father, Nicholas, offers the warmth Evelyn thought she’d never feel again. She lost everything. Will fate give her one last chance?

For five years, Sienna played the perfect role: a silent wife in a marriage built on nothing but a contract. She cooked, cleaned, and raised a son who now clings to another woman and calls her “Mommy.” In the mansion she once called home, Sienna is nothing but a ghost—unseen, unheard, unloved. When her husband’s ex returns and effortlessly takes everything—his attention, his affection, and even Sienna’s place in their son’s heart—Sienna remains quiet. Until a cruel accident leaves her lying on the pavement... alone and forgotten. That’s when she realizes: no one is coming to save her. Not her husband. Not even her child. Will Sienna choose to forgive... or will she finally walk away for good?

"I know what you did. You seduced me and conspired with Elijah to force the bond. Get out. You're not welcome here anymore." Caleb, casting Josephine out of his life on the morning after their night together, in front of the entire pack, based on nothing but a lie he chose to believe. °°°°°°°°°° Josephine Blackwood came to Kisatchie Forest to scatter her father's ashes not to find her fated mate. Not to be rescued by Caleb Renard, the brooding, blue-eyed leader of the Moon Edge wolf pack. And certainly not to spend one unforgettable night in his arms before he tore her world apart at dawn, hurling accusations she never deserved and casting her out in front of everyone. Josephine left with a secret growing inside her and built a life strong enough for two. Five years. A son with his father's eyes. A shop full of real magic. A town she finally calls home. Then Caleb walks through her door. Older, harder, haunted by truths that have destroyed everything he thought he knew including the lie that made him push Josephine away. But before Josephine can decide whether to trust him again, their son is taken. And the only way to get Theo back is to fight the very pack that broke them both.

When the flood came, my father, who was the captain of the rescue team, immediately rescued my cousin and cut my rescue rope. "Vivian can't swim, and there's not enough space on the helicopter. You won't die even if we rescue you a little later." I was rushed to the hospital while hanging onto a thread, but my mother, who was a doctor, gave the last bag of rare blood to my cousin, who was not even seriously injured. I begged with a weak voice, but my mother pried my fingers apart and said, "Your cousin is anemic and has always been in poor health. Must you fight for attention at such a time?" My parents had no idea that I stopped breathing when they abandoned me.

For three years of marriage, Mark Powell had a talent for one thing—twisting the knife in Lisa Simpson’s heart. His parents never approved of her. Her mentor had been disappointed in her. Still, Lisa kept believing that if she loved him enough, if she gave him everything she had, she could warm his heart. It took her three years to realize the truth. The woman Mark had never let go of was his younger brother’s fiancée. What a joke. She’d wanted a child. She thought maybe then she could at least stay by his side and grow old with him. Instead, she was told she wasn’t even qualified to have his baby. That was the real punchline. On their wedding anniversary, Lisa finally walked away for good. She went back to research. She won major awards. She made a name for herself and brought honor to her country. She was glowing. Brilliant, successful men circled around her. There was no shortage of people eager to win her over. Three years later, Lisa stepped out of the maternity ward, a baby in her arms. Mark suddenly rushed in front of her like he’d lost his mind. “You were pregnant?” Lisa smiled faintly and looked down at him. “I had a baby. What does that have to do with my ex-husband?”

Everyone called Mia a shameless whore. However, the one trailing behind her was the youngest don of the Yorick family, James. He hand-washed her lace camisoles, broke three ribs for her, and even with his face covered in blood from a beating, he could still smile at her. One night, after too much drinking, the underboss he trusted most leaned down beside him. His face was full of disdain. “Boss, Mia is a disgrace to all of us! A woman like that, how could she ever be worthy of you?” James suddenly laughed. His eyes went terrifyingly blank. The cigar between his fingers glowed faintly in the dark. “Back then, before I secured my position, I was young, greedy for power. To get my sister-in-law that antique necklace she wanted, I took advantage of Mia being drunk and took pictures of her myself… “Ten dollars a copy. I sold thirty thousand of them. Things blew way out of control… I owe her.” James took a long drink of whiskey while his Adam’s apple bobbed. “Thankfully… she will never know. I will spend my whole life making it up to her, treating her twice as well.” He did not see the private room door quietly close the moment he said those words. Mia turned around with a blank expression on her face and walked into a small clinic on the corner. She laid down on the operating table. He would never deserve to know that he had once been a father, if only for a moment. That whole lifetime he planned to spend making it up to her, she did not want it anymore.

"No matter the price," I said calmly to the witch across from me, "I will buy the scroll that severs a mate bond." I am Jean Thompson, Luna of the Crescent Pack in name only, and mate—also in name only—to Alpha Felix Frost. In the five years I carried this title, I endured Felix's indifference, my in-laws' scorn, and the pack's cold neglect. All because I loved Felix. I believed, with a devotion that consumed me, that one day my sincerity would move his heart. But on the very day of our fifth anniversary—when I discovered I was carrying twins—I stumbled upon him leading the entire pack of warriors to the airport… to welcome his childhood sweetheart, Mary Lockwood. That moment shattered the last of my hope. When he returned, I hid the bond-severing scroll among a stack of business documents and set it in front of him. "What's this? If it's important, give it to me later—" Before he could finish, Mary's syrup-sweet voice slipped in between us, "Alpha, our reservation is about to begin." Felix didn't even bother to look. He pressed his handprint casually on the scroll, ending five years of our bond. Just like that, our mate bond was severed. But I walked away with more than freedom. I carried with me a secret that could shake the entire pack—two lives growing inside me. Twins, foretold to become kings of the werewolves: the Alpha heirs. Later, in a place far beyond his reach, I gained everything I had once longed for—respect, trust, and love. But Felix came back like a storm I could not escape. His eyes were bloodshot, his body trembling with fury as he trapped me against the wall. "I never agreed to sever our bond," he growled. "Where do you think you're going with my pups?"

The night Silver Hale was born, the moon lost its pale glow and turned completely silver — a sign that the packs had not seen in centuries. Now twenty-three, Silver is the pack’s outcast. Born with a dormant Luna bloodline, she was mocked as human, rejected, and forced to live in the shadows while others found their mates at sixteen. But the prophecy says otherwise: “The first will awaken the Moon’s lost power, and three crowned wolves shall kneel before her.” When three Alpha brothers — Kyrian, Kael, and Kairo — appear under the Blood Moon, the bond is instantaneous, overwhelming, and forbidden. For the first time in her life, Silver discovers that she is more than human… and that the pack’s rejection was only the beginning. Will she survive the power awakening inside her, and can three Alphas truly share the same Luna?

Five years ago, I left my husband a note. Three sentences. A returned bracelet. A door closing softly at 4am. He told me to get rid of our baby. I got rid of him instead. Now he’s sitting across my boardroom table in the city I built for myself, looking for the woman he married. She’s gone. What’s left is stronger.