Eye Glass Straw

On my twentieth birthday, my father asked me to draw from a box of straws. It was to pick a husband between William Smith and Austin Smith to inherit North Town. The short straw represented Austin, while the long straw represented William. No matter how hard I tried, I could not get the long straw. However, I was certain that I did not want to marry Austin. I drew straws for three years, but it was to no avail. I had no choice but to tamper with the straws to marry William as I wished. However, ten years into our marriage, he was no longer gentle and kind. He had turned into a really cold person. He neither returned home nor touched me. Even when I threatened him with a knife, he refused to talk to me. Despite feeling hurt, I was unwilling to let him go. That was until I watched him kick away the only medicine I had for my asthma while I was writhing on the floor. “I was the one who switched out the straws. There was no long straw, yet you forced me to marry you. Mandy died from a broken heart, so you should pay with your life.” When I opened my eyes again, I was holding a short straw. I calmly said, “Since it’s the short one, I choose Austin.”

Despite using my cornea, my husband, Felix Halward, forced me to kneel on glass shards. Despite using my heart, my daughter declared that I was not fit to be her mother. Before my artificial heart stopped beating, I called Felix, only to have him snap at me, “Liana, could you stop kicking up a fuss? If you want to die that badly, do it somewhere far away! I’m not collecting your corpse!” I shut my remaining left eye as I lay on the snow. Later on, Felix, who had stopped loving me, plucked out his own eyeball. My daughter, who had denounced me, tried taking her life multiple times just so that she could see me again. However, I no longer longed for their love.

The Consigliere—my husband, Sal Barzini—who'd always despised anything soft or weak—suddenly started sleeping with a teddy bear. One button eye missing, filthy as a stray dog, yet he cuddled that beast every night, curled up in silk sheets like a baby returning to the womb. And left me freezing on the edge of the master bedroom. I couldn't stand it anymore. At our son Luca's first-year baptism, I announced I wanted out. Everyone went numb with shock. Sal grabbed a glass of red wine and threw it in my face. "You're jealous of a stuffed animal? Have you lost your fucking mind?" I wiped the wine from my cheek, cold as ice. "You say you want to spend your life with that beast. I'm giving you my blessing."

Christopher Hudson, eldest son and CEO of The Hudson Group, has his eye on four hundred and seventy acres of land in Bethel, Vermont. He wants to purchase the land and build a luxury resort. It is his vision that the resort will be the corner stone of The Hudson Group for years to come. The problem is the land will cost him more than he wants to pay. Selena Fitz and her friends are The Fantasy Fiction Writing Club. After a typical day at work, she relaxes with her club buddies with a glass of wine and her laptop at the ready. That’s when she discovers that she switched the club’s flash drive with the flash drive she gave her boss. The stories on the flash drive detailed all the dirty things the club members wanted to do to Christopher Hudson and his brothers. Desperate to get the drive back, the club members break into the Hudson Mansion. Instead of retrieving the flash drive, Selena is presented with an opportunity of a lifetime all because she owns a piece of land that her family has handed down from generation to generation.

Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. Elara is out for blood! After being tortured and belittled by her mate and the pack priestess, she decides enough is enough! The final straw was when her mate got himself an Omega concubine and subject Elara to more disgrace. What happens when the dark and dangerous Alpha Riven of the BloodClaw pack, strolls into her life and offers her a chance at a new life? What happens when she has to make a choice that changes her life forever?

WARNING: MATURE CONTENT Emily Simpson believes she would get her happy ever after and can't wait to say her vows to Brian, the love of her life but her dreams are shattered when Daniel Straw walks into the church. Daniel straw, the leader of the "Blood Dragon Mafia gang is known to be ruthless and is greatly feared by everyone in Texas. What most people don't know is that he doubles as the Alpha of the Blood Moon Pack. Having stayed twelve years without being mated to anyone, Daniel has long given up on the possibility of ever having a mate which is why he feels extremely surprised when he gets mated at the age of thirty. He excitedly searches for his mate and finds her in a church, ready to tie the knot with another man. What is worse, he realizes that she is a human. Disappointed, Daniel decides to reject Emily but changes his mind when he overhears a conversation her fiance makes on the phone. He ends up marrying her forcefully and takes her captive. Emily displays nothing but hatred for the seemingly cold-hearted Mafia boss and wants to reunite with her Brian at all costs. Daniels's heart finally softens and he chooses to let Emily go despite his love for her. But, what happens when Emily realizes that she is not yet ready to let go of her captor?

Married to her fated mated for years, bound by the dying wish of her mate's father, Imogene's fate hangs on the thin thread of luck as Orion overrides and humiliates her publicly by making her a trophy wife, flashing his Mistress right in her face but an accidental case of a missing necklace becomes the last straw that breaks the Camel's back. Imogene, hurt and broke knowing that the man she loves was willing to get rid of her, signs divorce papers and disappears. Five years later, the tables are turned. It seems like her ex-husband had changed his mind.

" You love your job more than me, don't you?" Standing on barefoot, Aurelia Wren asked whilst she held the divorce paper she prepared, He barely looked up before answering a call instead of looking at her. " Let's talk later!" ______ Aurelia Wren has been married merely six months ago when she realized that her husband had zero interest in her. Not only did he fail to give her the attention she deserved as his wife but also he skipped his father-in-law's funeral for a business meeting. It was the last straw for her to say goodbye to the marriage she was barely acknowledged.

Lauren Popes's life changes in a flash when she was forced to marry Andre Sebastian, a ruthless billionaire. Her sole reason for agreeing to the marriage was to save her father's company from crashing. Despite having the means to rescue her father's company, her father insisted on her marrying Andre or ceasing to be his daughter. Life with Andre was a nightmare; he prohibited her from working, violated their marital vows by being unfaithful, and brought different women to their marital home. His actions deeply hurt Lauren, yet she somehow falls in love with him till she discovers that her cousin, Julia, had an intimate relationship with him and is now pregnant by her husband. Will this revelation be the final straw for Lauren, potentially marking the end of their marriage?

The year the Rossi famiglia falls, my personal Underboss, Lorenzo Santoro, rises to power—becoming the Don and seizing control of the underworld. Once, I was the untouchable Principessa. He was the Soldato, ready to die for me at a moment's notice. For something as trivial as a paper cut on my finger, he would drop to his knees with red-rimmed eyes, blowing on it for half an hour. Now, to earn a smile from his new flame, Elena Marino, he forces me to sign a contract and makes me his live target. He watches with indifference as I am battered and bloodied under a hail of bullets. During a blast-resistance test, shattered glass slices the corner of my eye, but Lorenzo merely looks on. "The once-delicate Principessa Rossi can't even handle a little pain?" During attack-dog training, I am bitten to the bone, yet he shields a trembling Elena instead. "Animals don't know any better. Why are you holding a grudge against a dog?" Then comes the real kidnapping. To save Elena, who is desperate to become Donna, he personally cuts off my escape. "This is just a drill, Isabella," he scoffs. "Stop acting like it's real." On the surveillance monitors, flames engulf me as I take my final breath. A bloodstained termination contract is delivered to him. "Don Santoro, I return the life I owe you." Only then does the man who believes he rules the world finally lose his mind.