Flared Nostrils

Kim Evelyn—known to those closest to her as Ivy—never imagined her third wedding anniversary would turn into a nightmare. Her husband, Rico, didn’t just betray her—he brought his mistress into their bed. The pain and humiliation scorched her heart, leaving her no choice but to walk away from the home that once symbolized their love. But Ivy’s escape led her into a night that would change everything. Beneath the glimmering lights of an upscale bar, she met Joshua Miller—a dangerously charming man with a captivating smile and an offer too tempting to resist. Revenge. Sweet, calculated revenge. But there was a catch: Ivy had to surrender herself to a game far more seductive than anything she’d ever imagined. As vengeance ignited and passion flared, the line between game and reality began to blur. Dark secrets loomed. Hidden dangers stirred. And Ivy was forced to make an impossible choice—move forward and risk losing everything, or retreat into the scars of her past. Can Ivy take control of this wicked game? Or will she end up the pawn—consumed by desire, ambition, and a betrayal more dangerous than the one she fled?

“Let. Me. Go!” She said, trying to run away from the man who now had her cornered. A familiar scent filled her nostrils, but she could barely find it in her to speak let alone call for HIS help. “You are mine now,” he glared at her, his eyes filled with rage. Her heart raced, and she tried moving away from his tight grip as he wrapped his hand around her neck, choking her. “I will show you what it is to try and run away from your Alpha.” Her breathing ragged, and her eyes rolled to the back of her head before the man’s hand loosened around her neck. His green eyes met hers in the darkness, and it was seconds later before his tattooed arms wrapped around her, holding her to his chest. “And that is what you get for messing with my MATE, Stefano…” ********************************* What if everything was nothing more than a lie? What if what you know was not more than a game? What if what you held onto was the one thing that was to drop you? When Alpha Diego is given a task by his father, he is forced to play the ONE game he hates most. The game of love. And the one thing that makes it even worse is that he forced to play it against the one person that he is supposed to cherish. His mate, Lea Auditore…

Taking advantage of the crowd, Cecilia tries to evade Ethan and flee in between them. But unfortunately for her, she was grabbed by her forearm and pulled inside the boy’s locker room. With someone shutting the door. “You are not going anywhere. ” Ethan growls, caging her within his arms. His warm breath fans her chest as she is drawn in his brown orbs. Cecilia’s breath hitches as his manly scent infiltrates her nostrils and her wolf howls for closure. “Why do I feel something for him? When he touched me, it didn’t feel weird. It felt like I belonged in the warm embrace of his touch.” Cecilia murmured to herself. But that can’t be true unless he is her mate. Funny enough, Cecilia has already rejected her mate. This doesn’t make sense, because it’s only a few are privileged to have a second chance mate. The moon goddess surely wouldn’t bless her with another mate when she was the one who rejected her mate. After rejecting her mate who was her ex-husband, Cecilia is trapped between the Alpha who refuses to let her go, and a bully whose very touch feels like home. But at what cost? With her peace and future on the line, She was left with two choices, neither trust the man who promised her protection nor lose herself to her past.

When I go home for the holidays, I find out that my dad has installed a facial recognition machine at the front door. "You'll have to pay an entry fee of 50 thousand dollars. Will you be paying by card or payment code?" I thought my dad was joking at first. As I laugh, I attempt to walk through the front door while pushing my luggage forward. But my mom passes me a price list with an icy look. "That'll be 200 dollars for dragging stuff across the floor. You'll also be charged 1,000 dollars per hour for using up the air." I'm stunned by her words. "Mom, stop messing around already!" But when I walk into the house, I realize that the air inside has disappeared. Unable to breathe, my face soon turns bright red out of suffocation as I kneel down on the floor. My mom huffs coldly again. "If you want to live, then pay up!" With great difficulty, I dig out my phone and pay the fees. Once the transaction is done, I can feel air rushing through my nostrils and into my lungs. For a few moments, I pant heavily. As I stare at my cold-looking parents, I finally feel that something is off. So, I scramble up to my feet and rush for the door. But that's when I find out that the front door is already welded shut. There's a payment code pasted on the door as well as a message. "Exit fee. One million dollars."

On the night of our mating ceremony, my Alpha, Damian, and I were ambushed by a rival pack. When I opened my eyes again, I was back in the past, before we had marked each other. In my previous life, we were true mates, chosen by the moon goddess, and had been together for seven years. I sacrificed everything to help him become the most powerful Alpha, yet he refused to even give me a pup. Only later did I learn that Damian's heart had always belonged to another—Aria, a she-wolf from a powerful bloodline. Reborn, I decided to let him chase his ambition. I severed our mate bond with my own hands and chose a completely different path. Seven years later, he became the most powerful Alpha in the alliance. At the annual summit, he and his beloved Aria announced their mating. When he saw me standing alone, he sneered. "Selene, I know you're still in love with me. You've loved me across two lifetimes. I'm the most exceptional Alpha you'll ever know." "But you need to stop destroying yourself over me." I ignored him, pulling my son into my arms. Damian's eyes flared crimson, his wolf's control slipping. "You told me you would only ever bear my pups!"

At 4:00 a.m., my husband, Rocco, gently shook me awake. His voice was a low murmur, . "Alessia, my love, could you do something for me?" But his next words shattered the illusion. "Scarlett is hungry. Go make her some seafood soup." Scarlett was our maid, and she was also Rocco's pregnant goomar. "I just had fresh seafood delivered. Get to the kitchen and make her a bowl of soup. Just for Falcone's heir." I refused, my voice cold. His anger flared in an instant. "Don't be so unreasonable, Alessia." "Is it really so hard for you to make some soup?" I shook my head, silent. He stroked my cheek, a patronizing smile playing on his lips. "Fine, Alessia. So you've learned to defy me now." "Think carefully, Alessia. Do you really want to keep your place as a Falcone?" "And your position as the family's lawyer? Think about whether you still want these… then give me your answer." Seeing the arrogance in Rocco's eyes, the last ember of love I had for this man died. I took out my phone and dialed a number I hadn't called in a long time. "I want out of the Falcone family."

My stomach flared up again after pulling an all-nighter at work, so I asked my fiancee to go home and grab my medicine. Two hours later, she finally came back, but she was empty-handed. "Where's the medicine?" I asked weakly. "Oh, I forgot. Chris called last minute and said he had a fever, so I went to bring him some fever meds first." After she said that, she dialed a number on her phone and asked worriedly, "Are you feeling any better now?" On the other end of the line was the childhood friend she always talked about. At that moment, I calmly pulled the IV needle out of my hand and told her we were done. She frowned. "Just because I went to take care of Chris first?" "I was on an IV drip. He just has a common cold." I said each word slowly. "Can you be a little more mature?" she asked with a look of disappointment on her face. "Fine. If that's how you feel, then whatever." She thought it was just an ordinary argument. She had no idea that the moment she chose to forget the medicine that could've saved me, our relationship had already reached a point of no return.

FORMERLY TAMING THE MAD ALPHA. THIS STORY IS BEING REWRITTEN. "I will do it!" I blurted. His gaze flicked to me, and a devilish smirk twitched a part of his face. His orbs danced with hatred. "Did you say something?" His voice dripped with mockery. I swallowed the rock in my throat and balled my hands into fists. I can do this. "I pledge myself to you, Alpha Blaise. I will give you as many heirs as possible, just as you wish." Cassie whimpered in his grip, her eyes pleading with me not to do something irrational. But I would be the last to watch her suffer because of me. "Let her go. Set her free, please." He let go of Cassie's hand, and she crumpled to the floor, wincing and sobbing silently. Alpha Blaise stalked towards me, and I had to cease my breath to stop his debilitating scent from wafting into my nostrils and muddling my senses. "Be ready and in bed tonight," he whispered in my ear and walked passed me. His words made the hair at the back of my neck stand, and goosebumps blanketed my skin. I do not know how he managed to make me feel these things when he was the man I hated the most. I had paid for my brother's sin for two years. I was a human wolf to top it all. The pack held me hostage, waiting for the Alpha to recover and mete out his punishment on me, but the Alpha surprised everyone when he said his punishment was for me to produce his heirs.

I exercised too hard during the day and, by midnight, a sharp pain tore through my stomach. When I checked my pants, there was blood. I called my friend immediately and had him rush me to the hospital. The moment I finished explaining my symptoms, the doctor did not even pause to think before saying, "This is a potential miscarriage. We need to start treatment right away." My eyes went wide. I opened my mouth to protest, but she steamrolled right over me. Her gaze dripped with contempt. "I see dozens of patients every day. I know exactly what you women are like. Probably had abortion after abortion in school with zero self-respect. Now that you're getting older, you want to trap some nice guy into cleaning up your mess." I had never met such an unprofessional doctor in my life. Anger flared in my chest, and I threatened to report her on the spot. She barely blinked. "Touched a nerve, huh? I'm just trying to help you out here. Doctors have it so hard these days. Tell someone the truth and complaints are all you get." The whispers started around me. People staring, judging, pointing. I had truly had enough. Had it occurred to literally anyone that I might just be a guy with long hair?

In her past life, Kathryn the elder sister finds out she is Marcus's mate. Desperate to get accepted and save face, she begs to be his concubine and he agrees despite finding out about their mate bond. She gets mistreated and betrayed by Marcus, the powerful Lord Alpha of the Zenox empire. He marries her younger step sister and she discovers she is pregnant. Kathryn is framed and put in prison unjustly by him and her stepsister and she loses her pregnancy and after being released, she is greeted by the sad news of her precious mother's demise. She was originally a puppet of her family, born disgracefully and trying to get them to accept her, she is thereby forced to give up everything for the original daughter. Seeing them happy after she loses everything, she sets out to commit suicide. The moment she opens her eyes again, she finds herself back on the very day she finds her mate. Choosing to run away from the same fate, she decides to reject him on the spot and take charge of her life. However, the Alpha stubbornly refuses to be without her or accept rejection. “Don’t make me resort to a kidnap, pumpkin.” My ear flared red as he bit them gently. What the hell was he doing? This wasn't the cold, indifferent Alpha from my past life. Have I been reincarnated to a different world?