Fragile Longing

Sage Davis was once the name on everyone's lips, a rising basketball star with unmatched talent and a promising future. But one wrong move, one selfish mis-timed dunk during a critical game cost her team the trophy and left her with a shattered ankle and a fractured reputation. A year off the court has left her anxious and stripped of the confidence that once defined her. Now 19, she is back, taller, stronger, but haunted by doubts and the pressure of living up to her former glory. Enter Andrew Jefferson, turning forty, striking, with the kind of presence that commands attention. He is the new coach of the team and, awkwardly enough, her best friend's father. Sage expected discipline, rules, and professional distance but what she didn't expect was the spark, a mere fickle at first, and then a flame. He sees the fire in her, the talent she possesses, and the fragility she tries to hide. Against all odds, she finds herself drawn to the one man she should never want. Their connection is forbidden. Dangerous. Taboo. But as the line between right and wrong blurs, Sage must decide if she’s willing to risk everything, her future, her friendship, and the fragile pieces of herself she is still putting back together, for a love that was never supposed to happen. This is a story of redemption, desire, and the kind of love that breaks rules, norms……and hearts.

Leslie had been mated to Nathan for four years. On their anniversary day, she catches him in bed with her best friend. She is humiliated and heartbroken, but instead of getting an apology or explanation, she is met with divorce papers which he threw at her. After she signs it, she swears to get back at the two of them for betraying her. Five years later, Leslie returns—no longer the broken woman he cast aside, but a billionaire. Nathan, now desperate and full of regret, will stop at nothing to win her back. But Leslie isn’t the same woman who once begged for his love. But love, hatred, and revenge are a dangerous mix. As Nathan fights to reclaim what he lost, dark secrets unravel—secrets that threaten not just their fragile bond but the life of the son he never knew existed. Will Leslie ever forgive him? Or will the ghosts of the past destroy any chance of redemption?

In the coastal quiet of Baler, a studio is born—not of architecture, but of intention.* Founded by Yam, a poet whose words cradle pain gently, and Franc, an artist who paints tenderness into walls, the studio becomes a refuge for those learning to stay—with grief, love, longing, and themselves. As visitors arrive, they leave behind more than footprints: a sigh recorded in bamboo, a poem tucked into the “Found Letters” shelf, a mural painted in crooked lines. Through zines, tea, silence, and sketchbooks, the studio teaches softness as revolution. Ren creates the *Window of Soft Returns*, an installation of anonymous voice recordings—each whisper forming a community of echoes. Drew builds the *Staircase With No Wrong Turns*, inviting people to walk through emotions without shame. Franc offers brushstrokes as brave work, and Yam curates writing circles that map healing in half sentences. Together, they host festivals that feel like hugs, and they begin traveling their archive, letting softness cross oceans. Even those who once left—like Miguel—return, discovering that some doors never truly close. Others, like Tala, capture the studio’s sound and turn it into a podcast of breath and becoming. Over seventy chapters, the studio transforms into something larger than itself: a mural of memory, a sanctuary for second chances, a place where return is sacred and voice is proof of survival. In the final bloom, the studio stands not as a monument—but as a reminder: > *“Staying isn’t easy. > But chosen together, > it becomes home.”*

(GORGEOUS MEN SERIES 11) Rowan Salvador, a man who they thought was a womanizer and known as a walking red flag. He has a nice body, looks, and strong facial features, and most important of all was that every woman adored him, wanted him and wished to be with this guy. But how come if they found out that he has the heart and soul of a woman? As fragile as a woman? Dressed as a woman secretly whenever there are no people around? Will they ever accept him as he is if they found out? Or will they reject him?

What if saving the pack and mankind meant destroying the one you love most? On a brink of collapse, Elara, a fiercely independent chosen one, and Lerder, a stoic yet passionate shapeshifter alpha, are bound by love and a prophecy that could tear them apart. When a brutal betrayal forces them to flee into the treacherous Carpathian Mountains, they uncover secrets that threaten not only their fragile alliance but the fate of all. Pursued by ruthless enemies and haunted by the prophecy’s cruel demands, Elara must make an impossible choice: her love for Lerder or the salvation of everything she’s ever known. With ancient magic, forbidden desires, and the weight of destiny closing in, can they rewrite fate—or are some sacrifices too great Perfect for fans of slow-burn romances, gripping action, an epic tale of passion, betrayal, redemption, and the unbreakable power of love. Dive into a world where every choice cuts deeper, every love burns brighter, and every moment could be their last.

Aria, who has been tormented all her life by her father and members of the Silver Crest pack, faces rejection from the one person she had hoped would be her savior—her mate. Feeling devastated, she ran away from the pack. In an unexpected twist of fate, she stumbled upon the Alpha King Knox’s pack, Blood Moon pack. The seemingly stoic and cold-hearted Alpha King turned out to be her second chance mate and her life takes a drastic turn. Despite Knox's powerful demeanor and his aversion to love, an unexpected connection begins to form between them and he finds himself falling for the omega. As Aria and Alpha King Knox navigate their blossoming love, they face formidable opposition. Shadows of manipulation and an unforeseen vengeful force emerge, testing their bond and threatening the balance of the werewolf world. Together, they confront betrayals and engage in battles that shape their destinies. In a dance between destiny and free will, Aria undergoes a profound transformation. From a once fragile omega, she evolves into the resilient and powerful Luna Queen, navigating the complexities of love, betrayal, and restoring the balance of the werewolf world.

Aria was born wrong—an impure wolf with no pack, no status, and no future. After her father’s death, she became little more than a servant in her own home, hated by her stepmother and treated like a burden. So when a stranger offers a generous dowry for her hand, Aria is sold like cattle. Her stepmother assumes he’s just another desperate rogue looking for a mate. She couldn’t be more wrong. Alpha Draven—The Shadow Alpha—is the most feared name in the werewolf world. Ruthless. Dominant. Untouchable. And he didn’t marry Aria for love. On their wedding night, he lays out the truth: He doesn’t want her heart. He doesn’t want her loyalty. He wants an heir. Aria refuses to be used. But when Draven threatens to expose her impurity and destroy the fragile life she has left, she’s forced into a chilling agreement—bear his child, and he’ll give her protection for life. But in the shadow of power, nothing is ever that simple. He wanted her womb. He never expected her fire. She agreed to carry his heir— She might just carry his downfall.

Dr. Olivia Carter has spent her life saving others, she is a brilliant and compassionate surgeon with a good heart. But when her Abusive father’s gambling debts catch up with him, she is somehow at the center of it. She is offered a one year wedding contract by the mafia Capo as the only resort to settling her father's debt.  Olivia, having no choice but to sign the contract to marry the cold hearted and emotionless Capo Dante Marino. Olivia is forced to live with him forsaking the hospital and working for him as his personal doctor. But Olivia's good heart and kind nature slowly deflates his emotionless exterior little by little. As the two of them are drawn together, Olivia must navigate Dante's dangerous world, where trust is fragile and betrayal is deadly and love a weakness in the mafia world.  Would his world destroy her good heart? or will she be able to elicit an emotion from the emotionless Mafia Capo.

Dante Moretti, the ruthless Billionaire CEO, hungers for power and control. Cold, calculated, he sends shivers down his rivals' spines with his cold, calculated way into any business deal that might pop up in his way. But inside the steely exterior of this man, a traumatic past torments him to have left him detached and numb as regards love. His goal is simple: solidify his control and paramountcy and build on an empire. Lyra Caine grew up privileged in a family that had disintegrated; the fortune of her father, Richard Caine, once a strong king of finance, had shrunk due to a number of bad investments. She needed to be married off to Dante Moretti, a man rumored never to have shied away from getting ruthless in whatever business dealings he had, so that their name would not be utterly ruined. Lyra had lived her whole life by what this great shadow of a father expected from her: fragile, with this inner fire barely apparent in herself. But here is the kicker that makes it even more twisted: Dante isn't marrying Lyra out of love or even because of business needs. He has an ulterior motive linked to her father's long-buried secrets, one that could totally unravel her family should it come to light.

Amelia Miller thought she'd endured the worst life had to offer. Rejected by her mate, betrayed by her own blood, and cast out from her pack, she had nothing but the scars. When Alpha Kaelan of the Shadow Moon Pack comes to her rescue, Amelia dares to dream of a new beginning. But the shadows of her past are unwilling to set her free. Amelia has survived her life fighting her half-sister Caroline's cruelty and the rejection of Jackson, her first mate. Marked as an outcast in her own pack, Amelia is alone, desperate for a place that would be home. Being forcibly made to leave the Silver Fang Pack when Jackson chooses Caroline as his mate and Luna, Amelia's heart was shattered. Attacked by the hired rogues of Caroline and Jackson, Amelia is saved by Kaelan, powerful Alpha of Shadow Moon Pack. Being around him opens up an attraction, finding fragile peace-a chance to rebuild her life. News of her survival merely serves to enrage Caroline and Jackson, who devise another scheme in pursuit of tearing Amelia's life apart in her newfound sanctuary. In a turn of events, Caroline and Jackson have Lila, Kaelan's sister, murdered and frame Amelia for the crime. Overwhelmed with his grief, Kaelan asks if Amelia really is innocent, and when she pleads that she is, he doubts her. Devastated over his mistrust, Amelia decides to leave the Shadow Moon Pack, preferring self-exile to more heartbreak. It's only after she's gone that Kaelan discovers the truth about Lila's death. Devastated and wracked with guilt, Kaelan pursues Amelia relentlessly, but Caroline and Jackson finally realize their scheme has been beaten and vow to find Amelia before kaelan does and once and for all destroy her happiness.