Gilded

BLURB: Between duty and desire, Gina Washington chooses duty, sacrificing her dreams to save her family's crumbling legacy. Married off to a stranger, she is trapped in a gilded cage of manipulation and control, her heart slowly suffocating under the weight of expectation. But when her husband's cruelty pushes her to the brink, Gina seizes freedom, escaping with a secret that could change everything - a month-old pregnancy. On her way to escape, she falls into a car and loses consciousness. She wakes up to find herself in the hospital. She asks for help, and the man who brought her offers her help. She later finds out that the man is the brother of the man she left behind. His kindness and compassion cradle her shattered soul, and for the first time, Gina dares to dream of love. Yet, as past and present collide, an explosive rivalry between brothers threatens to destroy the fragile haven she's found - and the heart she's beginning to trust.

I had been married to James Tennant for seven years. In that time, he had already kept twenty-nine mistresses, like pretty little canaries in gilded cages. Now, I saw the thirtieth one in our bedroom, young and draped in nothing but a bath towel, lounging across our bed. I turned to him and asked coldly, “Can’t get enough out there, huh? Did you really have to bring her home?” The girl deliberately tugged her towel lower, her pale skin showing as she sneered, “Mr. Tennant says you’re like a dead corpse in bed! He wanted me to teach you how to please a man.” That night, I was forced to watch their little performance right in front of me. The next morning, James was furious at my indifference, resenting me for not reacting. However, he seemed to forget that our marriage was nothing but a contract, and in just one week, that contract would expire.

"I'm your wife, not your prisoner," Avery pleads with Liam, her voice shaking. Liam sneers, "You're whatever I say you are, Avery. And right now, you're nothing without me." — When love turns toxic, survival is the only option. Avery Livingston's luxurious life imploded when her family's fortune vanished. Desperate to save her ailing mother, she made a devastating deal with billionaire movie star Liam Leon Galloway. Trapped in a gilded cage, she endured three years of humiliation and despair. But when Liam's Oscar win left her behind, Avery's fury ignited. Pregnant and defiant, she vowed to escape and exact revenge. With her fate hanging by a thread, she must choose: submit to Liam's toxic grasp or rise from the ashes. Will she break free or remain trapped in this twisted game of power and obsession?

In the heart of a modern metropolis lies Elysium, an exclusive BDSM club where the wealthy and powerful shed their masks and surrender to forbidden desires. By night, behind velvet curtains and gilded cages, Dominants and submissives dance in a dangerous symphony of pleasure and pain. Shadows of Desire follows a cast of lost souls drawn into Elysium’s seductive orbit: a newcomer aching to submit, a jaded Master with a dark past, a cunning Dominatrix guarding her secrets, a switch torn between roles, and a voyeur hungry for more than just watching. As decadent play turns to emotional entanglement, bonds of trust deepen – until whispers of betrayal begin to echo through the opulent chambers. In this world of consensual extremes, where ecstasy and agony blur, one hidden traitor threatens to destroy the sanctuary that binds them all. Secrets, obsessions, and power collide in a fast-paced, darkly seductive romance. Will love and loyalty survive when the truth comes to light, or will the betrayal lurking in the shadows shatter the fragile trust that holds Elysium together?

In a near-future society, where the HarmonyMatch app governs the bonds of matrimony, the path to love is algorithmically determined. For the young and hopeful, turning 25 means eagerly awaiting the app's verdict, believing it will guide them to their soulmate. But for our heroine, fate takes an unforeseen twist. As the day of her app-mandated match arrives, the digital scales of destiny tip unexpectedly, pairing her not with her ex boyfriend but with a young prince, third in line for the throne. Faced with an irrevocable royal engagement, she enters a world of opulence and duty, leaving her past life behind. Amidst the grandeur of the palace, she encounters a life vastly different from her own and a prince burdened with responsibilities he never sought. But within the gilded halls and amid palace intrigues, they discover hidden passions and dreams that draw them closer. As feelings bloom, they must decide whether to reveal a glitch in the system and risk the kingdom's stability or uphold their duties at the cost of their hearts.

He broke her once. His brother owns her now. ✺ ✺ ✺ Purity De la Cruz thought she had escaped heartbreak when she married Ryat Reigns—the dangerous, ruthless heir to a Mafia empire. But her perfect life is nothing but a gilded cage. Her husband cheats, her dreams are shattered, and her heart? It never truly belonged to him. Because before Ryat, there was Ryan. His older brother. The man who taught her what love felt like, before he disappeared without a word and left her to bleed. Now Ryan Reigns is back. Not just as the Don of the most feared crime syndicate, but as the one man she can’t stop wanting, the one man who was always forbidden. And this time, she’s not the naive girl he left behind. She’s colder. Sharper. Ready to burn it all down for revenge… and for him. But their desire is a dangerous game. Each kiss is betrayal. Each touch is a war. And when the truth explodes, blood won’t be the only thing on the line.

York Langston locked me up for six months. Word on the street was he dropped over 100 million to buy me my own private island. Security here? Tight enough to rival the White House. Even a bird that flew past the area would get shot down on sight. But what nobody knew… All that luxury people envied? To me, it was just a gilded cage. It wasn't until he found a woman who looked almost like me that his interest began to fade. One day, she stormed the island with a gang at her back while he was away. She slashed my tendons and carved up my face with a blade before locking me inside a cage with a rabid dog. I was barely breathing by the time York finally found me. "York, this woman thought she could fool you by imitating me? She must be a spy! You'll have to flay her alive if you want her to talk!"

She sold her soul to save her daughter… but the devil wears a billionaire’s smile. Emily Carter is a desperate mother clawing her way through the filth of New York’s underworld, dancing for dollars in a club that devours women whole. When her baby girl falls deathly ill, she’s forced into an impossible choice: let her child die… or marry a cold-hearted billionaire with a past darker than her own. Alexander Richie doesn’t believe in love but he believes in ownership. His proposal isn’t a lifeline. It’s a leash. Thrust into a mansion of lies, judgment, and cruel stepchildren, Emily trades one nightmare for another. Her new life is gilded in luxury but soaked in venom, and the people inside want to break her. But Emily didn’t survive the streets to become anyone’s victim not even his. Love wasn’t part of the deal. But what happens when the broken start to feel? And how many bodies must fall before the truth is revealed?

Claimed by Samael Velasco to be his future bride, Merryn hid in the shadows of his protection from the day he found her. She lived her entire life believing it as truth until the day came when this shattered. The shocking revelation that changed her perception also urged her to escape from Samael’s gilded cage. To him, she was just a possession and his precious pet. Her heart throbbed and yearned for something real. She knew not what this meant, at least not yet. Until she escaped, and ran right into the arms of Samael’s known mortal enemy… Giovanni Salvatore, a rare lycan of Royal bloodline. He is the king of the lycans and the werewolves. The ruler of the Mystic Mountain Kingdom. Merryn’s appearance in Giovanni’s life upset a few well-laid plans for his future. And so began a path of mutual discovery and perils they couldn’t begin to imagine. What will she do when she finds herself in the cave of wolves? ^~*~^ This tale is for those 18 or older. Reader’s discretion is advised.

After a rogue attack orphaned her, Kathleen woods thought she would find her happy ending with her chosen mate, Alpha Drake Cole. But on their wedding night, he shattered that dream by bringing his fated mate into their bedroom. Humiliated and enraged, Kathleen refused to apologize to the woman who stole her life. Instead, She chose 50 brutal lashes to brand the betrayal on her skin forever. Deciding to leave it all behind, She finds out her parents weren't killed by a random rouge attack. Driven by a new purpose for vengeance, she finds herself caught in a deadly triangle of power. The ruthless Lycan king, offers her the world, but his obsession is a gilded cage. The shadowy Rogue king offers her answers, but his motives are a secret. And all the while, a latent power stirs within her, awakening to a destiny far greater than any Luna's title. To get her revenge, she must navigate the desires of the king and the Storm of her own awakening.