Gratitude Expressions

Just one week before my marking ceremony with Lucien, I discovered his heart already belonged to someone else. His secretary, Anika, walked out of his office with a smirk that was a little too knowing. Her blouse was askew, her usually neat hair a tangled mess, and only the faintest trace of her crimson lipstick remained. My heart seized in my chest, and my fingers went cold on the doorknob. Two years ago, she had been a timid girl fresh from the countryside. All that pretense of innocence had vanished, replaced by a brazen ambition written across her face. Her relentless eagerness around Lucien had always grated on my nerves, and I had asked him more than once. "Lucien, can't you replace her?" His smile would always fade. "Anika saved my life," he'd say. "I can't be so heartless." Now, that single triumphant smirk was all it took for me to understand. What others once envied in me had already been trampled beneath her heels. My phone vibrated. It was a new proposal from the event planner. [The marking ceremony plan is nearly perfect. Can we finalize it?] I refused to be consumed by sorrow. I wiped a tear from my cheek and made one last adjustment to the document.——Replaced the bride's name withAnika I didn't want a false love, or a fake Alpha Lucien. Let them have the marking ceremony. Let Anika stand at his side as his Luna, his chosen mate. In seven days, I would be gone with my pup.

Maze’s life was forever changed when she was rescued from the brink of destruction–by the very proponent of that destruction— after her pack was invaded and her parents murdered in front of her. Now older, she begins to realize that her saviour's kindness came with a steep price. Groomed to love and worship only him,and deceived into believing that he was her fated mate,Maze is trapped in a toxic relationship. Stuck in between her gratitude for a man she owed her life and her yearning for a love that didn't hurt,she must confront the dark secrets of her past. Will she find the strength to break free, or will the weight of her gratitude silence her forever?

The laundromat I regularly visit has been showing an odd fluctuation in its price lately. "This coat isn't easy to wash. We're probably the only store that's willing to clean this at a loss. The market price is 55 dollars per item, but I'll give you a discount and only ask for 200 dollars for four items." I look at the boss' mother, who's new at the laundromat. I'm a little pissed. Still, I hand her my membership card without saying anything. This laundromat is opposite my residential area, and they had a promotion during their opening. I topped up ten thousand dollars on the card because I pitied the owner for raising a child alone. Unexpectedly, the owner's mother looks at me and says sarcastically, "That dumb membership card means nothing to me—you have to pay me in cash. You youngsters are too lazy to wash your clothes, yet you're more than willing to use your brains for nonsense like this. My son is too kind to let you take advantage of him like this." I grab my clothes and leave. It's time to use my brain for some nonsense—I think the laundromat should have a new owner.

The Princess of Estel, was taken inside the castle walls, and she believed her demise was definite. A savage race that is known throughout the continent approached her. Olivia decided to forget their encounter, despite her gratitude, but he appeared before her saying, "I miss you"

Ella Moore is 20 year girl running away from her family after a homicide. She collides in a luxury bus with Trevor K, a 27 year old software engineer who seems somewhat interested in her affairs. Through his incessant questions, witty expressions and antics, the reclusive Ella finds herself doing the unusual : bonding with this strange man in the most annoying way. Is this quick familiarity out of loneliness or an admiration based on affection, benevolence and common interest? Love on a Luxury bus brings to you the tale of heartache, family and relationships. The romantic story unfolds in a journey. This literal adventure will arouse feelings of love, sadness and empathy.

when a mysterious guy saves Marcus from himself he finds himself indebted to the attractive stranger. when he starts developing feelings for him he is not sure if they are based on gratitude or real feelings. Can the handsome stranger ever love such a broken man or is it just pity? can they overcome their initial meeting and create something wonderful or is Mr perfect just an illusion?

My three-year-old son looked nothing like my husband. Suspicious, my father-in-law secretly took my son for a paternity test. The results showed that there was no biological relationship between them. Furious and humiliated, my father-in-law erupted in anger, hurling insults at me and even threatening to kill us. My husband, just as enraged, slapped me hard across the face. "You shameless wrench! You've made me raise another man's child for three years!" As I stared at their accusing faces, I calmly produced another report—the paternity test between my husband and his father. It confirmed they weren't biologically related either. Their expressions froze in shock. With a faint smile, I said, "Looks like we don't know for sure who isn't part of this family, do we?"

Lumine Moon is a hardworking scholar at Morningstar University. She has a big dream, and that is to complete the missing piece of their family. She left home, following his father's steps, to bring him back into their embrace. While working in the restaurant, her bullies came and dragged her into the dark. She was saved by a stranger, the known devious heiress Raiden Morningstar: the granddaughter of the owner of the university she was attending. In gratitude, she will do anything in return. Thus the heiress took advantage, asked her to be her slave, and kissed her lips to seal the contract.

"Watch out for your expressions, Everhart. People might start thinking you've got a thing for me.""No one would assume I'm that desperate, Sterling."***After transferring as a scholarship student to the prestigious Elysium University, Lily Everhart is determined to pursue her dream of becoming a geneticist. However, her orderly life takes an unexpected turn when she meets Adrian Sterling, the charismatic campus bad boy, igniting a rivalry between them and disrupting Lily's plans for an uneventful academic year.Amidst the challenges of university life, she grapples with conflicting emotions about Adrian while also discovering that Elysium isn't what it seems.Can she finish her remaining years of college unharmed? Or will money and power prove to be everything that matters? Will Lily and Adrian overcome their differences, or will it push them further apart?Fragments of Elysium: Love on Campus is created by Amelie Bergen, an eGlobal Creative Publishing signed author.

My wolf was cursed. I had three days left. But my parents and my mate, Alpha Edwin, forced me to surrender my Luna title to Meggie. All because she claimed a curse was killing her, too. In my despair, I agreed. The moment our mate bond shattered, the backlash nearly broke me. With tears in my eyes, I asked them, "If I died, would you even miss me?" They told me to stop faking it, their expressions ice-cold. But they didn't know. Meggie's curse was a lie. And mine was all her doing. It wasn't until my wolf faded to nothing that Meggie's true colors were revealed. Only then did they scream at her, blaming her for my death. But Meggie just snarled back, "I wasn't the only one who killed Hazel. You all did, too, didn't you?"