Hands Down

At a dinner party, my genius painter of a husband, Henry Shepherd, used his hands, hands insured for millions, to shell crabs for his young assistant, Tamara Lee. This was all to coax her into eating a few bites when she claimed she had no appetite. Meanwhile, I drank myself into a bloody mess, trying to secure investments for him. When I asked him to hand me some antacids, he refused without even looking up. “These hands are for painting. Use your own.” For ten years, he couldn’t even be bothered to change the way he treated me. That night, as I sobered up in the cold wind, I asked my lawyer to draft a divorce agreement. "Henry, in this vast, chaotic world, our paths end here," I said inwardly

She belonged to him when she was thrown in the hands of darkness betrayed by her own men. A princess who was innocent and kind but made to be the enemy. She never fought back until she met him. He was the darkness for others but he became her light. On the other side of the Kingdom lay a victim of abuse. Falling in the hands of someone evil. But will she fight back or will accept her fate?

After my mother shot down my pleas to cover my medical bills the 100th time, I clutched my bone cancer diagnosis papers and trudged to the crematorium. "Hi, I'd like to reserve a cremation slot ahead of time," I muttered to the clerk. Half an hour ticked by before my parents and adopted brother arrived in their car. My dad, a forensic pathologist, cracked me across the face. "You're pulling a fake-death stunt now, just to steal the spotlight from your brother?" My mom, a hospital director, snatched the papers from my hands and shredded them into confetti. "Faking records using my credentials and tying up hospital resources? You've crossed the line!" My brother cried, tugging at their sleeves. "It's all my fault. I'll skip the amusement park forever. I don't need a thing. Just quit riling up Mom and Dad." I spun around, my hand pressed against my throbbing chest, and begged the crematorium staff. "Please, when it's time, cremate me and scatter the ashes in the river. I've got no family left in this world."

"He's a ruthless Demon, father! no one wants to breathe the same air as him let alone marrying him, I can't!" Kiara's lips trembled terribly as tears streamed down her cheeks. "Funny how you think you have a choice," Alpha Ezra chuckled dryly, ignoring the bitter tears of his daughter as he continued. "No one wants you Kiara, not even your fated mate, that's because you are wolfless and as such, useless, Hyde is your only ticket out of shame, we could only hope that he doesn't reject you too." *** Rejected by her true mate and ridiculed by the entire pack for being wolfless, Kiara was forced into the hands of the ruthless king Hyde in a cold marriage. Hyde Montero is a nightmare, They call him the Demon King because everyone believed he had no soul, he was fright itself. his eyes held coldness that no heat can melt. Everything you'd hear in a mystical horror story. But only one woman held the key that'd draw a gleam of light to his dark soul. Could that woman be Kiara?

"You are mine!!" his voice echoed like that of the devil as he bit on my neck, sending shivers of pleasure down my spine. *************** Cara, a weak Omega, has always fantasized about finding her mate, the butterflies in the belly, and the happy ending stories. Cara is claimed against her wish when she ran into the territory of the Rogue King, the most wanted villain in Ellorin, on their first meeting, binding herself to a dangerous life and miserable life. from running away from being sold to slavery in her former pack to being the actual slave in the hands of the ruthless Rogue king, Cara must fend and fight for her survival in a place infested with wild rabid wolves. especially when she discovers about her Origin pointing to a long lost bloodline, "The cupbearers" Amidst running away, conspiracies of her parents death, the discovery of her past, and being mated to a wanted rogue, Cara is faced with a difficult choice to choose between her mate or the lives of thousands of people. What will she do when she realises that her parents were killed by rogues?. Will she choose her mate in spite of everything?. Or Will her choice plunge the whole of Ellorin into destruction?.

“Damien!!” I struggled against the cuffs, trying to free myself. “What the hell are you doing?” He leaned down, his face inches from mine, his voice calm. “Until you learn to behave, you’re staying exactly where I want you, Mon Cara.” *** Abandoned by her father to settle his debts, Tracey Luke never imagined her life would fall into the hands of the ruthless Mafia King, Damien Black. Thrown into his dark, dangerous world, Tracey quickly learns that survival is a game she must learn to play if she wants to escape. But as the days pass, she finds herself caught between fear and something she never expected to feel—compassion. When Tracey first meets Damien, he’s nothing like the monster she imagined. He is confined to a wheelchair, which makes him look more like a prisoner than a predator. With pity stirring within her, she decides to stay by his side and tend to his needs while secretly plotting her escape from his dangerous world. But, on the night she finally makes her move, everything changes.

"Let me go," She said, twisting her arm, trying to wriggle out of his brutal hold. His proximity had her heart jackhammering in her ears as tears threatened to spill out. The beast of a man roughly turned her around before grabbing her delicate throat in his big veiny hand as he yanked her to him. His tan skin contrasted against her snow one as his thumb stroked the soft flesh of her swan-like neck. Her toes were barely touching the ground as she stared petrified at the man hovering over her seemingly deranged. His hot breath caressed her face and had chills running down her spine. He looked possessed. "You're mine, f*cking MINE!" He seethed a low rumble as she flinched away. His amber rims were blazing pits as they gazed at her with an unadulterated ferocity. Her chin wobbled and her plump lips trembled as the girl shook her head trying to get away from him and her struggles grew frantic. She was so scared. His jaw clenched and his nose flared in rage. "So you won't listen, huh." He rasped in a low snarl before letting her go. She took three steps away from him, clutching her hands on her chest. Her whole body trembled wildly as she saw him locking the door before he faced her while unbuttoning his shirt and her heart dropped down into the depths of utter terror, she shook her head involuntarily. "Strip, little tigress. Strip for me." He gritted viciously causing her heart to lurch to her mouth.

"I don't think my brother is someone you need. He's not the kind of alpha who could ever satisfy a woman like you.” I raised my chin and met Alexander's eyes. "And who do you think I need? What do you think will satisfy me?” He closed the gap between us and ran his heated eyes to my lips, to my throat, down to my body as if he was marking me and making love to me with those blue intense eyes. I looked away but Alexander tilted my head to meet my gaze. One touch and the hunger and the burn inside me intensified. His piercing eyes returned to my lips.“You don't need soft kisses. That's for little girls. You need fervent, explosive kisses. The ones that will try to suck the air within you, leaving you breathless but eager for more.” His hands dropped down to my waist, pulling me closer to his big and hard frame. “You need to be marked not with an alpha scent. That’s for men with an inferiority complex. You need to be claimed with kisses and bite marks that will make everyone jealous of how you spent your night. Because you are not just any woman, Katriona. You are a queen, a hot and wild queen.” I pushed Alexander away. I could hear my heart banging inside my chest. Logic screamed louder this time, desperately enumerating all the reasons why I shouldn’t be with this man. But as he stood there while waiting for my decision, I became aware of one thing. Whoever I choose, in the end, I’m still going to burn. It'll be a sin. And I'm going to hell for this.

Zephyr stood with her head bent low and her hands clasped in front of her. His dark aura made cold sweat roll down her spine, and she felt herself trembling. She felt his ethereal dark gray eyes fall upon her, intensifying the urge to scurry away as he closed the distance between them. She tried to move backward, but her back pressed further into the wall, reminding her she had no place to run to. His larger frame towered over her as he placed one hand beside her head. Zephyr had seen many men, and she could confidently say none held a candle to Alpha Damon Alaric. Damon was handsome in every way, and if she didn't know better, she might have mistaken him for the devil. Zephyr shivered when his fingers grasped her chin and tilted it up to meet his dark gaze. "Zephyr…" Alpha Damon trailed off, a sinister smirk playing on his lips. Her heart raced as his thumb gently caressed her lips. "Didn't I tell you you're mine? How dare you let another man touch you?" His voice remained calm, but his eyes spoke volumes. Zephyr's heart skipped a beat when his hands moved to her bottom, gently caressing the soft flesh and stirring sinful desires within her. "Or do you want me to take you to my bed and remind you to whom you belong?" Zephyr Cyrus was the lowest of all kinds; even the Omegas easily trampled her because she was a slave. She had accepted her fate, knowing that denying it would only lead to death. However, everything began to change when the Alpha's shrewd eyes fell on her.

On the day I got pregnant again, August decided to give up on gambling and work to provide for the family. I was so touched that I cried. With trembling hands, I handed him the money I had saved up after working odd jobs for a year. Two of the bank notes fell on the floor, and I picked them up before running after him. When I reached the end of the alley, I saw the mafia members who always came to our doorstep to demand repayment of our debt. They treated August respectfully. Apparently, his poverty was just a facade. “Mr. August, do we still need to surround your house and demand payment tomorrow?” August sat in a Lincoln limousine and said nonchalantly, “No need.” He stared at the ring on his finger and sighed. “It’s been years. It’s enough to prove that her love for me is real. She once worked so hard to pay off my debt that she suffered a miscarriage. “I already betrayed her once. It’s time to tell her about my true identity so that she doesn’t have to work so hard anymore.” But Ivy, his childhood friend, pouted. “You can’t! It’s not time yet to reveal the truth! What if she’s like your previous girlfriends and only cares about your money and your identity as a mafia boss? “You should wait a little longer and see whether she wants to have this baby.” August gave a wistful nod. “Alright. I’ll do as you say. In any case, she has been with me for so long. I don’t think she can leave me now.” I clenched the money in my hands and turned around. Tears streamed down my cheeks. I no longer wanted to live this lie dressed as love.