Holding A Grudge

My husband was sterile. Necrospermia, they said. His brother was in a coma and had no partner. Their mother wanted me to sleep with both of them and get knocked up with the family's heir. I refused and applied for a divorce. Ninety-nine times. Ninety-nine failures. Then, I put in the hundredth application. When that failed, I agreed to my mother-in-law's request, holding a pregnancy test result. My husband disagreed. That night, he stopped me before I could sleep with his brother. Harshly, he said, "My mother was just testing you. I can't believe you'd get pregnant with the illegitimate child." I was amused and annoyed. "You're the one who said yes, as long as I could get pregnant with your family's heir."

A burglar breaks into our home, taking my mother-in-law and me captive. He stabs my mother-in-law's eyes, blinding her. Then, he slices her tongue and strips her, even putting on a live stream to air the whole thing. He claims that he'll auction my mother-in-law's organs if we can't pay the ransom of ten million dollars. The live stream infuriates the Internet, and everyone starts searching for my husband, the city's wealthiest man. No one knows he's on a luxury cruise ship, holding an engagement ceremony with his childhood friend. He snarls, "What a dumb excuse to trick me out of my money! I'll burn the money for them when they're dead!"

I was the real daughter brought back to marry in place of the fake one. On the night I married Shaun Harrison, he kissed my tearful eyes and made a promise. “Quiana, if you have my baby, I’ll give you a home.” Because of that promise, I risked my life to give birth to Jaxon Harrison. I dreamed of having a home that belonged to me. But years later, I saw the fake daughter walking over while holding Jaxon’s hand. “Aunt Stella, I wish you were my mom. “I’ll help you get rid of her. Can you be my mom instead?” The fake daughter laughed, and Shaun looked at them lovingly. They looked like a real family.

First thing Leah Labelle did after Andrew Fillion's funeral? Ask her husband Ian for a divorce. Why? Because Ian's entire family thought the perfect way to honor his dead brother was to knock up the widow. Naturally. "My parents are threatening to hang themselves or starve, Leah. What was I supposed to do? It's just IVF with Cecilia—we're not even doing anything. Why are you making this a divorce thing?" Leah shut her eyes. Her chest cracked open, and the tears she'd been holding finally broke free. "Ian, we're MARRIED. You seriously don't think this is next-level insane?" Her husband was about to have a baby with someone else. But sure—she was the crazy one.

He was supposed to be a one-night stand. Now I’m holding a gun to his head and I still want to kiss him. I’m a hitman. Flirty, unhinged, and hired to kill the cold, powerful mafia boss I’ve been obsessed with for months. But the moment I see him again, shirtless and smug, everything falls apart. Instead of pulling the trigger, I give him a warning. Now we’re hunting down the person who ordered the hit while trying to keep our hands off each other. He’s dangerous. I’m worse. And between the bullets, betrayals, and bedroom threats… I still don’t know if I want to kiss him or kill him.

Lying and holding secrets comes to us naturally, as natural as breathing and looking on either side of the road before crossing. We all do it to protect ourselves because sometimes the truth can hurt us.Some are harmless little white lies, but some secrets hide horrible things. Those lies will always come haunting those who seek to keep their lips sealed. Follow Caroline, Charlotte, Chloe, and Caleb's journey, as their life is turned upside down as they fight to keep their lips sealed about the murder they accidentally committed.Everyone keeps secrets. Everyone lies. You better make sure no one saw what you've done before making up your lies because all it takes is one person with the truth on their lips for your life to be destroyed.

"So you're the famous journalist who goes around snooping out for information from celebrities, huh?" "Y..yes," I managed to utter. Apart from being the man I am going to be interviewing, no one knew he's the reason I've been getting wet dreams almost every night for the past five years. "Who do we have here, brother?" I quickly turned my gaze to the direction of the person who had just spoken, only to be met by three other guys, who looked exactly like the man in front of me. Rumour has it that he lived many lives, and that is exactly what I came to find out, but seeing these three other men looking like another him, I became confused to the point my knee suddenly gave up, instantly. "Hey, hold it in, pretty boy, we won't bite." One of them said, wrapping his arm around my waist just when I was about to fall to the ground. "E.. excuse me, w..who are you?" I asked while staring at all four of them. "You mean, I, or the four of us?" Turstin asked in a deep husky voice. "I think he's confused!" The one holding me said allowed. "Well, we are the Barclay brothers, pretty boy, and my name is Thale," the one holding me said. "Since you want to interview Turstin, we can make you the most famous journalist for free, by letting you interview the four of us," the one standing beside Turstin said. "But that comes with a price, Pretty boy." I took a quick glance at the last one who seemed like he was the youngest of all four. Gael has a secret, and so does the Barclay brothers. What will happen when these secrets find their way out in the open?

"Please, I don't know what grudge you have against my bloodline but I have nothing to do with it" Beth begged. "I'm going to enjoy tearing you piece by piece, limp by limp until nothing is left then I will leave them for your daddy dearest to find" he paused for a moment, his dark eyes trailing up and down her frail figure as though sizing her up. "I just have to figure out a way to get it done. You don't deserve an easy death. None of your filthy bloodline does" He growled at her as his grip fell from her face and her body immediately fell into an unstoppable trembling. *** Elizabeth Lincoln is what you could describe as young and naive with her innocent smile and green orbs. Fresh out of college and ready to live the life she has always wanted after being locked in a boarding school since age eight. Everything came crashing to the floor right when she finally thought she was about to live the life she has always wanted. Alpha Asher Romano Vega, better known as the demon Alpha has only one thing in mind when he set out that faithful day. To rip out the throat of the one man who has caused him so much pain and torment. Bradley Lincoln has taken something from him two years ago and now, he is out to return the favor. Warning: This is a story of revenge and malicious intent. Totally not for the faint in heart as they will be strong adult language, rape, sexual content etc. Read only if you are up for it.

The most popular girl from my high school is getting married. She invites everyone in our class to the wedding. I want to act like I don't see the message, but she deliberately tags me in the group chat. "You kept pretending to be a rich girl like me in high school, but I don't hold it against you. In fact, I'll allow you to attend my wedding tomorrow to see what the rich life is like." The other classmates speak up. "You're so generous, Haley. It's no wonder you can marry someone from the Baumer family. I can't believe you can even forgive someone as materialistic as Emma!" "Does someone like Emma Larkin even deserve to attend Haley's wedding? She's so full of herself." As the insults become worse, Haley Stockwell steps forward to keep the peace. "Come on, let's put this behind us. I'm not bothered by these things since it's been so long. Anyway, let's not bear a grudge against Emma when she's already so poor and ugly." Everyone in the group chat starts singing her praises and calling her kind and innocent. I sneer. Haley is the one who kept pretending to be rich—I'm the true heiress from an affluent family, yet she made me out to be a liar. She turned me into the target of everyone's insults. I check the digital wedding invitation to see that the venue is my villa. The groom looks familiar—isn't he my husband's driver? I smile at the thought of what's going to happen. I reply, "Sure! I have to attend your wedding!"

"You are mine!" He said with his dominating voice holding my neck, he was choking me, I was frightened to the very core, shaking. "The moment I paid you that huge sum of money, you became an asset to me" he added "You can't back out now. It's too late" he said again, still holding me. "I'm not yours" I managed to say in a cracked voice. "I will never be yours" I replied with a cracked voice trying to breathe." "You are nothing, you are just a mere whore with nothing else but a standing pole, a hoe who spreads her legs for money and  that's all you will ever be. A stripping hoe!" he said, tears rolled down from my cheeks as I began to cry. "If you try to break the deal we have by revealing it to an outsider, you will be dead! And come to think about it, who would believe the words that come from a stripping hoe like yourself? No one, no one will ever believe you! Because you know what you are? A complete Street whore. That's exactly what you are and what you will ever be." "If I'm a complete whore to you. Why did you choose me?" "Because you are nobody. I don't want my family digging into your profile and finding something, so I chose you. You were the perfect match that fit into all of this charade" he said intuitively. "I don't want to do this anymore,  I will wire you back your money first thing tomorrow morning" I said, trying to leave. He drags my hand vigorously. I was scared to the very core, shaking like a drenched rat. "You don't seem to understand the concept of our agreement, you don't seem to understand, Khloe"