Home The Game

It was my third day working as an NPC cashier in a horror game when the supermarket got completely wrecked by players. They stormed in, smashing shelves, looting everything, setting fires, feeling real proud of themselves. "Told you the shopkeeper here was useless. Absolutely trash in all combat stats," one said. "Grab whatever you want. Once we're done, we'll just kill the owner," another chimed in. My mouth was gagged. I shook my head in terror. One of the players sneered. "Begging? That won't save you." No! That was not what I was trying to say! I was trying to tell them that today was the NPC internal shopping day. Three minutes from now, every single dungeon boss in the entire game would be rushing here to shop.

It's Family Day at my daughter, Hannah Neel's, preschool, but my wife, Samantha Miller, says she has to work and tells both Hannah and me not to go. Seeing the disappointment on Hannah's face breaks my heart, so I bring her to school anyway. As soon as we step through the gates, I see Samantha. She's holding her childhood friend—Oscar Barnett's—hand, with a little boy clutching her other. The three of them look like a perfect family, laughing and chatting, as if they belong together. When Samantha sees us, her smile fades, and she lets go of Oscar's hand. "Zach, it's not what you think. Oscar's raising his son alone. Today's his fifth birthday, and he just wanted to give him a little taste of a mother's love," she says quickly. I study her for a moment, then kneel and gently take Hannah's hand in mine. "Sweetheart, say hello to the lady."

Richard, a 49 year old widower with two daughters. Richard had spent his life devoting his time to his girls and to his work. Ava, a 23 year old girl from a countryside with little or no knowledge on how to survive in Bellamy- city of bright lights and dreams and fortunes. These two crossing paths could only be coincidental as they lead different lives with a huge age gap between. But, maybe they were waiting for each other all their lives to fill the gaps. It would take a lot to be together. But how much can one take? An angry girlfriend. A selfish daughter. They'll find out that love is never enough!

What if death wasn't the end? What if your soul could live on, even after your body had stopped breathing? What if there was a way to come back to life, even after you had died? These are the questions that haunted Alessia, a young lady who died a few days to her wedding. Finding herself in the afterlife, Alessia was given a chance at a second life - but only if she could find the soul that her own had been intertwined with from birth. What if the 31 days given to her to complete her task is only about her own survival but also to unravel secrets? And what if she isn't fated to live again?

On April Fool’s Day, my CEO husband cut out my heart to save his childhood sweetheart's son. After the surgery, he tossed me into a cold rental apartment, where I died in agony. Three days after my death, my five-year-old daughter played in the room as usual. Walking by the sofa, she wrinkled her little nose and mumbled, "Mommy, there's a weird smell in here." She touched my face and murmured, "Mommy, are you pretending to be Snow White? Why are you so pale?" She shook my arm harder and raised her voice, "Mommy, it's my birthday today—get up and blow out the candles!" Confused, she picked up the phone and called her father. “Daddy, did I make Mommy mad? I lit the candles, but no matter how much I call her, she won’t wake up.” On the other end of the call, Patrick Hart’s voice was cold and impatient. “What could possibly be wrong with her? She’s just pretending to be asleep for sympathy. It’s Johnny’s birthday, I’m busy. Don’t bother me! Tell your melodramatic mother to stop playing her little tricks. I don't have time to humor her." My daughter removed the candle from her bun, pinched off a piece of the bun, and fed it to me. "Mommy, I made a secret wish… I really wish you could hold me again, just like before."

“Shoot me, butterfly, do it,” Russo said with a smirk, and Chloe’s grip on the firearm faltered. “Who says I can't?” She retorted, hoping her hesitancy wasn’t showing on my face. “You love me, butterfly, but if you are going to do it, look into my eyes.” He replied and Chloe chuckled. “Your problem is that you trust everyone to much.” Chloe smirked before looking straight into his eyes and taking the shot. ____ Everything changed for FBI agent, Chloe Bells when she walked in on her husband cheating. Her barely surviving marriage fell apart, and Chloe was losing herself fast in the quicksands. When the FBI offered her a chance to catch a break, she took it happily. One of her hardest undercover missions was to bring in one of the most feared men in the world, Alessandro Russo. It shouldn’t be hard for Chloe to transition into Alissa, the street fighter who needs a job, but nothing prepared her for the consequences of working closely with the crime boss himself—consequences like falling for him and going against her undercover instructions!

Cailen has only one wish. To have a family he could belong to and a home to call his. ***** At thirteen, Cailen had been to different foster homes, each of them returning him for one reason or another. His heart had already taken so much rejection that hopelessness had set in, giving up on himself and shutting down, that even when a family does welcome him and love him, he still has his doubts. When Cailen returns from University to visit his family, he finds himself struggling to keep a secret that he knows will make him lose the only home and family that he has. Will Cailen lose himself? Or will he lose his family?

Five years into my relationship with a Godfather-to-be, I realized Cicio Russo had fallen for someone else. And I decided that the choice should be his. I laid the options right in front of him: break up with me, or send that someone else far away overseas. Cicio Russo stood outside my windows all night, down there with the coldness of the night cutting through him and fogging his breath. By morning, Cicio told me that he'd decided. His choice was me. Or at least - that was what I was made to believe. Surprise came on the very day of our wedding, a strange little boy ran straight down the aisle that was supposed to be mine to walk. “Daddy,” he cried at Cicio and Cicio’s face of stony indifference, “What about me? You have left mommy already. Are you going to abandon me, too?” The ring slipped from Cicio’s hand and hit the carpet with a muted thud. He turned his back on me and walked away without even looking back. I pulled off the white veil. And I snatched the microphone from the host. “If you take one more step,” I screamed into the microphone, “if you leave, I will give all this up. And you, too. Do you hear me? I will give you up.” He froze. For only one second. Then he stepped away anyway.

"You said you leave when there's nothing left for you to do so what if I gave you a reason to stay?"

An Alpha's Game is a gripping tale of betrayal, love, and redemption. Natalia's life takes a drastic turn when her father loses an alpha duel, and she is offered as a tribute to the Devil Claw Wolfpack. Forced to live like a wife to the Alpha, Draco, she realizes his true character and the sinister motives of his Beta, Liam. As she tries to escape and uncover the truth about his late wife's death, she finds herself falling for Draco. But when she loses her baby and discovers Elsa's treachery, she must fight for her life and the future of the pack. With the Beta plotting a revolt, Natalia tries to warn Draco, but he refuses to believe her until it's almost too late. In a daring escape, Natalia gives birth to a son with Draco by her side. But as they face the wrath of the Beta, Draco must fight for his pack and his family in a deadly duel. Will Draco emerge victorious, or will Liam succeed in his quest for power? An Alpha's Game will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end.