Illusion

Elena Marlowe never imagined one night could change everything. At a mask gala event, she let herself forget the rules of her life. One dance led to one kiss... and then a night she swore would never leave the shadows. She didn't even know his name... only the storm in his grey eyes and the way he made her feel like someone else for once, like someone free. But secrets have a way of catching up. Weeks later, two pink lines shatter her illusion of escape. With no way to find the man who disappeared with the dawn, Elena chooses silence. She walks away from the life she knew, determined to protect her baby and her heart. Until fate intervenes. Her new job is a lifeline, a chance to start over. But her new boss? Cassian Wolfe, The Billionaire CEO. Who is sharp, ruthless and unmistakably the man from that night. He doesn't recognize her or so she hopes. But Cassian Wolfe didn't build an empire by being blind. The moment Elena steps into his office, something shifts. A flicker of familiarity. A tension neither of them can name. Elena fights to keep her secret buried. Cassian fights to uncover it. But when the truth begins to unravel, lines blur in between past and present, between power and vulnerability, between fear and the one thing Elena vowed never to feel again: love. Now Cassian wants answers. He wants control. And maybe... just maybe, he wants her. But some secrets are too big to stay hidden. And some hearts are too fragile to risk shattering again. Will Elena protect the life she's built? Or will the father of her child claim more than just the truth?

Rivergate's most elite social circle had always shared an unspoken rule. Men were free to play the field as they pleased, drifting from one woman to the next. Women, on the other hand, were only allowed a single, discreet indulgence on the day they came of age—a privately hired "life assistant" meant to take care of their physical needs. … On my coming-of-age day, I picked Elliot at first glance from a hundred applicants who came in for interviews. He wore gold-rimmed glasses, looked composed and restrained, and carried himself with a calm maturity that set him apart. He was steady, meticulous, and obsessively clean. The only condition he agreed to was that there would be no bodily contact—hands only. And after every encounter, he would scrub his hands with disinfectant alcohol a hundred times. Over five years, the empty bottles alone were enough to circle the villa seven times. I used to think that one day, I'd help him overcome his barriers and truly make him mine. That illusion shattered the night I got drunk and accidentally wandered into Elliot's room. Hidden beneath his pillow was a DV camera, and inside were several videos of him pleasuring himself. On the screen, the same man who had always been calm and rational with me was staring at the lingerie of the adopted sister who had caused my mother's death, his Adam's apple bobbing as he moaned her name, "Chloe… I love you…" Only then did I realize that every step he had taken toward me had never been about me at all. It had always been a carefully concealed, long-nurtured love for her. So, it was very odd that he cried when I took my adopted sister's place in marrying someone else.

After the young officer Edward Shaw took first place in a high-profile shooting exhibition attended by senior officials, his family adopted a rather peculiar tradition. At the annual family banquet, he would perform a blindfolded shooting. Whichever woman's token his bullet struck was taken as a sign that she would become his fiancée. Determined to marry him, I placed the handkerchief I had carefully chosen as close to him as possible. Yet, for three consecutive years, his shots hit nothing at all. I told myself the handkerchief must have been too light, too easy to miss. So each year, I replaced it with something more refined, more eye-catching than before. That illusion lasted until the night before my eighteenth birthday, when I happened to overhear him speaking with a friend at a reception. "Miss Jasmine's handkerchief is right in front. Even blindfolded, you should be able to hit it. How do you keep missing every year?" Edward swirled his glass, his tone casual. "Tracy's still young. The moment she hears I'm getting engaged, she starts crying. "I promised I'd wait until she's a little older. As for Jasmine, she's waited for me all these years. It's not like she's going anywhere." With that, he casually tossed his glass into a metal bucket in the corner. It rang out with a sharp, hollow clang. I lowered my gaze and thought of my younger sister, only a year younger than me. So it had never been about the token. It was about the person who placed it there. In that case, there was no reason for me to keep holding on. After all, my father had already arranged a marriage for me. Three days later, at that same family banquet, I would be formally engaged.

Monica Banks had it all—beauty, fame, and a rising career as one of the industry's top lingerie models. Her distinctive curves and magnetic presence made her a favorite on every runway and billboard. But at the peak of her success, she gave it all up. Not for herself, but for her father—agreeing to marry Liam McKenzie, a cold and calculating business tycoon, in exchange for a crucial deal that would save her family’s company. The McKenzie family loathed her profession. To them, modeling lingerie was shameful. They gave her a choice: her career or the marriage. Monica chose Liam, foolishly hoping her sacrifice would earn his love. She terminated her contract—despite her agency’s desperate pleas—and stepped away from everything she had built. For three long years, she played the role of the perfect wife and obedient daughter-in-law. And when Liam finally touched her like a husband should, she believed—naively—that she had finally won a place in his heart. That illusion shattered when she returned home early and found him in their bed with another woman. Her sister. Brie Banks. Liam didn’t deny it. He didn’t even apologize. Instead, he coldly revealed that their marriage was nothing more than a favor to his mother. Broken. Betrayed. Humiliated. But Monica had enough . When Spencer McKenzie—Liam’s estranged half-brother, the black sheep of the family blamed for a fire that killed their grandfather—returned to the country, he made her an offer. One that promised revenge. A scandalous one, She accepted. --- “Are you insane, Spencer? You’re stirring up a scandal with my wife!” Liam’s voice thundered through the room, his eyes blazing. His lips twitch"No you stay away from her, she's mine now."

She saved a boy from drowning when they were children, never knowing that one moment would shape the rest of her life. Years later, that same boy—Adrian Hale—has become a powerful, cold billionaire haunted by a past he cannot fully remember. But in his memory, the one who saved him was Seren, the fragile girl he believes he owes his heart to. Elara Voss, the overlooked sister standing in the shadow of a lie, carries the burden of a truth no one believes. When tragedy strikes and her sister is left paralyzed, the world turns against Elara, branding her guilty while Seren disappears without a trace. Adrian, consumed by anger and deception, forces Elara into a marriage built on resentment, believing she destroyed the woman he loved. Years later, Seren returns—recovered, radiant, and determined to reclaim everything she lost, including Adrian. As old feelings resurface and buried truths begin to surface, Elara is pushed into a battle she never asked for: one of love, betrayal, and survival. But when she walks away, she doesn’t disappear—she rises. From ruin to power, Elara builds an empire strong enough to stand beside Adrian as his equal, forcing him to confront the truth he was blind to all along. But some truths come too late. As ambition collides with obsession and love turns into a weapon, the lines between loyalty and illusion blur. And when Adrian finally learns who truly saved him that night, the cost of his choices threatens to destroy everything he thought he controlled. In a world where love is power, and truth is the most dangerous betrayal, who will survive when everything hidden finally comes to light?

“I…” He cut himself off, hesitating, before trying again. The words he pushed out of his lips, shy but sure, surprised me. “I want to fuck you for a change.” My eyes widened, stunned. What? “I want to know if you cum from a cock in your ass,” he continued softly. If he knew who I was under this mask— Slight unease settled in my chest, but I already knew I would do it. I needed money… and the thought of sex with Aaron, in this way it was offered, was… scintillating. A new guilty pleasure. — There’s a pecking order at William-Alfie High School and Jack is at the top of it. But he shouldn’t. Because that pyramid is strictly held up by money, and over the summer Jack’s parents have gone bankrupt. They’ve managed to keep it a secret, but Jack has to work at a sex club to make enough to keep up the illusion at school. When Aaron Smithy, a usual pushover, stands up to him in the cafeteria, Jack is afraid word has started to spread especially after he puts Jack in his place and he still retaliates by giving him food poisoning. Except he didn’t. Aaron’s bravado ended in the cafeteria. But Jack keeps coming at him so he has no choice but to defend himself, even as he has bigger fish to fry as he slowly falls in love with a sex worker who has refused to show his face. By the end of the school year, their relationship has morphed into a tangled web of complexity that leaves Jack alone, naked and in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. Will Aaron come to his rescue? Or will the newly-fallen shining star implode under it all?

"I have chosen not to go through with it," I told the twins. Surprisingly, they didn't appear perturbed by my decision to forgo any romantic involvement with them. "My dear, sweet Lily," Hayden's voice resonated with a blend of authority and allure, "while we may have presented you with the illusion of choice regarding our relationship, it was never truly yours to dictate, especially after we've discerned the alluring taste between your thighs." His words, though startling, carried an undeniable magnetism, drawing me closer despite my inner resistance. I didn't fail to notice how Hunter was now closely behind me as well. "B-but this isn't right, and I have the right to decide what's best for me." Hunter had now circled his arms around my waist, kissing my neck deviously from behind, the sensuous feeling filling the pit of my stomach. Raising my head to look me in the eye, Hayden spoke. "There's nothing wrong with fulfilling one's desires, Lily. From now on, Hunter and I will be the ones to satisfy your every need. You belong to us, and no one else." *************** Lily's world is turned upside down after a wild night at the club leads to a sizzling one-night stand with a mysterious stranger, who turns out to be her billionaire boss, one of a set of irresistible twins. As she embraces her new role as their personal assistant, Lily finds herself engulfed in a whirlwind of passion, jealousy, and desire, all while grappling with her conflicting emotions for her friend Dillon. With tensions escalating and desires burning hotter, Lily is torn between the safety of her comfort zone and the thrilling temptation of the billionaire twins, risking everything for a taste of forbidden ecstasy.

Kimberly Walker was betrothed to.Roland Carter since she was sixteen years old. Roland was handsome, wealthy, and charming and represented everything Kimberly thought she needed. But that illusion shattered the night she caught him entangled in her sister’s arms.  She was angry and heartbroken, and recorded their betrayal before they even realized she was there. As her world collapsed, she fled, only to crash into Damien Carter—the one man Roland despised more than anyone. In a reckless bid for revenge, she kissed Damien, igniting a spark neither of them saw coming. Damien was arrogant and ruthless, but he was devastatingly handsome. And carried himself with so much grace and class. After he experienced that kiss, he knew things would never remain the same between Kimberly and him.  Roland refused to let go, swearing that his betrayal had been a mistake..  When the formidable matriarch, Mrs. Evelyn Carter, saw the evidence of Roland’s betrayal, and the picture of Kim kissing Damien, she made her decision—Kimberly would belong to Damien. An instant marriage followed, binding Kimberly to a man she barely understood.  But marrying Damien Carter came with a price. Damien was unwilling to give his heart to Kim. Meanwhile, Roland, fueled by jealousy, sought every opportunity to prove that Kimberly belonged to him, exploiting the cracks in her fragile new marriage. As family conflicts escalated, Kimberly had to navigate a dangerous game where she constantly had to prove her loyalty to Damien. In a world where wealth dictated fate, Kimberly was about to discover that trading one Carter for another was only the beginning of her battle. Will she be able to conquer Damien's heart? Or is there a chance to return to Roland, her first love who claims he still loves her? ---

"I've purchased you, which only means one thing; I own you. I own every bit of you, Margarette. Your body, your heart, and even your soul. You are mine. And no one can take you away from me." Possessive, cold-hearted, and ruthless. That's Xavier Ivanov, a Russian Mafia boss or also known as the devil himself. He cares no one but himself. He kills people for money and satisfaction. He runs illegal businesses and is one of the most influential yet dangerous people in the world. People were afraid of him. They despise his existence. He's a living Satan, and people tremble upon seeing him. It was quite impossible to tame a devil like him. No one can tame Xavier, or so they thought. Margarette Ferrero. She is a total opposite of him. An angel sent from above and was bound to burn an evil like himself. She is sweet, loving, yet naive. Being purchased by a powerful mafia boss from the dark market, Margarette was supposed to fear him. However, that was the total opposite of what she felt. Oddly, she felt safe and saved. And Xavier was beyond amused and enthralled by the naive girl. People were afraid of him, but that is not the case with Margarette. He's her saviour, her angel, and her owner. No one owns her but him. Two people with different personalities, different worlds, and different stories to be told. Is it possible to find love amongst the odds? Does love know no boundaries? Or was it all just an illusion? When secrets begin unfolding themselves and then the past that was buried six feet below the ground resurface, will the love be strong enough to keep the two people together? Or will the past change what is present?

When you've been constantly shown and proven right that love is just a word that carries so much hurt, you tend to give up on it. Thats the kind of life Clarissa has been made to live, love to her doesn't mean anything. It's a word she has come to dread completely and she's scared to love and be loved. Growing up with no one to show her the true meaning of love, she has decided on her own that love is just an illusion of people's mind To her life is all about fun and satisfying her pleasures while trying to survive and make the most of her life. She never thought there'd be someone out there willing to do anything just to make her see that love isn't that scary, that love is beautiful. Until she met him Tristan Walker What was meant to be a one night stand turned into something more. Tristan Walker, always the playboy. He never believed he could love any one. Not after what happened to him years ago, it scarred him but no one would ever know of it. To him love is just a word used to trap people, but then he meets her. Clarissa Grey. To him she was just a crazy girl he had fun with one night. But when he wakes up and she's gone without a trace, it piques his interest because no woman has ever done that to him, it's always the other way round. Now he's curious about this Beautiful and crazy redhead but she keeps running away from him Will he succeed in cracking her Da Vinci code or will he end up giving out his heart to her.