Illusion

TITLE: Bred by the Vortan Alphas. STORY BLURB: She was supposed to be a bride. Instead, she became a captive. Princess Melissa Thornhart's world shatters days before her royal wedding when a devastating betrayal sends her fleeing from everything she knows. But safety is an illusion—especially when she wakes in the hands of the enemy: a ruthless Alpha with a vendetta, and a punishment unlike any she imagined. To survive, she must submit. But survival becomes something else entirely when her body begins to betray her... and her heart becomes entangled between two powerful men—an Alpha and his son. One wants her obedience. The other fights a bond he can't escape. In a pack where secrets are currency and loyalty demands flesh, Melissa must navigate dangerous desires, forbidden passion, and a power she never knew lived inside her. Because the men who captured her may just become the ones who break her… or worship her. And when war calls her name again, she'll have to choose between the love that saved her—and the one that set her free.

"You like what I do to you, darling? As much as you don't want it, your eyes show desire." Noah wakes up to a naked man in his bed. Last night, this naked man was a stray he picked up off the rain-soaked streets of Chicago's South Side. Noah doesn't know what he's brought into his life, but as the stranger begins to unravel showing his dark, mysterious side, he finds himself in a love that's forbidden. Dominic Voss, a cold mafia boss who loses his memories after a brutal hit from rival gangs, finds himself in the gritty world of strip clubs and survival. Hunted down by his enemies, Dominic creates an illusion of happiness with Noah, even when he has sixty days left before his amnesia leads to permanent memory loss and his past catches up. Their love is forbidden. A mafia boss. A stripper. It's war. Dominic isn't willing to let go, but if his rivals get to him first, he won't even remember Noah loved him at all.

"If it's a sin to touch you, then I'll burn just to have you." Nik Velasquez. *** Like the ocean—wild, deep, mysterious, and dangerous, Nik would never allow anyone to control him like an obedient robot. He would break free from anyone who’s trying to have their fingers wrapped around his neck but how can a single woman—with a freaking innocent face— stir emotions in him that he didn’t know existed? Blakely Velasquez, Nik's nominal sister. The perfect daughter, a masterpiece of his controlling parents. Yet this seemingly obedient girl had a forbidden craving for her adoptive brother. A mistake she made six years ago pushed him far away. And when she was about to drop her illusion and marry someone else, the man returned. Just one sight, the feelings she tried to bury started coming back. Blakely hoped not to make any more mistakes but after an accidental one-night stand, could they still repress this forbidden attraction? And what would they have to face when this forbidden relationship was exposed under the sun?

PEYTON Bullied, beaten, and left for dead is not the way I planned to celebrate Alpha Bane’s return. I’m safe and alive—for now. Until Bane himself appears wide-eyed, panting, and calling me his mate. The handsome older brother to the psychopath who’s declared me his favorite prey. I refuse to be his mate. His luna. Not when I know what his family is capable of, what HE is capable of. So I do the only thing I can. I reject him and I run. BANE She was perfect, everything I imagined. The goddess finally fulfilled my deepest desires. Peyton Samuels, the cute little omega I’ve wanted for years, is officially mine. But it was just a dream, an illusion easily shattered by her rejection. If she thought she could leave without a fight, she’s sorely mistaken. I’ll do whatever it takes to bring my luna home, even if I have to destroy my family to do it. Run all you want, little mouse, but I’m the alpha and I’ll always catch what’s mine.

Who would have thought that one disastrous night could bind two strangers in a contract neither saw coming? Everlyn Ateya Wangari thought she had it all—a stable job, a loving boyfriend, and a future she had fought hard for. But that illusion shattered the moment she walked in on the man she had sacrificed everything for, tangled in the arms of another woman—her biggest rival at work. Betrayed and heartbroken, she storms out, only to stumble upon a high-stakes deal that has nothing to do with business and everything to do with revenge. Kurtis Otias, Nairobi’s most elusive billionaire bachelor and the newly appointed CEO of her company, is a man who never begs—except now. With a billion-dollar merger hanging by a thread, he needs a wife, and he needs one fast. A chance encounter. A reckless offer. A contract signed in desperation. One seeks power. The other seeks payback. But neither of them anticipated the one thing they couldn’t control—**love and obsession.** When emotions start to blur the lines of their cold arrangement, will they walk away unscathed, or will they destroy each other in a game where the rules were never meant to be fair?

Summary: When The Tables Turn Amelia Hart has always believed she knew who she was — grounded, careful, loved. She's been with Colton for years, a relationship that started young and bloomed into the kind of comfort most people envy. But comfort can be deceiving. When Amelia leaves high school behind and follows her friends to a campus college in town, everything familiar starts to shift — especially when it comes to Micah Rivera. Micah was always part of the group, quiet but magnetic in a way that drew people without trying. He'd admired Amelia from afar, since she first stepped foot at Northridge high — harmlessly, quietly, always just on the edge of being noticed. But the harmlessness fades when his attention begins to linger too long, his compliments too pointed, his gaze too knowing. And then one day, he stops. The sudden absence sends Amelia spiraling, confused if the attention Micah ever gave her was real or was it an illusion in Amelia's head. "When The Tables Turn" is a psychological slow-burn romance that unravels the dangers of desire, the hunger for attention, and the haunting truth of what happens when being seen becomes an addiction. Following

Shania thought she had it all—her husband Adrian, her home, her future. But that illusion shattered the day her twin sister, Stephanie, appeared on her doorstep, cradling a baby that looked unmistakably like Adrian. The triumphant glint in Stephanie’s eyes delivered the truth: betrayal. Two facts now defined Shania’s life: 1) Her husband, whom she gave up everything for, had slept with her sister. 2) She became pregnant by a stranger after a drunken night, just 240 days after Adrian struck her. Enter Stefan—an enigmatic billionaire with his own dark past. He needed a woman whose name began with 'S' to carry his child. Unbeknownst to Shania, Stefan had been orchestrating her life from the shadows, drawn to her for reasons she could never have imagined. And now, a baby is involved, divorce papers are moving from one home to the lawyer, and a fresh new contract marriage is being drafted. Will Stefan reveal his secrets before it’s too late? And can Shania find the strength to confront her past and embrace the unexpected bond forming between them?

Natalie Taylor has one goal when she signs up as a companion at Dreams: to make a shit ton of money and get out fast. She's not looking for adventure or hoping for love and romance. But days into her moonlighting job, her quiet determination is shaken when she confronts her biggest problem yet—Levi Van Holt, heir to a mega-billion hotel chain and CEO of a gaming startup. Levi is everything she wants in a man. Gorgeous, wealthy and generous to boot. There's just one problem. He's her new boss... Harbouring a dark secret and nursing wounds from his past, Levi has one rule and one rule only for his companion: no falling in love. But with his desires continually tested, the more time he spends with Natalie, it doesn't take long for both their lives, real and secret, to converge, the lines between illusion and reality begin to blur, and the temptation to break his only rule becomes harder to resist. © 2022 Val Sims. All rights reserved. No part of this novel may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author and publishers.

She wanted the life. The money. The power. The man. Mara Collins is tired of counting tips and pretending her dreams don’t reach beyond the coffee shop counter. When the bills pile higher than her hope, she decides it’s time to stop waiting for luck—and start creating it. All she needs is one man. One chance. One lie. Her plan is simple: learn how the rich play their games, then beat them at it. With a fake designer dress, a new name, and a heart of steel, she slips into the city’s most exclusive events—until she catches the eye of Adrian Holt, a man who has everything she’s ever wanted. Charming. Ruthless. Obsessively private. Adrian isn’t the kind of man you play with… but Mara’s willing to risk everything to make him hers. But the higher she climbs, the more fragile her lies become. And when Adrian discovers who she truly is, the illusion shatters—leaving behind nothing but betrayal, anger, and obsession… and a love that should never have existed in the first place. Now love becomes a weapon, and every night in his sheets feels like a war between truth and desire.

After transferring to an isolated private Academy on his best friends request, Jason steps into a world he never expected to be in. Dealing with flirty teachers and students is a normal occurrence and one he's been good at forever because all his life he’s distanced himself from the illusion of love. Until he meets her. The Aloof Mystery Student. Never before has his resolve been tested in such a way and he finds himself disturbed by her presence and the strange familiar calmness she brings him. Are the strings of fate being mischievous? Could a teacher x student relationship be his downfall? For as long as Atlas could remember, her life's been a series of hurdles and vast walls she had to overcome. After the death of her Grandmother, she's thrown into a game orchestrated by her selfish father. She must fight not only the hatred of her brother, but the disapproving adults all around her. Meeting the annoying Jason Fairchild throws everything off the rails and she finally finds herself. Together, they stand a greater chance to overcome all internal and external wars they've been fighting. Will they be victorious or succumb to the harsh fates that have been written for them? Only Silence will tell...