In The Name Of The Father

ในวันครบรอบงานวิวาห์ปีที่เจ็ดของเรา ฉันกำลังนั่งตักลูเซียนสามีมาเฟียของฉัน และจูบเขาอย่างดูดดื่ม นิ้วมือควานหาผลตรวจการตั้งครรภ์ที่ซ่อนอยู่ในกระเป๋าชุดราตรีผ้าไหมแสนแพง ฉันอยากจะเก็บข่าวเรื่องการตั้งครรภ์ที่มาอย่างไม่คาดฝันนี้ไว้จนกว่าจะถึงช่วงท้ายของค่ำคืนนี้ มาร์โกลูกน้องมือขวาของลูเซียนเอ่ยถามเป็นภาษาอิตาลีพร้อมรอยยิ้มแฝงเลศนัย “นายท่าน โซเฟีย นกน้อยตัวใหม่ของท่าน เด็ดไหมครับ?” เสียงหัวเราะแกมเย้ยหยันของลูเซียนแล่นผ่านทรวงอก ทำให้ฉันรู้สึกเย็นยะเยือกถึงกระดูกดำ เขาตอบกลับเป็นภาษาอิตาลี “เหมือนลูกพีชดิบที่เพิ่งเด็ดจากต้น ทั้งสดทั้งนุ่มนวลดีนะ” มือคู่นั้นลูบไล้ไปตามเอวของฉัน แต่สายตาของลูเซียนกลับไร้ซึ่งอารมณ์ “ปิดปากเอาไว้ให้สนิท ถ้านายหญิงของฉันรู้เข้า ฉันตายแน่” บรรดาลูกน้องหัวเราะคิกคักอย่างรู้ทัน พร้อมยกแก้วขึ้นสาบานว่าจะเงียบปากเอาไว้ เลือดอุ่นในกายของฉันค่อย ๆ กลายเป็นน้ำแข็งทีละนิด สิ่งหนึ่งที่คนเหล่านี้ไม่รู้เลยคือ คุณย่าของฉันมาจากเกาะซิซิลี ดังนั้นฉันจึงเข้าใจทุกคำที่พวกเขาพูดกัน ฉันพยายามคุมสติตนเองให้สงบ พร้อมกับปั้นรอยยิ้มไร้ที่ติในฐานะนายหญิงไม่ให้คลาย แต่มือข้างที่ถือแก้วแชมเปญกลับสั่นเทาไม่หยุด แทนที่จะสร้างเรื่องราวอะไร แต่ฉันกลับกดเปิดโทรศัพท์มือถือและเลื่อนหาจดหมายเชิญเรื่องโครงการวิจัยทางการแพทย์ระหว่างประเทศแบบรายบุคคลที่ได้รับมาเมื่อสองสามวันก่อน และกด “ยอมรับ” ภายในสามวัน ฉันจะหายไปจากโลกของลูเซียนแบบไม่ให้เขาตามหาได้อีก

Ten years ago, the Harrington family went through a home invasion. My mother, a maid, shielded Liam with her life. Holding my hands tight, Liam promised, "Andrea, don't worry. I'll protect you forever." I believed him. Our bond grew naturally, and we had a beautiful daughter together. Then, she was diagnosed with leukemia. In her last days, all she wanted was to spend one birthday with her dad. I called him, desperate to make it happen. "Millie doesn't have much time left. All she wants is one birthday with you. Can you come?" His voice on the other end went icy. "Really? This your latest stunt? Using your dead mom wasn't enough, now it's our daughter for pity? Disgusting." I tried to deny it, but he cut me off. "Don't mess with her head. Learn from Vivian—she's got a real heart." That night, our daughter passed away. Later, Vivian posted on social media: [Finally taking that couples' trip someone promised me!] I didn't scream. I didn't cry. I just texted Liam: [We're done.]

My health was not good, but I had always wanted a child. My husband, citing concern for my health, avoided intimacy with me for a year. Then I stumbled across his private messages with another woman. [You'll spend Valentine's Day with me, right? You're not going to touch her tonight, are you?] [You know I don't like doing it just to make babies. Got you some lingerie. Wear it for me tomorrow.] That ill-fitting lace lingerie he was talking about was on my body. I'd slipped it on while he was in the shower, thinking it was a Valentine's Day surprise from him. Turned out, he hadn't bought the wrong size. He had just sent it to the wrong address. I clicked on the woman's profile. Her latest video showed her at the beach, hand in hand with the person filming. I recognized her hand instantly. It belonged to my best friend.

If I can't have you... no one else will. Elsa never saw Derek as anything more than her best friend, who was loyal, harmless, and always there. But it took another woman to love him, to see the hunger in his eyes, the madness in his heart... and now Elsa finally sees him too. But it's too late. Derek belongs to someone else now. Or at least, he tries to... Now, Elsa will stop at nothing to make him hers. She'll destroy anyone who stands in her way, even the woman he loves. What she doesn't know is that Derek is far more dangerous than she ever imagined. And the obsession he has buried for years is no longer under control. If anyone tries to take Elsa from him... he won't just hurt them. He'll ruin them.

Leo Vance's quiet life as a struggling artist is about to be irrevocably altered. When his mother, Eleanor, announces her engagement to a formidable multi-billionaire, Leo is thrust into the glittering, ruthless world of New York’s elite. Arthur Volkov is a man whose old money Russian empire is vast and feared, and his two identical twin sons, Dmitri and Ivan, are known to be just as dangerous. Weeks before this life-altering news, Leo had a single, unforgettable night with a mysterious stranger. The passion was undeniable, a raw, masculine intensity that left him shaken and ashamed, but he fled, convinced it was a one-time, sinful fantasy. Imagine his horror when he discovers his one-night stand isn't just a celebrity, he's Dmitri Volkov, the cold, calculating heir to Arthur's legacy. The forbidden attraction, further complicated by his own denial of his sexuality and the step-sibling proximity, is instantaneous and potent. But it's not just Dmitri who sees him; his identical twin, Ivan, charming, seductive, and equally possessive, also begins to stake his claim. Leo is terrified of the consequences, knowing that if his mother discovers their affair, it will ruin everything. He desperately wants to reject the life, the lust, and the two men who are dismantling his self-denial. He longs for an escape, but the Volkov twins are unwilling to let him go. They want him all to themselves, a shared obsession that traps him in a gilded cage.

It's wrong. It's forbidden. It's taboo. The man I married loves another, but I'm even worse, because I want his father. Tiptoeing around the house just to be with him is sinful. But, I don't see anything wrong with that, because what we have is beautiful. _________________________________________ Charlotte is my greatest temptation, but she also just might be my salvation. She might be Sebastian's wife, but really, she's was always meant to be mine.

My husband, Zane Wade, was drugged at a cocktail party and ended up sleeping with a female college student who looked almost exactly like me. I gave him three chances. The first time, Zane sent the young woman abroad overnight. Then, he knelt outside our home for three days and three nights. The second time, I ran into him and the college student at the hospital. He was accompanying her for a prenatal check-up. At the time, Zane hugged me tightly and refused to let me go. His voice trembled as he said, "I'm sorry, Raina. She's pregnant, and my mother threatened to commit suicide. I have no choice but to keep the child. "I swear, once she gives birth, I'll send her away immediately. The child will go to the old family estate. Please, don't leave me…" But just three days later, because of that same woman, Zane fought me at an auction over my mother's heirlooms. When he saw me raising the bid higher and higher, he immediately went nuclear. This was the third and final chance I gave him. I rushed over to confront him, but Zane wasn't worried. He just frowned slightly and calmly said, "Raina, you know very well that Moira is about to give birth. Why do you insist on fighting a pregnant woman? You only need to endure it for another three months. Then, we can go back to how things were." Upon hearing his words, I almost cried at how ridiculous they sounded. I finally decided to get a divorce, but Zane actually brought Moira Green home openly and without shame.

Maxine Valencia, a hardworking lady from a well-known company got promoted shortly after joining a year ago. With that, workmates of her started getting jealous and suspicious of how was that possible. While celebrating in a bar with her workmates, they started making accusations or theories that are over the line. That made her very uncomfortable resulting her to accept the dare that will change her whole life with a blink of an eye. Proud and powerful.. That's what she felt after succeeding. But as time passes by, some things got confusing for her. She was brought into a mess and she isn't allowed to escape from it.

“Do you know how many nights I’ve thought about those? How I imagined sliding your dress up and seeing you in them… in my room, or my office… gagged so you wouldn’t scream my name?” “Say the word, Renata,” he whispered, voice rough. “And I’ll have you right here… where anyone could knock. Where you could get caught with your husband’s father’s cock inside you.” She gasped. But she didn’t say no. ******** One reckless night. A stranger’s touch. Her ruin. The night before her wedding, Renata surrendered to a man whose name she didn’t know… A man who made her tremble, moan, and beg for more in the shadows. The next morning, he was at the wedding hall too…Watching her walk down the aisle to his son. Domingo Serrano. Powerful. Predatory. Possessive. And he’s not done with her. He wants her again. And again. Once a week. No excuses. No escape. But Renata isn’t just drowning in lust and shame. She’s chasing answers. Her parents were murdered under the guise of an auto accident. The killer is hiding behind the walls of the Hidalgo empire. Santiago, her charming husband, has secrets. Lady Constanza, his mother, wears lies like pearls. And Domingo? He’s the darkest of them all. Now Renata’s playing with fire, and carrying a secret that could burn everyone: She’s pregnant. And she doesn’t know if the father is her husband… or his father.

One contract. One wedding. A lifetime of consequences. Elara Williams never thought her freedom would be traded for her stepfather’s failing empire. But when she’s forced into an arranged marriage with Adrian Wolfe…. the ruthless, unreadable heir to a billion-dollar dynasty….she discovers her cage is made of gold. Adrian needs a wife to secure control of his family’s legacy. Elara just wants to survive. But behind Adrian’s cold exterior is a man scarred by betrayal… and a dangerous pull she can’t resist. Just as their fragile bond deepens, his manipulative ex, a scheming family, and a web of secrets threaten to tear them apart. And when Elara becomes the target of enemies who know too much, both love and survival come at a price. Can two strangers trapped by duty learn to fight not just for each other… but for the kind of love neither believed in?