Inside Out Joy Face Novels & Stories

Everyone in New York knew that Don Lorenzo Capone loved his wife dearly. At the height of our love, he shielded me from a bullet that went straight through his chest. The hospital issued eleven critical condition notices. I cried myself hoarse at the door of the emergency room. "Lorenzo, don't you dare die on me, or I'll instantly find a pretty boy to marry and have children with!" He survived the ordeal, and the first thing he did when he opened his eyes was to marry me. After the marriage, he ruled over New York's largest underground empire with an iron fist, but never allowed any woman to get close to him. On our third wedding anniversary, I went to his private dock to give him a surprise. There, I saw him holding a pair of twins, teaching them how to shoot. The man who could kill without batting an eye was looking at the children with eyes full of affection. The children's mother was Elena Tribbiani, the daughter of an arms dealer who was his equal. "Lorenzo, what if Vivian finds out?" Lorenzo dismissed it casually. "A fragile porcelain doll like her is only fit to be displayed in a glass case. Only a she-wolf like you is worthy of bearing my family's cubs." It turned out, what I thought was true love was merely a carefully-woven lie. I did not confront him. Instead, I sent a text message to an FBI special agent. "Agent Smith, I have a list of the arms deal you’re investigating."

We agreed we were going to spend Christmas together as a family of three. I briefly stepped out to grab my daughter’s Christmas gift, but quickly realized that I had forgotten my keys. However, when I came back, I was locked outside the villa. I rang the doorbell countless times, but no one came to let me in. Through the glass window, I saw my daughter happily smiling in the arms of my wife’s childhood friend who had returned from overseas. “Uncle Jones, you smell so nice. Not like my dad. He’s always sweaty and smells so gross. I don’t even want to spend Christmas with him!” My wife, Lily Quinn, looked at them indulgently and agreed. “Your dad hasn’t seen much of the world. He really doesn’t know how to celebrate holidays properly.” I froze in place as my fingers turned cold. Yara turned and saw me outside the window. Her face was filled with disgust. “What are you staring at? Why are you standing outside like some monster? You almost scared me to death! You’re not like Uncle Jones at all. He’s so elegant and well-mannered!” However, ten years ago, I was a top sales director at a well-known multinational company. Back then, I had the chance to be transferred to New York. Yet Lily unexpectedly got pregnant and suffered severe reactions. She was at constant risk of miscarriage. I voluntarily gave up that opportunity to take care of her and our daughter. Now, that sacrifice had somehow become undeniable proof of my uselessness. I took a deep breath and threw the Christmas gift I had bought for my daughter into the trash. Then I messaged someone saved in my contacts as “Apprentice”: [Is that overseas position you mentioned a few days ago still available?] The reply came almost instantly: [Of course! Mr. Lane, as long as you’re willing to come back, you’ll always have a place waiting for you!]

As Christmas approached, my fiancé Marcus Shadowhowl, the next-in-line Alpha of the Shadowhowl pack, rejected my invitation for a date and instead planned to take his assistant Sienna Nightsky to the beach on a vacation. Known as the perfect Luna-to-be, I didn’t cry or beg. I even thoughtfully helped him plan the trip. He kissed me gently and said, “Lorelei, you’re the most understanding werewolf in the world.” I smiled as I saw them off—then turned around and went to have an abortion. Why? Because in my past life, I had begged him to stay with me using the pup in me. But in the end, Sienna was brutally murdered at the beach. Outwardly, Marcus still treated me tenderly, but in his heart, he blamed me for her death. When I was about to give birth, he tricked me into going to the beach and issued a ruthless order to his subordinates. “Are we really going to dissolve the Luna’s child with silver? That’s too cruel!” “Yes. She killed Sienna. This is the punishment she deserves!” It was only then, in utter agony, that I realized Marcus had always held a grudge against me. Now that I’ve returned to the time before everything happened, I didn’t stop him from going on vacation with his assistant. Everyone laughs at my foolishness. But what they don’t know is that Marcus will eventually regret it and beg me to come back to him.

For eight long years, Bryan Millan and I were married, but you’d never have known it by looking at his life. He never once acknowledged our relationship in public. Not a single post, not a single mention of me on his social media. Then came our anniversary. The day that was supposed to be about us. Instead, Bryan made an announcement on his Instagram account—just not the one I expected. There he was, hand in hand with his assistant, her draped in a wedding dress. The caption read: [When you're in love, you want the whole world to know.] The comments flooded in. [Bryan finally got married!] [Congrats! Wishing you a lifetime of happiness together!] In that moment, I could no longer lie to myself. Bryan wasn't reserved. He just never loved me. So, I decided to let go. But he wasn't ready for that. He clung to me, desperate now. But I pried his hands off and laughed—a real, genuine laugh, the kind that comes from somewhere deep inside when you realize you're finally free. Then, I looked him straight in the eye and said the words I'd been holding in, "Don't beg me to come back. Because now that I don't love you, I've never felt better."

“Just stay married to me for three years. After that, we divorce. In return, I’ll help you destroy your husband and the woman who took your child.” I agreed. Not because I was weak. But because I survived. I was once a devoted wife. Obedient. Loyal. Pregnant with a child I believed would save my marriage. Then his first love returned, and everything I trusted turned to blood and betrayal. We were rushed to the same hospital. I was bleeding. She was crying in his arms. There was only one operating room left. He chose her. He wheeled his mistress, his first love, into surgery and left me behind to miscarry alone. I lost my baby on a cold hospital bed while my husband held another woman’s hand. I divorced him. But some wounds do not heal. They sharpen. Now I have a contract marriage, a man with no love to give, and a plan written in patience and pain. I will take everything my ex-husband values, piece by piece, and make him beg for what he threw away. Forgiveness is for the dead. And I am very much alive. Watch out, husband. I will ruin you.

I've loved Jonathan Pickle for half my life. I used my family's resources to help him attain success. However, in the third year of our marriage, he brought his mistress home to stomp all over my pride. That wasn't the worst of it—he even destroyed my family. … I open my eyes to see Jonathan in his university days. Unexpectedly, I'm not the only person who's been given a second chance at life.

She suffered a lot because of her uncles' greed, but in a twist of fate, she became the queen of the mafia and returned to take revenge. Sammy was a girl with a past marked by tragedies, but everything she went through made her strong to face the biggest challenge in her life. Someone forced her to undergo plastic surgery, making her face identical to Susan, a woman who caused the wrath of dangerous people in the mafia, including the wrath of her husband, a cruel man known as the King of the New York Mafia. Now she will have to race against time to unravel all the mysteries surrounding this change of identity and what her past has to do with the New York mafia.

She was about to share her wonderful news, but he beat her to it with a revelation of his own: “I think we should get a divorce.” In an instant, her entire world crumbled. “Fine. If that’s what you want, I’ll divorce you.” --- Because she had used her family’s influence to force Parawee into a marriage he never wanted, he had spent three years merely enduring her. But now, Nicha—the woman he had always loved with all his heart—was back. “Let’s get a divorce.” He finally made his move to end it, expecting a clean break and a fresh start. --- Kajarin had been in love with Wee for as long as she could remember. She had begged her family to do whatever it took to make him hers, even though she knew his heart was already occupied. “I have some good news for you.” She had been ready to tell him, but his sudden demand for a divorce changed everything. Now, she had no choice but to bury her secret as deep as it would go. “Let’s head to the district office. I’ll give you the divorce you’ve been waiting for.” She was done. Truly, utterly done with it all. --- While driving his favorite yellow ride, Thamnithi was suddenly flagged down by a woman in a cream mini-dress. She looked like she was running from something, and moved by a sense of kindness, he decided to pick her up. But that one good deed was about to become a moment he would never forget for the rest of his life. “Damn it, Tham! What have you gotten yourself into?!”

After having dinner on the holiday eve, I'm about to distribute the gift cards to the younger generation of the family when my daughter, Lisa Mercer, speaks up. "Mom, we're not going to celebrate the holidays at home. You should pack up and go back to your own home too." Shock flashes across my face. "It's nighttime, and yet you want me to leave right now?" Lisa replies calmly, "I'm doing this for your own good. If you stay in my house on your own, you won't be able to defend yourself if anything in this house goes missing." I no longer question Lisa. Instead, I pack my own belongings and go back to my childhood home. One week later, when Lisa and the rest of the family comes back from their vacation, they are stunned, to say the least. After all, the house that they've lived in for the past eight years now has a new owner.

Ariana Lubove and Spencer Ulrich have been married for three years. She doesn't hope to win his heart, but she thinks that she's at least special to him. To her devastation, he finds himself a mistress and treats her like she's his treasure. Ariana finally faces reality and gets a divorce. She turns to leave without another look back. Five years later, she shows up with a little boy by her side. Spencer looks at the boy and snorts. "You're a little bastard." The boy gives him an equally icy look. "And you're an old bastard." Five years is enough for Spencer to turn a new leaf and start with a clean slate. He's confident he can win Ariana's heart again. But why the hell does he have rivals in love all over the world?