Jakeila Ortiz Pop Smoke

It happened on Thanksgiving Day. I was on my way to my girlfriend's house when a car slammed straight into mine. The road was deserted, not a single person was around. The doors were jammed shut from the impact, and flames were licking toward the engine. I fumbled for the safety hammer, only to find that someone had replaced it with a toy hammer shaped like a cartoon bear. Panicking, I called my girlfriend. But before she could even pick up, her ringtone started playing from the car that had just hit me. Luna Hill stepped out, hand in hand with her childhood sweetheart, Julian Ford. Julian put on a show of alarm. "Oh no, I'm such an idiot! My first time driving, and I already hit a car." When Luna saw that it was me in the crushed car, she quickly tried to calm him down. "It's fine. He probably did it on purpose." I pounded on the window, shouting for her. "Luna, the safety hammer's been switched out! Please, help me get out!" Julian burst into a grin. "Sebastian, that was me! The little bear hammer's adorable, isn't it?" Luna's face twisted in disgust. "You're fine. Stop being dramatic. Figure it out yourself." Thick smoke was billowing inside the car, and it was about to explode. I begged her to get me out. Julian chuckled. "Sebastian, are you cooking in there or what? That smoke's killing me!" He patted his stomach and said with a laugh, "Man, I'm starving. Luna, let's go home and eat." Luna hooked her arm through his and tossed a parting line over her shoulder. "Enough already. My parents are waiting for us to start dinner." Just as I was about to pass out from the smoke, I slammed my hand on the car's emergency button.

On the wet sand beside the seashore, the strong, tall man was laying with a cigarette in his hand. His bike parked a few feet away from him. The environment there was serene and noiseless as no one was allowed then on the beach that he owned. It was not a big deal for a billionaire like him. He had a lot more than that. Wealth, power, the respect he had all of them but lacked the most important thing that couldn't be bought with money. He lacked inner peace. He inhaled the vinous smoke as the corner of his lips twitched in a sad smile. His eyes deceived him being moist and a lone tear slipped down his face on the sand. The sand sucked the water as soon as it fell on it, and he wondered if his pain disappeared in thin air like that. He breathed out a puff of smoke through his nose and mouth. Looking up at the sky with the sad smile plastered on his face he spoke up, "Why so hatred for me, ya Rab?" Miles away from him the girl with a cuddling baby in her arms uttered looking up at the sky, "I express my deep gratitude to You for sending this angel to me, Ya Rab."

The darkest corners of the world hold the secrets the leaders want you to forget. Deep inside a cabin covered with moss and shadows, those secrets are not yet forgotten. Under the moon, light glistens off of shining stones lining the porch and bundles of herbs drying from the rafters. Candlelight emanates from the interior and warmth surrounds the occupant. Inside this cabin was a forrest witch who was chanting a spell as she added herbs to a small caldron. Smoke rises and electricity fills the room. Her raven hair started to rise and the smoke turned glowing green. Leaves outside the cabin started swirling in the air raising around the cabin forming a circle. “None may find me where I reside, safe in the forrest this witch hides. Safe from the evil doers and safe from their men. None may ever find me again.” Cold. Like ice from an iceberg, his skin molded smoothly across his frame. The envelop in his hands was sealed by the Elder Lords sigil pressed into blood red wax. Slipping his long pale finger, breaking the seal, one word was inside. “Urgente.” His particular talents were once again needed.

Shannica Holstein and Jihan Althan once became a couple and broke up two years ago. Shannica suffered a lot after their break up, and now that she finally moved on, Jihan pop up again and ask her to become his fiancée in exchange of money. How would Shannica be able to face Jihan again after all what happened to their ill-fated past? Would Jihan change for good? Or he will repeat the same mistake he did to Shannica two years ago? The Paid Bride, signing in.

When Travis, Serena's mate, picked her sister over her, she couldn't help but think her fear had come true. She was denied by her mate. Choosing the easy way out of the heartbreak, she ran away with no intention of going back. But, it wasn't that easy when her older brother managed to track her down and demanded for her to come home. And when she does, secrets will pop out and she will find herself in a situation that she never thought would end up in.

Alicia Smoke, an heiress to the Smoke enterprises, is arranged to be married to her father's business ally's son, Stephen Herald. On her wedding day, she catches a glimpse of how her loveless marriage will be when she hears her elder sister fighting with her husband, who was arranged as well. Determined to forfeit such a fate, Alicia takes off, leaving Stephen stranded on the altar. Luckily, she comes across a group of ladies who were supposedly going to a party and she ditches her wedding gown and joins them. It wasn't until they arrived at the venue that she figured out her newfound friends were hookers. But it was a little too late to turn back for the private premises they were in were only accessible to a few and she could only leave when the rest of the ladies were leaving.  And then she bumps into Theodore Cavill. The 25-year-old virgin nerd and the birthday boy. He assumes she is a hooker and Alicia doesn't bother correcting him. She just craves one night of freedom before her family finds her because she is sure they will. After one really great night, Alicia disappears leaving no trace but a huge bloodstain on Theodore's bedsheets. Until she discovers she conceived for the sexy stranger, Theodore Cavill.

Estelle’s life was once a fairy tale, filled with love and promise. However, tragedy struck on the day of their wedding. Estelle’s father and Cristofer’s parents were involved in a car accident that took their lives instantly. The loss was devastating for Cristofer, causing him to sink into deep sorrow and anger towards Estelle. One tragedy comes after another, and she finds herself battling cancer, heartbreak, and deceit. In a world where all seems lost, Estelle must dig deep to find the strength to fight for what she loves most. **** Cristofer’s magnetic yet cold voice wrenched her mind back to reality, “Sign the divorce paper now!” Estelle laid down her legs, sat up, and asked, “Did you drink?” “It’s none of your business.” “Drinking is bad for your stomach.” “I need to drink so that I won’t feel disgusted when having sex with you.” “You couldn’t wait to divorce me?” Her voice sounded weak. She turned her back on him as the smoke nearly smothered her, and she started coughing again. “You know that, don’t you?” Cristofer deliberately breathed out a stream of smoke in her direction and felt inexplicably pleased to see her coughing and trembling.

My daughter has been kidnapped, and the kidnapper is asking for five million dollars as ransom. I can just about scrounge the money together, but the kidnapper makes it clear that he wants a life in exchange for my daughter's. He'll take the money and kill the person who brings it to him. I smoke throughout the night, my eyes bloodshot as I try to think of something. Then, I fix my gaze on my mother, who is now senile and insane.

Sad, alone, and broken. Aurora is an orphan and a week away from her 19th birthday. Happy and terrified as it will be the beginning of the end. Saved by an unlikely stranger she takes a chance to learn the truth about her world, and all the beings in it. Making the biggest choice of her life, she jumps in with both feet! Finally happy in her new life, terror ensues as her worst nightmares are realized. When the smoke clears there is an even bigger catastrophe and she must figure out how to save everyone!

Layla Miles lives in a posh upper middle-class neighborhood, married to a neurosurgeon, and has a beautiful three-year-old daughter. The only thing missing is Layla’s past memories. When Layla and Damien decide to host a charity event to raise their profiles in Tampa’s high society, two men from her past pop up out of nowhere. With no memory of her former life - or them, she sets out on a mission to finally discover who she is and what had happened on that fate changing night in New York City four years prior. One woman. Three men. What will be the outcome? Warning: This work of fiction contains sexual scenes and graphic language.