Laid Bare

Everyone knew that Aria Jackson had loved Larry Spencer for years. The usually obedient Aria got tattoos for him, broke rules for him, and even moved to a foreign city for him. But when she fell into the lake and he rescued her rival instead, leaving her soaking and miserable, her heart finally shattered completely. The man who came after Larry held her protectively in his arms and suggested with a gentle laugh, "Miss Jackson, have you considered teaching your ex-husband a lesson?" She promptly filed for divorce and married Archer Duncan, the heir to the Duncan empire and the powerful CEO of Duncan Industries. That evening, their marriage certificate was posted on social media. The typically aloof Larry finally showed his desperation, begging her not to marry Archer and then turning to threaten him, "You think she loves you? She's just using the Duncan family's wealth and connections!" Archer simply tightened his arm around her waist and replied calmly, "So what? Fortunately, I have both in abundance." What no one knew was that Aria had been Archer's carefully laid plan all along. He had deeply loved this rose from the beginning—he admired her ambition and was eager to support her boldness and independence.

I died on the day I won the Global Medical Doctorate Award. Fresh from celebrating the sixteenth birthday of my younger sister, my parents, brother, and my fiancé finally returned home, but it was three hours after my death. My family photos were beaming with happiness on social media, while I laid in the suffocating basement drenched in blood. Before I died, I had struggled to slide my tongue across my phone screen in a desperate attempt to call for help. My parents and brother had blocked my number. Only my fiancé answered my call. The moment his voice came through, he snapped, "Winona, Winnie's sixteenth birthday is important. Stop trying to hijack attention with your pathetic excuses. Enough with the theatrics!" It murdered my last spark of survival. In that electronic death rattle, my heart flatlined. The 100th time they chose her. The 100th time they abandoned me for her. But it was also the last time. They thought I had ran way to get their attention again, and that if they taught me a harsh lesson, I would come crawling back pathetically. But not this time. Because I didn't leave home. I had been lying in the basement of my house.

I was the belle of the school, good grades and all. But I wasn't the nerd they thought I was. I had been secretly dating my adopted brother's sworn enemy for three years. Lucian Palma had a strong desire for intimacy, so I went along with him in unlocking countless places to make love. He promised that he would marry me after graduation. Once he took over the family business from his wealthy father, he would make me the happiest woman alive. I believed him, even indulging him in his kink of recording us sleeping together. Lucian assured me that those videos were for his eyes only, and that no one else would ever see them. But then, I accidentally overheard a conversation between Lucian and his friends. "Lucian, you had deliberately staged a hero saving the damsel in distress situation to make Nina Etienne fall for you, all just to get it back at your archnemesis, Aaron North. If he found out his little sister had been sleeping with you, wouldn't it kill him with rage? "You've filmed hundreds of intimate videos, haven't you? When do you plan to release them? We'd love to see the nerd stripped bare under you." I didn't confront him about this. Instead, I quietly walked away and agreed to meet the fiance my father had arranged for me.

"You're one interesting girl my princess," he said. At the same time, his eyes peered into mine as his hands slipped into my dress tracing my legs up to my upper thigh. My bare back pressed against the wall feeling the touch of his palm on my skin which sent tingling shivers down my spine and for some reason, I felt a smile creep up on my lips. "And you aren't a Saint either". __ Jade Flores who works part-time at the infamous Red bar, had just graduated and is looking to make her life better. She's innocent, makes impulsive decision sometimes and just wishes to continue hiding from her wicked uncle. Saint Gennaro Guerra, the city's infamous Mafia lord. He's Stoic, stern, dominant and of course, handsome. No one who has ever crossed him made it out of the 'dead hole'. The two cross paths when one of Saint's men who betrayed him happens to be Jade's cousin, Marcel popularly known as 'Tequila'. Saint rescues her from his archenemy, Matrix who is also in search of Tequila. Saint then holds Jade as his property when he cannot find Tequila. Jade starts to fall hard for him and in as much as he pushes her away each time and keeps his walls high, she doesn't stop trying to break his walls. What happens when the city's infamous man keeps facing different situations with the girl who works at the infamous bar? Will they have themselves to fall back to? Will Saint reciprocate her feelings?

On the day of the wedding, Galen Shaw forces me to crack walnuts with my bare hands for his so-called female buddy. My expression goes cold, and I refuse outright. "My hands are for holding a scalpel, not cracking walnuts for her!" He only chuckles and orders someone to hold me down. Then, he glues the walnuts to my palms himself. One by one, he slams them against the ground. "You cheated while studying medicine. Now that you've married me, forget about ever being a doctor again!" I grit my teeth through the pain. My fingers are aching, but I try to explain. "I went abroad to study medicine for you!" His so-called female buddy sneers in a shrill voice. "All that talk about the Shaw family's hereditary disease is nonsense! Galen has been perfectly healthy for over 20 years. Don't tell me you just want another excuse to cozy up with your precious senior?" The moment those words leave her lips, the faint thought of having someone bandage my hand disappears. A shadow crosses Galen's face. "Looks like you haven't learned your lesson!" He throws me into the basement and locks me there for three days. By the time I crawl out, my hands are completely ruined. Later, when Galen's hereditary disease finally surfaces, the doctor tries to comfort him. "This disease may be terminal, but there is still a way. Dr. Robinson has just returned from overseas. She's the only one in the world who can perform this surgery. "I hear that she's your wife."

‘Marking you was the worst mistake I have ever made in my life.’ Raven was switched at birth; Alpha Greyhemm's younger twin daughter taken with Raven left in the crib instead. Her life is one none would wish for. Bullied and abused for reasons beyond her control but hope blooms when the alpha king picks her as his chosen mate. According to the constitution the alpha king has to pick a mate within three years after his coronation. Time is up and he picks the girl with nothing and no one to lose. A curse looms over his head and war heavy on his door. He has no time nor the patience to deal with a mate filled with power no one understands. He doesn't care but fate has other plans for the cursed king and the royally screwed luna. SNIPPET: “I don't care who you are but I am the luna of this pack. I am the Alpha's mate and when the alpha is gone, I am in charge. When the alpha is gone, I am the alpha. When the king is gone, I am the damn king. And if you have a problem with that, take it up with the man who marked me. Any attempt or any threat to my life will be taken as treason and I will tear that person’s head apart with my bare hands.” I said, my voice sharp and low yet sure they could all hear me. “You can tell them, you can tell them all what I said and if anyone has anything to say about that, they can find me in the king's office.” … This is book 1 of ‘The Royally screwed’ series. Book 2: The Royally Screwed Queen (completed) Book 3: The Royally Screwed Princess (ongoing)

He walks over to meet me caressing my face and holds my gaze. "I vow to wipe every single Mendova that includes you. I'll make sure I kill you with my bare hands if you dare defy me, so when your day comes, your will to live belongs to me, Hannah Victoria, till death do us part. So, die for me." ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• Hannah Victoria, the only child of Mason Mendova, lives with her relatives after the death of her father. She resides with Ephraim Mendova, her uncle, his wife, Beatrice Mendova, and his three children. Lilly, Christian and James. She is an assassin trained to eliminate the Mendova's opponents. Zachary Montiquez is a self made billionaire. Due to the amount of time he spends on his company, every woman that dates him accuses him of not giving them enough time. They cheat on him and end up blaming Zachary. His parents want him to settle down but he couldn't care less. Hannah wants out of the Mendova's family but she's given a task to pick one man out of Seven candidate to marry. Likely, all the men given to her hates her so she'll have to pick the one she can handle. Fate brings Zachary and Hannah together on Lilly's birthday party. Although, they didn't start off good but Hannah ends up proposing to him since he's a candidate of the men chosen and he accepts. The two bound together by hatred concludes on living a horrid marriage of absolute chaos. But soon enough, their Hatred for one another would create a bond that surpass the thorn of disdain.

Stella's heart soared at the thought that only her son would be returning home for the Christmas holiday. It was a dream come true for her, one she had been looking forward to. Her heart was filled with sheer bliss until the moment she laid eyes on Trevor after five years, standing by the door with her son. The object of her wildest fantasies and long hidden secret. Trevor, in the flesh, with that knowing, seductive smile on his face that makes her thighs throb with desire. Stella scolded herself for even entertaining such sinful and forbidden thoughts, knowing that he was her son's best friend. But her body, her traitorous body, reacted instinctively to his presence, every part of her awakened by his mere gaze."Stop it, Stella!" she scolded herself again. "This is wrong."But she couldn't help it. Trevor had a way of making her feel alive, and the knowledge that he would be spending two weeks in her home only added to her inner turmoil. One look, one smile, one touch from him, and she was already trembling with desire. She knew it was wrong, but it felt so right.God help her, knowing that these two weeks with Trevor would be a tempting disaster waiting to happen. But she couldn't resist the allure of his presence, and she feared that her deepest secret would be unraveled in the process, turning her world upside down.

"Benjamin! I swear, I never cheated on you. I am a pure woman. I never let anyone touch me. Please, believe me." Charlotte was on her knees, begging her husband to believe her Innocence. But he only looked at her with anger and disgust in his eyes for her. "Do you think I am a fool? If you didn't cheat? If you are that innocent? How come you are pregnant? Is that the reason why you didn't let me touch you in four months of our marriage?" Benjamin yelled at her, hatred dipped from his eyes for Charlotte. "I don't know anything! But please, believe me. I never cheated on you." Charlotte cried, trembling with fear. "That's it! I can't live with an unfaithful woman. I am divorcing you. Get your ugly face out of my sight and never show me your face again, you slut." Without listening to her pleas, Benjamin slapped the divorce papers. ---------------- Charlotte was full of life. With so many dreams in her eyes, she was looking forward to having a bright future. Until an arrogant man laid his eyes on her. And everything changed in her life. She was forced to marry the man she hated the most. When she thought nothing worse could happen to her, she found out that she was pregnant. But how? She was still a virgin and she never let any man touch her?

Sara Atkins just wants to start anew. No Noah anymore. No food technology. No worries about love. She just needs a breeze of fresh air. An opportunity presents itself when Sara finds out about Beaumont, one of the biggest money companies in the US, who are searching for another accounting assistant. Miraculously, the Austrian girl is hired the day she gets interviewed, even if a bit too easily in her opinion. They had warned her about new position and her boss, however, she hadn't understood why. Until she met him. Mr Beaumont isn't only a tyrant, a brooding and yelling boss who hates tardiness and self-doubt, but also the most handsome man Sara has ever laid eyes on. Imposing, tall and handsome, the soon 30-year-old has already forced his way into her life. Cold, too witty for his own good, stern and unpredictable, this CEO is causing Sara way more trouble than she had anticipated - Mr. Beaumont makes her working day a living hell, makes her face countless of obstacles and plays with her mind as he pleases. Her cheating husband is enough headache as it is, but now Sara can't stop thinking about her boss who has been strangely nice to her, even though she can't stand him ... or is she just lying to herself?