Long Way Down Rules の小説・ストーリー

On the morning of her wedding to Alpha Caelum Sterling, in front of six hundred guests, Ariadne "Ari" Voss is publicly rejected. Her cousin Isolde is named Luna in her place. Ari does not beg. She does not weep. She does not look back. What no one knows is that she walks out of the ceremony carrying the Sterling Pack's inner sanctum ledger the financial record book she stole during the rejection itself. Five years later, Ari returns to the Northern packs to bury her father. She returns as the owner of the largest werewolf-tech investment firm in the Free Cities. As the controlling shareholder of six Northern pack businesses, including the Sterling Pack's main revenue source. As the woman Alpha Caelum Sterling rejected on the floor of his own ballroom and now owes nine hundred million Free Cities credits. Caelum's marriage to Isolde has collapsed. The Sterling Pack is financially failing. And the morning Ari's plane lands in the Northern Hollow, Caelum learns that his pack's largest creditor is the rejected first mate he threw away. He wants her back. But Ari did not survive five years in the Free Cities to come home for a second chance with the man who destroyed her. She came home to take everything he loves and burn it to the ground. And there is one thing Caelum does not yet know one mark hidden beneath the collar of Ari's silk blouse, one bond she has been carrying in secret for three years. She belongs to the Lycan King. And the Lycan King is on his way to the Northern Hollow.

*It was never supposed to be love… yet my heart chose you anyway.* Viren Rai doesn’t give his heart away. A powerful CEO and the only heir to Rai Bahadur’s empire, he is known for his cold decisions and untouchable charm. Love is a distraction he cannot afford—and a risk he refuses to take. Priya Sharma has never had the privilege of choice. Burdened by her father’s failing health and her family’s endless financial struggles, she is fighting a battle she cannot win alone. Strong yet vulnerable, she hides her pain behind quiet determination. Until Viren steps in with an offer that changes everything. **A contract marriage. One year. No emotions. No strings attached.** In return, he will take care of her problems. It was supposed to be simple. But somewhere between shared silences, unspoken care, and stolen glances, something shifts. The distance between them begins to fade… and hearts that were meant to stay guarded start to feel. He begins to protect her. She begins to trust him. And neither of them realizes when the contract turns into something real. But every deal has an ending. As their one year comes to a close, reality forces them apart. Pride, fear, and unspoken love stand between them. When the truth finally surfaces— will they walk away from each other… or admit what they’ve been denying all along? Because sometimes, even in a contract… **a heart doesn’t follow the rules.**

"I, Conrad Alaric, Alpha of the Shadow pack, break every bond that I share with you, and on this day reject you as my mate." Hearing his words caused my eyes to shut instantly, with the whimpering that went inside of me. My wolf was sad. But , it was that day I decided to take the change, the day I put an end to begging for his love. "And what makes you think that I will come back to you so easily?" "Because... Because I think I'm deeply in love with you now, Katherine."

Cecilia Jones kept a forgiveness notebook. Six months ago, on Cecilia's birthday, Jeff Lawrence abandoned her to meet Yvonne Smith. It was the 93rd time she’d forgiven him. Three months prior, when Yvonne mentioned she was allergic to cat dander, Jeff gave away the cat Cecilia had raised for years. Cecilia forgave him for the 94th time. One month ago, Jeff got drunk and woke up in the same bed as Yvonne. He insisted that nothing had happened and accused Cecilia of having a dirty mind. Cecilia forgave him for the 95th time.

Daisy Truman's childhood crush, Corey Sager, threatened to jump off a building on our wedding day. She ignored him and went ahead with our wedding. Daisy started to panic when he leaped off the building. From then onward, Daisy moved into a church and became a pious person everyone knew of. She aborted our baby and made me kneel in confession to repent for this so-called sin. I tried to escape, but she ordered my legs to be broken and even used my family to threaten me. I lived a life of misery and torture. When I opened my eyes again, I had returned to my wedding day. This time, I would push her into Corey's arms. As for me, it was my turn to become the love that she lost.

“Part your legs for me, Beth. Yes, like that. All nice and slow like a good girl.” * * * When Beth’s boyfriend of five years cheats on her, she decides she’s done being a good girl. Donned in her best party dress, she stops at a fancy club with the intention of partying and drowning herself in the best liquor they have to offer. Her plans seem to be going well until someone notices the beauty on the dance floor. A hot, handsome stranger with the most flirtatious smile she has ever seen. The two get talking, and he makes the most outlandish offer: one night in his bed. What better way to forget a cheating ex other than to let a stranger flush his memories out of her system? So, she says yes to the best night of her life. But what happens when this hot stranger demands more than a night stand with her? What will she do when another handsome man approaches her with the craziest story about werewolves?

My husband was on a business trip when his plane crashed, leaving a final message. He said he didn’t want to hold me back and wanted me to terminate the pregnancy and start over. I couldn’t stop crying. That’s when I heard my son’s voice from inside me. “Mom, stop crying. Dad isn’t dead at all. “He’s just scum. Behind your back, he’s running off with his true love. They’ve eloped abroad for their honeymoon. “I know where his little stash is. While he’s not back yet, let’s grab the money and disappear. We’re set for life!”

When I was born, the nurse handed me over to my parents, and the smiles on their faces instantly vanished. Hovering over their son's smooth head was a line of numbers that no one else could see. 6570 days. It was exactly 18 years. Not a day more, not a day less. The nurse thought they were just nervous first-time parents, but my parents knew the truth. That number was my lifespan. While everyone else in the delivery room was celebrating a new life, my parents were staring at my death. For the next 18 years, I was the most precious person in the family. No matter how poor we were, the eggs were always mine, the new clothes were always mine, and the meat was always mine. My younger sister could only look on enviously. My parents often told her, "Let your brother have it. He doesn't have much time left." I was well-behaved from a young age, never causing trouble, quietly waiting to die. On my 18th birthday, I blew out the candles and said a sincere goodbye to the world. The next day, my parents and sister, dressed in black clothes, walked into my room with swollen eyes. I rubbed my eyes, smiled at them, and said, "Good morning." The air froze. The sadness on their faces slowly turned into astonishment, then coldness.

"Five years and that's all you have to say to me?" he asked. Standing so close she could taste his breath. She wanted to move away from him. But she didn't want him to know just how much he affected her. So she stood right there. She wasn't going to let him intimidate her. "Well... Is there anything else you want me to say?" she asked The side of his mouth moved upwards. He was smiling? Why the hell was he smiling like that? She thought. She didn't remember saying anything funny. "You left... Kitty" he said. "I asked you to stay... Begged you to stay... And you left anyways.. With him. And now you come back... Acting like everything is okay between us...?" There was something about him... She thought. Something about the way he called her 'Kitty' that made her heart flip. "You shouldn't have gone with him". He said. "Oh really? Why not? Because you didn't want me to?" she asked. She was starting to get angry. "Yeah that's right" he replied. "And because of what you felt for me -what we felt for each other. When I came near you, you felt an excitement so intense that you ceased to breathe --like you are feeling right now. You wanted me just as much as I wanted you. And that should have been enough to make you stay" -------------------- Katherine Kavell has been in love with Jensen Packard ever since she was a teenager... And all she had ever wanted was for him to see her as more than his best friend's sister.Only he never did. So she decided to leave. But when she returns five years later with her son, Jensen Packard knows that he can't let her go for the second time.

After Ryan Spencer cheated on me again with his secretary, I completely lost it. When my mind started to spiral, I grabbed the fruit knife off the table. I just wanted it to end. “Why are you hurting yourself again? He doesn’t love you anymore?” I looked up. The sixteen-year-old Ryan was walking toward me, heartbreak written all over his face. His voice was gentle. “Tell me who he is. I’ll make him pay.” I stared into the bright, earnest eyes of the boy standing in front of me. I didn’t say a word. I simply lifted my hand and pointed at his face. Later, Ryan was the one who had me admitted to a psychiatric hospital. When the sedative began to wear off, the teenage boy appeared again, sitting by my bed. He stared at the man outside who looked just like him. The light in his eyes faded little by little. Then he spoke, his voice strained. “I don’t care who he is. I’ll kill him.” The sixteen-year-old Ryan never lied to me. When he said something, he meant it.