Mark Twain Library Long Beach Novels & Stories

On Mating Day, Elara Vale finds her boyfriend, Liam Ashcroft, cheating on her with her mean half-sister, Seraphina Vale. This happens on the same day he was supposed to choose Elara as his mate. It hurts even more when Liam says Seraphina is his true mate, giving them the right to be together. Heartbroken, Elara runs into the forbidden forest. There, she meets a dangerous stranger. His scent triggers a mating heat Elara was never meant to feel. Thinking he is a rogue, she gives in to one night with him and runs away before morning, never seeing his face. When Elara gets home Elara is really scared to find out that someone has marked Elara. Her father, Rowan Vale tells her that he will kill her if she does not find a man who's willing to marry a woman like Elara who has a mark. Elara thinks that no man wants to be, with her. Then something surprising happens. The man that everyone is afraid of, Alpha Kael Nightborne of Nightfall Pack decides that he wants to marry Elara. Alpha Kael Nightborne chooses Elara to be his bride. There is something about this person that feels really familiar in a kind of way. This person seems to be someone I have met before. I just cannot quite put my finger on who he is.. Something, about him feels dangerously familiar.

Exiled and branded barren, Jean is forced into a loveless marriage with an Alpha who wants her womb, not her heart. One forbidden night with the Alpha King changes everything. One bond ignites a war. And the child growing inside her becomes the prize two Alphas are willing to destroy kingdoms for. Now, caught between a husband who claims her body and a king who claims her bloodline, Jean must choose between submission and defiance… and this time, she refuses to be claimed at all.

Do you ever wish a secret billionaire would sweep you away to a tropical island? Do you ever wish that you could be like Cinderella and find your happily ever after with the prince? From New York Times bestselling author Krista Lakes, comes a sweet but spicy Billionaire Romance Series that will have you believing in happily ever after! Each story in this series is a stand-alone one. But with all the stories happen in one world, characters will reappear in other stories. ****** The First Set: Saltwater Kisses– An accidental marriage between Jack and Emma. Rainwater Kisses– Falling in love, and finding how they fit together with Owen and Kaylee. Freshwater Kisses– Finding love in childhood friends with Robbie and Sam. BONUS: Kisses From Jack: The first half of Saltwater Kisses, but from Jack's perspective! Timeless Love Stories: Champagne Kisses– A story of long lost love and second chances with Dean and Rachel. The Second Set: Sandcastle Kisses– Finding love in all the wrong places with Noah and Izzy Hurricane Kisses– Surviving the storm together with Logan and Olivia Barefoot Kisses– A Cinderella story with Aiden and Lena The Third Set: Sunrise Kisses– Ava and Bastian discovering true beauty Waterfall Kisses– Leo finally succumbing to Charlotte's charms Island Kisses: Gabe finally meets his match in Harper!

Maxine was never meant to survive the night she was born. Raised on secrets and half-truths, she becomes the new Luna unaware that her fate is tied to an ancient prophecy, a deadly betrayal, and a mate destined to fear her. Draven, the powerful High Alpha, has long lived under a curse: he will mate with the bloodline responsible for his family’s downfall. So when Maxine is revealed as his destined mate, he sees not only desire, but danger. As hidden powers awaken and long-buried truths unravel, Maxine and Draven are drawn into a bond that could either save their kingdom or destroy it. In a world built on lies, falling in love may be the deadliest betrayal of all.

When the moon is your rival, what's next? Shawn Monteal is everything the packs fear. A billionaire, Alpha, and a wolf who long ago abandoned mercy. He believes fate is a lie and love, a weakness. When a human woman witnesses his shift, he makes a ruthless choice, to turn her, control the damage, erase the mistake. Eva Roderigo survives the transformation when she shouldn’t. Worse of all, her wolf answers Shawn's. The bond between them is wrong. Dangerous. And when ancient laws demand Eva choose another mate for balance and peace, she does. Shawn honors her choice. The world does not. As rival Alphas close in and the Moon Goddess tightens her grip, Eva learns the truth. Shawn was never unstable, he was restrained. And loving him doesn’t make him better. It makes him unstoppable. When Eva breaks the Rite itself, defying gods, fate, and law, Shawn kneels once, and only once. Not to destiny. To her. A dark paranormal romance featuring a morally grey Alpha, a heroine who doesn’t tame the monster, and a bond chosen in blood and defiance.

For eight years, I was James Carter's secretary and secret lover. Eight years of giving him my heart completely. I truly believed he loved me back - he was always tender and attentive when we were intimate, seemingly caring about my every need and desire. But then I overheard him telling others, "She's nothing but a stand-in, just someone to satisfy my physical needs when I'm bored. Did you really think I would marry her?" In that moment, I finally found the strength to let go and stop loving him. I handed in my resignation and walked away from it all. Yet after my whirlwind marriage to someone else, why did he suddenly start searching for me desperately across the city? Now he's here with tears in his eyes, claiming I'm the one he truly loves? Wasn't I just his convenient replacement all along?

She gave them everything—her love, her trust, her time. But in the end, it wasn’t enough. After eight years of marriage and five years of motherhood, Maya’s world shattered. Her son cried out for another woman to be his mother, and her husband brushed it off like it meant nothing. But Maya knew—children don’t lie. So she made the hardest decision of her life: she let them go. Everyone thought she’d come crawling back, broken and regretful. But instead of falling apart, Maya rose stronger than ever. She filed for divorce without looking back and poured her heart into rebuilding her life. Now, months later, when her ex shows up with their son, asking her to come home, Maya is no longer the woman who once begged for love. She’s a woman with her own name, her own strength, and a future that doesn’t include them. It's okay... And makes sense. But, they wants to be part of that her world

They say the happiest moment in a Lycan's life is meeting their fated mate. But what if you reject your fated mate to be with your chosen one, only to realize you made a mistake as your chosen mate betrays you? That's the dilemma Elara found herself in. After discovering she was pregnant with the child of her boyfriend and chosen mate, Elijah Reed, he rejected her and chose her step-sister, Fiona Arundel, instead. Little did Elara know, this was all a plot orchestrated by her step-sister and step-mother. They wanted to secure Elijah, the Alpha of their Forestheart pack. Since her mother's death and her father's absence, Elara had been slowly poisoned by her stepmother, leading to a miscarriage and her impending end. In her final breath, she uncovered the truth about her child's death and her stepmom's entire plan. "Even in your last breath, Elara, you remain naive. Too kind, just like your mother. That's why you'll die now without a fight." Fernanda smiled at her, covering Elara's face with a pillow. Helpless and unable to move her body, Elara had no chance. In her last breath, she vowed to seek revenge, to make those who tormented and belittled her pay. And as she opened her eyes, she found herself back in the past, a year before her death. There, she reencounters her rejected fated mate, Damian Raven Ashford, the man she would use to achieve her revenge. "Mark me and I will give you my body and my whole life. In exchange, help me seek revenge against those who have oppressed me." Elara saw the mischievous smile on Damian's lips. "If that's the case, start by making me happy using your body." They marked their alliance. a bond that would draw them closer to each other.

When her brother’s life is buried under a crushing gambling debt, Alina Dusk agrees to marry Dorian Vale—the ruthless black-market king feared across the underworld. The bargain is simple: her brother’s freedom in exchange for her hand. But from the moment their vows are spoken, Dorian reveals a terrifying truth—he has been watching her for years, and now she is his to cage forever. What begins as a marriage of convenience spirals into a dangerous game of obsession, secrets, and betrayal. Alina tries to run, only to discover that Dorian knows her darkest secret: the night she killed a man. Caught in his grip, she becomes both his queen and his prisoner, forced to navigate a world of blood and power where nothing is what it seems. When Alina learns her brother’s debt—and even his betrayal—were part of Dorian’s design, her world shatters. Yet, amid the manipulation, she finds herself carrying his child. As enemies close in, a spy infiltrates her trust, and a tragic miscarriage ignites a mafia war. Torn between love and hatred, freedom and chains, Alina must decide: is Dorian Vale truly her monster—or the only man who can keep her alive

“What if I reject you right here, right now, and end this before it even begins?” His eyes darkened considerably at my words as he stepped forward. "Do you for a second think a flimsy thing such as your rejection will stop me from having what was deemed mine by the goddess herself? I will never accept your rejection, Adelaide Silverstone. I’m not above chaining you to my bed if need be. And if you still plan on going ahead with your rejection, then your cousin's head will roll before you utter the words." *** Adelaide Silverstone is a woman on a mission: kill the man who destroyed her life. When her mate turns out to be that very man, rejection is no escape, but revenge has never been straightforward, especially when secrets and half-truths threaten to shatter everything she thought she knew. Will she choose revenge… or the desire that burns hotter than her hatred?