Mark Twain Library Long Beach

His lips crashed into mine like he couldn’t stop himself. Like he had been holding something back for too long and it had finally cracked. I wanted it just as badly as he did. “I tried to ignore this,” he muttered against my lips, voice rough and ragged. “Tried to erase it.” His mouth returned to mine, hotter, hungrier, tongue sliding into mine, tasting me like I was something he needed to survive. “But you’re everywhere,” he breathed, kissing the corner of my mouth, then down to my throat. “In my head, my routine, in my f*cking sleep haunting every dream.” I couldn’t answer. “You’ve broken me,” he whispered into my skin, like a secret he never meant to say out loud. “And I can’t even bring myself to hate it.” My body trembled at the admission. I affected him as much as he affected me and that thought was heavenly. ********* She was the quiet shadow behind his magnificent empire, efficient, obedient, forgettable.He was the billionaire with the Midas touch of gold and power, untouchable, commanding, and always in control. But when Mark Rexona walks into his office and finds his seemingly shy and diligent secretary, Teresa Smith , with her fingers deep in a fantasy that stares something in him, something that destroys his control. Two worlds collide then collided, hers, filled with quiet but intense yearning and hidden heat and his, was ruled by dominance and untamable desire. What starts as one very stupid mistake behind a supposedly locked door spirals into an exciting and intoxicating game of lust, secrets, and power plays. He wants to own her and her pleasure and she is still haunted by the ghosts of her past.

Six years after marrying Rhiannon Westley, she takes a lover. He's like a puppy—timid and clingy. He flinches at the slightest raised voice, so Rhiannon never loses her temper in front of him. But when he acts up in front of me, Rhiannon snaps. She's furious, and she gives him a harsh scolding. The next day, he sends me a photo of his neck covered in red marks. "Zane, Ms. Westley is so fierce..."

When I was ten, Jonathan Cooper saved me and told me he would protect me for life. When I was 15, I met William Reed. He also told me he would protect me forever. Yet, the year I turned 23, the two men who swore to always keep me safe threw me into the ocean for the sake of their true love.

Three days before my wedding, my younger sister staged a scene—one where I supposedly abandoned her in the mountains. She claimed I locked her in a cabin, left her to be nearly assaulted, and that she barely escaped with her life. Furious, my fiancé dragged me up the mountain and locked me in that same cabin. He said, "Wendy, a woman as vicious as you won't learn her lesson without punishment. I already told you I'd marry you. Why go after Chloe? Since you're so desperate to climb your way up, you can stay here until the wedding day." I begged him, over and over, but my scorched throat could only force out hoarse, grating sounds. Three days later, Mickey O'Brien stood at the altar in his suit, waiting for me. What he got instead was my remains.

Penny and Jacob are twins that were abandoned as babies. They grew up moving from one foster home to the next. With the abuse they endured at the hand of those that took care of them will they ever be able to move past the memories haunt their dreams. Penny is a mute who can communicate using telepathy with her twin. Who are the new foster parents? Why were they so secretive? After nearly three years living with them, they find out who the new foster parents are. And just before they turn sixteen, they find out they are werewolves. How will being a mute human affect her wolf. Will they ever feel loved and have a forever home? Do they find out the truth of their birth and heritage? Keep reading to unveil the twist and turns that are to come.

Three days after my death, Dominic Sharp receives a phone call asking him to identify my body. He has an arm wrapped around a woman's waist as he says indifferently, "I couldn't care less if she's dead. Call me once she's been cremated." My body is sent to the crematorium. After putting the ashes into an urn, an employee calls Dominic again. He clucks his tongue impatiently. "Alright, alright. I'll be there soon."

Three years after Vivian and I married into the Domingo family, our husbands' childhood crush Niama Guido came back to the town. Vivian and I had a whole escape plan. But the night before we bailed, Vivian threw herself off a high-rise. I called her husband, Pedro Domingo. He laughed, his tone nasty and cold. "Reena, my brother asked, since she jumped today, are you going to drown yourself tomorrow?"

Drei Tage vor meiner Markierungszeremonie steckte jemand das Brautmodengeschäft in Brand, während ich drin mein Zeremonienkleid anprobierte. Alpha Marcus ließ den Brandstifter ins Rudelgefängnis werfen und verurteilte ihn zu der härtesten Strafe, die unsere Gesetze zuließen. Ich lag im Krankenhausbett, mein Körper übersät mit Verbrennungen dritten Grades, und wollte gar nicht richtig aufwachen, weil die Realität meiner Entstellung immer mehr auf mich einstürzte. In meinem halbbewussten Zustand hörte ich, wie Marcus mit der Heilhexe des Rudels sprach. „Alpha, wir können sie mit der alten Magie immer noch vollständig heilen. Wenn wir länger warten, wird Sarah diese Narben lebenslang tragen! Du willst doch nur, dass Miss Rachel an der Markierungszeremonie deine Luna wird. Das ist unmenschlich!“ „Sie soll die Narben behalten. Ich werde für sie sorgen, solange sie lebt, aber wenn sie geheilt wird, macht sie bestimmt Ärger bei der Zeremonie.“ „Ich habe Rachel versprochen, dass ihr Kind mit allen Ehren ins Rudel aufgenommen wird. Nur wenn Sarah völlig entstellt ist, wird sie dankbar genug sein, Rachels Kind wie ihr eigenes großzuziehen. Die Narben sind notwendig – so wird sie sich niemals trauen, das Kind schlecht zu behandeln.“ In der dunklen Ecke des Zimmers, wo niemand hinsah, lief mir eine Träne über die verbrannte Wange. Das war also die Wahrheit. Die Markierungszeremonie, von der ich immer geträumt hatte, war nichts als eine Lüge. Das Band, nach dem ich mich so sehr sehnte, sollte zu meinem Todesurteil werden. Wenn es so sein sollte, dann würde ich ihm geben, was er wollte.

Lerisa Jonah, a 24 year old woman was in love with her best friend, Anthony Gregson. She watched him get cheated upon, but for how long would she continue to keep silent and watch him suffer. Finally, Anthony told her that she was like a sister to him, but when she accepted to move on, he changed. Will Lerisa give Anthony a second chance? find out.

Three days after I died, my fiancé got a call to ID the body. He just scoffed. "She's dead, so what? Call me when she's in the ground." The cops, out of options, hit up my backup contact—my childhood friend. He actually laughed. "She's really gone? Not my problem. Burn her or whatever." Then my body hit the internet— And suddenly, both of them looked like ghosts.