Michael Connelly The Crossing

I brought my son, who was around a year old, to visit my parents’ graves, only to run into my childhood friend’s mother. She asked me whether I had returned because I was no longer angry. “Yelena, you’re finally back! You must’ve returned to marry Niel. “I’ll make sure your wedding goes smoothly this time. I won’t allow any random person to ruin it!” Niel Stalner was my childhood friend and ex-fiance. During my engagement party, Cloud Stalner, his foster sister, had barged in while wearing the same gown as I did. She also said that she would kill herself if Niel refused to leave with her. The guests burst into a ruckus, and in the end, I was left alone in the venue. Everyone criticized me, and Niel’s family abandoned me. Eventually, I left the country like a dog with its tail tucked between its legs. I smiled at Neil’s mother, Iris, and pushed the baby stroller forward. “Iris, are you seriously telling me that Niel hasn’t married Cloud yet? Anyway, Michael, say hello.”

“I never loved you. You were never meant to be in my life—you just showed up, uninvited, and ruined everything like a curse I never asked for.” Iyon ang pinakamasakit na katagang narinig ni Zenie sa kanyang asawa na si Aice Bustillos, ang CEO ng Nexora, isang leading car company sa Pilipinas. Isang magandang buhay ang tanging hinangad ni Zenie, kaya’t labis ang kanyang tuwa nang makilala niya si Aice. Ngunit sa loob ng walong taong pagiging mag-asawa nila ay walang ibang hinangad si Zenie kung ‘di ang maging maganda ang kanilang pagsasama, ngunit kabaliktaran iyon sa kanyang inaasam. Simula na maging mag-asawa sila ni Aice ay hindi niya naramdaman ang pagmamahal nito ni kahit isang beses, kung ‘di puro panunumbat dahil sa pagsira sa buhay nito at sa buhay ni Naiana, ang childhood sweetheart ni Aice. Kahit anong gawin niya para tanggapin ng pamilya ni Aice ay hindi siya nito magawang tanggapin, dahil ang gusto rin ng mga ito ay si Naiana para sa kanilang anak. With all the pain Zenie had endured, where will it lead her? Will she rise and reclaim her worth—or will it destroy her? Or will it ignite a fire in her to make every person who mocked her regret ever crossing her?

Fate twists its vines in ways we can't comprehend. For Sylvie, it brought the force of a Tyrant Alpha and the ruthless Salvalor pack. Sylvie learned to live with her handicap. Stay out of business of other wolves and they'll leave her alone. Mostly. War, however, soon reaches her doorstep. Forced to submit to Malphas, one of the last living Lycans, with a bloody streak and reputation for having the shortest fuse, Sylvie's quiet life turns upside down. Run or serve, the choice is easy. Malphas and the wolf within him, Valac, are the two names whispered in fear. Packs are falling, wolves are dying, territories are burning. The sky is red with blood, in his eyes. The thirst for it, unquenchable. He lives for the thrill of the kill, yet struggles to contain his disdain towards wolves. Rebuilding the line of Lycans, and the Kingdom of Silas to its former glory, is most important. Getting revenge is just a convenience. Imagine the surprise when he finds the last village to pillage, before crossing wolven borders, and a hidden gem within it. The Omega runt throws his senses into confused calmness, and for the first time neither he, nor Valac, feel the urge to kill. Refusing to admit, but finding it intriguing, Malphas takes Sylvie as his cup-girl. What threads will fate weave for the two? Will Sylvie survive under Malphas's command? Will he solve the puzzle behind the quiet, little runt or will his anger and cruelty bury her into the ground? Can Sylvie unravel the mystery hidden in Malphas's eyes? Enjoy the slow burning flames and the rusted blood that keeps them going.

"Did you really think you could run from me forever.....after the way I touched you that night?" he growled, his hands pinning her wrists above her head, eyes dark with intensity as they drank her in. "You became mine from the second I touched you....and no amount of time or distance will change that. And you need to understand the consequences of crossing path with me." Her breath hitched. She hated the way her body remembered him—how his voice alone could shatter her defenses. His touch burned through the fabric of time, pulling at memories she’d fought to bury. Every word he spoke sent a shiver down her spine, curling heat in places she’d sworn had long gone numb. But it wasn’t just desire. It was fear. Fear of what he made her feel. Fear of the truth she hadn’t told him. Fear that if she let him in again, she might never find the strength to walk away. As the past and old enemies resurface and buried secrets begin to unravel, Kimberly is forced to confront the past she tried so hard to forget. But with every truth revealed, the danger grows—and so does the temptation to fall again. Caught between betrayal, obsession, and a love that refuses to die, Kimberly must fight to protect the one thing she swore to keep safe. Because some sins don't stay buried. And some passions are impossible to escape.

LEILANI: I owe my life to Phoenix Baxter, leader of the Sandcastles MC. He'd saved me from my abusive father, gave me a life, gave me a home. I'll forever be indebted to him. Which is why when he propositions me to marry him, I don't refuse. But the Sandcastles MC isn't what it once was, and war rears its ugly head. To protect me, Phoenix places a bodyguard in charge of my welfare. It would've been better if it were someone else. But he choose Mason Vampelt. The one man whose presence does unspeakable things to my body. As the war casts it's shadow over the city, my feelings for Mason develops, and soon we're crossing lines, not giving a damn. I love two men: one out of gratitude, and the other out of my body's devotion. MASON: Leilani and I grew up together in the Sandcastles MC. Once inseparable, we drifted apart as we grew older. Reason being because my boss Phoenix wanted her for a wife. She owes her life to him, as I do mine. But I've seen the way she steals glances my way. Seen the way her body reacts to my presence. We both want the same thing. Each other. Phoenix might've saved my life once, but it's Leilani that gives me the will to keep on living. And I'll have her as mine no matter what.

"Kneel boys." I ordered watching the triplets with a condescending gaze. They all glanced at each other and when I thought they would hightail it out of here, they fell to their knees with a collective thud. I leaned back on the chair, crossing my legs in a domineering way as my lips curved into a victorious smirk. "That's right Alphas. Stay right below me, right where you belong." Shannon Hirthe, a lowly omega raised by a single mother has always been the scorn of society wherever she goes. Her miserable life is suddenly turned even worse when her mother announces her marriage and mating to the alpha of the dark moon pack. The marriage isn't your ordinary one as it includes triplet heirs who just happen to be her mate and stepbrothers. They hate her for trying to invade their peaceful life so they make her life a living hell. It cannot get worse? It does. She soon finds out that they have murdered her mother and that too in cold blood. She escapes and then returns stronger, better and with a thirst for revenge. She wants to make them beg. Her plan is going smoothly as she has them at her mercy. Or so she thought. What happens when she begins to find herself enraptured by their fiery gazes? What happens when she begins to crave being sandwiched between them? What if a complication appears in form of a little child? What if the past is not as it seems? Everything is quickly spiraling out of control. Will Shannon be able to take control again?

Born into a world of pain and betrayal, Winnie never knew love—only survival. Abandoned by a father who never cared, tormented by a stepmother who sold her innocence for profit, and forced into a life she never chose, she learned that mercy was a luxury she could never afford. When her only family—her beloved brother—is ripped from her, Winnie is left with nothing but the scars of her past and the fire of revenge burning in her soul. She refuses to be another victim, refuses to be just another forgotten girl. With the help of Carter, a man with his own demons, and Michael, a protector forged in blood, she fights back. But Damien—the monster who ruled the shadows of her life—won’t let go so easily. He built his empire on broken lives, and he won’t fall without a war. As Winnie uncovers the secrets that could destroy him, she must decide: will she run, or will she burn everything down with him? “shattered chain” is a harrowing tale of survival, revenge, and the power of resilience. In a world where monsters wear human faces, Winnie must break free from the past—or be consumed by it. Will she rise, or will the darkness finally claim her?

Lena thought graduate school would be about focus, discipline, and finally proving to herself that she belonged in the world of academics. Books, research, and long nights in the library—that was the plan. Romance had no place in it. Especially not with the one man who should have been completely off-limits. Professor Jace Carrington is everything Lena was warned about. Brilliant. Confident. Dangerous in his quiet control. His lectures command attention, his presence silences a room, and when his eyes find hers across the crowded lecture hall, she feels both seen and undone. He is a man who draws lines with precision—and a man who knows exactly how to make someone want to cross them. What begins as a spark of curiosity turns into stolen glances, late-night office hours, and conversations that blur the line between mentorship and something far more intimate. Jace’s rules are simple: no one can know, and she always has a choice. But rules are easy to write and far harder to follow. The deeper Lena falls, the more she realizes this isn’t just attraction—it’s obsession, it’s surrender, and it’s freedom all at once. Secrets, however, have a way of surfacing, and on a campus where whispers spread like wildfire, forbidden love can burn everything in its path. Lessons After Dark is a steamy, character-driven romance filled with power, temptation, and the dangerous pull of a secret relationship. For readers who crave tension, intimacy, and the thrill of crossing every line you were told not to, this story will keep you turning pages long after the lights go out.

The Eze (king) of the Afugiri community Eze Obinna was suffering from a curse from a wizard who visited his throne to invoke the curse on him. The wizard was paid by Arinze, a rival to the throne to lay the curse on the king (Eze) because it is only when the Eze is dead that he stands a chance to be enthroned. This beloved Eze Obinna of Afugiri can only be saved by a magic bean that can only be found in a forbidden forest. The curse on the Eze will take his life in 30 days if the magic beans are not retrieved from the forest and administered to him. The Eze was already dying; his body is swelling-up as he is losing consciousness daily. If nothing is done, he’ll be truly gone in 30 days. Before getting to this evil forest, you must pass through the river where Mermaids come out at the bank to hunt for humans, Bushbabies that walks at night with mats, The land of Silence if you make noise because of what you see, you’ll be killed, the land of ‘Don’t look up where the monster that flies above you won’t spare you once you look at it, the land of Lust where your utmost desire will be presented to you and if you fall for it, your soul will be whisked away, the coven of witches where witches will gladly suck blood bloodd if you don’t know how to overcome and so many other strange-lands that require a set of virtue to cross. Brave warriors must be summoned from the 11 clans of Afugiri, these warriors must not just be brave physically, and they must also be strong in character because battling the spirits and crossing those strange lands with strange beings requires virtues.

My body matured faster than most girls my age. When I turned 18, my overprotective brother worried I’d be taken advantage of, so he asked his best friend to look after me. But the first time we met, that man's eyes never left my body. After I graduated from college, he kept crossing the line, again and again. By day, he was my boss, and by night, I was his "personal assistant." For four years, we kept our affair a secret. He molded me into exactly what he liked, and the worst part? I let him. One day, his ex-fiancée came back from overseas. He slipped out of my bed in the middle of the night and rushed to the airport to pick her up. Humiliated but unwilling to let go, I followed him there, only to watch him gently stroke another woman’s hair right in front of me. He turned to me and said, "Jennifer Huckabee, four years ago, you were the one who crawled into my bed while I was drunk. The way you're behaving now… it’s really pathetic." The way he looked at her was soft, and the way he mocked me was sharp and deliberate. I suddenly realized he was right. This was meaningless. So I lowered my head, texted my brother to tell him I’d accept the Sinclair family marriage proposal, then looked up at that man and smiled. "Alright then. Goodbye."