Mutiara Hitam Kho Ping Hoo

When Avery moves to a new town after a family tragedy, the only person she trusts is Dante, the stepbrother who became her safe place. Their bond is built on late-night secrets and the unspoken promise that they will always choose each other. Then Grayson Hayes, the town’s golden boy, enters her world. What begins as a harmless dare—make Grayson fall in love and prove she can walk away—quickly becomes something real. As Avery starts to see a future beyond the life Dante built around her, the fragile balance between them begins to crack. When the truth behind the game explodes in front of the entire school, friendships shatter, loyalties are tested, and Avery is forced to decide who she truly wants to be. Because sometimes the hardest choice isn’t who loves you. It’s the person you choose back.

I secretly invite my in-laws over for the New Year, hoping to surprise my husband, Huxley Carlson. But the moment my father-in-law steps through the door, Huxley's secretary shoves him out. He slams into the shoe cabinet, throwing out his back. She sneers. "Who do you beggars think you are, strolling into Mr. Carlson's villa like this? You're this broke and still have the nerve to call yourself his father-in-law?" I immediately call for the housekeeper to help him, but the secretary blocks her. She even shoves my mother-in-law. "You really think you're the lady of the house?" she snaps. "Mr. Carlson hired the housekeeper to serve him, not to waste time on you or your useless parents." My mother-in-law is so enraged that she suffers a heart attack on the spot. I call Huxley in a panic, begging him to come to the hospital. But he sounds utterly unmoved. His voice is cold and mocking as he says, "Jen told me what happened. The nerve of you, bringing your parents to my house! Now you want me to rush to the hospital because your mom's pretending to be sick? "Tell them to get out! If she dies, she dies. Hell, maybe it's a blessing—just in time for the New Year!"

I've crushed on Ethan McKay since the moment I laid eyes on him. After a year and a half of going to the same college, he still has no clue I exist. Aside from my best friend, I'm practically invisible since I've spent the last seven years of my life purposefully living in the shadows, just waiting for my life to begin. Not that it matters. He's got his own life to live anyway. Parties to attend. Girls to see. And a father to impress so he can regain his trust, and earn back his rightful place in the family business. So, how is it that one night, one party, changes everything for the both of us?

During the year when my relationship with my Alpha father was at its worst, he gave me the newly elected Beta of the Sunfang Pack to make me happy. After spending the night with him, I fell for him. Three months later, I mended things with my father. Four months later, I was pregnant. From then on, I became the most distinguished expecting she-wolf in the pack. Whenever it was time for a checkup, the Alpha and Beta of the pack would come with me. But when I was six months pregnant, neither of them was around. “I have something urgent to take care of in the pack.” My father patted my head. Scott stroked my pregnant belly. “I have to help too. I’ll prepare gifts for you and our pup.” I smiled as I sent them off, only to receive a video from an unknown number. My father was dressed as a groom, and beside him stood Jelena, the mistress who drove my mother to her death. Katie, their illegitimate daughter, was also pregnant. She wore a wedding gown as she leaned against Scott and smiled happily. “This is a doubly joyous occasion!” Someone in the video raised their glass. “Congratulations to our Alpha for bringing his first love back, and congratulations to the Beta for holding his bonding ceremony!” At the end of the video, my father said airily, “Your mate certificate with Claire is fake. Wouldn’t that make Claire’s pup illegitimate?” Scott chuckled and said, “Claire has had everything since she was born, but Katie has been an illegitimate child for most of her life. I can’t let her pup grow up bearing that shame as well.” At that moment, my heart shattered into pieces. I called my brother, who had become the Lycan Chairman, and cried as I said, “Hoills, I want to leave with you.”

At 4:30 in the morning, my husband answered a call from his ex-girlfriend and accidentally put it on speaker. "Jason, my daughter, Alison, has a fever—over 104. I can't get a ride..." The sudden sound of sobbing jolted me awake. Jason hurriedly turned off the speaker and lowered his voice. "Send me your location. I'll come right away." It seemed he had forgotten that today was my first prenatal checkup.

On the night of the SAT exam, my childhood sweetheart, Walter Sterling, eagerly coaxed me into sleeping with him. At the height of passion, his wild and unrestrained motions hurt me. Later, thanks to a ten-points difference on the exam score, we ended up in a four-year-long-distance relationship. Walter spent all his allowance on flight tickets to see me. Whenever we got together, he would physically live out the words, “absence made the heart grow fonder.” On his birthday, I bought a flight ticket and carried a cake to surprise him. But when I entered his rental apartment, I saw him and a strange girl intensely doing the deed. The cake in my hand fell to the floor with a thud. Then, I ran out crying. Walter’s expression changed dramatically. He chased after me like a madman. To keep me, he deleted all her contact information in front of me and even dropped out of school. My heart softened, and I forgave him. After we got married, he treated me even better than before. The improvement was so drastic that I was constantly on cloud nine. But when I became pregnant, I once again saw the girl he had completely cut ties with. She was his new secretary.

All my life, I have been trapped in the shadow of my sister, Selene. She was the Silver Moon Pack's Daughter of Moonlight, blessed by the Moon Goddess, the prize every Alpha coveted. What she didn't know was that this time, I had been blessed as well. I was reborn on the night of my mating ceremony. Just as in my past life, she smiled that harmless smile, insisting on giving me the first choice of a mate, maintaining her perfect facade of a generous and doting sister in front of everyone. This time, however, I wouldn't give her the chance. In my last life, I genuinely believed she had my best interests at heart. I foolishly gave her the first choice and chose Alpha Damien of the Black Forest Pack, a man who suffered from Moon Sickness, sending him into frequent, uncontrollable rages. I gave up my birthright within the pack and became the balm for his violent wolf, staying by his side every moment like a full-time caretaker, even though he never offered me a single ounce of a mate's affection. It was not until a Rogue wolf attacked during the celebration for Selene's heir that he attempted to use dark magic to steal her unborn pup's spirit. In that instant, the Alpha who everyone believed had been lost to madness for years was suddenly lucid. He lunged forward to protect Selene, but in his haste, he accidentally pulled me into the path of the dark magic. The spell struck me instead, crippling my wolf spirit. Only then did I finally understand. He had never truly suffered from Moon Sickness. His pack had never seen him as a discarded monster. He had feigned madness only because he knew he could never have Selene's love and refused to bond with anyone but her. In my final moments, he apologized to me. "Forgive me, Elara." "I could never let anything happen to Selene. I'll repay you in my next life." When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the night our father ordered us to choose our destined mates. This time, they were the ones begging for my love.

Caught in the web of danger and desire, Detective Chloe Madden finds herself ensnared in the intricate games of the notorious Mob Kingpin, Carter Gray. Despite her best efforts to remain focused on her duty to uphold the law, Chloe can't deny the magnetic pull she feels toward the enigmatic and dangerously charming criminal. As Chloe delves deeper into her investigation, she soon realizes that Carter Gray is playing her like a pawn in his deadly game. With every encounter, he taunts her with his seductive charm, knowing full well the effect he has on her. Despite her instincts warning her to stay away, Chloe finds herself drawn to Carter like a moth to a flame, unable to resist his intoxicating allure.

“Do you know why people call me the devil? It’s because I live up to that name,” he chuckled and tightened his hand around my neck, making my pulse race. “I've shed a lot of blood, and killing someone as insignificant as you… It means nothing." “Then why haven’t you?” I dared to ask. I shouldn't test his patience, but the thrill of danger was so… Tempting. “You fascinate me. It would be a shame to end someone as amusing as you too soon.” His lips almost brushed against mine, stealing my breathe. "One month. Escape with Clara within one month, and it would seem like you never met me." “And if I fail?” “I’ll kill you. ~~~ When Gwendolyn Harper and her best friend are kidnapped by Lorenzo Raimondo, the ruthless, cunning mafia lord of Sinclair City, she's faces an impossible choice: save herself and abandon her best friend or risk everything to save them both. She chooses defiance, striking a dangerous deal for their freedom. But Gwen may have underestimated how much power Lorenzo had and the seductive, dangerous charm that she couldn't resist. Will she fight for a freedom that seems nearly impossible, or will she succumb to the temptation of the man who holds her life?

Hope is running away from her cheating husband, a mafia lord whose family doesn't believe in divorce. There is either death or last breath together till the end. But what will happen when she comes face to face with her childhood lover who turns out to be the rival of her husband in the mafia world, and her new lover, who works as a Private Investigator and is adamant on keeping Hope to himself, and then... more than her past?