Never Call Me By My Name

Warning (R18) SPG Novel... Akala ni Ranzzel Layaoen, ang pinakamalaking dagok sa buhay niya ay ang pagkawasak ng kanyang pamilya at puso. Pero mas matindi pa pala ang kapalit—isang kasal na walang pagmamahal sa isang billionaire director doctor kilalang coldhearted at nakatali sa wheelchair, si Vincentius Vaughn. Para lang mailigtas ang negosyo ng pamilya, pumayag siyang maging asawa niya… kapalit ng isang kontrata. Ngunit nang matagpuan niya si Vincentius sa dalampasigan—walang malay, may amnesia, at higit sa lahat… nakakalakad—unti-unting nagbago ang lahat. Sa simpleng buhay na malayo sa lungsod, natuklasan niya ang isang bagong Vincentius—maalaga, mapagmahal, at tila matagal na siyang minahal noon pa man. Pero paano kung bumalik ang kanilang nakaraan? Paano kung ang totoong banta sa kanilang buhay ay hindi pa tapos? At paano kung ang akala niyang panandaliang kasunduan ay isa palang pag-ibig na itinadhana?

Anim na taon na ang nakalipas mula nong magpakasal si Amelia kay Dante. She devoted herself to her husband and their daughter, Clara. Tiniis niya ang malamig na pakikitungo nito sa kaniya dahil naniniwala siyang mamahalin siya nito pabalik. Pero nagbago ang lahat ng natuklasan niya ang tinatago nitong sekreto. He has a mistress… living abroad. Habang pinapanood ni Amelia ang kanilang anak sa malamig na operating room ay nagdaraos naman ang asawa niya kasama ang ibang babae dahil nanalo ito ng isang international award. Dito niya na-realize na ang lahat ng kanyang sakripisyo at pagmamahal ay para lamang sa wala. Kaya naman nagdesisyon siyang pirmahan ang divorce paper. Hinawakan niya ang kamay ng anak at iniwan si Dante. Lumipas ang ilang taon at nagbago ang takbo ng kaniyang buhay. She’s not just a housewife anymore, she became a well-known personality in medicine. Ang kanyang mga research ay nai-publish sa mga prestihiyosong journals, at marami siyang natamong international awards. Nagniningning siya sa publiko at sa wakas ay binigyan niya ang sarili ng pagkakataong maging masaya at malaya. And just when she thought she had everything under control… biglang dumating si Dante. Lumuhod ito sa harapan niya at hinawakan ang kaniyang kamay. “Amelia… Please don’t leave me.” This time, it was his turn to beg.

On our sixth wedding anniversary, my cheeks burn as I dodge my husband, Ethan Grant, leaning in for a hungry kiss. I push him toward the nightstand for a rubber. What he doesn't know is that I've tucked a surprise in there, a positive pregnancy test. I can already see it, the way his whole face will light up the second he finds it. But the moment his hand goes for the drawer, his phone goes off. His best friend, Henry Miller, comes on the line in Danish. "Mr. Grant, how was last night? That new love couch our company rolled out is treating you okay?" Ethan lets out a low laugh and answers in Danish, "The massage feature's great. Saves me from having to rub Sandy's back myself." He still has me pulled tight against him, but his eyes look straight through me, like he's seeing someone else. "This stays between us. If my wife ever finds out I slept with her sister, I'm done." It feels like someone just put a knife through my chest. What they don't know is that I minored in Danish in college, so I catch every single word. I force myself to stay calm, but the arms I have looped around Ethan's neck won't stop shaking. At that moment, I stop hesitating and decide I'll take the offer from that international research project. Three days from now, I'll be gone from Ethan's world for good.

"I was supposed to Stay Gone." ...He married me. He gave me a diamond ring with sweet words… and a lie. I thought it was love. But I was just holding her place. The woman whose lies he believed. Now she’s awake. And I don’t know who I am to him anymore. A wife? A stranger? Or just a body keeping what belongs to her  safe? They broke me. But this time, I’m not the same woman they left behind.

Umalis si Elizabeth sa marangyang buhay sa Maynila upang takasan ang isang sapilitang kasunduan—ang pag-date kay Greg, anak ng pinakamayamang negosyante sa lungsod. Sa pagtakbo palayo, hindi inaasahang masisira ang kanyang kotse sa gitna ng isang liblib na lugar. Isang misteryosong lalaki ang dumaan at tumulong sa kanya. Tall, dark, and handsome—isang "prince charming" sa tunay na buhay. Pero hindi niya nakuha ang pangalan nito. Pagdating sa probinsya, ibinahagi niya ang kwento sa kanyang kaibigang si Monique, na agad nilang tinawag ang lalaki bilang "Prince Charming." Ngunit gumuho ang mundo ni Elizabeth nang mapagtanto niyang ang lalaking ito… ay walang iba kundi si Benedict—ang ama ng kanyang kaibigan. Isang single dad na hindi rin inakalang ang babaeng tinulungan niya sa kalsada ay ang magiging dahilan ng muling pagtibok ng kanyang puso. Handa ba si Elizabeth na mahalin ang lalaking hindi niya dapat ibigin? At kaya ba niyang ipaglaban ang damdaming maaaring sirain ang pagkakaibigan nila ni Monique?

He didn’t choose her then. He has to fight for her now. *** I married Alex Marwood because our families said it was right. He never chose me. Not once. One lie from my stepsister ruined everything. I signed the divorce papers with a secret in my belly. I left, learned how to breathe again, and built a quiet life with two little cute humans who call me “Mom.” Years later, fate walks through the lobby of my hotel in a tailored suit and the same storm-blue eyes my son wears. Alex stops. Looks at my twins. Looks at me. “I’m sorry,” he says. But where do I start? With the nights I cried alone? With the accident nobody will talk about? With the powerful people who would rather bury the truth than let me be happy? Alex wants a second chance. I want peace. But when old enemies start circling and “accidents” stop being accidents, I realize love isn’t just flowers and apologies. If he wants us back, he’ll have to fight for us.

It is the third year of my marriage when the video of my bodyguard, Julian Sutherland, holding an umbrella over me in a downpour goes viral. Overnight, the internet becomes obsessed with the "Icy Protector and his Forbidden Heiress." Netizens are relentless; they dig through the archives until they unearth a ten-year-old clip. In the video, a girl was holding a pair of high-heeled shoes while sprinting through the Folander airport. My friend teased, "No way, Ms. Serina Brown. Are you really flying back home to confess to that poor man? What could you possibly see in him?" The camera shakes, capturing my youthful face. I was just a reckless 20-year-old. "I love Julian. I love everything about him." That night, after seeing the video, Julian loses his composure and bursts into my room. "I didn't know you loved me back then. I thought… I thought… God, it was never supposed to end like this." I pull my coat around me and stand rooted on the spot, remaining silent. Suddenly, a mocking laugh echoes from behind me. Someone places their hand firmly on my waist and says, "Are you trying to reminisce about your love with my wife right in front of me? Do I look dead to you?"

If I can't have you... no one else will. Elsa never saw Derek as anything more than her best friend, who was loyal, harmless, and always there. But it took another woman to love him, to see the hunger in his eyes, the madness in his heart... and now Elsa finally sees him too. But it's too late. Derek belongs to someone else now. Or at least, he tries to... Now, Elsa will stop at nothing to make him hers. She'll destroy anyone who stands in her way, even the woman he loves. What she doesn't know is that Derek is far more dangerous than she ever imagined. And the obsession he has buried for years is no longer under control. If anyone tries to take Elsa from him... he won't just hurt them. He'll ruin them.

My husband has azoospermia. After trying all the options available, I finally conceived. However, my husband is worried my child will hurt his first love's feelings—she had a miscarriage. He tricks me into going for a prenatal checkup. In truth, he conspires with a doctor to induce labor when I'm only five months along. He says, "You must be the one with the problem. Why else is it so hard for us to have children? The baby won't be healthy even if it's born! We can have more children when you're healthier. Julie has just had a miscarriage; I don't want to aggravate her." He doesn't know he has azoospermia. I only managed to conceive this child after trying out IVF countless times and taking countless folk remedies. He will never have a child of his own in this lifetime, and I discover his true colors. I ask for a divorce, and that's when he loses his mind.

It was not until after I married Bennett that I found out he had a clingy little childhood friend who loved to play the victim. On the very first day of our marriage, at dinner, I simply asked Bennett to pass me a bite of food. She immediately exploded. "Holly, you're disgusting! Bennett already used those utensils, and you seriously asked him to serve you food? What, don't you have hands?" I froze, completely blindsided. Before I could even react, Bennett put down his spoon and went straight to her, wrapping her in his arms like she was the one who had been wronged. Then he turned to me and said I should just get my own food from now on. However, honestly, wasn't it normal for a husband to serve his wife a bite? What was so outrageous about that? I barely got a word out before Bennett shut me down in a low, firm voice. "That's final. If Rosie doesn't like it, then we're not doing it. End of discussion."