Never Settle For Less

Amara Lewis never believed marriage should be a business transaction—until desperation forced her into one. To save her mother’s life, Amara signs a one-year marriage contract with billionaire CEO Adrian Blackwood, a man who sees love as nothing more than a weakness. To him, marriage is a tool—nothing more than a means to secure his empire and silence his board of directors. Their agreement is simple: no love, no expectations, no emotions. But living under the same roof blurs the lines neither of them intended to cross. Behind Adrian’s cold exterior hides a man haunted by betrayal, while Amara’s quiet strength begins to crack the walls he built around his heart. When secrets from the past resurface and feelings grow impossible to deny, Amara must decide whether love born from a contract can ever be real—or if she was never meant to be more than the bride he never wanted.

When my cousin died, my aunt forced me to marry her husband in order to take care of the child she left behind. She said that it was a way to pay her back for raising me after the death of my mom. For eight years of being in the marriage, I was bullied by my cousin's son, accusing me killing his mom in order to take over her home. And my husband? He never defended me. To them, I was nothing more than a mere house help. And the day I had looked forward finally came, when I could walk away from the marriage. But fate had other plans—I died in pain that very day. Now, with a second chance at life, I made one thing clear: I was done with that miserable family, for good.

Chelsea married Russell for the sake of her dying mother. She needed money to pay the expensive medical bills. Russell never loved Chelsea and was only using her for his revenge on his family. However, he failed to notice that Chelsea was truly in love with him. Russell was surrounded by pretty ladies and never cared how Chelsea felt about it. Until one day, Chelsea asked for a divorce, because she felt depleted from this hopeless marriage. Russell then realized that he couldn't live without her and begged her to stay. But she said, "See you never, Mr. Murrillo."

When your mate doesn't want you and you struggle to adapt. Running away becomes a lifeline till your alpha makes you be together. Will you get him or die from heartbreak.

Antonia Finn doesn't wish for much, just for one thing, her Husband's love. Yet it seems that love will never be hers no matter how much she tries. Humiliated and betrayed by the man she has loved for three years; Antonia makes a decision. She's going to divorce him and go start her life elsewhere. But too many things are left in the shadows unsolved, and Antonia is right in the middle of all of it. What really is her true identity? Is she just destined to be the divorced wife of a billionaire or is she more than that? How will the world react when she becomes the woman she's always dreamt she'd be? And Malachi, who won't let her go yet wants her back for all the wrong reasons, will he ever change and become a man she can love, or will she have to take the very enticing option that's presented itself to her?

I’d just bonded with my mate, Alpha Damien, when he brought home an orphan to repay a “life debt.” From that day on, I came second to the girl, Lila. Always. Lila framed me, claiming I forced her to lose control of her wolf. For that, Damien locked me in the silver cells for three days and three nights. "The silver will teach you how to be a tolerant Luna!" Silver poisoning is torture. My wolf withered. I begged for mercy, drowning in agony. Lila just snuggled up to him, her voice dripping with fake concern. "Serena is your mate, after all. When she's in pain, you're in pain. It hurts me to see you suffer." Later, to make Lila happy, Damien publicly gave my seat on the Pack Council to her—a girl who knew nothing. This time, I said nothing. I just severed our mate bond. Days later, while he was writhing in the agony of our broken bond, he finally heard the news. I had joined the royal’s elite unit, The Talons. And I was never coming back. He shattered.

Our blood-oath ceremony was on the horizon. But my fated mate, Darius, told me he had to forge a blood bond with another woman. Livia. He claimed her life force was unraveling. That without his blood, she would fade to nothing. I fought him. But the next day, he moved Livia directly into the Prince's Chambers in the Coven’s castle. That was the suite reserved for the future Prince’s mate. My suite. He tried to soothe me, sinking to his knees, his crimson eyes pleading. “Once she’s stable, I swear I’ll break the bond. You are my only eternity. You always will be.” But then Livia found me. She showed me the fresh, golden mark on her wrist—the symbol of an Eternal Bond. They had already completed the sacred rite. Long before Darius ever confessed to me. My heart shattered to ash. I dragged my nail across the calendar, carving a vicious X over the date that was supposed to be our blood-oath ceremony. Then I opened the encrypted message from the Vienna Coven Academy. “I accept. I’ll leave on the day of our ceremony.”

I have been bound to Ryan Hardin for nine years. He is pureblood, the Alpha of Silverfang Pack. And I… I was chosen as nothing more than a “temporary Luna,” a political pawn to steady the pack’s power. In those nine years, he betrayed me countless times. The first time, on my birthday, he announced that the celebration belonged to another she-wolf he had just met. The second time, I brewed medicine for his injuries, only to be accused by the Elders of bewitching the Alpha. He didn’t defend me—instead, he ordered me to be whipped in front of the entire pack. The third time, I was three months pregnant. He stood there, watching as his childhood sweetheart pushed me down the stone steps. I lost our pup that day. Nine years. Three thousand two hundred nights. I endured his indifference, his humiliation, his contempt. Last night, at the Silverfang Pack’s full-moon feast, he openly entwined his hand with a young Omega’s while I sat abandoned at the far end of the Alpha’s table. Every gaze cut into me—wolves whispering, mocking, savoring the spectacle. It was his 200th betrayal. When the feast ended, Ryan didn’t even look at me. His words were sharper than fangs: “Don’t forget, your Luna title is only temporary.” At dawn, he descended the Alpha’s staircase, his voice cold and commanding as if I were a servant: “Prepare the council’s tea. Now.” I met his gaze without flinching, my voice steady, stripped of all submission. “I’m sorry, Alpha. That is no longer my duty.” He seems to forget—we were never bound by a mark. Ours was an agreement, nothing more. And today marks the third-to-last day before that agreement ends. I gathered the Luna emblem, the wedding ring, and our only wedding photo—and burned them all. In three days, I’ll leave this pack. I will return to the secluded Herbal Academy, reclaim my research. And this time, when I walk away, I will never return.

My fated mate, Alpha Kaelen, rejected me seven times. The first time we bonded, he whispered against my ear, his breath hot. “From now on, my soul sings only for you.” But then his first love, the Omega Seraphina, came back for him. And just like that, he rejected me. They shared a mate’s mark from their past. It left her hopelessly addicted to his scent. “I’m sorry,” he’d said. “I have to be with Seraphina. The scent addiction is destroying her. She can’t even shift. Her wolf is weakening.” The first time he rejected me, I slashed a silver dagger across my wrist. I let the blood flow, hoping the pain would make him look at me. It worked. Kaelen was horrified. He left Seraphina for a moment and rushed to my side, holding me, comforting me. The third time, I disguised myself as an ordinary pack wolf. I got an internship at his pack headquarters, just to breathe in the air he breathed. But this time, he looked right through me, as if we were strangers. By the sixth rejection, I had learned how to calmly erase my scent from his suite. I left without a sound. My screams. My surrender. My begging. And what I got in return? Every time he was with her, the full moon would rise, and he’d call me back. Just to play the same sick game all over again. Until now. I heard Seraphina was coming back again. So I handed him the ceremonial dagger myself. He set the date for my return, just like always. He had no idea. This time, I'm the one severing the bond for good. And I am never coming back.

I thought getting a new foster brother would be weird. I didn’t expect him to look like he walked off a Netflix show—blue eyes, tattoos, and the personality of a brick wall. My little brother’s obsessed with him. My parents act like he’s made of glass. Me? I think Carmelo’s hiding something. And I plan to find out what.