Never Thought In Tagalog

At one of the exclusive private casino parties, my eyes landed on a diamond tiara. The catch? It was the prize for a high-stakes blackjack game. Luckily, poker happens to be one of my many sins. A girl named Elara—whom I once pitied enough to introduce to Throne, hoping she’d land a job—has now declared she wants the tiara too. Naïve. Probably thought beginner’s luck was a real thing. I figured, fine. Let the cards decide. If I win, I walk away with the tiara. If I lose, I’ll find another way to soothe my pride. Easy enough. Thorne, my ever-watchful husband, leaned in and murmured, “Go easy on her.” I didn’t. I won. Beat the dealer faster than her and won the tiara. That girl cried at the table. Thorne didn’t look impressed for once. He rather seemed... irritated. I thought it was for Elara’s sake. Turns out, it was for mine. A year later, same party, different stakes. The grand prize? My own sex video. While holding Elara in his arms, my husband said to me, voice almost amusing, “Don’t you like winning prizes? Then go on. Win our sex tape back.”

.... Mali ba na mag mahal? Lalo na kung parehas kayo ng kasarian? Mali nga siguro, dahil nagmahal tayo ng hindi naman dapat at hindi nakaayon sa batas. Ngunit mas mali sigurong mag mahal kung panay panghuhusga lang ang natatanggap. Dahil kailan man hindi naging mali ang pagmamahal kahit na sa iba... ito ay kasalanan? Kasalanan na wala namang may kagustuhan. Pero hindi naman natin kasalanan na sa maling kasarian tayo nagmahal. Dahil kailan man hindi naging mali ang pagmamahal...

Dahil sa kagustuhang maipagamot ang ina pagkatapos nitong ma-stroke ay napilitan siyang tanggapin ang offer na sumayaw sa isang kliyente na si Mr. MC. Isa siyang private sexy dancer ng lalaking hindi man lang niya nasisilayan ang mukha. Kailangan niyang painitin ang gabi nito sa pamamagitan lang ng sayaw. Just watch, no touch, kumbaga. Nang makilala na niya ang katauhan nito ay unti-unti na ring nahuhulog ang loob niya sa lalaki. Makakaya niya bang ipaglaban ang nararamdaman niya sa taong binabayaran lang siya dahil sa katawan niya? Paano kung ang kasunduan nila ay magtatapos kapag bumalik na ang babaeng pakakasalan sana nito?

Pagkalipas ng tatlong taon ay nagbalik siya, at narinig ko siyang pinag-uusapan ang tungkol sa dovorce. Wala siyang sinabi kahit na matapos niyang makuha ang aking pagkabirhen bago siya umalis. Sobrang sakit ng naramdaman ko. Hindi niya ako binigyan ng pagkakataong maging mabuting asawa para sa kanya, pero gusto niya pa rin akong hiwalayan. Hindi dahil mahal ko siya, kundi dahil inakala kong naging tapat ako sa kanya habang siya naman ay nagpakasaya kasama ang kanyang kalaguyo. Ngunit nagawa pa niyang magreklamo na parang ako ang sumakal sa kanya. Galit na galit ako. Sisiguraduhin kong mahihirapan sila ng kanyang kalaguyo na makumbinsi ako sa diborsyo. Pero bakit parang iba ang ikinikilos niya? Bakit nakakaramdam ako ng pagkasabik sa tuwing magkakadikit kami?

After five long years of dating, Winona Shaw finally said yes. I was elated, like a scavenger who'd struck gold. I put everything I had into the engagement party, but out of the blue, Winona embraced Claude Landton instead. She even tried to frame me and boot me to jail. I canceled the party and called the cops instead. That made Winona mad, and Claude started panicking. Icily, I said, "Now, calm down. We have a lot of trials to go through. See you in court."

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."

Santana transferred to a big time school in Manila, sponsored by Cindy, to continue her studies. She had no idea her ultimate online crush, Hauser Capuilet, was studying there as well, which would turn her entire world upside down. Is it possible that the popular campus playboy will fall for a nobody like her?

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.

Seven years ago, Allyson, a designer of clothing line, was accused of plagiarizing designs after winning a contest. As a result, her husband Travis decided to send her away from the Philippines in order to avoid causing more troubles to his company. That night, Allyson intended to inform her husband of her pregnancy, but due to Travis' decision, she lost the will to do so, especially given her perception of Travis' lack of want to raise a baby. She followed her husband's command because he was the only person who supported her after her parents death. After a few years, she was given the opportunity to return to the Philippines in order to ascertain the truth about a crime that involved one of the most significant individuals in her life. When she came home, she believed that few things had changed including her relationship with her husband.

“It was just one night… Until I saw him again—standing in front of me as my new CEO.” After a painful breakup, all Katalina wanted was to forget. She did what any broken woman would do—she put on a sexy dress, dragged her two best friends to a bar, got drunk, and let herself feel alive again. Just for one night. Just to forget. Pero may ibang plano ang tadhana. She ended up spending one unforgettable night with a mysterious, dangerously handsome stranger. She thought it ended there. Hanggang sa pagpasok niyang muli sa trabaho... Dumating ang bagong CEO ng kompanya—at hindi siya makapaniwala. It was him. The same man from that night. Araw-araw, lalong tumitindi ang tensyon sa pagitan nila. At sa paglipas ng mga buwan, isang shocking na balita ang bumungad kay Katalina—she’s pregnant. Sasabihin ba niya sa lalaking iyon ang totoo? O mananahimik na lang siya at itatago ang sikreto? Isang gabing pagkakamali ba ang lahat ng ito? O ito nga ba ang simula ng isang pag-ibig na hindi nila inaasahan?