Nothing Like Us

" It's a contract. You will be my groom, just for sixty days… ", her loud but annoying voice echoed in his ear. She sat at the edge of the table, " I will hire you to be my groom, and I'll pay you immediately after the contract is over. Don't ever refer to me as your wife, because nothing is binding the both of us together." " No sex. No love. No kisses. No feelings. You are just a hired groom for sixty days. Live your life the way you want it, but not for these sixty days ", she narrated further.

The fifth year of my marriage to Silas marked a turning point I would never forget. Our son, Yael, was kidnapped. The ransom was set at ten million dollars, an insignificant amount for Silas, yet his response chilled me to the core. “No rush. A Gardner needs to experience some hardships to grow.” Ten million meant nothing to him, but Yael’s life meant everything to me. I dropped to my knees, tears streaming down my face, and begged him relentlessly, pleading for Yael to be brought home as soon as possible. Silas, however, remained unmoved. Three days later, Yael was returned to us, but the cheerful boy I knew was gone. He had been so traumatized that he could not speak. Far from showing concern, Silas coldly remarked, “Yuna said Yael keeps telling everyone at school she’s a fatherless child. Let’s see how he spreads lies now.” His words cut through me like a knife. I picked Yael up in my arms and whispered softly in his ear, “Don’t be afraid, Yael. Mommy will take you away from here.”

I didn’t mean to marry him. I was supposed to meet my blind date — the one my parents handpicked after my three-year relationship with a cheating boyfriend ended. But he said yes. Cassian Dorne—cold, powerful, and everything I should run from. Yet the way he looks at me feels like déjà vu, like he already knows me. I thought this marriage was my rebellion, my escape from my parents’ control. But as memories of one forbidden night begin to resurface, my husband starts to look less like my saviour… And more like the danger I should have stayed away from. And if my memories return, they might destroy us both.

His hand wrapped around my throat in claim, as he pinned me against the cold stone wall. “You’re mine,” he growled, his breath hot against my lips. “Every breath and every heartbeat you take. Mine.” But his nephew’s voice echoed in my mind: “You deserve better than a man who treats you like furniture.” I never wanted this bond. Alpha Zane forced me into a contract marriage—bear him an heir, then disappear. He made it clear I’m nothing more than a child-bearing vessel. A servant elevated to Luna only because the Moon Goddess cursed us both. But his nephew, Kaius, sees me differently. He’s kind where Zane is cruel. Gentle where Zane is possessive. He offers me everything my mate hides from me: respect, partnership, freedom. The problem? My body responds to Zane’s dominance even as my heart breaks from his coldness. And the more Kaius shows me what love could look like, the more dangerous this becomes. Because Zane may not love me—but he’ll destroy anyone who tries to take what’s his. Even his own family. Torn between the mate who owns my soul and the man who sees it—which desire will damn me first?

I survived three years under Adrian Blackwood's control by learning to disappear. He made me believe I was nothing, and I got so good at being invisible that I almost forgot I existed. Then three strangers showed up claiming to be my brothers. They said I was stolen from a family I never knew, a family that's been searching for me. Suddenly everything I'd buried came flooding back: wealth, danger, enemies, and a life that was supposed to be mine. Lucien, Marcus, and Elias dragged me into their world of power and secrets. They offered protection, but it came with strings attached. Rules I had to follow. A role I had to play. And then there's Rowan, my assigned protector who looks at me like I'm a puzzle he can't solve. Every word between us feels dangerous. Every look makes me want things I swore I'd never risk again. Trust. Connection. Something real. But Adrian won't let me go that easily. He's still out there, circling, reminding me that girls like me don't escape. Now I'm not just fighting to survive. I'm fighting to become who I was always meant to be, before Adrian, before the fear. The woman my family lost. The woman Rowan sees. Some secrets won't stay buried. Neither will I.

By a twist of fate, my husband, Morgan Lancaster, and I perish together in a sea of flames. When I open my eyes again, I find myself back on the very day we received our marriage certificate. In my previous life, we appeared to be a loving couple in the eyes of others, yet Morgan refused to share a bedroom with me the entire time we were married. It was only moments before our deaths that I discovered I was merely a substitute for his first love and that he had chosen to remain chaste for her for life. After getting another chance at life, neither of us mentions the past. Instead, by mutual understanding, we file for divorce that same day. From that point on, we go our separate ways. Eight years later, Morgan shows up arm in arm with his childhood sweetheart, Freya Springer, at a business summit. He is now a prominent and celebrated rising star in the business world. Seeing me dressed in a plain outfit, he approaches with a glass of champagne. His tone drips with mockery as he asks, "Ms. Smith, even if you still have feelings for me, there's no need to dress like a waitress just to get close to me. You aren't hoping for a reconciliation, are you?" I say nothing and simply smile as I wave at someone in the distance. My son, Theo Coltrane, toddles over and tugs at the hem of my shirt. "Mommy, Daddy says that he's tired from waiting so long. When are you coming home with us?" The smile on Morgan's face freezes instantly, and he nearly loses his grip on the glass in his hand.

I thought heartbreak would break me. Maybe it did. But not in the way I expected. It awakened the monster inside. On the night I caught my boyfriend of five years with another woman, something snapped inside me. I wore rage like an outfit. Claws tore through my skin. I heard voices in my head, voices I was certain weren’t mine. Then he appeared. Darian McAlister, the Lycan prince, all shades of danger wrapped in silver hair and flaming eyes. He saved me from myself that night, and then, accidentally marked me. Now, I'm tied to the man who's already betrothed to another. A man who wants nothing to do with me, and has made that clear. A man who still lurks in the shadows, waiting for something. And to make things worse, the Lycan family wants me dead, because the blood flowing through my veins creates a bond between me and the enemy that nearly destroyed them. But fate doesn't care about politics or debts owed. The accidental marking demands blood, and if we don't complete the Lycan’s mating process… One of us dies.

We share a world with beings not all like us, a world protected by old magic. In this Archipelago live the shifters; Lion, Wolf, Reptile, and Flyer. Each island is a perfect ecosystem for the prominent race of the land. Tropical, yes, but also filled with woods, deserts, jungles, and grasslands. Shifters here are destined to find their true mates in the fated unions of the islands. But if never found, they take their chosen mates. Creating stronger bonds and warriors all around. With this peace, The Archipelago is ruled by a beautifully regal Queen and her fated court. Together families are larger, stronger, and more loyal. The only one who seeks power and wants to rule over both worlds, The Shadow Warrior. His Shadow Clan army will stop at nothing to rule over all the shifters and even the humans. His plan, though bold, intertwines with the prophecy of the Queen.  A prophecy exists, but few know its true meaning. The Shadow Warrior has lived before and will rise again. He will stop at nothing to claim his prize, the Queen of the Shifters with amethyst eyes, but will he succeed? The Lion Queen, Kimarhi, is about to face the challenges of prophecy and fate. After losing her family, her path is set to rule over Lion Island. Little does she know finding love and destiny will set her crown in a blaze. She is passionate about the fight and willing to die for her people. But the love of her fated is strong, and it empowers her to become something more fierce. Channeling strength and the skill of her love, feeling the pull of the bond, and accepting her destiny. Will she win in the end, or will the hands of dark forces destroy her home and heart?

My wife's gym is celebrating its grand opening, and I drag my buddy along to check the place out with a 9.90-dollar trial class I bought through an e-commerce platform. For the entire time, I never once let it slip that I'm the owner. Right after we finish training, a male coach tosses a price sheet at us. His eyes sweep over us with contempt as he says, "You two look like freeloaders. Our private sessions cost a few hundred each, and we don't offer freebies to people like you." I let out a disbelieving laugh. "We paid for this trial class. How is that freeloading? Go get your manager." He rolls his eyes and makes it seem like he's enforcing a very important rule. "Don't bother looking for the manager. My girlfriend owns this place, and she hates broke losers who try to get free classes." He dials her number right in front of us. His voice sounds both arrogant and pitiful. "Babe, two guys showed up and tried to con us into giving them a free class. They even told me to call the manager. Come over here and show them what's what!"

I'd had a crush on my brother's best friend, Ethan—the most powerful Alpha of our Northern Territory—since I was twelve years old. When I was fifteen, I boldly confessed my feelings to him. He laughed and patted my head, casually promising, "When you turn eighteen and shift, if you're my mate, I'll mark you." That offhand promise became my greatest hope for three years. I spent every day waiting for my wolf to awaken, praying to the Moon Goddess that she would designate us as mates. But on the night of my eighteenth birthday, after my wolf first awakened, I was shocked to discover that Ethan truly was my mate! Ignoring the intense shifting pain coursing through my body, I immediately shifted into my wolf form and ran toward Ethan's training grounds. I clutched the gift I'd prepared long ago, but instead heard Ethan urgently confessing to his Omega assistant Victoria: "Who would be stupid enough to actually care about a true mate? The bond between her and me is just the Moon Goddess's mistake. I only love you. I'll only mark you as my Luna." The words hit me like silver bullets to the chest. My wolf whimpered in pain, the mate bond burning like acid in my veins. I stood frozen behind the trees, watching the man I'd loved for six years dismiss our sacred connection as if it meant nothing. Later, Ethan introduced Victoria as his "fiancée." When Victoria demanded that I publicly bless their marking ceremony, Ethan remained completely indifferent to my humiliation. "Sylvia should give us her blessing," Victoria announced at the pack meeting, her voice sweet as poison. "After all, she's been like a little sister to Ethan all these years." Every wolf in the room could smell my distress. But Ethan said nothing, refusing to even look at me. When rogue wolves attacked our territory and I was surrounded, Ethan didn't hesitate to scoop up Victoria—who had only a tiny scratch on her finger—and carry her away to find the pack healer. He left me bleeding and alone, silver claws ha