O'block Chicago

On Christmas people should be with their loved ones in the safety of their homes, but I don't have any loved ones, and I'm in the one place that I hate, where I swore never to come back, afraid that I'll get even more broken, and it seems that the more I try to get away, the more obstacles I encounter. "I know a shop not very far from here, and they have the best mechanics in town. If you want, I could come with you and give you directions, I'm heading that way anyway, and for your kindness, I'll make your biggest wish come true," Said the old crazy Santa that jumped in front of my car out of nowhere. "Can you teleport me from here? In another city, country, even on a deserted island? Anywhere but here?" I know that it wasn't nice of me to be sarcastic, but he's the reason why I have to prolong my say here. "No." His short answer was said in an amused tone of voice, but I don't find anything funny right now. "But that's just because that's not your biggest wish." He states it as a fact as if he's never been more sure of anything in his life. I bite my tongue and pray that I won't see the two people I used o love the most, and which now, I despise the most, the two people responsible for my nightmares and my broken being.

"You have no idea do you?" He whispers, his lips only a millimetre from mine. "No idea about what?" His fingers slip around my waist, pulling me firmly against his body. I feel him everywhere. He's hard where I'm soft. Calm where my heart is beating. He lifts a hand to my face, gently cupping my cheek as he tilts my gaze to meet his. His thumb brushes against my lower lip and I suck in a sharp breath when I notice just how dark his gaze is. "You have no idea the power you have over me." ... Born to a mother who abandoned her family and a father who never even knew he existed, Aaron O Sullivan has spent his entire life fighting to prove he belongs. With a chip on his shoulder and blood on his hands, he’s determined to reclaim the legacy stolen from him. When no one moment of anger causes the one person he's grown to care about everything he's determined to step up and save her despite even if she thinks she doesn't want his help. And what way to protect her other than a fake engagement. Waitress By Day, Stripper By Night, Elle will do whatever it takes to pay off her uncle and finally buy her freedom. But behind her sharp tongue and seductive smile is a secret and trauma so depe she wasn't sure she could heal. Until him. She doesn't understand why he wants to protect her especially because he's the reason she's in this mess to begin with. She's got pain and he's got secrets. What happens when the two collide just how far are they willing to go for the things they desire.

Follow high school junior Catherine Blake as she navigates the treacherous world of ghosts and dark magic at Sunnywalk’s High, a school built over an ancient graveyard. Gifted with the rare ability to communicate with spirits, Catherine must unravel the mysteries surrounding the restless souls haunting her school. Alongside her friends Daniel and Bobby, she confronts malevolent forces, including the sinister Principal Whittail, whose dark magic threatens their very lives. As Catherine delves deeper into her own complex identity and family secrets, she discovers her lineage as the daughter of Death, awakening powers that thrust her into a perilous struggle against demonic forces. With love, friendship, and courage as her guiding lights, Catherine faces supernatural challenges that test her resolve in this spellbinding tale of mystery, self-discovery, and redemption.

“Dance.” He commands and Abigail's eyebrows knit in confusion. “I want you to dance. Show me all that you’ve got, naked." Blake Knight. Billionaire. Womanizer. Dangerous. He takes what he wants. Love? Never in his plans, not even in his arranged marriage. His only real obsession is LUST--the elite club where the most beautiful strippers compete for his attention. Then there is Abigail, hired to lure him, to trap him, to infiltrate the Knight family. But seducing Blake is only the beginning. His wife, Ursula, isn't about to let another woman take what is hers. And in a world where power is everything, obstacles aren't just removed... They're eliminated! But Blake isn't as easy to control as they thought. He might be a billionaire, a man ruled by pleasure but he's also a predator in his own right. And when the game turns deadly, Abigail will learn that falling for the Mafia King comes at a price. Get ready for a dark, thrilling, and suspenseful Mafia romance.

Valerie Du-Pont has been through more than she can talk about. Her one attempt at love and normalcy turned out to be a joke and left her humiliated and pregnant. However she vows not to let that experience change her and she moves on. Years later and on the day she achieves her dream, she runs into the one responsible for her problems. What happens next is a battle, one that Valerie is determined not to lose. Carter Sullivan Cole has it all, the perfect looks, billionaire status and killer instinct. He's perfect except for one flaw from his past, A mistake that haunts him. Unexpectedly, an opportunity to rectify that mistake arises and he takes it only to receive life changing news. He's a father, and he plans on being a present one even if it means getting married to Valerie. Now Valerie might fight back all she wants, but Carter has never lost a fight especially as this is shaping to be the most important fight of his life

Amelia Miller thought she'd endured the worst life had to offer. Rejected by her mate, betrayed by her own blood, and cast out from her pack, she had nothing but the scars. When Alpha Kaelan of the Shadow Moon Pack comes to her rescue, Amelia dares to dream of a new beginning. But the shadows of her past are unwilling to set her free. Amelia has survived her life fighting her half-sister Caroline's cruelty and the rejection of Jackson, her first mate. Marked as an outcast in her own pack, Amelia is alone, desperate for a place that would be home. Being forcibly made to leave the Silver Fang Pack when Jackson chooses Caroline as his mate and Luna, Amelia's heart was shattered. Attacked by the hired rogues of Caroline and Jackson, Amelia is saved by Kaelan, powerful Alpha of Shadow Moon Pack. Being around him opens up an attraction, finding fragile peace-a chance to rebuild her life. News of her survival merely serves to enrage Caroline and Jackson, who devise another scheme in pursuit of tearing Amelia's life apart in her newfound sanctuary. In a turn of events, Caroline and Jackson have Lila, Kaelan's sister, murdered and frame Amelia for the crime. Overwhelmed with his grief, Kaelan asks if Amelia really is innocent, and when she pleads that she is, he doubts her. Devastated over his mistrust, Amelia decides to leave the Shadow Moon Pack, preferring self-exile to more heartbreak. It's only after she's gone that Kaelan discovers the truth about Lila's death. Devastated and wracked with guilt, Kaelan pursues Amelia relentlessly, but Caroline and Jackson finally realize their scheme has been beaten and vow to find Amelia before kaelan does and once and for all destroy her happiness.

Grace Carter never imagined her desperation would lead her to sell not just her body, but a part of her soul. When she agrees to become a surrogate for a wealthy, mysterious man, Noah Bennett, she thinks it’s just business. But their arrangement spirals into a collision of secrets, passion, and betrayal as love threatens to bloom amid trauma, and enemies circle like vultures, Grace must fight to reclaim her voice, her power, and her future. In a world where power seduces and pain lingers, how far will one girl go to save the ones she loves and herself?

Scarlett, a determined writer, gets a job at the city's largest entertainment company, hoping to free her family from the grip of poverty. But her dreams take an unexpected turn when her path crosses Cade, her rude and seductive boss. Desperate to become CEO, Cade proposes a deal: financial assistance for Scarlett's family in exchange for a contract marriage. Torn between her hatred for Cade and her family's dire needs, Scarlett faces the test of her values. Will she compromise her principles for the sake of those she loves? Or will she find a way to loosen this tangled web of ambition, power, and unexpected attraction? Characterization

At 18 years old, Elena Carter was framed for a murder she never committed due to the painful betrayal of her sister and the man she loved deeply. She was sentenced to spend her whole life in prison, losing everything she ever had. Ten years later, with all hope lost for her ever leaving jail, she is suddenly visited by Damien Vance, the cold and ruthless billionaire brother of Lucas Vance, the man she was framed for killing. He offers her a way out but it will come at a price—a contract marriage and a new face. With desperation and hunger for revenge, she accepts the deal. With Damien as her unlikely ally, Elena must uncover the truth, and bring down those who betrayed her while also surviving Damien’s cold and ruthless hold over her. Revenge won’t be easy, but Elena is willing to risk everything to get it.

They say fated mates are sacred, practically unbreakable. But Aiden wasn’t mine, and I wasn’t his. That didn’t stop me from loving him like he was the last man left in this cursed world. He swore he didn’t need a bond to love me. Said it was pure. Said he’d love me unconditionally. Said he’d choose me—always. But now he’s in our bed, moaning another woman’s name like a prayer. Wearing a forbidden pendant laced in black magic—magic strong enough to block the mate bond so I wouldn’t feel the betrayal. Too late, Aiden. I felt it. Like a dagger slicing straight through my soul. And just as I hit rock bottom, he shows up. A young, enigmatic Alpha—feared, powerful, far too young for me. Alpha Damon. He’s asking questions about illegal mate bond magic. Magic my husband used to cheat without consequences. Magic that ties back to a dark conspiracy. Turns out, my perfect little marriage is just the rotten tip of a magic-smuggling empire. Damon wants my help. Needs me close. Says I’m the only one who knows enough to crack this wide open. But every time he says my name, something in me stirs, something I swore was long dead. I shouldn’t want him. I couldn't him. He’s too young. Too dangerous. Too…everything. But goddess help me—he’s the first man who’s ever looked at me like I wasn’t something broken. Like I wasn’t disposable. Like I was worth fighting for.