Old Man From Up Smiling

Book one of the zodia series introduces Lilliana Pendragon and Drake Thorn, two best friends who have deep unrealized feelings for each other. And Lance Stallion, a man who is betrothed to Lilliana and has a nasty temper when things do not go his way.Who will Lilliana find herself with in the end and can she unlock the secret of her family within herself to be able to find true happiness, before it is too late?'latin - 'Quamdiu tales esse potes. Cum autem terminos tuos sentio agi. Quum senseris tibi evigilare faciatis intra rem, et tamen non audiam. Princeps autem Draco excitavit!’

He was a rich kid, and after graduation, his family paid for him to find a job. But he did not expect that the place where he worked was a notorious women's prison, and it is said that all men who enter this prison do not end up well. Now he is the only male correctional officer in this prison. In the women's prison, female prisoners, female correctional officers, female leaders, a wave of women came one after another, leaving him dazzled and overwhelmed. The female inmates are willing to pay any price to get close to him for their purposes. A wave of female inmates and criminal conspiracies follow one another, and as he delves deeper, he discovers that there are hidden secrets and laws of survival behind this prison.

Past thirty, my usually serious husband suddenly developed a fascination with pink. The dark-colored furniture that had stayed the same for ten years was replaced with pink; even the utensils he picked up casually were pink. I stared at the line of pink pajamas, pink bow ties, and pink underwear hanging out to dry on the balcony, feeling something was off. "I thought you said you hated pink—that it was a color only women liked?" He was unpacking a new pink bed set and didn't even look up. "Oh, Jack and I made a bet. If I can replace everything in the house with pink, he'll give me his seaside villa for free. Honestly, after looking at it for a while, pink isn't that bad, don't you think?" I neither agreed nor disagreed. Instead, I called Jack, who blurted out, "What seaside villa? I don't remember ever buying one!"

Bethany terkejut karena Bella, saudari kembarnya, dikabarkan telah menghilang selama sebulan. Ia pun segera pergi ke apartemen Bella dan menemukan beberapa foto perundungan di apartemen itu. Tanpa pikir panjang, Bethany memilih untuk menyamar sebagai Bella demi mencari tahu apa yang terjadi. Namun, di hari pertama dia menyamar, seorang pria tiba-tiba memanggil nama aslinya. "Siapa kau? Bagaimana kau tahu?" "Bella tidak punya tatto ular sepertimu"

“Apa? Malam pertama?? Jangan mimpi! Aku nggak sudi menyentuhmu! Apa kamu nggak sadar bagaimana kondisi wajahmu itu? Meskipun dipolesi riasan semahal apa pun, nggak akan mengubah kenyataan bahwa kamu itu jelek!” Karena berwajah jelek, Cahaya disia-siakan suami dan ibu mertua. Cahaya tidak pernah disentuh dan selalu dihina oleh sang suami yang bernama Adam. Selain itu, dia juga hanya dijadikan pembantu gratisan saja oleh ibu mertua. Sudahlah tidak disentuh dan diperbudak, hati Cahaya semakin hancur karena suaminya menikah lagi tanpa sepengetahuannya. Perceraian pun terjadi. Setelah bercerai, Cahaya menemukan rahasia besar bahwa dirinya adalah putri yang hilang dari keluarga kaya. Dengan dukungan keluarganya yang kaya, gadis buruk rupa itu bangkit dengan cara mengubah semua yang ada pada dirinya agar terlihat cantik sempurna.

Extract Alpha Dominic’s gaze cut through me like ice. “I don’t know you,” he spat, his voice filled with disgust. “How dare you show up out of nowhere, claiming to be my mate, claiming to carry my child, when I have never laid eyes on you before?” “Um, I—” I opened my mouth to explain, to tell him everything, but he cut me off. “Are you here for money? Is that it?” Without waiting for an answer, he reached into his car and pulled out a bundle of cash, flinging it at my feet. “I don’t want to see your filthy face again. I won’t waste my energy rejecting you. We will never be together. The moon goddess must have been mistaken to think a lowlife like you could be my mate.” The money lay scattered on the ground as hot tears blurred my vision. “I’m not lying,” I sobbed. “I am carrying your child.” Wolfless and satisfied, all Odette ever wanted was to be promoted and to become a full-time teacher. But her world came crumbling down when her boss made sexual advances at her, saying it was the only way for her to keep her job. Brokenhearted, she ran from the school, and instead of going home to her family, she went to a hotel, got drunk, ended up in the bed of a stranger, and got pregnant afterwards. She was sent out of the house by her mother until she aborted the baby. Will she abort the baby? Or find the father of her child?

Even after being married for three years, my husband treats me like a stranger. When I throw up blood from pregnancy complications, he's in the prayer room chanting for his foster sister, Yvie Springton. He accuses me of being dramatic. If Yvie so much as gets a headache, he drops everything and flies overseas to be by her side. When his parents are in critical condition after a car crash, I beg him to go see them one last time. But what does he do? He claims I'm cursing Yvie. When I go into early labor and cling to life after giving birth to our son, he posts a photo of his international boarding pass on social media. At his parents' funeral, he returns to the country with Yvie and demands I leave the marriage with nothing. The day our divorce finalizes, he holds a wedding ceremony with her. I bury his parents alone. Then, at an exclusive auction, dead set on winning the famous painting for Yvie, he offered a staggering price. Even his accounts are frozen. That's when he finally realizes he's been disowned by the Springton family. His eyes are bloodshot, and he's furious as he demands answers. I simply gesture for my lawyer to step forward. He says, "Mr. Springton, take a look at this will."

“IKAW?” My eyes nearly popped out of my face when I saw him—the mysterious stranger from last night. Is it him? The same man? Parang gusto kong mahimatay. Wehh? Hindi pwede! Impossible! my inner voice screamed, pero ang katawan ko nanginginig na parang nakuryente. Hard f*ck na yata ng buhay ‘to. And suddenly, a memory crashed into me like a tidal wave. That night. That stupid, reckless night. The stolen kisses, the laughter between moans, the way he made me beg—“Wag kang titigil!”—like I’d lose myself if he stopped. I swore I’d never see him again. I swore it was just a one-night stand, a mistake I could bury. But now he’s standing right in front of me. Not just a man. Not just anyone. But the CEO. And worse… the ex-boyfriend who once shattered my heart. His smug grin sent shivers down my spine. “Of course. Why wouldn’t I?” he said, like fate itself was mocking me. I froze, torn between rage, fear, and something I couldn’t even name. My mind screamed run, but my heart whispered, stay. My world was spinning, and suddenly, every choice felt heavier than ever. Will this be the start of something dangerous… or a responsibility I can’t escape?

After picking up an unconscious man on the street, I took him home and took care of him in the hope of earning some money as thanks from his family. However, this man lost his memory and did not know what his name was and where he came from. Seeing that he was quite handsome and healthy, I lied that I was his wife and forced him to work with me to make money. The happy life did not last long when I suddenly read an article about him and discovered that he was a famous cold and cruel billionaire. So, that night, I gathered all my clothes and money and ran away because I was afraid he would punish me for deceiving him.

Four days after my death, my four-year-old daughter finally sensed that something was terribly wrong. The fridge door slammed into her forehead when she tried to get a snack. Normally, I would've been there in a heartbeat—arms open, kisses ready, whispering, "You're okay, sweetheart, Mommy's here." But this time, I just lay on the bed, cold and still.​ She didn't understand. She thought the sweet treat would make me respond. So she held the final piece of chocolate up to my mouth. "Here, Mommy. Have some chocolate..." But I didn't even blink. She climbed into my arms, clutching my clothes tightly. "Mommy... Mommy, wake up..." She waited for me to stroke her hair, to tell her that everything was going to be fine. There was only silence.​ Completely lost and scared, she found my phone. "Daddy, why is Mommy still sleeping?" she asked, her voice filled with desperation.​ In response, Oliver sent a photo of himself having Christmas Eve dinner with his childhood sweetheart. His voice was icy cold when he replied, "She's just sleeping, not dead. It's Christmas Eve, and I'm busy. Tell her to stop playing games and come apologize when she's done sulking." Then he hung up.​ But when the truth finally hit Oliver—when the coroner's report came, when the police knocked on his door right in the middle of his laughter, when he realized I'd been lying dead for four days while he toasted—he broke.