Onyx Flower Bracelet

‘Why are the tastiest apples always forbidden? Why do we have to sacrifice our love because our parents got engaged?’ These questions rushed through my mind as he kissed me deeply, pinning me against the wall. I knew that after this, he would say cruel things to me with those same lips, but I couldn't resist him. I loved him but I hated myself for loving him. “Marcus, please. We can't keep doing this.” I begged. But as usual, he ignored my pleas and continued in his caresses, making me want him more. We were lost in our forbidden desires once again, not realizing that the door was left unlocked. Why does my stepbrother keep seducing me? What if our parents discover our secret affair?

Ian Tost was the prince of the notorious underworld. Everyone in Harbor City knew he spoiled me rotten. He even went so far as to hire ninety-nine female bodyguards to keep me from harm. It did not prevent a kidnapping attempt on me. One of those bodyguards, Cece Yates, ended up with nothing more than a scratch. Ian immediately brought in the nation’s top medical specialists to treat her. To comfort her, he even took her to the Maldives for a vacation and gifted her an island. Not long after they returned from their trip, Beatrix Kazinsky, my mother, suddenly suffered a stroke and was hospitalized. Then, Michael Kazinsky, my younger brother, died in an accident during a competition. I burst into the morgue while in tears, only to overhear Ian comforting Cece. “All right now, it was my fault you got hurt last time. I’ve made Mira’s family pay for it. You’ve got too much grace to hold a grudge against her.” With my nails digging into my palms, I finally realized everything that had happened to my family was Ian’s doing. It was all just because his precious bodyguard got hurt because of me! I stumbled out of the hospital with my brother’s death certificate in a daze. On my phone, messages from that person kept coming. It added up to ninety-nine share transfer agreements, along with his promise. [As long as you want me, my arms will always be open for you.]

Matthew Sinclair Chan, a wealthy bachelor whose marriage was decided by his authoritative father. To escape the situation, he went to the US and there he found a solution to his problem. Harebell was about to take the last semester of her studies in New York when she received unfortunate news from her family, they were scammed and lost a huge amount of money including their properties. Struggling financially, to fund her studies, she took a part time job as a nanny to a wealthy family where she met the escaped bachelor. After discovering Harebell's financial problem, he made a proposition, one that Harebell never expected that she would go through and cannot ignore. A marriage in exchange for her family's release from debt and her brother bail out from prison. But will a marriage last when the foundation was money? What secret will she bear once the contract ends and divorce comes their way? A secret. An affair. A mistake. A confession. The unknown's revelation. What life will she live in the hands of the bachelor?

"Yes! I want to be your girlfriend, Kairus Dhan Alvarez. Sinasagot na kita," sigaw ng kaibigan ko. Ouch! Nanigas ako sa kinatayuan ko ng pagpasok ko pa lang sa university kung saan ako nag-aaral, ng marinig ko ang sigaw ng isang pamilyar na boses, o should I say, ng aking best friend. Ang ganda naman ng bungad. Hindi ako makagalaw sa kinatayuan ko. Para akong natulala. Para akong binagsakan ng langit at lupa. "WOAH, CONGRATS NEW COUPLE." Nanlalabo ang paningin ko habang pinagmamasdan ang kaibigan ko at ang lalaking mahal ko. Kitang kita ko kung gaano kasaya si Kairus nang sagutin siya ni Amara. Nagyayakapan silang dalawa, at worst, they kissed each other in front of me. Mas lalong lumakas ang sigawan ng mga tao habang ako naman ay parang nabingi. Hindi ko alam kung anong nararamdaman ko. Basta alam ko lang, unti-unti nang nawawasak ang puso ko. Yumuko ako. Ramdam na ramdam ko ang physical na sakit sa puso ko. "I LOVE YOU, AMARA... SO MUCH!" D@MN! Tuluyan nang nawasak ang puso ko nang marinig ko ang katagang iyon mula sa bibig ng mahal ko na para sa kaibigan ko. Kinagat ko ang aking ibabang labi upang pigilan ang luha na gustong kumawala sa aking mga mata. Dapat handa na ako sa ganito, alam kong darating ang araw na ito, pero p*tangina, bakit parang sobrang sakit? Bakit parang hindi ko kaya? "BESH...!" Kaagad kong pinunasan ang isang butil na luha na tuluyan itong kumawala sa mata ko. Huminga ako ng malalim at saka inangat ang paningin sa kaibigan kong patakbong palapit sa akin na may malaking ngiti. Ngumiti din ako, pero pilit lang. Sinubukan kong maging masaya para hindi siya makahalata. "KAMI NA... I ALREADY SAID YES TO HIM," masaya niyang sabi bago ako niyakap.

She thought she had it all—a peaceful life, a loving relationship, and a future she could finally count on. But everything shattered the moment she discovered the truth. He never planned to stay. He never planned to love her. He only wanted the child. Forced to make an impossible choice, she vanished, determined to protect the life growing inside her. For years, she lived in silence, hiding the truth, raising a secret no one could ever know. But fate has a cruel way of circling back. When the past resurfaces in the most unexpected way, everything she fought to protect hangs in the balance. The lies. The love. The billion-dollar secret. Some stories aren’t meant to stay buried. And some truths refuse to stay hidden.

Xiana took a deep breath when she reached her boss's office. "Amanda" he called the secretary who was his friend so she looked at him and smiled then said goodbye to the people he was talking to. "Hey, best friend" he laughed and put his arm around her.

Palermo is a feared Mafia boss, commanding respect throughout the criminal underworld. He's a strikingly handsome and heavily tattooed man who exudes charisma, leaving women enraptured. As a wealthy and ruthless leader of the Mafia, he's unflinchingly willing to take lives. He's a figure who cares not for the concept of sin, but even he couldn't believe he'd fall in love at first sight with a woman he had only just laid eyes on. She was stunningly beautiful, and in his eyes, Ysabel was the only woman who truly held his attention. She was the first woman he wished to protect and cherish, and he never anticipated developing an interest in her, an interest that compelled him to know her, to draw close to her, and to become a part of her life. However, it was beyond belief that in the midst of violence, near-death experiences, and imminent peril, he found and came to know the captivating Ysabel. To his surprise, she even managed to steal his heart. It may sound peculiar and humorous, doesn't it? He was on the brink of death, yet he still managed to fall in love at first sight with this woman of extraordinary beauty whom he had just met. But he is Palermo Lazarus, a Mafia leader who would stop at nothing to possess and claim the woman who had entranced him and breathed life into a heart he once believed was as cold as stone. He became possessively infatuated with her and was resolute in making her his own.

Ang kasal ni Abigail kay Liam ay hindi dahil sa love, kundi dahil sa business deal. Kahit anong effort ni Abigail na ayusin ang relasyon nila, hindi niya mapawi ang galit ni Liam. Sa isang matinding phone call, sinabi ni Liam na gusto na niyang mag-divorce dahil sawang-sawa na siya. Initially, nagprotesta si Abigail pero sa huli, pumayag din siya. Habang pinipirmahan ang divorce papers, tiniyak ni Abigail na hindi makikialam si Liam sa negosyo ng pamilya niya. Ngayon, handa na siyang kalimutan si Liam at simulan ang bagong buhay. —- Abigail gazed at her signature and broke into a wide grin “ Liam Jones, from now on we’re strangers “

Kylee Nicole Montenegro, ako 'yun. Labing-walong taong gulang na at malapit ng mag-kolehiyo. Hindi na ako nagho-homeschool; malapit na akong maging normal na estudyante, tulad ng pangako ni Dad. Homeschooled ako mula nung ako'y limang taon dahil sa isang aksidente. Madalas sabihin ng mga tao na marami daw nangyari sa buhay ko noong bata ako, pero isang bagay lang ang matandaan ko — isang panyo. Isang hindi kakilalang bata ang nagbigay sa akin nito, at hindi ko alam ang pangalan niya. Malamang, hindi ko na siya makikilala matapos ang maraming taon, pero umaasa ako na isang araw ay makakita ako sa kanya para magpasalamat. Ang hindi kakilalang ito ang tumulong sa akin nang mawala ako sa mall. Naalala ko ang bahagi ng pangyayari, pero hindi lahat. Napapangiti ako nang hindi ko namamalay. Pagkatapos kong lumabas ng banyo, napansin ko ulit ang panyo at ngumiti. Mukhang may kaunting paghanga ako sa taong nagbigay nito sa akin. Ilang taon na itong nasa akin at hindi ko pa ito nalalabhan. May nakasulat ding salitang "TRIST" dito. Iniisip ko kung pangalan ba ito. Nagtango na lang ako dahil wala akong alam. Nahulog sa malalim na iniisip, isang katok sa pinto ang bumalik sa akin sa realidad. "PUPUNTA NA!" sigaw ko nang marinig ko si Ate Lena na nagpapaalam na ang almusal ay handa na. Isinilid ko ulit ang panyo sa aparador, may kakaibang tanong pa rin sa aking isipan. SINO KA?

Trapped with the Man She Hates the Most... ---- Kylie Leowfin, the stunning and brilliant European model, leads a charmed life, until a fateful trip to the Philippines for her cousin's wedding changes everything. There, she comes face to face with Thurstin Piers, a man she loathes with a passion. Kylie can't stand Thurstin, but destiny has other plans. Their paths collide once more, and circumstances force them to share the same space. As time passes, Kylie begins to see a different side of Thurstin, a side with a kind and caring heart. Yet, the mounting pressure of their forced togetherness may just push Kylie to develop feelings she never expected. She strives to keep her distance, to distract herself from his presence, but love has a funny way of sneaking in when you least expect it. Do they stand a chance of falling in love with each other? Read on to find out.