Open City

She heard the door creak open, and her breath caught in her throat. The bed shifted behind her as he lay down, his arm wrapping around her waist. His face buried in her hair, his lips softly exploring her neck. "What—what are you doing?" she stuttered, her voice barely above a whisper. Her mind racing with the sudden intimacy. "Hugging my wife," he murmured against her cheek. His warm breath sent shivers down her spine. "This—wasn't part of the deal," she protested weakly, his cologne intoxicating her senses. "Rules are meant to be broken," he whispered, his voice low and husky. "Now, face me, wifey. Let me feel your arms around me!" ----------- Powerful, successful and in control. Nothing is out of Viktor Alessandro Rossi's reach. With a Gulfstream jet on standby, and a company that rule the whole city, the world is his oyster. But he's missing just one thing — a wife. According to his late grandfather's will, he must marry at the age of 30 to inherit controlling shares of Rossi industries. Katarina Reed knew she only had herself to blame. She shouldn't have asked for his help. Of course if she'd known he'd request that she be his wife for two years, she'd have hesitated in accepting his help. Because what she had learned from Viktor was that the devil wasn't ugly and terrorizing. He was seductive and captivating. Would she escape the devil's grasp, or forever be bound to him?

On the day, my husband, Eugene Doyle, receives the offer to further his studies in the city, he serves me divorce papers instead. I, Maria Johnston, am eight months pregnant with his child. He tries to console me. "Maria, ever since my elder brother, Edgar, passed away, Janice has had nobody taking care of her. She can't survive on her own. "I'll marry her for the time being, just on paper, until she manages to find her footing in the city. After that, I'll come back and marry you again." Everyone assumes that I will patiently and obediently wait for Eugene to return because of my pregnancy. However, I tear up his written oath to me and terminate the pregnancy that same day. Then, with the offer letter for the National Archeology Certification in my hands, I leave our little village and disappear from Eugene's life. Five years later, I become a successful archeologist and return to the same village for a survey. My current husband, Rupert Kingston, can't come at the same time as me due to an emergency meeting, but he has informed the villagers to welcome me with open arms ahead of time. To my surprise, I meet my ex-husband instead. He says, "I know that you lost your baby at eight months. There's no need to be ashamed about it. It's about time you came back after running away from home all those years ago. "Janice is about to give birth. We need you to be her nanny."

Three years ago, my father marries me off to Evan Blackwell, the CEO of Blackwell Group, for the family's interests. Everyone thinks I'm done for because Evan is known for being ruthless and cruel. Yet, he's nothing but gentle to me, and he never raises his voice at me. He even has my initials, SH, tattooed on his chest. Every year on our anniversary, fireworks bloom across the city right on the dot. They spell out my name and the loving words he dedicates to me. On our third anniversary, the fireworks suddenly replace my name, Selena Holloway, with Serena Harroway. Before I can ask about it, Evan immediately calls his subordinates and tears into them. "What's going on? How could you mess up my wife's name? Do you want to lose your jobs?" I hastily tell him it's fine and that the thought is what truly matters. In the end, he lets them off the hook. However, he pushes me until my legs are shaking and my voice is gone that night. When I wake from the night that leaves my whole body humming, he's already seated at his desk and buried in work. He asks me to grab a folder for him, yet I open the wrong drawer and stumble upon an old photo album. It contains intimate photos of him and a young woman who looks strikingly like me. There's a confession on the back of every single picture. "I miss you so much, Serena."

Born into a noble pack, Veronica is raised by her abusive family. She is then offered to Alpha Logan as compensation by her stepbrother Marcus. Alpha Logan has a reputation for being ruthless. With no home to return back to, Veronica slowly starts to open her heart to the cold and pale Alpha despite their rocky introduction.

Before my crazy grandmother died, she gave me three walnuts. According to her last wish, I cracked open the first walnut on my twenty-fifth birthday. Inside the walnut was a slip of paper. 'Go to the skybridge and grovel at the first beggar you meet' was the instruction written on it. When I looked at the note, I could feel my cheeks burning with embarrassment. Still, I did as told. To my surprise, the beggar turned out to be an undercover cop. Only later did I learn that I had long been targeted by human traffickers, and the bow had saved my life. As for the second walnut, my grandmother told me to crack it open before I got married. When I put on my wedding dress, ready to marry the policeman who saved me, I happily opened it. This time, there was a crumpled old photograph inside. In the photo, my fiancé was smiling as he strangled another bride.

Gu small warm force pushes open the front door of President's office, "Si Chen, tonight you... " When see clearly in front of the scene on the SOFA, Gu Xiaonuan the rest of the words are stuck in the throat, her eyes are red, strong hold do not let tears fall down.

Frustrated by the mounting tuition fees, Zella was desperate to open an online wife service through social media. At first everything went well, she got a man with a fantastic fee. But after the contract ended, she began to regret it and wished time would turn back to when she didn't know the man.

Look out Seattle! The city's most eligible bachelor is on the prowl for a worthy fiancee! Marriage is a big commitment. Arguably being a CEO'S fake fiancee is even a bigger commitment. Seattle is what Zoey Saunders now calls home after jumping from city to city in hopes of hiding from her personal bogeyman. One wild night propels her straight into the chaotic world, and warm arms, of the city's lone wolf sealed by a hush hush contract. How will she protect the billionaire player from the jaws of hungry wolves? Ten million dollars is on the line! Enter the world of Xavier Danvers and Zoey Saunters filled with bitter exes, dysfunctional families, kick mini adventure and rekindled love!

Arthur Salacosa has always been passive. He lets the flow decide where he would end up. So when they needed to move due to his father's job, he readily agreed without any qualms. He thought it would be just another city, with new people to observe, and a new place to pass by. However, it wasn't just any city—it was Delta. The city known to have the highest vampire population rate and the only city led by a vampire. Would Art continue living his life riding the tides? Or will there be something at Delta that will turn his life upside down? Maybe a few crimes, some strange friends, and a vampire love interest?

In the empty villa, Celia Quinn sat motionless on the sofa. It wasn't until much later that the villa's front door swung open, and Lucas Shaw stepped inside. His gaze paused briefly on her, then his expression turned cold. "Yvonne is running a fever today. Why did you keep calling me?"