Pawprints On Our Hearts

“I don’t belong to YOU, Maverick.” “Kitten, you’ve been MINE the second you stole my attention.” *** Him crossing paths with me was no accident. Falling in love with him was never part of my plans. It happened almost immediately. Maverick Quinn was like a dream come true. He entered my life like lightning in the darkest parts of my nightmares. I was drawn to him like a moth to a flame, craving his touch more than my lungs craved air, knowing he was slowly becoming my weakness. Flawed by my past, he brought out the worst and best of me without trying. But Maverick has a secret and everyone knows that secrets hold immense power.

On the day my wife, Abigail Jefferson, and Dominic Gorman, the university student she has been sponsoring, post their pre-wedding photos on their social media feed, I don't lash out at them crazily as I usually do. Instead, I leave a like and a comment on their posts. "You two make a great couple. Everyone, let's give our blessings to the newlyweds." Everyone in elite society thinks of me as the most cowardly husband ever, who lets the side piece make a doormat out of him. One week later, Abigail comes home and explains, "This is just an act. Dominic's grandma is ill, and she wishes to see him get married before she passes away." I just nod calmly in return. "I didn't take it seriously. Of course, I believe you." In my previous life, I showed up at Abigail and Dominic's wedding to cause chaos for them. Naturally, their wedding couldn't go on because of me. Abigail began targeting my parents' company in order to punish me. My parents ended up going bankrupt and were forced to jump off a building. She had me admitted into a mental asylum, where I was tortured to insanity. Now that I'm given a second chance in life, I no longer yearn for Abigail's love. I just want her money this time. Every time she cheats on me, I'll transfer some of her assets to my name. Abigail now has three more chances before she ends up losing everything.

"What... What are these?" Selene stammered, her voice barely more than a whisper. "Divorce papers?" She looked up at Maximus, searching his face for some sign of a joke, a mistake - anything to tell her this wasn’t real. His eyes flickered with a brief moment of hesitation before hardening into a steely gaze. "If Jess hadn’t disappeared, we never would have gotten married” he drawled before delivering the final blow. “Well, Jess is back now.” She couldn’t breathe. Despite her best efforts over their three years of marriage, Maximus had never acknowledged her nor loved her the way he loved Jess. **** She signed the papers, and left his life for good, taking the babies growing in her womb with her. A few years later, She became a top medical doctor and did everything possible to stay away from Maximus. However, on her twins’ fifth birthday, they came running to her, giggling: "Mummy, we found our billionaire daddy!" She looked up and saw Maximus standing in front of her, clearly expecting her to run into his arms. Instead, She chuckled. His eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets when she responded with a deadpan expression, "No, babies, your Father is dead."

Aurelia had always hated the Thorne twins, and it was no secret. She hated the way they looked like she mattered only to pull the step siblings card… she hated the way they always had their stupid signature smirk on their faces whenever they pulled her leg… hated the way they knew how to pull the right strings to get her and most importantly hated the way, they acted like they weren’t watching that day, watching her as she climaxed alongside them. So no, she definitely didn’t watch them when they weren't looking and absolutely didn’t care who they were smiling at when it wasn’t her. Their friendly step- siblings rivalry had ended on her send off party and 20 year old birthday when she had confronted them and ended up in their bed… only to wake up to their leaked tape. They however did nothing but watch as her dignity was rubbed all over the ground. Five years later, she had moved on and built a perfect life with her 4 year old baby girl and her best friend from back home. Life was perfect until his proposal was interrupted by the Thorne brothers while she was on their cruise ship sailing to the city of her dreams to her dream vacation. It all happened in the blink of an eye and she had woken up to see that their ship was floating in the horizon, leaving them on an abandoned island with nothing but their clothes. Old hatreds ignite. Old secrets surface. And this time the twins aren’t just watching in secret like they had all these years. They’re here to finish what they started… this time they have no plan to let her GO…

“Mummy, Is the President our daddy?” Layla asked curiously, head tilted sideways. Her brothers listened in attentively, obviously wanting a response. I forced out a chuckle as I crouched low before her to cup her soft cheeks. “Honey, the president isn’t your daddy. The President is a very wicked person.” “But, we met him today and he was very polite. He even complimented my hair.” Layla continued earnestly and my heart hammered against my chest violently “Cupcakes, whenever you run into the President; stay away from him because he’s very cruel, okay?” The triplets’ eyes were wide as they hastily nodded their heads, and I pulled them into a long hug. They had no idea the President had once wanted them dead without second thoughts. I’ve sworn to protect them with my life since I had them. No one’s going to take them away from me. Not even their vile father, the President! ~~~ Zendaya Montclair unwillingly got into a contract marriage with the President and suffered a great deal in the marriage– from having to break up with her high school sweetheart because of the marriage, to depression, to public humiliation– to her ex-boyfriend whom she was still in love with, getting married to her supposed best friend. Zendaya was heartbroken. She got drunk that night and spent it in her husband’s bed, which instantly led to an accidental pregnancy. The President wanted her to get rid of the pregnancy because he never saw her as a mother of his future children and only a wife of convenience. That was the last straw. Zendaya left everything behind and fled, promising herself to come back for revenge on every single person who had wronged her. Including the President, she was going to make him pay!

I went into labor. And my mate, Alpha Alistair, locked me in a silver cage. The bars throbbed with curse runes, burning my skin. He did it for Livia. His dead brother's mate. Her pup had to be born first. That's when I learned the truth. He'd been poisoning me for months. All to make sure Livia's child would be the next Alpha. He called it "calming tea." A daily dose of poison to slow my pup's growth and delay my labor. But my body had other plans. My pup refused to wait. I went into labor at the same time as Livia. When he found out, he accused me of faking it. Of begging for sympathy. He let them poison me with wolfsbane. I lost my pup. A piece of my soul died with him. With my last breath, I reached out. To the one person who could save me. My brother, Alpha King Lucian. He came like a storm of rage. He burned the packhouse to the ground, with me inside. A phantom fire for all to see. Then, he plucked me from the flames. Only then, surrounded by the smoking ruins of his pack, did Alistair fall to his knees. His howl of regret tore through the night. For 99 days, he howled at the moon. Begging the Moon Goddess to return just a sliver of my soul.

Sophia Smith and Alexander Carter have been friends since high school, but she sees him as more than just a friend. When her father suddenly proposes marriage, she accepts without consideration and Alex was forced to abide by his grandfather's wish, so he married her, but her happiness fades as Alex's indifference takes hold. Determined to win his love, Sophia devotes herself to impressing him, but her efforts were all futile. A year into marriage, Alex files for divorce, accompanied by scandalous pictures that led Sophia to bear the burden of false accusations. Unable to face the distrust of people around her, Sophia disappears with her unborn child. Six years pass, and fate reunites them when Alex becomes Sophia's patient. Guilt clouds Alex's eyes, and his voice trembled with longing as he muttered "Sophia, I've spent years realizing my mistakes. I've regretted every moment since we parted" She spares him a glance "Regret won't mend what you shattered, Mr. Carter. The past is a chapter closed, I've moved on and so should you." He reached out for her hand but she moves away "And what about the twins?" he asks with a voice filled with remorse. Sophia responds curtly "The twins are mine. Alone." On one hand stands her ex-husband, prepared to endure any hardship to reclaim her, and on the other hand stands a friend who is willing to go to great lengths to have her as his own.

“That video in the group chat was filmed in your bridal suite, wasn’t it?” one of the women asked with a grin. “Sleeping around right under Adela’s nose? That’s bold.” Lorenzo leaned back, swirling his drink, looking pleased with himself. “Yes.” “I used to be too sick to do half the things I wanted,” he said, tapping his chest. “After the transplant, I realized spending the rest of my life with only one lover would be a waste.” The room erupted. He let them laugh, then added, “I set myself a goal. One hundred places before the wedding. Once it’s over, I’ll settle down. After that, my body and my marriage belong to Adela.” More laughter. More glasses raised. I stood outside the door with one hand pressed hard against my chest, where an artificial heart kept beating. Lorenzo never knew I had learned his language. He also never knew that I had already discovered he was keeping Vera—our wedding’s mistress of ceremonies—behind my back. And because he had hidden something from me, I had hidden something from him. I had already booked an assisted death service overseas.

At twenty-two, Danielle Hartford struggled to manage the matrimonial firm she inherited from her mother. A surprise email from Vincent Cromwell requesting her agency for their services seemed like the blessing she needed. However, when the seventy-two-year-old Cromwell demanded a bride for himself, Danielle was disappointed. She had expected it to be for his drooling hot grandson, Knox Zachary Cromwell, the one she nurtured a crush on. Knox tried everything in his power to stop his grandfather from getting married to produce an heir. When nothing worked, he proposed a deal to Danielle to give him a male heir in return for a huge amount of money. Her love for him, her need to save her business, made her give in. However, she gave birth to twins, a boy and a girl. Soon, Vincent Cromwell married against his grandson's wishes. Thinking it was an underhanded ploy, Knox destroyed Danielle’s business. Danielle left the city forever with her daughter, handing him his male heir. Would Knox ever realize what he had done?

My girlfriend, Elsa Smith, always avoided meeting my parents. Yet, she had no trouble turning around and playing the role of her ex-boyfriend Leo Quinn’s fiancée, happily meeting his relatives instead. And the meeting took place in the apartment I had prepared for us to live in after the wedding. What she did not realize was that I happened to be Leo’s distant cousin. She pretended not to know me and clung sweetly to Leo, saying, "This apartment was bought by my hubby, fully paid for." All the relatives were praising them as a loving couple. To keep me from exposing her, Elsa came over to warn me, "I’m just helping a friend deal with marriage pressure. If you mess this up, we’re done." So, I sincerely offered my congratulations. "Since Leo and I seem to have the same taste in houses and women, I’ve got some wedding supplies that I’m sure he’ll like. I’ll gift them to you both." That was when Elsa finally started to panic.