Penguin Classics The Count Of Monte Cristo

The day before our wedding, my fiancé invites our family onto a cruise ship. He says he wants to test the authenticity of my feelings for him. He shoves my mother off the ship when the waves are at their choppiest. Then, he jumps into the water, too. I'm caught between a rock and a hard place. I panic, not knowing what to do. My mother had already choked on a lot of water, but she pushed me away weakly. She cried, "Save Adrian first! He can't swim!" However, after I drag Adrian Lawson onto land and go back for my mother, I find that she's already stopped breathing. Adrian watches me cry, his expression frosty. "Drop the act. Your mother was a swimmer when she was younger—how can she be dead? I can't believe you didn't save me first. "Vi is right—you don't love me enough. Our wedding is postponed. It'll happen only after you've reflected on your mistakes and I've received an apology from you and your mother." After that, he leaves while holding Vivian Sinclair's hand. He doesn't know that my mother can no longer swim after a major illness a few years back. He's shoved her to her death.

There were always rumors; some were just passersby’s gossips, one that made people snicker among themselves with amusement. There were also rumors that could raise a few eyebrows or one only whispered about on the dark corners of the streets. However, there was a particular myth beyond the wildest of imaginations; more fantastic than the others combined… This myth was just a rumor for some, but a truth for many who witnessed it– And one, a woman with a mysterious past, lived the day to tell its story. ~O~O~O~ Genre: Fantasy, Romance Theme: Dragons and Knights

My boyfriend, Allen, is a fitness coach who is cheerful, handsome, and has eight-pack abs. After getting together with me, he transferred all his female students to other colleagues and would send me daily check-in photos. In anticipation of becoming his fiancee, I happily prepared for our engagement ceremony. However, two weeks before the ceremony, I discovered a bright red lipstick mark on Allen’s workout pants. I quickly pulled up the check-in photo he had sent me that day. Through the reflection on a dumbbell, I saw a woman standing next to Allen—her lips painted in the exact same lipstick color. Most of the previous photos had flaws, but I had trusted Allen too much to notice them. Looking at his message under the photo, I let out a cold laugh. "Baby, I have to work overtime today to train a male student." He actually dared to deceive me. Just then, my phone rang. It was the wedding planning company confirming the engagement ceremony setup. I quickly responded with a confirmation. The ceremony would proceed as planned—except I had a special surprise prepared for Allen, one he would never forget.

He slid a paper across the table, his eyes cold. " Sign it." She blinked, confused. "Why?" "It’s our marriage certificate." He spoke as if discussing the weather. "I’ve already signed it. Your turn." Siya froze. **Marriage?** To a man like him? Her? A whore. Pregnant. She looked up at him, pleading. "I-I can be your maid. Do anything. Just… don’t hurt my baby." Her voice trembled, careful, trying to bargain with the devil himself. But Abhimanyu’s gaze was relentless, unmoved. His tone cut like ice. "I want you to sign it right now." Her heart hammered in her chest. "But… how… why me?" She stuttered, breaking. "I don’t want to marry you." She stood, defiance shaking her body. The word **marriage** tasted like ash, reminding her of someone she loathed beyond reason. Abhimanyu leaned in, his smile devoid of warmth. "You **will** marry me. Or…" The room fell silent, thick with the unspoken threat. **The world knows** what he is capable of. "Plea.se," she whispered. Her voice was barely a breath. Siya’s legs screamed to run. But there was nowhere to go. His voice low, lethal. "Listen to me, TweetyBird. If I can save you, I can ruin you too.' His eyes darkened. "Sign it. And you’ll be mine." "Why me?" Her voice broke. ************ Siya laid on the bed on her fours, her hands tied together with a handcuff as Abhimanyu thrusted slowly from her back. He changed their position making her completely under his mercy. As the sun rose in the sky, he uncuffed her. "Scream my name!" He groaned going faster than before. But his pace didn’t slacken at all. He had turned into a needy beast, who was ruining every ounce of sanity left in Siya. *********** ***********

Lucas was living a normal life until truths about his birth, the death of his mother, his twin brother, and who he truly is are revealed by a woman, Mismaia. He embarks on a journey with her to uncover more of his families' secrets. A box left to him by his mother contains answers to where they have to go and what artifacts to search for. The artifacts form a key, there are four all over the world. It opens the entrance to the Underworld. On their journey, Lucas meets a boy named Oliver and his cousin named Megan who volunteer to help locate the artifacts. Along with their search for the four keys, Lucas falls in love with Oliver but can't tell him. His life has become too dangerous and he doesn't want him caught up in it forever. Finding these keys means their lives are at peril, dangers orchestrated by Lucas' brother to stop them. They then discover the identity of the woman who helps and protects them, his mother, alive. She asks him for his help to redeem his brother. Who apparently was stolen as a baby by their uncle. His uncle stole his brother to succeed him after his rule and to continue his plans for chaos on Earth and suffering for human beings. Lucas also learns the reason his mother stayed away for years was to protect and give him a chance at a normal life than what he is destined for. Despite the attempts of his brother to kill Lucas, he makes it his mission to bring his brother back to the Light. He'll battle his brother and uncle for the throne and restore balance to the world. Will Lucas succeed and take his rightful place to rule as the heir of the Light?

“When a marriage is about to fail, they say the red flags start flying early but mine stayed down.” *** When Tania's world crumbles, she's left with a shattered face and a deadly diagnosis. But as she pieces her life back together, she uncovers a web of lies and deceit that threatens to destroy everything she thought she knew. With the help of a mysterious stranger, Celebrity Surgeon, Ivan, Tania must navigate a treacherous landscape of love, family, and betrayal. But as the truth begins to unravel, Tania realizes that her biggest enemy may be the one she sees in the mirror. Will she find redemption, or will the lies consume her? Dive into a world of twists and turns, where nothing is as it seems, and the truth is the deadliest lie of all."

Fiona McGuire and Justin Carter was forced to marry each other due to unavoidable circumstances. Fiona is a simple, independent woman who works in the Carters Group of Industries where Justin is the CEO. Whereas as Justin is a hard headed workaholic but has a good heart. Initially few misunderstandings makes Justin treat Fiona as a gold digger but soon enough, Fiona’s pure soul wins his heart and makes him want to start fresh with her as he haven’t seen any other person like her. Fiona’s and Justin journey is spiced up because of their best friends Emily and James. Emily is over protective of Fiona as she doesn’t want anyone to hurt her like Fiona’s ex did whereas James is a goof ball who loves to annoy Emily. In between their Journey, Fiona & Emily’s ex-best friend tries to create rift between Justin and her because of her own insecurity, however Justin trust towards Fiona wins. But what is a story without a tragic incident and true test of any relationship is taken through tough times. Due to confrontation of Fiona with her ex-best friend, she gets into an accident. This hits Justin hard where he was able to realize true place of Fiona in his life. He diligently helps Fiona in her recovery and this brings them closer than ever. Finally, love is confessed, heart is bought together and towards the end, new beginning began.

After being abandoned by her fiancé the day before the wedding, Christie Swan develops aversion toward men, qualifying them all as louts and liars. But all that hatred will last until a European businessman named Stefano Graziani comes into her life, manages to get into her bed, and makes her change her mind. He is a forbidden man for her, but they say what is forbidden is delicious.

Omotayo never expected her world to come crashing down unexpectedly by the sight of her best friend and her boyfriend in bed.Heartbroken and disheartened, she swore to never open her heart to anyone, living vicariously. She rejects every man that woos her and is tagged as 'a scornful woman' whose heart was as dark as the words that came out of her mouth. That was until she met him, the one who was ready and willing to pull down her walls, bring her out of her misery, help her grow and show her the beauty of love.

Patricia’s supposed to be happiest day on earth turned to her saddest day, and with a pregnancy test result in her hand, her heart torn apart, and a ready-made garment of sadness is worn for her at the blink of an eye. She caught her husband and best friend cheating on her on their matrimonial bed, but gently turned back to the sitting room, and made up her mind to keep it to herself because of a reason known to her, but her husband presented her a divorce paper, and threatened her to sign it. She signed the divorce paper, and was thrown away into the street. Disappeared, Patricia worked on herself to become a better version, and she returned five years later as a single mother, who was the anonymous CEO of the ruling organization in the city. Now, her ex-husband, who has been in regret for his actions for the past years, wants her back. Did the CEO deserve a second chance?