Pepper Winters Novels & Stories

My executive boyfriend, Marcus Winters, had always wanted the regional president seat. Then his favorite protégée, Sophie Moresby, complained that I always got the spotlight, and he deliberately sabotaged my car. The crash broke both my hands, leaving me unable to compete in the design contest that could decide the board vote. He handed my entry slot to Sophie and expected me to accept it quietly. When I confronted him, he said it was only one competition and that, as design director, I should give younger employees a chance. To prove his "fairness," he stripped me of my director title and docked six months of my pay to compensate the team. Everyone waited for me to fight back. Instead, I nodded, calm and silent. Marcus was pleased. He promised that once his promotion came through, he would restore my position and publicly announce our relationship. I smiled coldly and told him we were done. I had already submitted my resignation. What Marcus did not know was that the board and I had made a private agreement: if I won the championship and secured the decisive vote, the person I named would become regional president. I had been preparing to name him. Now he had not only replaced me with Sophie, but also encouraged her to submit a fraudulent design. Once the contest ended, the only thing waiting for him was termination, a ruined career, and a bill he could never afford.

Nala Oka has loved Ivan Winters for as long as she can remember. Though they were once childhood friends, Ivan barely remembers the bond they shared, while Nala has never forgotten him. After a drunken one-night encounter leaves her pregnant, Nala finds herself trapped in a shotgun marriage to a man who resents her. When tragedy strikes and she delivers a stillborn baby, Ivan's blame only deepens the divide between them. Branded a gold digger and denied the affection she longs for, Nala endures a loveless marriage, determined to make the best of her circumstances. Her fragile hopes are shattered when Ivan's former lover returns and Nala discovers he has been unfaithful. Worse still, he has built a family with another woman. Heartbroken, Nala signs the divorce papers and walks away, determined never to look back. Years later, fate brings them together again when Nala becomes a surrogate for her best friend. No longer the timid woman Ivan once knew, she refuses to tolerate his anger or control. But as old secrets come to light and long-standing misunderstandings begin to unravel, both are forced to confront painful truths about their past. Now Ivan is determined to win back the woman he once pushed away. Yet Nala knows all too well the cost of trusting him. As buried feelings resurface and old wounds threaten to reopen, she must decide whether some loves deserve a second chance—or whether walking away remains the only path to happiness.

Ruby Winters believed that being mated to Alpha Ethan Sinclair would guarantee her a happy future. Instead, years of emotional neglect and political manipulation slowly destroyed their relationship. Everything finally falls apart when Ethan demands a divorce so he can make Ruby's ambitious stepsister, Vivian, his new Luna. Heartbroken, Ruby prepares to leave the pack forever. Before she disappears, she discovers a shocking truth. The accident that supposedly ended her pregnancy only claimed one of her unborn twins. The second child survived, but the pregnancy is extremely high-risk and could be endangered by the stress of pack politics and Ethan's powerful enemies. Determined to protect her baby, Ruby secretly leaves Silverlake and settles in Oakhaven, using her divorce settlement to create a peaceful new life. For the first time, she experiences freedom away from the pack that constantly controlled her. Three months later, Ethan discovers hidden medical records revealing the truth about Ruby's pregnancy. Consumed by regret and desperate to protect his unborn child, Ethan launches a relentless search for Ruby. However, the woman he abandoned is no longer willing to trust him. As old enemies, family secrets, and political conspiracies come to light, Ruby awakens mysterious powers connected to her bloodline and becomes determined to protect her child at any cost. Now Ethan must prove that his pursuit is motivated by love rather than possession, while Ruby must decide whether some betrayals deserve forgiveness—or if freedom is worth more than a second chance.

The boy who made my life hell just became my stepbrother, and now we’re sharing a mansion, a last name, and a hatred so intense it might just burn us both alive. I’m Summer Winters, the scholarship girl who never wanted Crew Ashford’s attention. But after I publicly humiliated Blackwood Prep’s golden hockey captain, he’s made destroying me his personal mission. With the months of psychological warfare, I've learned to survive his cruelty. Then my mother marries his father. Now I’m living under his roof, and Crew’s rage at my presence is suffocating. Behind closed doors, his bullying intensifies, but so does something darker. Something that looks dangerously like obsession. Just when I think it can’t get worse, I meet Gray, Crew’s quiet, artistic brother who sees me in ways that terrify and comfort me in equal measure. And my childhood best friend Tyler? He’s caught between loyalty to me and forces I don’t understand yet. Three boys. Three types of devastation. And secrets buried so deep they’ll destroy us all when they surface. When everything explodes at the championship game, I’ll have to decide: which kind of destruction am I willing to survive? This is a dark reverse harem hockey romance where the line between hate and want is razor-thin, and choosing yourself might be the most dangerous choice of all.

She was always ignored and called nerdy by her childhood crush and friend. Now, he can't take his eyes off her, and neither can his elder brother. Lydia Winters had a crush on her childhood friend, Julian Blade in Junior high school, and when she confessed her feelings to him, they started dating. But when she is ignored in the relationship and finally decides to study in another country, Julian breaks up with her coldly. He chooses a more pretty girl, Ava, over her. Having graduated college, Lydia returns to Ohio to attend her parents' anniversary and stay for a year. However, she is broken when she sees Julian with Ava, even after six years of being away. Their relationship is way stronger now, as they are engaged. Ezekiel Blade is everything Lydia chose to avoid. A mafia boss. An arrogant, wealthy playboy. He is undeniably charming, and at worst, Julian's elder brother. A bully to her during her teenage years, he now starts to see her differently. He offers her a way to make Julian jealous and come back to her: a simple kiss and little passion between them. It works. Julian gets jealous seeing them together and tries to get Lydia back. In the course of their reconnecting, Julian gets Lydia pregnant in a one night stand, but refuses to claim the child as his. He runs away with his real love, Ava. Ezekiel sees this and offers to care for her and her child willingly. Lydia has only ever wanted Julian's affection, but when she is faced with this crisis, will she move on and choose a big time playboy?

Three year after my death, my former mate returned— not to mourn me, but to make use of me one last time. It was the Winter Solstice, the longest night of the year—the night when wolves whispered to the dead. “Where’s Mira Thorne?” Rowan demanded as he strode downstairs into the tavern beneath the den. “Her lived here—Gavin’s sister. I need to find her.” Dorian, the tavern keeper, glanced up slowly. “Mira?” he repeated, wiping his hands on a cloth. “She’s gone, Doctor. Died three winters ago. Same night the Moon rose red.” Rowan’s brows knit. “Dead? That’s impossible. There’s no record.” Dorian’s voice softened. “The family from that healing case—remember them? They found her in the alley behind this inn. Tore her apart before dawn. The healers couldn’t even retrieve her wolf.” Rowan froze, a flicker of disbelief passing across his face before irritation took over. “No. She’s pretending. She’s doing this to make me feel guilty.” he said sharply. “She’s hiding. She always was weak. Tell her if her doesn’t come out within three days, I’ll stop sending money for brother’s treatment.” He turned abruptly and left, the tavern door slamming behind him. Dorian sighed after him., shaking his head. “brother? Her brother died before the healers even arrived… there was never any money for treatment.” The silence that followed was heavier than snow. Dorian watched the falling snow and murmured to the empty air, “No one pretends death, Doctor. Not when they’ve already lost everything.”

In the quiet woods, under the stars, Elara and Kaelen share a special, intimate moment. It feels forbidden because everyone has always told them they shouldn’t be together but it also feels right. Elara was raised to fear the dark, and Kaelen is made of shadow itself. But in each other’s arms, they start to see the truth: light and shadow aren’t enemies they belong together. For 400 years, the land of Luminara has lived by that lie. A powerful group called the Order rules everyone, using fear to make people obey. No one asks why winters are getting longer, why food is getting harder to grow, or why the moon is slowly losing its light. Elara never thought she would change anything. She’s just a normal girl, and all she has left of her mother who disappeared years ago is an old brass locket. But one day, the locket starts to hum with strange power. Then a man made of dark mist and starlight steps out of the trees. His name is Kaelen. He is the guardian the Order has hunted for hundreds of years, calling him a monster. But he tells Elara the secret no one is allowed to say: Light can’t live without shadow. If you separate them, the whole world will die. Now Elara is on the run. Valerius, the cruel leader of the Order, is chasing her he wants to steal the locket’s power so he can rule forever. She is also followed by Morgrath, a twisted shadow who offers her something scary: total power, no more fear, no more running if she lets the darkness take over. And deep under the mountains, something very old and powerful is waking up. It could fix everything… or destroy it all.

My wife, Heather Conner, secretly steals the funds I've saved up for our daughter, Naomi Hartman's surgery. After that, she books a high-class hotel for Jared Winters, the low-income student she has been sponsoring, just so she can celebrate his birthday with him. When I find out about it, I demand that Heather return all the money to me. But she slaps me immediately and blames me and Naomi for causing her trouble on purpose. "This is the first birthday Jared and I are celebrating together! Since it's such a big day, it's only natural that I hold it in a grand and lavish manner! "Instead, you two insist on undergoing that stupid surgery just when I've booked the hotel instead of scheduling it at any other time! You really are vile! "I've already inquired with the doctor about the surgery. Turns out it's completely optional! I might as well put the money to good use by giving Jared an unforgettable birthday instead of having you waste it on a useless surgery! "Even if Naomi does end up dying, that means she's fated to die anyway! You can't blame anyone for her death!" Heather just abandons Naomi, who's still fighting for her life. She then drives Jared to the hotel, where they spend the night watching a beautiful fireworks display. With 12 critical notices issued by the doctor in my hand, I kneel before Monica Brown, the richest woman in the city. "I'm willing to marry into your family as long as you pay me 35 thousand dollars' worth of wedding gifts!"

Skye Winters never wanted to be Luna. But when the mate bond snapped into place at her eighteenth birthday, binding her to Alpha Jaxon Vale, it should have been a dream come true. She'd loved him from afar for years. But Jaxon didn't want her—he accused her of trapping him, forcing the bond, married her only because the pack demanded it, and has spent three years making her feel like an obligation he can't escape. Skye tried to be the perfect Luna, the perfect wife, the woman he might one day choose to love. But when her sister Cassandra returns with a son she claims is Jaxon's, everything shatters. Jaxon moves them into the Alpha house. He names the boy his heir. And chooses her sister first at every opportunity. When Skye nearly dies because of Jaxon's choices, something inside her dies first—the desperate hope that kept her chained to a man who will never see her as more than a burden. Now Skye is done begging. Done compromising. Done watching her husband build a family with her sister while she stands in the shadows. She wants a divorce. But breaking a fated mate bond isn't simple—especially when she's carrying a secret that could trap her forever. As pack politics, family pressure, and her own broken heart collide, Skye must find the strength to walk away from everything she thought she wanted. The only question is: will Jaxon let her go? Or will he finally realize what he's losing when it's already too late?

“I told you,” he whispered against her mouth as his leg wedged between her legs. “The only thing you’re going to feel is me fucking you to the mattress until you’re screaming out my name. I’ll make you want it so bad that you’ll be begging me for it all the time.” Raina swallowed hard at his words and what they did to her. She was so wet and ready for him that it was embarrassing. “Now get your ass into my office. We need to discuss you taking some time off so your body can prep for the procedure unless you just want to bypass it and just let me breed you until you’re pregnant with my child. Either option requires you to take time off. Choice is yours.” *** Raina Winters, Alpha Kian Tara’s chosen female Beta, has been carrying a secret for years from her Alpha believing she would never ever be accepted by her Alpha as a desirable mate and suitable Luna. For years, she has watched her fated mate love another while she suffered in silence dangerously close to death until her Alpha and his childhood sweetheart break up, because he wants to find his fated mate. Even after their break up, she still keeps her secret. Too afraid to believe he’d ever see her beyond his Beta, she keeps silent. When the Elder Council puts pressure on Alpha Kian to produce a heir and to ultimately select his Luna, her Alpha and her twin sister offer a medical solution, to find a surrogate. The most eligible choice is Raina!