Picking Someone Up Bridal Style

Ava McCray always gets what she wants and that includes picking pockets. She leads a reckless life because she has little or nothing to lose. But then her life changed for the worse after she stole a diamond ring from a Mafia boss.

Zara grew up with nothing but resilience and ambition. Raised in an orphanage, she fought her way into the corporate world, believing education would be her salvation and love her reward. When she married Dante, a powerful CEO, she thought she had finally found both. She was wrong. Behind closed doors, Zara’s marriage became a nightmare of cruelty, betrayal, and calculated malice. Stripped of her career, manipulated through her own child, and nearly killed by the very family she married into, Zara is forced to face a devastating truth: she was never meant to survive. When she walks away from everything with no money, no protection, and only her dignity Zara makes one promise: she will return. What she doesn’t expect is to uncover a shocking secret about her past one that reveals she was stolen as a child, her life destroyed by a conspiracy rooted in greed and revenge. Reclaimed by her real family and armed with power she never knew was hers, Zara rises from the ashes stronger than ever. This time, she isn’t fighting for love. She’s fighting for justice. And revenge will be delicious.

Hazel Jones slides on a beautiful red silk dress with a slit up to her curvy hip and black strappy heels. Her long, chocolate brown hair is up in an elegant style, exposing her neck. She applies mascara and matching red matte lipstick for the finishing touches. She studies herself in the mirror before leaving her apartment and getting into the limo. Hazel may never see her family again but missing the Mate Gala is not an option for her. -------- "How is this possible?" "I don't know, but she is mine too." King Octavius Storm and his mate, Valentina watches as their surprise mate makes her way to The Royals' table. She's a human, and they are the Lycan Royals. A Lycan King has never had more than one mate. It is normal in the Full-Blood District, but not in the Lycan Colony. What makes it even more unique, Octavius and Valentina both felt the mate bond before Hazel stepped foot in the ballroom.

Kylie gave up everything for her husband and her daughter, only to be discarded like she never even mattered. For seven years, she played the role of the perfect secret wife only to find out her husband was marrying his first love with their daughter smiling beside him. Left with nothing, Kylie finally walks away, picking up the pieces of her old life together bit by bit. She returns as Kylie Vale— cold, brilliant, determined to rebuild the life she abandoned and reclaim every piece of herself she once lost. Suddenly men troop in, all confessing their undying love for her, but Kylie is done with love, weakness, and the empty promises hiding behind their masks. At least that is what she believes until she meets him. A man who is deeply haunted by his own past and who would end up ruining the walls she had built so strongly. Will Kylie keep running from the pain that destroyed her or risk everything for a man who might finally teach her what love is supposed to feel like?

Elara Voss had spent her whole life in the shadows of wealth she didn’t inherit trapped in her father’s empire, dismissed by her stepmother, and humiliated by the man she once loved. On her twenty-sixth birthday, she discovers a shocking truth, her family’s fortune was never hers to claim… because someone else holds the real inheritance a man she’s never met. Determined to reclaim her life, Elara fakes a new identity and enters the glittering world of high society. There, she meets a mysterious, brooding billionaire, Kael Hawthorne, who’s as alluring as he is dangerous. He’s rumored to be ruthless, untouchable, and utterly untamed but Elara has a secret she holds the key to the empire he’s desperate to protect. What begins as a calculated alliance a partnership to outmaneuver her family soon spirals into a web of deception, desire, and betrayal. Every masquerade ball, every whispered secret, every heated glance pulls them closer… and yet, every lie threatens to destroy them both. Elara must decide will she settle for vengeance, or risk everything for love with a man who might be the only one who truly understands her?

I was setting up a weekend shopping list on the tablet my husband had just replaced for our home system. A notification popped up. He had forgotten to log out of a shared, encrypted family calendar— one I didn’t recognize. There was only one unfamiliar profile photo. I tapped it. A list titled “My Little Princess – Personal Notes” filled the screen. My Little Princess doesn’t drink alcohol—only mineral water or herbal tea. No late nights. She needs absolute quiet to sleep. She gets anxious easily—keep fresh white lilies in the house and her favorite vanilla chocolates on hand. I scrolled slowly, my expression unreadable. The final entry was bolded. Highlighted. “Next Wednesday: take my Little Princess to choose her wedding crown.” I closed the screen. Then I picked up my phone and called my husband. “Love,” I said gently. “Does your Little Princess prefer a classic European bridal crown… or something more traditional? I thought I could help you choose.”

Today, I am going to marry the man I love, Damon Mark Olson. We didn’t have it easy. I am the veritable Cinderella and he was my handsome prince. People frowned on our relationship. Even his mother never failed to show her dislike for me at every opportunity. But Damon fought hard for me. At the church, I heard the first notes of Pachelbel's Canon in D and started my bridal walk. Damon looked dapper in his suit but he looked distracted, and his hair looked kind of mussed. Tenderness swept over me. When I reached his side, he took my hand. An electric current coursed through our connected skin. Damon looked startled, and I almost laughed, The priest gave us his blessings. And to Damon, he said, “You may now kiss your bride.” I held my breath as Damon very gently lifted my veil. Our eyes connected, and I saw a swirling mass of emotions in his gaze before his head dipped and gave me a kiss that jarred me. He kissed expertly, too expertly, that my eyes flew to his face. And that was when realization sank in. I was not kissing Damon Mark Olson. I was kissing someone who looked exactly like him.

Three years after I ran away from home, my parents finally remembered me. The fake heiress, Kelly Horner, was not satisfied with her groom, so they came up with the idea of having me marry him in her place. When Mom saw the man who had eloped with me sitting in a wheelchair and picking up garbage, she felt extremely pleased. "She gave up being a wealthy heiress and even pushed Kelly off a building to run away. She must be regretting it now." Alex Cameron appeared absent-minded as he muttered, "She does regret it. She regrets ever going back to that home with you guys." Dad scoffed. "Enough with the fuss! Tell her to come back immediately for the wedding and we'll call it even!" Seeing Alex remain silent, Dad kicked over his wheelchair. "You cripple, where have you hidden my daughter?" I floated in the air, watching Alex writhe on the ground. My soul felt like it was being ripped apart. "Dad, Mom, I've been dead for three years. How can I marry in Kelly's place?"

I bought a million-dollar set of gold as my bridal accessories at the jewelry store. The wedding date was fast approaching, but the pieces still had not arrived. I personally went to the store to pick it up, but the sales assistant said the price of gold had increased, and I had to make up the price difference. “In the past two weeks, the price of gold has risen by $98 per gram. Since you purchased 1,314 grams, the price difference amounts to $128,772, which rounds up to $130,000.” She showed the number on the calculator to me, and I became speechless. “Two weeks ago, I already paid the full payment. You said the store provides the delivery service, so I did not take it with me. This is a scam!” The sales assistant looked at me with a scornful expression. “We’ve been in business for ten years, and we do honest deals only. Keep running your mouth off, and I swear I’ll sue you for defamation!” What she said had reminded me that the ten-year lease contract that I signed with them had expired. I immediately took out my phone and called her boss. “From this year onward, the rental cost will increase by 50%. If you can’t afford the rental cost, move out immediately!” “Why?” I sneered and said, “You’ll have to ask your staff then!”

From the beginning, it was clear what Avara Latimer's fate would be. Since her birth, every aspect of her life has been planned with precision. Avara's life was one of pure indulgence, with the villagers showering her with the best of everything to ensure the god's favor. However, there was an ulterior motive behind the gifts, and it wasn't given out of kindness. Her island home thrived with life, and to ensure its continuous abundance, she was chosen as a bridal sacrifice for the malevolent dragon god, Kagran, who lived up the mountains. But with rations running low and some of the villagers growing more resentful of her privileges, she knew it was only a matter of time before she would have to leave the village. And just as she had feared, her worst nightmare became a reality. On a cold winter's night they come and take her from her home, leaving her to brave the unforgiving mountains alone - a whole year before the sacrifice was planned.