Places We've Never Been

At our tenth engagement party, my girlfriend crushed my heart again, leaving my proposal ring dangling in the air. She had been chasing the ghost of her first love, and I was done being her fallback guy. When I finally opened my heart to someone new, she realized what she'd lost. Ten years together, ten engagement parties, and still, she wouldn't take my ring. Every time we reached the moment to exchange vows, she'd stare at the door, waiting for that man to swoop in and rescue her. She swore she'd only marry me if he crashed the party, claiming it would prove she'd truly chosen me. This time, I couldn't hold back. "If he never shows, are you just gonna keep stringing me along forever?" She shot back, "He still loves me. He'll show up to stop this. Besides, we've been together a decade. Does a ring even matter at this point?"

By day, I'm just another quiet IT analyst. By night, I'm the deadliest mafia in the underground. No one at the office suspects a thing, except Isabella Moretti. She's the flawless manager, always with sharp heels and effortless confidence, who everyone dreams of working with. And the last person they'd ever suspect of being the princess of a powerful assassin clan… who also happens to be my sworn enemy. Every night, the game begins. The rules are simple: kill each other before we get killed. No feelings. No mercy. No mistakes. For a month, we've been locked in a deadly game, with each of us attempting to outsmart the other. Still, neither of us has managed to emerge victorious. But one night, everything changes. On my doorstep lies a baby, wrapped in a blanket. Alone. No note. No explanation. And before we can come up with a reason, a group of armed men appears, targeting neither one of us, but the baby. Men neither of us recognize. Men who don't belong to my world or hers. So, we call a temporary truce. Because even monsters like us aren't heartless enough to let an innocent die. Since then, mornings have been spent as coworkers, pretending we don't want to tear each other apart. Nights are spent trading threats between bottle feedings and fighting off enemies who won't quit. Every other mission I’ve ever taken was easy. One clean kill and done. But nothing has ever prepared me for the most dangerous and unexpected thing I've ever faced… Falling for the woman I swore to destroy.

The day my biological family comes to take me home, a car accident occurs. My parents and the fake son who had been living my life all die, but my sister, Kayla Bennett, survives. She despises me completely after that and blames the company's bankruptcy on me too. Desperate to make amends, I work over ten jobs a day, giving her every cent I earn so she can buy back the villa that has all our family memories. The day I finally save enough money, I discover my supposedly dead parents inside that same villa, celebrating Dylan Bennett's birthday. My usually cold sister is laughing warmly with them. As they bring out the cake, Mom mentions me. "Today's Nathan's birthday too. We've been punishing him for eight years now. Maybe we should bring him home?" Kayla cuts her off immediately. "We agreed on ten years to make sure he never suggests sending Dylan away again. Not one year less!" I clutch my medical report and laugh through my tears. But Kayla, I'm dying.

I was the belle of the school, good grades and all. But I wasn't the nerd they thought I was. I had been secretly dating my adopted brother's sworn enemy for three years. Lucian Palma had a strong desire for intimacy, so I went along with him in unlocking countless places to make love. He promised that he would marry me after graduation. Once he took over the family business from his wealthy father, he would make me the happiest woman alive. I believed him, even indulging him in his kink of recording us sleeping together. Lucian assured me that those videos were for his eyes only, and that no one else would ever see them. But then, I accidentally overheard a conversation between Lucian and his friends. "Lucian, you had deliberately staged a hero saving the damsel in distress situation to make Nina Etienne fall for you, all just to get it back at your archnemesis, Aaron North. If he found out his little sister had been sleeping with you, wouldn't it kill him with rage? "You've filmed hundreds of intimate videos, haven't you? When do you plan to release them? We'd love to see the nerd stripped bare under you." I didn't confront him about this. Instead, I quietly walked away and agreed to meet the fiance my father had arranged for me.

Love is the most complex feeling ever. It gives you joy like you've never had before; it brings you pain like you've never felt before. We follow the tale of a young Cameroonian girl who's world gets intercepted and turned upside down by an Italian foreigner with deep, dark and dangerous secrets. Jasmine "Loving you is so hard it feels like I'm BREAKING LOCKS." Marcelo "But even the most screwed locks still break open, don't they?"

In the two years since we got married, my husband, Kieran Zucker, has pampered me like a princess every day. However, I want to escape from him because he's an extreme control freak. I've been forced to behave exactly like a living doll, and I can't leave his sight for a single second lest he deprive me of dinner. I've run away from him 16 times, but he's accurately predicted my location and dragged me back every time. I've eventually been driven to desperation and slit my wrists in search of liberation. When I next open my eyes, I find that I've actually been reborn back on the day Kieran proposes to me. This time, I resolutely turn him down and decide to escape far from him with his arch-enemy, Scott Quinlan. I assume that I'm finally free of Kieran, but then I discover Scott having a friendly conversation with him…

“Are you trying to punish me? I…I don't know how many times I can apologize even if it wasn't my fault that I almost—” “I never asked you to. You do whatever you want, Niya, and I really don't care. Neither should you bother with what I do.” “You're hurt. You're hurt, Alex, and you're acting out. Don't worry we could talk this through. This isn't you.” I try to reach him again but he shoots me a deadly glare that pierces through my skin like a dagger. “Sure it is. You've just never seen me like this. You don't know what I look like when I'm not in love with you,” his brows grow together. “Now we’ve had enough of your drama. You'll find the papers and enjoy the party or use the fucking door.” He pulls away and my eyes cloud again. My ears and heart find it hard to process what is actually going on. The looks on their faces tell me it is awfully too late—I have already lost everything. “Niya, careful now,” my grandmother slowly tugs at my arm as if that will somehow make everything better. “We have guests. Don’t cause a scene.” A scene? I have literally just seen a whole movie, ma. ************* My name is Niya Kendrick. I’m 25, an author who once believed she had the perfect life. But how quickly can everything I love be stripped away in the blink of an eye? Or worse, what if the life, the family I’ve cherished has always been a blatant lie, a mere fragment of the truth? Now, I’m awake, and reality is far harsher than any dream.

We have been dating for ten years, but Vincent Carter has never been romantic toward me. However, before our wedding, he has someone deliver a delicate bracelet and an elegant dress to me. I take photos of them happily, only to find a card tucked inside the dress that's not addressed to me. Just as I'm about to contact Vincent, I see a post from Emily Foster, his childhood sweetheart, on her social media. "Someone stole something that belongs to me!" That's also how I find out Vincent has also bought her an apartment. The address stated on the card is for the unit downstairs. The gift is meant for unit 701, but it's delivered to me by mistake. I pick up the items and go downstairs, just in time to see Vincent gently comforting her in his arms. The moment he sees me, his face darkens with irritation. "Can you stop overreacting? You're always suspicious for no reason. Emily and I grew up together. If we were going to be together, you wouldn't even be in the picture!" If it were before, I would've been furious and demanded an explanation. But now, I simply let out a chuckle and toss the gifts onto him. "I wish you both the best, then."

“You’re ours, we own you, Feyre and we can do whatever we want with you.” Rafael growled. I swallowed, with nowhere to turn to, I stood there, helpless, with his hot breath grazing my neck, his huge body trapping me while his brothers gazed at me with burning eyes. “I’d rather die than be yours!” ********************* Omega slave Feyre Campbell has had to endure the torment of not just the pack members but also the Alpha quadruplets. Bullied and broken, with just one thing on her mind, escaping the Fenrir mansion, Feyre had no idea that a revelation would change everything and ruin her plans. She’s mated to all four brothers! ‘Goddess forbid I accept them as my mate.’ Her heart was set on never letting the bond between her and the brothers grow because of how horribly they’ve treated her. Ronan, Reid, Rhys and Rafael never would’ve thought that the Omega slave they’ve mistreated so badly would turn out to be their mate. The brothers must now right their wrongs since they all only have one shot at having a mate, they have to make Feyre accept them at all cost. How far are they willing to go to make her theirs? Will Feyre allow herself to be consumed by the flames of their new found bond and the sizzling attraction between them?

“My brother would kill you, Roman. Hell, I shouldn’t even be here!” He moves closer, blocking the exit. “He’s not here, and you’re not telling me to stop, Nikki. So, why don’t we stop lying to each other and admit the truth?" I glare at him. My heart’s slamming against my chest. “Which is what exactly?” A wicked smirk curves his lips. “That we want each other. Always have. No matter how badly we shouldn’t.” *** Ten years ago, I almost kissed the one guy I should’ve stayed away from, my brother’s best friend, Roman Hayes. But then he vanished from our lives and has somehow become the person my brother hates the most. I haven’t seen him in years. The last place I expect to find him is at a high-end gala where I’m meeting potential sponsors for my charity, dressed in a ridiculously expensive suit and reeking of sin—and somehow, he might be the answer to all my prayers. But there’s a catch: I’m not supposed to be anywhere near him, and the moment our eyes lock, I know I’ve made the biggest mistake of my entire life. He’s my brother’s ex-best friend, after all, and there’s a spark between us that’s never been extinguished, and a truth neither of us wants to admit. But some truths are darker than I could have possibly imagined, and some games are too wicked and wild to be entertained. This man might just destroy my life in ways I never saw coming… And the worst part? I’ll enjoy every second of it.