Pocket Billiards

On our fifth wedding anniversary, my husband cancels a 100-million-dollar business deal to take me on vacation. While we're together, breathless and intimate, I'm about to tell him the news that our IVF finally succeeded when he answers his phone. His Valerian flows, smooth and effortless. "Of course I'm coming to tomorrow's prenatal checkup. That's our baby." "But won't your barren wife get jealous?" The woman on the other end speaks with a sultry lilt. Ethan Shaw traces his tongue along my neck as he responds, "What she doesn't know won't hurt her." My mind went blank, like lightning striking too close. I stuff the pregnancy report back into my pocket without thinking. "Honey, who's that?" Ethan pulls me close by the waist. "Just a business partner in Valeria. Time difference, that's why they're calling now..." I can't process the rest of his words. Ethan doesn't know I understand Valerian. Since he's clearly not excited about our child, I'll make sure this baby grows up without him as a father.

"Sign here, I have the divorce papers." Areiza Kensley had just walked in the door when Darren Venzor, her husband, handed her the divorce papers. Areiza felt an unbearable pain in her heart. Still, she tried her best to keep a straight face. She didn't want to look weak in front of this man... Areiza quickly took the paper and fished the pen out of her pocket, but Darren snatched it away. He frowned, "Aren't you going to read the agreement?" Areiza pursed her lips and replied, "No need, I know you must have everything ready for me even if I don't need it." Darren nodded. "That's right, this house is yours as well, including your mother's medical bills, which I'll continue to pay in the future, and I'll make sure you live without any burdens." How thoughtful, Areiza thought sarcastically. She grabbed the paper again and signed it forcefully. Areiza thought that once she signed the divorce papers, she would be able to start her new life without the man Darren Venzor interfering in her life... However... Did Areiza and Darren really go their separate ways after the divorce or... There is something waiting for her...

"Buzz… Buzz…" Alexia's cell phone vibrated as she sniffed then reached out for her phone which was in her side pocket and when she took it out she realized it was an unknown number. She furrowed her eyebrows. "Who in the world is this?" she soliloquized then swiped her thumb across the screen taking the phone to her left ear. "Hello… am I speaking with Alexia Chaney?" A deep male voice came through the phone as Alexia sat upright. "Yes, this Is Alexia Chaney," She clears her throat. "I heard you can play the guitar and I hope you will like a day's job, you will be paid handsomely for it. Are you interested?" said the man again over the phone as Alexia blinked. "Okay, I am interested. What is the occasion and venue?" She asked. "SBE wine corporation will be launching a new wine tomorrow alongside the birthday celebration of the CEO, Richard Robertson, and there will be a night party at his Estate," The man said as Alexia's eyes popped wide open and she parted her lips. She couldn't believe she just accepted an invitation to perform for a man who just wrecked her show. "I will text you the address, first thing in the morning. Get prepared because it is a big party and Richard loves something exceptional," said the man as he hung up.

I'm a nationally certified animal trainer running the Lion King, Caesar's final assessment. I've barely stepped into the enclosure corridor when the steel guillotine door slams down behind me. My wife's laughter crackles over the loudspeaker. "Everyone, we're doing the ultimate challenge today! We're locking the so-called number-one animal trainer in the Lion King's enclosure and taking bets on whether he wets himself in ten minutes!" Caesar crouches low and rumbles a warning. I reach for my tranquilizer gun but stop cold. The liquid isn't the right color. In a phony sing-song voice, the veterinarian, Hugh Archer, says, "Lucian, I forgot to mention, I swapped your tranquilizer darts for pepper spray so you won't hurt Caesar by mistake. "You two are so close. Just win him over with love!" I look at Caesar, his eyes bloodshot from the stimulant, and it clicks. Hugh still resents that I stopped him from touching a tiger with his bare hands a few days ago. I tune out the trash blaring over the loudspeaker, pull a remote from my pocket, and hit the button. It's the master switch for the electric fence gates around every predator enclosure in the zoo. If I don't make it out, no one does.

I spent five years as Dominic Santoro’s wife in name only. Five years hidden behind closed doors, buried under his sheets, erased from his world. When he finally agreed to take me back to Chicago—to stand beside him, to be seen—I thought I had won. I bought a new dress. Soft. Elegant. Worthy of a Don’s woman. The night before we left, he looked at me through the mirror and said calmly, “Take the makeup off. Change into pants.” I asked why. He adjusted his cufflinks like I was nothing more than background noise. “Juliana Lancaster is back. Tonight is our engagement.” Russian Bratva. Lancaster blood. A marriage alliance. Seeing my silence, he laughed—careless, cruel. “What’s with that look? Didn’t we agree on this when we married? Brotherhood. Loyalty. No love.” Then he turned, eyes sharp and mocking. “Victoria Miller… you didn’t actually fall in love with me, did you?” I stood there, frozen. Because inside the inner pocket of his tailored suit— was my pregnancy report. And the Don of Chicago had no idea the woman he was about to sacrifice was carrying his heir.

He’s a single dad with a leather vest and a whole world of secrets. She’s a second-grade teacher who’s about to break all the rules. Deacon "Grim" Miller, the Sergeant-at-Arms of the Ravens MC, has only ever lived by two codes: the one for his club and the one for his daughter, Lily. He’s a man built for battle, a survivor in a world of ruthless rivalries. But at home, he’s just a father trying to give his little girl a normal life… a life she can't have because of the trauma of his past. Amelia Vance is a woman who values order, routine, and safety above all else. When she notices Lily is struggling, she’s determined to help, but the last thing she expects is to meet the child's father… a man whose presence feels like a storm she should run from. Their two worlds should never collide. He’s a danger to her well-ordered life. She’s a threat to the secrets he guards. But when a fire drill triggers Lily's deep-seated trauma and a rival gang's patch shows up in the child's pocket, Deacon is left with a choice: push Amelia away or let her in, risking everything he holds dear. To save the child they both love, they'll have to face the truth and a danger that might tear them apart forever.

Marrying Lucas Darken, son of the wealthiest IT company CEO in the city, was all Taya had dreamed about since their first meeting. But the pride and joy of marrying Lucas turned into a disaster, after Taya discovered the affair Lucas had been hiding. To her surprise, the girl Lucas had been having an affair with was none other than her so called best friend. Damaged, Taya tried hard to cover her unbearable pain, but deep inside, she swore that Lucas would suffer way worse than she did. Being drained mentally and emotionally, Taya eventually decided to leave her bitter life behind, moving away to a small town, hoping for a new adventure all her own. Her journey led to her meeting the attractively secretive Declan Mercer, a man with deep deep pocket, who changed Taya's life completely. Declan helped with her transformation from a meek, soft spoken, heart-broken girl, into a tough, blunt woman. However, as Taya got closer to Declan, she learned that he was in fact the most feared mob boss in history. Further, with Lucas' reappearance and Declan claiming Taya to be his one and only, along with Ella showing up that she dragged Taya through another level of hell, could Taya survive this time?

It was the third anniversary of my registration of a mate bond with Xavier Ashford, the alpha of Shadowcrest Pack. My gift to him was a positive pregnancy test, but his gift to me was a contract terminating our bond as mates. I froze, too distraught to reach out and take it from him. Xavier cleared his throat awkwardly. "A wolf tricked Talia into getting pregnant. A pup born out of mate bond can't get the rights to live in the pack. My plan is to terminate our bond as mates and become mates with Talia for the time being so that her pup can have a legal identity. After she gives birth to her pup, then you and I can become mates again. How does that sound?" He passed me a bond termination contract. It had clearly been prepared a long time ago. He noticed my hesitation and explained gently, "You're my one true love. I'm only helping her as a friend. Even after we split up, I can guarantee that you won't be mistreated." I looked up at him with a smile and stayed silent. Then, I reached into my pocket and felt the pregnancy test under my fingers. The two red lines on the screen were as clear as day.

I had funded Tilly Jenkins for five years—and spent those same five years chasing after her. Just when I thought I had finally won her heart—when I believed she was ready to spend her life with me—I discovered the truth: the one she had loved all along was her childhood sweetheart, the boy who had grown up by her side. I, on the other hand, to her, was nothing more than a privileged elite who used money to grind her pride into the dirt. A few years into our marriage, she secretly transferred my assets away—and even had a child with that childhood sweetheart of hers. In the end, I died filled with resentment, trapped in a raging fire. The flames reflected the sight of the three of them together, smiling like a perfect family, while I cried myself to death in despair. After I was reborn, Tilly's childhood sweetheart shoved me hard, sneering with open contempt. "What do you take us for? Toys for rich people like you?!" I slipped my bank card back into my pocket at once. "Sorry, having money doesn't mean I'm brain-dead. I'm not interested in trashy toys like that."

On my mother’s seventieth birthday party, I ran around handling various matters, paying out of pocket and putting in all the work. I did not even have the time to sit down and drink a sip of water. When I finally found the time to surprise her, I prepared eighty-eight grams of gold jewelry as her gift. Just as I was about to give it to her, I heard her talking to the other relatives. “See that? My daughter is truly my sweetheart. She woke up so early this morning to bake me this cake. I wouldn’t trade this cake for gold.” Our relatives immediately began praising my younger sister, Jessie Radley, for being so devoted. Only a couple of them pushed back. “Why aren’t you praising your eldest daughter, Mary? I heard she handled the entire birthday party.” “Tch. She only knows how to muddle through things. None of it had been done to my liking. Jessie is the good one. She got up at seven in the morning just to bake me this cake.” I turned around and walked away from the doorway. Since she loved Jessie so much, she could pay for this birthday party, worth eighty thousand dollars.