Pov Omniscient

On our Christmas break road trip, my cousin Felix Lloyd spotted some high-powered speakers at a highway rest stop. He had to have them—said he wanted to "blast it." "It's Christmas. We finally get to see everyone! We need some vibe!" My wife, Lana Ramsey, smiled and helped him pay. "Young people have energy. They know how to enjoy life." I yanked the power cord out. "Those aren't for regular cars. This is an EV. Overload it, and the whole system fries. Then what—just stuck in the middle of nowhere?" Lana's parents, Vincent and Donelia, booed me, calling me a buzzkill. Felix cranked the volume all the way up. Lana glared at me. "Say one more word and get out. I'll drive." Later, the speakers fried the battery system. We were stranded in total darkness on a rough mountain road. They finished the last of the food, then shoved me out to "go find help." I slipped, rolled down the slope, and died. When I opened my eyes, I was back—right when Felix jammed the speaker plug into the charging port. I grabbed a few more subwoofers and handed them over. "One isn't enough. Add more. That's how you really crank it."

Sold out for the betterment of the family, she was forced to marry him. A man thrice her age. Just when she thought the worst had happened, she found out Lawson never married her for any wifey duties but to seduce his son. Jayden is dangerous. Cold. Ruthless. He is everything Lawson isn’t anymore. Amelia was meant to distract him, manipulate him, and break him from the inside. She was never meant to feel desires, never meant to crave his touch, never meant to fall in love but fate took a different turn. Caught between a husband who owns her life and his son who sees through her lies, Amelia must decide how far she’s willing to go to protect herself and how much of her soul she’s willing to lose. Because in a house ruled by power. Betrayal is like a medicine and love is the deadliest mistake of all.

“Ya, mencintai itu memang butuh ketulusan, kesabaran, juga pengorbanan,” jerit batin Raditya Pambudi. “Tapi, ketulusan, kesabaran, serta pengorbanan seperti apa lagi yang harus aku persembahkan kepada seorang istri yang tidak memberikan hal yang sama terhadap diriku, suaminya? Memang, aku nyaris tak pernah diperlakukan selayaknya seorang suami oleh wanita yang aku nikahi dan cintai itu. Di kala aku berusaha membahagiakannya dengan segenap jiwa dan ikhtiarku, dia malah dengan tanpa merasa berdosa justru menganggapku bukan siapa-siapa dalam kehidupannya. Walau berat dan seolah hidup dalam neraka, tapi aku mencoba bertahan, bersabar, dan tanpa lelah berdoa, semoga kelak ia menjadi istri terbaik dan calon bidadari syurga bagi aku dan anak-anaknya kelak, seperti yang kuimpi-impikan dahulu.” ***

**“— One year! A damn year being your wife without ever being anything to you! — I spat the words, holding back my tears with clenched teeth. — And now you think you can just… keep existing in my life? Ace looked at me with that calmness of someone who had always won without needing to fight. But this time, it wouldn’t be like that. — I never stopped you from leaving, Luna. You’re the one who kept waiting for something I never promised. — I stayed because I thought that… maybe you would see me. That at some point I’d stop being just your obligation. But it doesn’t matter anymore, I’m finally managing to forget you. He stepped closer until his warmth brushed against my body. — Then why do you still tremble when I come near? — Because you scare me… — I whispered weakly. — Is that it? Is that really it? Or is it because you know that if I touched you even once… — his voice dropped lower, hot and provoking — …you’d never be able to walk away again.” Luna Bexter had loved Ace Montesino for a long time. She thought she was lucky to become his wife in a marriage of convenience, but after the one-year term ended, Luna grew tired of waiting for Ace’s feelings to change and decided to leave. Is it truly possible for them to go their separate ways?**

"How can you say that about me, Nathan? I never had a kid!" Aaron Fuller protests. My wife, Jenny Green, stands protectively in front of him. "That's enough! You can't slander Aaron just because you're jealous of him. Just you wait, Nathan. I haven't settled the score with you for calling Aaron this afternoon and insulting him!"

Mia James needs a lifeline—fast. Accused of stealing company funds, she’s on the brink of losing her job when billionaire Adrian Knight offers her an unexpected way out: a contract marriage. Marrying him will clear her reputation, and for Adrian, it means silencing rumors, handling the press on his terms and fulfilling his grandfather's last wishes. It’s strictly business... or so they both say. Their plan seems simple enough: smile for the cameras, keep the story airtight, and definitely don’t fall for each other. But when Mia’s furious ex crashes their first press conference, she's forced to get closer to Adrian than she'd ever imagined. Suddenly, staged kisses feel dangerously real, and “pretending” becomes harder with every look they share. Now, Mia’s balancing a fake marriage, a very real connection with Adrian, and the risk of her entire world unraveling. With secrets on both sides and her heart on the line, can she keep her cool—or will they both get swept up in the game they started? In this rollercoaster of passion, scandal, and deception, Mia and Adrian are about to learn that in love and life, nothing ever goes exactly as planned.

"Ouch, ang sakit ng ulo ko," daing ko habang hawak ito. Para itong binibiyak sa sobrang sakit. Dahan-dahan akong nagmulat ng mata at umupo. "Teka, nasaan ako?" Ang huli kong natatandaan ay nasa bar ako at nagpapakalasing upang makalimot. Niloko kasi ako ng long time boyfriend ko pagkatapos ng tatlong taon naming relasyon. At para panandalian makalimutan ang sakit ay nagpasya akong magpunta sa bar para aliwin ang sarili ko. Napasinghap ako sa gulat ng mapagtanto ko na wala akong saplot. "Bakit nakahubad ako?!" Bulalas ko habang kipkip ang katawan ko ng kumot. Wala akong suot na bra, kahit panty ay wala, ang nakakabahala ay masakit pa ang gitna ko... palatandaan na may nangyari na hindi dapat. Nanigas ako ng maramdaman na may gumalaw sa tabi ko. "Oh no..." Ayokong lumingon dahil kinakabahan ako. Pero kailangan kong kumirmahin ang hinala ko, kaya dahan-dahan akong lumingon. Umawang ang labi ko sa gulat ng makita ang huling tao na naisip kong makikita ko. S-si Sir Elijah, ang CEO at boss ko! May nangyari sa aming dalawa! Ang unexpected sex naming dalawa ay nauwi sa kontrata ng kasal at sa loob ng isang taon ay pag aari niya ako.

Noah Hawkins is the broken brother. The one with the dangerous smile and the kind of eyes that promise sin. He's the one who's always having episodes and has been termed bipolar. He's the bad boy with a history and a mean streak of breaking girls' hearts. He maims, destroys and breaks everything he touches. – Isabella's scholarship to college comes with a price... no dorm, no place to stay. And the only spare room belongs to her boyfriend's brother. Noah. He's not supposed to want her. She's not supposed to want him. He tells himself he'll stay away. Until he doesn't. Because Noah's never been the kind to ask permission. And when he decides he wants something... He doesn't stop until it's his. Even if claiming her means breaking everything in his path... including her heart.

Shaun never expected his enemy to steal more than his pride. Nathan the arrogant, dangerous senior has a habit of taking what he wants. One drunken night. One impulsive kiss. Shaun kissed him just to mess with him. That was the plan. Nothing more. But Nathan… Nathan didn’t take it lightly. One impulsive kiss, and suddenly, Nathan was possessive, infuriating, and impossibly irresistible. Shaun thought it was just a game until Nathan’s teasing touches, daring glances, and relentless attention made it impossible to ignore. Enemies? Maybe. Teasing rivals? Definitely. But the line between hate and desire is thinner than Shaun ever imagined…

"A book to rival TWILIGHT and VAMPIRE DIARIES, and one that will have you wanting to keep reading until the very last page! If you are into adventure, love and vampires this book is the one for you!"
--Vampirebooksite.com (Turned)

CRAVED is Book #10 in the #1 Bestselling series THE VAMPIRE JOURNALS, which begins with Book #1, TURNED!

In CRAVED, 16 year old Scarlet Paine struggles to find out exactly what she’s becoming. Her erratic behavior has alienated her new boyfriend, Blake, and she struggles to make amends, and to make him understand. But the problem is, she can barely understand herself what’s happening to her.

At the same time, the new boy in school, the mysterious Sage, comes into her life. Their paths keep intertwining, and although she tries to avoid it, he directly pursues her, despite the objections of her best friend, Maria, who has her own eyes set on Sage. Scarlet finds herself swept away by Sage, who takes her into his world, past the gates of his family’s historic river mansion. As their relationship deepens, she begins to learn more about his mysterious past, his family, and the secrets he must hold. They spend the most romantic time she can imagine, on a secluded island in the Hudson, and she is convinced she has found the true love of her life.

But then she is devastated to learn Sage’s biggest secret of all: he is not human, either, and he has only a few weeks left to live. Tragically, just at the moment when destiny has brought her greatest love, it also seems fated to tear them apart.

As Scarlet returns to the high school parties leading up to the big dance, she ends up in a huge falling-out with her friends, who excommunicate her from their group. At the same time, Vivian rounds up the popular girls to make her life hell, leading to an unavoidable confrontation. Scarlet’s forced to sneak out, making matters worse with her parents, and soon finds pressure building from all sides. The only light in her life is Sage. But he is still holding back some of his secrets, and Blake resurfaces, determined to pursue her.

Caitlin, meanwhile, is determined to find a way to reverse Scarlet’s vampirism. What she finds leads her on a journey to find the antidote, deep into the darkest corners of rare libraries and bookstores—and to an ancient discovery she can hardly imagine.

But it may be too late. Scarlet is changing rapidly, barely able to control what she’s becoming. She wants to be with Sage—but fate seems set on tearing them apart. As the book culminates in an action-packed and shocking twist, Scarlet will be left with a monumental choice—one that will change the world forever. How much is she willing to risk for love?