Present Flowers

"Shadows of the Past" is a story about *Natasha Fernandez* (26),the daughter of a billionaire who never enjoyed her childhood due to the loss of her mother and her father's busy schedule. She struggles with health issues and finding true love until she meets *Jamal smith* (29) who rescues her from a robber and becomes her friend, and eventually her husband. Years later, Natasha hires her childhood friend *Imade Martins*(25) a home tutor for her adopted daughter *Tessa* (3). However, Natasha is heartbroken when she discovers Jamal's affair with Imade, and she uses her power to frustrate Imade's business life. Unbeknownst to them all, Jamal is the biological father of Imade's daughter, whom she lost in the hands of a matron to an orphanage some years back. Imade leaves for another city where she falls in love with her boss, Mr. *George Henry,*(34) an influential business tycoon and a single father. Twenty years later, *Roy Henry,* George's son, falls in love with Tessa, Natasha's daughter. However, their love is jeopardized after a family introduction takes place, and complicated truths unravel, putting Tessa's life at stake. The story explores the drama and chaos that ensue as the characters confront their past and navigate their present relationships.

Allison, daughter of Fox City's most powerful gang family, a medical doctor, a passion and dream contrast to her family's life back at home. Her past, a ghost she thought she'd buried, was about to return with a vengeance –colliding with the present life she had built. On her birthday, a letter arrives from her father, Gerald Wenston —a man who has ignored her for years. His words, cloaked in a sweet tone, are not a request, but a command: return home and marry the heir of a rival gang —Michael Shelby, to secure an ancestral peace and rule treaty. But peace is the last thing Allison finds on her return, a single, forbidden night with a stranger —Luke Reynolds, her father’s right-hand man, ignites a dangerous passion that threatens to shatter the fragile truce. Caught between the duty to her family and a love that could ignite a gang war, Allison must navigate a web of family secrets and deadly betrayals. For in the shadows, a rival —her half sister Hayley also vying for Michael's affection, is waiting to claim everything she holds dear, even if it means destroying her and the city she's meant to save. Allison's choices could either save her family or condemn them all to a bloody war.

Meet Amelia, a girl who had no idea that she would be drawn back to the past in order to fix her future. A little girl from California, just wanting to fit in despite the odds around her. When her mother died, she was devastated. There was no other option than to live with her father who as gradually becoming a thorn in her flesh and that eventually led to the circumstances that killed her. As if she has not been through enough and death was the best punishment she could have asked for, she reunites with her mother in a bardo state and instead of her mother allowing them to spend some time together, she decides to send her to another time and age to break a family's curse that she didn't knew existed leaving her with a necklace that can either make or mar her. She has a past she dreads going back, a future she can't envision and worse of all, a present she cannot cope with. So what will she do when she finds herself being reborn in the past and given a chance to save her future and that of the world? Will she back down because she already hates her very own existence or will she fight for the generation yet to be born?

Nathaniel Hemlock was once one of the most feared pirates to ever sail the seas. His endless quest for gold and power claimed many lives but never concerned him since his heart had long hardened. That is until one day that desire took a dark turn. For power and gold he traded not only his own soul but that of his crew. Now he is cursed to sail the seas until the end of time, unless 1000 more souls are given, one a year...all must be children which was one of the only things he would never do. Present day. Lloyd has always scoffed at the legends that bring visitors to his town near the sea, and with the arrival of a movie crew it's gotten worse. Returning home one evening he sees a strange, old fashioned boat docked and curiously decides to board it. A decision he soon regrets. Once onboard he cannot leave. Nathaniel is not best pleased but there is little he can do and decides to use Lloyd as a cabin boy to make himself useful while he continues to search for another way of breaking his curse and freeing his crew. Their lives will soon become more entwined and perhaps Lloyd is the one who can warm the frozen heart.

"Your sister has already been through so much, why can't you let her have this?" "But today was supposed to be my wedding! How can I just stand aside and let her have my mate?" •••••• After four long years, her awaited wedding finally arrives. What Tamara Vladis expected to be a pivotal moment in her life remained so but for all the wrong reasons. Her mate, the future alpha of Crestwood Pack, publicly humiliates her, firmly stating that she cannot be his mate because she is wolfless. In the same breath he shares a deep kiss with her twin, Tiana, declaring her as his luna. Tamara turned to her parents for support, but they had her flimsy excuses, firmly backing the union of her longtime mate and sister. Tamara no longer has a place in Crestwood, she is pressured to leave and accidentally trespasses into Phoenix Dawn territory, the moment she locks eyes with their Alpha her entire world tilts on his axis as the mate bond between them sparks to live. But unfortunately between their families lies a checkered history painted with blood and betrayal. Will this fresh flame that burns them to their core wiping off any rational thought in their heads survive a past fault that birthed present scars? Or will it couple with the overwhelming power awakening within Tamara and consume both of them?

On the night of the Benedetto family's Harvest Festival, my Mafia husband, Salvatore, told me to bring our son, Giuseppe, to the family gathering. He said his madre had finally accepted us into the Benedetto bloodline. I was trembling with excitement in our little cottage as I dressed Giuseppe in his finest little suit. He had carved a single wooden rose by hand, a project he'd saved for over five years. He said he would present it to his grandmother at the celebration, a plea for her to accept our place in the family. But the moment we stepped into the stone manor, I saw Carmela. Salvatore had her pinned against an oak barrel in a deep, searing kiss. In the moonlight, her hand was undoing his tie. In front of everyone, Salvatore smiled and gently pushed her away. He walked toward the family members gathered in a semicircle and raised a crystal glass. "Tonight, in addition to celebrating the harvest, I have an important announcement." "I would like to introduce you all to the woman I have married in the eyes of God and the Church." "Miss Carmela Torrino." Before I could even process his words, Giuseppe tore his hand from mine and rushed forward. "Papa, what are you saying?" "Isn't my mother your wife?"

"Nah, not gonna happen. I don't want to skip work just because of that girl. She's not that important. I will not make her life easier by impregnating her that soon," I said. "Well, bro, it's your choice. Just don't let yourself be head over the heels for Stacey. That'll create a big issue!" Harry said. "That's cliché, man! Do you think I'll let that happen? I'm so busy torturing her physically and mentally. I won't have any more time to think about loving her. I also barely go home," I confidently said. -----. Stacey's life has always been difficult. She is constantly required to present herself in front of the lads in order to encourage them to offer her money or whatever in return for sex. In addition, there will be a fee for each touch to private parts. It's almost as if you had to pay to touch. Fortunately, she was able to flee this realm thanks to Cygnus, her love one. But because of Yul Matthew Servano, everything became blue, and her life became much more confusing than it was before. It was planned for her to marry him. Will they build affections for each other despite the fact that Yul is a womanizer and Stacey is a transitory relationship for guests?

She said, "Fate is nothing but a question which the Deity throws, the answer... is the choices we make..." He looked at the small figure in front of him and said, "What you are saying is known as Destiny, because Fate is something… that you cannot avoid.” .... Yoon Su Yeon is a simple-minded, focused and nerdy girl, living an average life until things suddenly started to change when she meets a doctor who happens to be part of the underworld. Things started to get more complicated when some mysterious people from her past life starts emerging in her present life. They desperately want to change something monumental that happened in the past which left a lasting impact on them. But without any recollection of her past, she doesn't know whether she was even connected to it or not. If she helps them altering that fateful event, what would happen to her current life? . . Excerpt: He was standing in the corner, looking at a girl who was enjoying with her colleagues, for whom he was waiting for more than 4 years. he whispered, "I think it's enough of waiting now, it's time for us to be together. Little Bunny, will you accept me this time?" The cover page is not mine, credit to the owner! I will make a cover page soon!!! No major misunderstanding, no rape but an exciting and mysterious plot!!

Six years ago, I screamed his name in a hotel room—Zayne Harrison, the cold, untouchable CEO whose hatred for women was so intense people whispered he was probably gay. But that night… he wasn’t cold. He wasn’t distant. He was the man who ruined me with pleasure—and the man who unknowingly gave me a child. My name is Anna, a single mother fighting to survive. When I’m hired as a bodyguard for the richest and most feared CEO in the country, the last thing I expect is him. The man from that night. The man who can never know the truth. The man whose security detail I cannot refuse—because the pay is the only thing keeping my daughter alive. Now our dangerous past is colliding with the present: A misogynist CEO with power. A single mother with a secret. A one-night memory he doesn’t remember… And a child he must never find out about. But working beside him means one thing— I can hide my identity… I can hide my past… But I can’t hide the way he makes me feel all over again. And this time, if he discovers the truth… It won’t just be my heart on the line. It’ll be my daughter’s life.

Detective Clea McEnery takes on a case which requires her to move to a countryside town to spy on a drug Cartel's activities. There, she's thrown into a chaotic world of supernatural beings and swept up in a whirlwind romance with an alpha who hates his werewolf identity. — A thousand years ago, in the town of Ohalo, a witch, desperate to save humans from the ravages of supernatural beings, made a deal with the devil and became a powerful demon. With her power, she killed the man she loved and pursued the creatures to a parallel dimension, then sealed them off with a portal. Then she disappeared afterwards. Fast forward to the present day. Clea McEnery takes on a case which requires her to move to Ohalo to spy on a drug Cartel's activities. There, she encounters Tyler Forrest, her high school sweetheart. Together again, it doesn't take long for enormous sparks to fly between them. But as their passionate romance grows, so does her attraction to the Town-outcast. She met him on her arrival, and he stared right into her soul. Like it belonged to him. And with how frequently she kept finding herself naked in his arms no matter how hard she tried to stay away, Clea was starting to realise that maybe she did belong to him. In ways she couldn't understand.