Pride In The Pews

Billionaire heir Alexander Sterling is tired of his mother’s relentless matchmaking with spoiled socialites. In a desperate move to escape, he proposes a contract marriage to Elena Carter, a struggling waitress he met on a drunken night at a restaurant. She sees it as a golden ticket to cover her mom's medical bills, unaware she’s stepping into a life of cold indifference and relentless torment. Bound for three years, their marriage is filled with icy glares and unspoken pain. But in their second year, a mistake leads to an unexpected pregnancy. Fearful of his wrath and threats of Eleanor, Elena hides the truth, enduring his cruelty in silence. As time passes, Alexander begins to feel something he never expected. But pride keeps him from showing it. On the verge of the third year, unable to bear the suffering any longer, Elena disappears, presumed dead. Devastated, Alexander is haunted by regret, not knowing she has survived and given birth to their twins. Years later, fate brings them back together this time, as equals. Wealthy. Independent. A mother of two. Elena is no longer the fragile woman he once controlled. But their reunion is complicated by the arrival of Matteo De Luca, a ruthless Italian billionaire with a vendetta against Alexander and an interest in Elena. With enemies on all sides and unresolved emotions between them, will love conquer all? Or will the past destroy any chance of redemption?

"You know what they say about a person like you?" He hissed in my ear, his hot breath fanning my neck when he opened his mouth to speak. His grey eyes returned back to mine filled with wrath and displeasure as they bore into mine. "Curiosity killed the cat." He says in a whisper his voice laced with the threat lingering around me in the form of his addictive scent and my feets itched to get away from him for the sake of my life, but only if I could. *** Lorenzo Ace Russo, don of Italy is the perfect definition for ruthless, merciless, cruel and what they call a monster. He holds pride in taking the life of people to his convenience. His hands are stained with the blood of hundred of people and the number of sin he has committed in his life till now would put even hell to shame. Iris Grace Emerson never knew what she was getting herself into when she followed the scream of a man and found him getting murdered by the monster. Iris couldn't keep her mouth shut when the piercing scream of her classmate hit her ear one last time. And, Lorenzo couldn't risk leaving evidence behind when the FBI is so keen on getting him behind the bars. So, there was only one option, kill the cat.. Happy Reading.

Reader discretion advised. Adults 18+ only. Alisa Verene was the stain on her family's name—the illegitimate daughter of House Verene, forever living in the shadow of her perfect half-sister. No matter how hard she tried, no matter how much of herself she gave, she was never enough. Love, praise, and pride were reserved for Naomi. Until him. Victor Ravencroft, the second son of a powerful house, saw her—cherished her—and for the first time in her life, Alisa believed she could be wanted. Loved. But love, too, was a lie. Naomi destroyed her marriage with a single revelation: she was carrying Victor’s child. The affair hadn’t started after the wedding—it had never ended. Alisa had been nothing more than a pawn, a convenient gateway to the woman Victor truly desired. He married her not out of love, but proximity. A sister’s castoff. A wife in name only. Shattered, humiliated, and burned by betrayal, Alisa refused to fall quietly. She demanded a divorce—and with vengeance in her veins, she did the unthinkable. She turned to Leo Ravencroft, Victor’s older brother, the cold and untouchable heir. And with steady eyes and a broken heart, she asked him for a favor that would set the entire Ravencroft name ablaze: A fake marriage. A lie to rival the one that ruined her.

*They called her collateral damage.*
*He made her his favorite weapon.* Lauren McQueen had a plan. A life. A love story. Until her boyfriend of three years shattered it with a smile and a promotion—dumping her days before Christmas and branding her a “liability.” Worse? He’s now engaged to her coworker. Rosette Goldberg. The office queen. The venom in Valentino. Humiliation tastes worse with champagne. So Lauren does what any woman with pride and a pulse would do—she lies. And in walks Alexandro “Lex” Castello. Trillionaire. Sin in a tailored suit. The kind of man who doesn’t just walk into your story—he rewrites it. He agrees to play her boyfriend for one night. Except with Lex, nothing is ever just one night. The lie spirals. The spark ignites. And soon, Lauren is drowning in a world of secrets, power, and seduction she never asked to enter—but can’t find her way out of. Because Lex Castello doesn’t pretend. He possesses.
And what started as revenge may end in obsession. He’s not her date.
He’s her reckoning. 
And she’s about to find out that the worst thing wasn’t losing her boyfriend…it’s trusting the wrong devil.

BOOK #5 Wright-Petrov Series Nursing her broken heart and crushed pride, Abigail Marie Fuentebella Sandoval boldly gatecrashed her ex-fiance's engagement party. As she stood in the corner of the massive hall, she gritted her teeth in pure contempt while witnessing his betrayal. Worst, they looked so happy together. To assuage the searing pain drilling her chest, she drowned her sorrows in several glasses of champagne. Her boyfriend of eight years fathers her scheming stepsister's unborn child. Seeking retribution, she impulsively hooked up with a striking man from the crowd, convinced he was someone of importance. However, she was cruelly ridiculed after discovering he was a pauper, not the prince she had hoped for. She faced immense mockery for presumably "downgrading" from her wealthy ex-fiance, Justin Del Castillo, the President of F&D Group of Companies, to a struggling man who couldn't even afford to take her on a date at her family-owned luxurious hotel. Unbeknownst to everyone, especially to Abigail, she was not mistaken that night. The man she chose was not a mere millionaire, but a BILLIONAIRE. The shrewd business tycoon, CEO Lucas Alexander Montes Wright, the cherished firstborn of the world's richest family and the eldest heir of the Petrov Mafia.

I was Rebecca, mate to Gavin Clarke, Alpha of the Ironpelt Pack—the strongest among the northern werewolf packs. Gavin was a once-in-a-century business genius, his trade networks expanding across a dozen northern packs, making his pack a successful business empire. He'd claimed me for four years. We stood together, awaiting our bonding ceremony... until his childhood sweetheart Vivian returned. The moment I saw them reunite, the truth shattered me: What I'd believed was love had only ever been my own delusion. His eyes held only her. I'd just been... convenient. At least he'd never marked me. No mate bond, just cold paperwork from the Pack Council. That made things simpler. So I crafted my revenge—disguised the Mate Bond Dissolution Agreement as a routine university permission slip. When his pen touched that paper, our bond dissolved in the stroke of an inkwell. He never realized what he'd truly lost that day: Not just a mate. But the future heir to the Ironpelt legacy. Now he hunts me across continents. Is it love? Or the pup? Or just an alpha's pride, burning because I made him dissolve the mate bond without even realizing he'd been outplayed?

Perpekto ang buhay ni Celestine—o iyon ang akala niya. Bilang tagapagmana ng isang kilalang fashion empire, mayaman, sikat, at malaya siya… hanggang sa biglang bumaliktad ang lahat. Pinagpakasal siya kay Enzo, isang misteryosong bilyonaryong Formula 1 driver, at bigla siyang napasama sa buhay ng isang lalaking halos hindi pa niya kilala. Ang inaasahang pormal at maayos na kasal ay nauwi sa isang nakakaalab na laro ng pagnanasa, selos, at init ng damdamin. Nang isama siya ni Enzo sa kanyang high-octane na mundo ng karera, lalong tumindi ang tensyon: may mga karibal na nanliligaw, may panganib sa paligid, at unti-unting lumalabas ang possessive at obsessive na side ni Enzo—hindi siya nahihiya ipakita sa lahat na siya ay pag-aari niya. Sa pagitan ng kanyang pride, takot, at hindi mapigilang atraksyon, kailangan ni Celestine na harapin ang lalaking gustong makuha ang lahat… pati ang kanyang puso. Mapapapayag kaya si Celestine sa bilyonaryong nag-aangkin sa kanya, o hahayaan ba ng mabilis at mapanganib na mundo ng yaman, selos, at pagnanasa na sila’y maghiwalay?

“I, Jane Williams, reject you, Alpha Keegan Gray, as my mate, forever.” I uttered the words I knew I was going to regret for life.  “How dare you?!” He spoke through gritted teeth, storming towards me. ~~~ “I promise to make your life a living hell. You can’t escape my wrath for ruining my pride. My presence will make you wish you were dead…” *** Alpha Keegan Gray is the cruelest, arrogant, and most feared werewolf that ever lives, controlling the strongest and most powerful pack. Being an Omega in such a pack, Jane's life is a torment, bullied and abused by every member of the pack due to her wolflessness and weakness. When she finds out the Alpha is her mate, she knows he's going to reject her, so she rejects him to avoid more pain to her poor life. Alpha Keegan is angered that his pride has been shamed by an ordinary omega's rejection. He vows to punish her in ways no one will ever forget… Will his punishment destroy Jane’s life even further or will the mate bond make him fall in love with her? What if this useless omega's deepest darkest secrets can ruin the entire pack and she’s only out for revenge?      

My mother-in-law’s final wish was simple—she wanted one last trip to Hawaii, to bask in the warmth of the sun before her time ran out. But her son, Vincent, didn’t see it that way. He thought I was manipulating her, using her as an excuse to drag him on a vacation he didn’t want. So, out of spite, he refused to grant her dying wish. I begged him. Pleaded. Swallowed my pride and all the hurt his accusations brought. After relentless persuasion, he finally relented. I thought, at last, I could give Lucy the happiness she deserved. But on the day we were set to leave, Vincent was nowhere to be found. And that same day, Lucy suffered a heart attack. She passed away with only me by her side—never getting to feel the warmth of the sun on her skin one last time. And then I saw it. A picture. Vincent, tagged at a luxury resort with his ex. The caption from her read: Thank you for abandoning your job to take me on this trip. You’re the best. I didn’t scream. I didn’t cry. I didn’t even confront him. I just packed my bags and left. And this time? Vincent found out about the truth and begged me to stay.

**This is unedited version, pls read new EDITED VERSION that named Chasing Feyre: Cold Alpha's Beta Mate, pls moved to a new link, reading Chasing Feyre: Cold Alpha's Beta Mate** “Not everyone is desperate for your attention, alpha.” I say the title with a mocking lilt, knowing it would set him off. It did. “Reject me if you don’t want me, I don’t care.” “I, Alpha Zade of the Darkmoon pack, reject you as my mate.” ****** Feyre has been trying to solve the mystery of her parents death. As the beta of the Midnight pack, she rarely has time. When she finds her mate, the insufferable alpha that is too arrogant, over confident and worst of all, refuses to acknowledge her. She plans to leave the pack and forget she has ever met him after she dares him to reject her and he does. What will she do when his father comes with a tempting offer? He’ll give her the one thing she has ever wanted, in exchange for her to stay with his son for a month and give him an heir. It is a battle of pride, arrogance and ego. Love is put to the test when they are both determined and too stubborn to let something like love change their minds.