Puzzle Piece

To snatch a limited-edition piece of jewelry for his mistress, my blind brother was shoved down a flight of stairs. Ethan Sterling, one of the best surgeons in the country, refused to enter the operating room — all because of a tiny cut on his precious sweetheart's finger. He forged a forensic report and bought Daniel's life for a mere fifty thousand dollars. Even my own daughter turned against me: "You're a liar! Aunt Vivian is the best person in the whole world!" Later, in front of everyone, I stepped off the third-floor terrace and plunged into the void. Ethan Sterling lost his mind. He knelt by the river for three days and three nights, clawing his fingers raw against the stone. A year later, desperate to save his daughter from going blind, he knelt in a downpour begging that mysterious, world-renowned surgeon. I stood there holding my umbrella, utterly unmoved. "I'm afraid you have the wrong person, Mr. Sterling. Miss Holloway died a year ago." "I'm Mrs. Ashford. I'm here to acquire Sterling Medical."

Videl Walker gave a man everything and was repaid with betrayal. For three years, she stood behind Eric Walker, quietly saving his collapsing empire, lifting him into power while the world crowned him a billionaire. In return, he cheated, discarded her, and erased her existence as if she had meant nothing. He thought she was weak. He was wrong. Videl is not just a discarded wife. She is a trained leader, raised in blood and discipline, forged by loss long before Eric ever entered her life. Eight years ago, her parents were murdered, her homeland Goma Island was sealed from the world, and revenge became the only thing keeping her alive. Now she is back. Eric Walker’s success was built on her sacrifice, and she intends to reclaim everything, piece by piece. But Eric is only the beginning. Beyond him lies a greater enemy, a locked island, and a debt written in blood. Videl is done being silent. Done being merciful. Done being invisible. This time, she will not beg. She will not forgive. She will destroy.

Twice in One Life follows the story of Celine Hayes, a once-powerful businesswoman whose life is cut short by a betrayal orchestrated by the people closest to her. A year after her death, Celine returns as a ghost, unable to move on until she finds justice. She crosses paths with Ònààrà, a modern-day shaman, and discovers Evelyn, a woman who unknowingly serves as the perfect vessel for Celine’s spirit. With Ònààrà’s reluctant help, Celine possesses Evelyn and begins to piece together the events that led to her murder. She returns to the life she left behind, re-entering the world under the guise of Evelyn, and plans to marry her former fiancé, Darren. But as truths begin to unravel, Celine learns of Darren’s inappropriate relationship with his sister and the deep-rooted hatred that led to her death. As her connection to Evelyn begins to blur, and her desire for revenge intensifies, Celine is faced with a painful reality: to find peace, she may have to sacrifice the last shred of her humanity or risk dragging another innocent soul into her tragic fate.

I used to be the most promising composer of my generation. But while I was working on my latest piece, my husband Charles Lambert's childhood friend destroyed everything I had. She slashed my face, stole my compositions, and set fire to my house—leaving me to burn alive alongside the kitten I'd just adopted. Then, as if my death were just a spark for her success, she posted my compositions online, claiming I'd plagiarized her. And people believed her. Everyone did. Strangers on the internet sneered and spat my name, and my own husband, Charles, chose to believe her over me. Even the International Musical Society rescinded my award and handed it to her without a second thought. My students, who once followed me loyally, were now fawning over her. I became the laughingstock of the entire internet—mocked, discredited, erased. It wasn't until a week later, when someone stumbled upon the charred remains of my lakeside studio, that they found what was left of me.

"I didn't ask for your help, you piece of , so you can keep your arrogant remarks to yourself." I snapped back, not liking the stranger's approach. "What did you just call me?" He demanded, halting. His voice sounded like the thunder that made the ground underneath my feet quake. At this moment I knew I had overstepped my boundaries. **** Jaclyn Tarr had not lived a normal life ever since she was a child. She was born on the night of the Wild South fire and for some bizarre reason, a golden fire symbol existed on the skin right above her heart. This, coupled with the mysteries surrounding her birth, made her the abnormal one as a child. And even now at nineteen, she was still labelled the abnormal one due to her dormant werewolf gene. Her life, however, changes when Alpha Dane Vixon walked into her life and she fell in love with him, but little did she know the alpha wasn't who she thought he was and the love she felt for him would be the death of her.

The princess of Oberlin City scorns the poor, and I'm the biggest thorn in her side—I live in squalor but am specially admitted by a prestigious college meant for the rich. "What right does a peasant like you have to study at the same college as me?" Nails appear on my seat, and the shampoo in my bathroom is switched to glue. Chantelle Gorman even daringly tries to ram me over at the campus entrance—all because I'm a poor young woman from the countryside. To survive, I set my sights on her father, a perfect gentleman. He's a domineering CEO who's never had a shortage of women in his life. It's too bad he has no other children besides Chantelle. Chantelle thinks I'm a piece of trash who'll get kicked to the curb after a night of pleasure, but she doesn't know how easily the women in my family conceive. I give birth to seven sons and a daughter for the domineering CEO. How can Chantelle possibly go up against me and my eight children?

Emily is the adopted daughter of a billionaire family. They adopted her after the loss of their own daughter in a bid to comfort themselves. However, when she was twenty one, the original daughter of her adopted parents came back and after the DNA tests proved that she was their child, their joy knew no bounds as they began to celebrate her. Emily's fiance, Louis acted as a source of comfort to her around this time because her parents neglected her, providing their attention to their daughter instead. They were set to get married in two months but that was until she saw a post on a blog, stating that her sister and her fiance Louis, were getting married. She had an accident and nearly died but none of her family members showed up, leading her to believe that indeed they had lost all touch of love for her. She gets home to find a piece of condom in the trashcan, suggesting that her fiance has been busy while she was in the hospital. She confronted him, telling him if what she saw on the blogs were true and he finally admitted to it, saying he loved her sister more than her and he would be getting married to her.

The day I went to try on my wedding suit, a stranger stormed into the VIP fitting room and drove a knife into my gut. "Sleeping with my woman, and you dare wear a suit this expensive?" He ripped my shirt into ribbons with a wild grin and threw sulfuric acid straight at me. The knife was buried deep in my abdomen. Pain ripped through me as I collapsed. He yanked my hair, forcing my head up. "Susan Lefebvre is my wife. What the hell are you? Just some filthy side piece hiding in the shadows!" Blood dripped from my fingertips as the truth sank in. The fiancée I'd loved for seven years had been cheating on me all along. "What are you staring at?" He sneered. "Even if I kill you, no one can touch me. My wife runs this city!" Watching that arrogant face twist in triumph, I took out my phone with a trembling, blood-soaked hand and dialed my sister. "Allison," I said, my voice cold and calm. "Come pick me up at the bridal salon. And tell the Lefebvres that the engagement is off."

　　When my husband’s brother died in a gang war, Luca came forward to “take responsibility” for his widowed sister-in-law, Sophia, and her son. 　　He used his connections to move Sophia’s son into a top-tier private academy while pushing my son down into the slum streets. He described it as "essential grit for a Mafia heir." He purchased Sophia a penthouse and a million-dollar car, yet stopped the support money meant for our child and me. 　　My son died in the street, beaten to death by some worthless thugs over a piece of rotten bread. As for me? My head was smashed in a back alley by a drug addict searching for the last ten bucks in my pocket. 　　Only when my spirit left my body did I see the truth: Sophia had controlled everything the entire time. 　　Then, I opened my eyes. I was back. One day before the wedding. 　　I did not lose even a moment. I called off the wedding with Luca and dialed his uncle, Vincenzo. If Luca wanted Sophia that much, fine. This time, I would give them exactly what they desired.

Groupie: a person, especially a young woman, who regularly follows a celebrity in the hope of meeting or getting to know them.See example Tiffany Wendel: Whore. Slut. Cleat Chaser. I’m used to the names so they don’t bother me. So what if I like to have dirty sex? My body is no one’s business but mine.Why is Rowen Flanigan making me re-think how I live my life? He’s only a rookie.rookie: a member of an athletic team in his first full season in that sport.See example Rowen Flanigan:Player. Son of a legend. Rookie.Sure, I’d heard the stories of the groupies. I’ve just been more sheltered than my teammates. I didn’t expect her to be smart. Witty. Kind. She brings me to my knees in every way.So how did I end up falling for a groupie? And how is this going to work when everyone at my job has had a piece of the one thing I haven’t?Contains explicit content and is recommended for readers ages 18+.Groupie is created by M.E. Carter, an eGlobal CreativePublishing Signed Author.