Ridiculous

Once upon a time, the world was balanced and peaceful, thanks to its protectors of nature, the Amazons, a unique breed of werewolves that existed solely to protect and maintain the balance of the natural world. But they fell victim to the seduction of greed and power, ultimately leading to the Tribe’s downfall, shattering the balance and laws of nature with it. This gave rise to the Council and its insatiable greed, depravity, and power-hungry behaviors, creating a further imbalance in the world, with she-wolves, once revered and respected, slowly dying out due to their enslaved existence. Still, some refuse to go down without a fight, clinging to the hope and rumor that a powerful she-wolf, their Savior, will rise and save them. Corinna Woods is the naive and kind-hearted Luna of the Dark Shadow pack and chosen mate of Xander Woods, but after years of horror, she runs. Years later, she’s changed into a broken, paranoid, reckless single mother unable to escape her pain. When she discovers her mate, she is petrified and refuses to accept, having vowed never to allow a man that kind of power over her again. Wyatt Campbell is a powerful Alpha who believes in the old ways of fated mate bonds and thinks the council's laws are ridiculous and degrading, refusing to follow them within his pack. When he finds his mate, he is shocked not only to find her after years of searching, but also when she rejects him. Can he prove to his mate that he is not like the others? Can their fated mate bond, along with the support of their allies, change the ways and restore the much-needed balance to the werewolf world before they become extinct?

Three years after Alpha King Damien Caldwell marks me, Drake Whitaker finally remembers I exist. Turns out he really believes I'll "wait for him forever." Twenty black SUVs clog the private road into Ridgefield pack territory, trunks crammed with moonstone jewelry, old talismans, and rare herbs. Drake steps out of the tricked-out Hummer, wearing a smug smile and clutching a stack of parchment contracts. "Aria," he calls up, like some medieval knight, "I told you once the Silvermoon Coalition was official and Kenneth's supply lines were stable, I'd bring you to my pack. "The High Council finalized five packs yesterday. I came first thing this morning to show you I mean it." I sit in the upstairs study, watching a video Damien just sent of him playing with our son, then glance through the blinds at the ridiculous scene unfolding below. Drake lifts his face toward the second floor. "I know you're upset, but Kenneth controls the biggest timber in the Eastvale region. I had to mark Isabella. It was politics. You get that. Feelings don't need a mark anyway. I'll treat you better than a Luna." His words made my skin crawl. I pressed the intercom button on the desk. "Clear the drive. Tell security someone's trespassing." What a day! I've just taken my son to the medical center for his one-month checkup. Damien sends me back to Ridgefield pack for a week to rest. Instead, I get this mess on my doorstep.

Everyone in the pack knows Marcus has loved me for a decade—that I'm his destined mate. He's devastatingly handsome and brilliant, the youngest and most gifted pack healer we've ever had, with she-wolves practically throwing themselves at his feet. Yet this alpha prince has eyes only for me. But when I was nearly assaulted by a rapist, Marcus signed a settlement agreement on my behalf and issued a psychiatric diagnosis, condemning me to a mental institution. Inside the institution, I was attacked by the truly insane—they tore at my hair with clawed fingers and kicked my stomach until I couldn't breathe. Meanwhile, he held the rapist's sister Victoria close and told me: "Emma, I'll take care of you. I'll compensate you when you get out, but Victoria has severe depression. She can't handle her brother getting in trouble." Even more ridiculous—when I begged him to let me see my suicidal sister one last time, he was honeymooning with that woman in Iceland, hanging up on my eighty-nine calls. The day my sister died, I coughed up blood in that mental hospital. Three years later, he came to get me, saying he still wanted to bring me home as his mate. Looking at his careful demeanor, I suddenly laughed. Marcus, do you know? No matter how high the mental hospital walls are, they can't stop someone who's crawled back from hell for revenge. What you owe me, what you owe my sister—I'll collect it all with interest, using what you care about most.

“Nate, don't you dare start with that nonsense too. I told you already, I don't care about those ridiculous traditions." Marcel responded irritably as she hopped into the copilot seat of her best friend's car, anxious to get as far away as possible from her home. “Hey, I've known you since you were four, so don't try and act all brave and mature. Tell me the truth, you're afraid aren't you?” “Humph! What's there to be scared of?...” “That Mike's ghost might come back to haunt you." The boy interrupted, carelessly blurting out his analysis, adding…“I just don't get it; everyone else knows his death wasn't your fault…” “I know it wasn't!” “Then why won't you pray for his safe journey into the afterlife? What if his soul is damn to roam the earth, wreaking havoc among the living or even disrupting the balance between the two worlds?” “Ahh! Don't be childish. There is no such thing as the afterlife; parents just use these pathetic excuses to trick their children into believing that our loved ones are better off. If that was the case, why don't we all join them… oh yeah, that's right, we can't commit suicide otherwise we'll go straight to hell. Grow up Nate! The spirit dies with the body.” Follow the journey of a young woman as she tries to keep her sanity when the world around her was quickly crumbling after one faithful night of honoring the dead. Will she be able to save the life of those closest to her? or will her soul be bound to an eternity of madness?

Ever since I was little, I knew my future mate would be one of two Alpha candidates: Mitchell or Jax. Even with all their Alpha pride, I never once doubted that set future. The pack elders always said it was natural for Alpha candidates to focus on getting stronger and controlling the pack. My mother, Lyra, even told me that every brutal fight they got into was so the winner could give me, their Luna, the ultimate honor. That is, until I and Elara – this Omega stray they'd taken in – got ambushed and captured by our old enemies, the Nightshade pack. Mitchell and Jax only had enough of the life-saving Moonpetal herb for one of us. And they both chose to give it to Elara. To save myself in that fire, I forced a shift. The power surge was too much. The heat twisted my cheekbone, and just like that, I was disfigured. After they dragged me out – like an afterthought – I watched those two future Alphas crying over Elara, who didn't have a scratch on her. "Thank the Moon Goddess, Elara, you're alive." "Once we sort out who's the new Alpha of Blackwood, whoever it is will give you the most honored spot right under the Luna, Elara. Don't you worry. We'll give you the best of everything our pack has, make sure you never suffer again." "Elara, you're the real Luna in our hearts." When I came to, I cut off that ridiculous mate bond for good. Empty promises and a trampled destiny? I was done with it. But after I left, they stayed by my cave every day, begging me to come back.

After my boyfriend, Mitchell Cooper, finds out that I've spent 300 thousand dollars on a mug, he demands that I buy his mother a single-level apartment that's worth eight million dollars in the heart of the city. Naturally, I turn his ridiculous demand down in a roundabout way. But this sets him off instead. "Don't be so stingy! My mom will become your mom in the future! What's wrong with showering her with gifts in advance?" Afterward, he records all our expenses that have taken place during our relationship on presentation slides and tells me that we have to split them up. "If you think splitting up our expenses is a troublesome thing to do, then you might as well imburse all of them. You're the rich one, after all. "I've already discussed everything with my family. We'll only give you one dollar as a form of wedding gift. It means 'the only one,' which sounds amazing, right?" Upon noticing my lack of response, Mitchell issues the ultimatum right away. "If you refuse to accept these conditions, then we can call off the wedding. You've already dated me for so many years. I'd like to see if anyone wants a second-hand woman like you." I stare at the long list of expenses that need to be split. I even catch sight of the two-dollar Uber fees that were charged when Mitchell came to look for me in the past. With a smile on my face, I reply, "Okay, then. I don't want a single cent from you in terms of wedding gifts. I'll buy your mom that apartment right now."

My adopted daughter, Phoebe Marsh, possessed an evil ability. Whenever she got hurt, the pain would also be inflicted directly on my biological daughter, Maisie Shaw. She deliberately hurt herself, covering her body with wounds and bruises. Then, she would turn around with cold eyes, watching Maisie writhe on the floor in agony until she passed out from the pain. With no medical solution available, I broke down and held Maisie close, begging my husband, Brandon Shaw, to send Phoebe away. However, he would erupt in fury. "It's obviously Maisie who's been faking illness for attention, and you're making up this ridiculous story to get rid of Phoebe. She's just a fragile, helpless child. How can you be so vicious?" After that, Phoebe escalated her self-harm even more viciously. Meanwhile, Maisie spent every day curled up in the corner of her bed, refusing to let anyone touch her. On Maisie's birthday, Phoebe threw herself from the fifth floor. Just as Maisie was blowing out her candles and making a wish, she suddenly began bleeding from all her facial orifices, and she died instantly. Yet, Phoebe only suffered minor scrapes. I died from overwhelming grief shortly after. When I opened my eyes again, I had returned to Phoebe's first day in our home. Maisie was playing with her Legos when she suddenly clutched her ankle and started crying. This time, I grabbed the broom from behind the door and swung it toward Maisie, shouting, "I'll beat you up for faking illness and seeking attention!"

My husband, Zane Wade, was drugged at a cocktail party and ended up sleeping with a female college student who looked almost exactly like me. I gave him three chances. The first time, Zane sent the young woman abroad overnight. Then, he knelt outside our home for three days and three nights. The second time, I ran into him and the college student at the hospital. He was accompanying her for a prenatal check-up. At the time, Zane hugged me tightly and refused to let me go. His voice trembled as he said, "I'm sorry, Raina. She's pregnant, and my mother threatened to commit suicide. I have no choice but to keep the child. "I swear, once she gives birth, I'll send her away immediately. The child will go to the old family estate. Please, don't leave me…" But just three days later, because of that same woman, Zane fought me at an auction over my mother's heirlooms. When he saw me raising the bid higher and higher, he immediately went nuclear. This was the third and final chance I gave him. I rushed over to confront him, but Zane wasn't worried. He just frowned slightly and calmly said, "Raina, you know very well that Moira is about to give birth. Why do you insist on fighting a pregnant woman? You only need to endure it for another three months. Then, we can go back to how things were." Upon hearing his words, I almost cried at how ridiculous they sounded. I finally decided to get a divorce, but Zane actually brought Moira Green home openly and without shame.

Back then, he was my everything. He was my childhood friend, my neighbor, and my teenage dream. I used my chance to confess my love to him on prom night, in front of everyone! It turned out he rejected me just because of the ridiculous reason that his type of girl was a supermodel. Seven years passed, and I still had not become what he wanted. My life had become even harder. I was getting too old to remain a model, and my boyfriend had cheated on me. Until one night, I met him again, my ex-crush. It was time to take revenge and make him beg for my love. A golden opportunity came when my new boss at the agency promised me the title of supermodel as long as I obeyed him. Unfortunately, there was no such thing as a free lunch. There was something I could not control in this dazzling fashion world. Did I really have to give up everything to achieve success, both in my career and in my love life? Could I have a brilliant career without sacrificing my romance? *** "Last night was a mistake," she sighed. "I thought you were commenting that last night was amazing," I teased with a smile. "Yes, last night was amazing, and yes, I admit it was the best sex I've ever had in my adulthood," she grunted, looking frustrated. Upon hearing that confession, my blood boiled. I rose from my chair and stood right next to her. She looked puzzled as I trapped her in the chair. I leaned down low. "Then don't say it was a mistake. Last night was the best thing I've ever had in my adulthood," I whispered in her ear.

"Take them off," he ordered. I furrowed my brows in terror. The shudders from the hostages he has tied up to a chair in the same room as us filled my ears. He narrowed his eyes at me. "I don't...." "Take off your panties and come sit your ass on my face," he ordered. My heart pounded at his ridiculous demand. There are hostages in here, what is he... "Didn't you hear me, Mia?" "I...I can't....." He cocked his gun instantly and.... BANG! I jumped the minute he shot one of the hostages. "If I repeat myself, white girl, they die." he gestured to the hostages. I swallowed in absolute terror. "Now, your panties off and ass on my face or these motherfuckers transcends in a jiffy. Make a choice. Quickly." ****** “They say no good deed goes unpunished.” The quiet, uneventful life of twenty-year-old Mia Jefferson takes a terrifying turn the night she rescues an abandoned interracial baby from a dumpster. For a month, she raises the infant as her own—until a ruthless gang kidnaps her, accusing her of abduction. When the child’s father, Nathaniel “Big Kai” Kincaid, the feared black gangster and underground king of the hood, appears, Mia’s fate is sealed. Instead of killing her, he makes her his baby’s nanny—his way of testing her innocence. But as he watches her every move, a dangerous obsession is born. Mia soon finds herself torn in fear. And when betrayal, blood, and secrets explode around them, she must decide whether to run from the monster who ruined and saved her life at the same time.