Ruins

“Not so fast, Clarence,” Damon sneered. He yanked my wheelchair toward the balcony, pressing a button that lowered the guardrail into the floor. Now, I was teetering dangerously close to the edge. With one hand gripping the chair, keeping one wheel hanging over empty space, he shoved the divorce papers in my face. “You thought you could run to your mother’s lawyer?” he said, eyes glinting with cruel amusement. “Think again. You’re signing these papers, Clarence, and you’re leaving with nothing.” His smirk widened. “Or… you can join your parents on the other side.” --- Betrayed, crippled, and left penniless, Clarence is discarded for her sister by the man she sacrificed everything for—Damon Ferdinand. But when her ruthless ex-boyfriend, Dr. Julian Blackwood, reappears, he offers her a lifeline and a chance to reclaim what was stolen. With Julian’s power and influence, Clarence rises from the ashes, determined to exact revenge on her ex-husband and deceitful sister. But standing in her way is Kristina, Julian’s possessive fiancée. As old wounds resurface and lines blur between past regrets and new beginnings, Clarence is faced with the ultimate question: Can she truly find love in the arms of the man she once abandoned? Or is she merely playing with fire, risking the same heartbreak that once left her in ruins?

I dropped off lunch for my husband at the Conglomerate HQ, only to bump into my ex from two years ago. The man who'd ditched me at our marking ceremony to go "take care of his sister." I'd changed my hair, my makeup, everything. But he spotted me in the crowd as if it were nothing. "Elena, I'm back to finish what we started. Happy now?" I felt that familiar knot of doubt in my gut. "Sorry, who are you again...?" He let out a shaky laugh. "Babe, come on. Don't be mad. I didn't mean to leave you hanging. The ceremony back then? Ivy's wolf spirit was too weak. I had to find the Wolf God ruins to pray for her. She's my only sister; I couldn't just watch her fade." "Yeah, the healing took a while. So, I got myself an assignment overseas." "Anyway, I just got her wolf spirit stabilized, and I rushed back to bring you home to the packhouse!" That's when it hit me. This scruffy guy, with the stubble and all… this was my ex-fiancé. No. Did nobody tell him? The night he walked out on me? I married his uncle. Alpha Damian. The Wolf King.

For twins Ethel and Elise, the line between dream and nightmare was always thin—and on Paron Island, it has been completely erased. Their idyllic gap year, a sun-soaked mosaic of beach bonfires and reckless abandon, is shattered in an instant. A "project," as the panicked news reports cryptically call it, has gone horrifically wrong, releasing a pathogen that reanimates the dead with a singular, gruesome purpose: to feed. The sisters' bond, once defined by shared secrets and sibling rivalry, is now their only anchor in a world drowning in blood. Driven by a raw, primal instinct to protect each other, they join forces with a few other fortunate—or unfortunate—souls who survived the initial onslaught. Together, this makeshift family must navigate the ruins of their former paradise, where every shadow hides a potential threat and every human sound could be a lure. Ethel, the more cautious sister, finds a hidden strength in strategy, while Elise's impulsive nature becomes both a weapon and a liability. But their fight against the decaying hordes is only the surface of the terror. Whispers of a coordinated presence, of supplies that go missing too conveniently, and of strangers who seem to know too much, point to a more insidious truth: the island's collapse was not a random tragedy. They are being hunted by something that thinks, that plans, that wears a human face. As their hope for rescue dwindles, Ethel and Elise are forced to confront the ultimate horror—that in the midst of an apocalypse, the most monstrous creatures of all are still human.

I was born just one minute after Tiara, but the world treated that one minute as if it lasted a lifetime. She was the star. I was the shadow. She was flawless. I was the afterthought. She was loved. I was forgotten. Even by Reagan de Russo, heir to the wealthiest family in the country and the man I had secretly loved for the past ten years. But to him, there was only Tiara. And when he proposed to her, I knew my quiet little dream had finally died. Until that day came. The day Tiara left him at the altar. The day the world stopped turning for just a second. The day the man who had never even glanced my way, turned to me and asked me to take her place. I knew what I was. An escape. A damage control. A backup plan. And I... I was too tired of being strong. So I said yes. We married. Without love. Without a future. Just a one-year contract and a life of make-believe in front of flashing cameras and watching eyes. But the longer I stayed by his side, the harder it became to tell what was real and what was just part of the performance. Because for the first time... Reagan saw me. But can love truly grow from the ruins of lies, old wounds, and the shadow of a woman who’s always been his first choice? Or will I always be… only the second best?

Content Warning: This book contains mature themes, explicit se.xual content, BD.SM dynamics, and a Daddy/Good Girl Kink between consenting adults. Recommended for 18+ readers who enjoy dark, erotic romance. ••••••••• “So what’s your name?” She asked “Julian.” I said Julian,” she repeated it like she was tasting it. “You sound like a man who ruins lives.” “I’ve been known to,” I smirk. She tilted her head,as she bit her lip. “Are you gonna ruin mine?” My cock hardened in response. ••••••••••••••• After catching her boyfriend of six years cheating—with her best friend. Zoe let’s loose and indulges in one drunken night at a club. After which she stumbles into the backseat of a sleek black car she thought was her ride share. But it’s not. It belongs to Julian. A brutally hot,commanding and much older man. With a reputation for being cold and dominant.She thinks it’s just one reckless night. But everything spirals out of control when he reappears in her world again but this time not just for one night. Julian remembers her. Every sinful sound she made. Every bruise he left. And now,he wants more.

Seven years ago, I signed a mate contract as Luna. For my mother’s dying wish and for the Pack’s stability, I personally pushed a man with nothing to his name onto the Alpha throne. I held the Pack together for him, expanded our businesses, and handled the filthy negotiations and the deals no one wanted to see in the light. Everyone said— I was calm, I was formidable, I was qualified. Just… not much like a “gentle mate.” Until that day. I stood in the bedroom and watched my Alpha husband lay his hand over my paralyzed stepsister’s slightly rounded belly. They told me it was for the greater good of the Pack. That child would be registered under my name. He would call me Mother. I didn’t cry. I didn’t scream. I just waited for the seven-year term to hit its end and activated the trust clause my mother left behind. Accounts frozen. Capital withdrawn. The wolf empire I built with my own hands collapsed overnight. By the time he knelt in the ruins and finally understood what he’d lost— I had already taken back my mother’s last name, dissolved the mate bond, and stepped onto a new territory.

I went into labor. And my mate, Alpha Alistair, locked me in a silver cage. The bars throbbed with curse runes, burning my skin. He did it for Livia. His dead brother's mate. Her pup had to be born first. That's when I learned the truth. He'd been poisoning me for months. All to make sure Livia's child would be the next Alpha. He called it "calming tea." A daily dose of poison to slow my pup's growth and delay my labor. But my body had other plans. My pup refused to wait. I went into labor at the same time as Livia. When he found out, he accused me of faking it. Of begging for sympathy. He let them poison me with wolfsbane. I lost my pup. A piece of my soul died with him. With my last breath, I reached out. To the one person who could save me. My brother, Alpha King Lucian. He came like a storm of rage. He burned the packhouse to the ground, with me inside. A phantom fire for all to see. Then, he plucked me from the flames. Only then, surrounded by the smoking ruins of his pack, did Alistair fall to his knees. His howl of regret tore through the night. For 99 days, he howled at the moon. Begging the Moon Goddess to return just a sliver of my soul.

After helping illegitimate son Clifford Johansen rise to fame, Seraphine Lodge gets ruthlessly discarded. Clifford turns around and proposes to his "true love" with a fireworks show worth hundreds of millions. He also indulges her as she makes Seraphine's mother, Andrea Lodge, die from a heart attack. He robs Seraphine of her identity as a true heiress without remorse. Seraphine gives her heart to the wrong man, but she doesn't scream or cry. Instead, she dumps the scumbag, pockets 200 million dollars in breakup fees, and watches her career soar. But Clifford refuses to let her go. He ruins her reputation, turning public opinion against her. Seraphine doesn't bow to power or cruelty. Anyone who dares cross her gets a taste of her revenge, which comes swiftly and brutally. Sweet revenge is satisfying, but an even sweeter thrill arrives one night while cloaked in moonlight. A tall, commanding figure approaches, radiating elegance and dominance. It's Elliott Johansen, the heir to Dirkane's most prominent family. He's powerful, untouchable, and feared by all. Seraphine freezes. Then comes his low, magnetic voice in her ear, "Sera, leave the violence to me. If you get hurt, my heart will ache." Her heart skips a beat. He continues, "Be good. We'll go home together once I'm through with them."

Carina Sullivan believed in fairy tales…until hers shattered in the most humiliating way possible. She was abandoned by her fiancé just days before their wedding, Carina is left broken, jobless, and drowning in shame. One reckless night with a mysterious stranger was supposed to be her escape. But that man, He disappears like smoke…leaving nothing behind but a memory and a secret growing inside her. Two years after, Carina is barely surviving as a single mother working two jobs. When a powerful billionaire suddenly walks into her life, she realizes he’s the same man from that night…the father of her child. But he doesn’t recognize her. Dante Moretti is ruthless, rich, and dangerously attractive. He’s back in New York to claim revenge on the woman who once cost him everything. What he doesn’t know is that the woman he wants revenge on... isn’t Carina. As their worlds collide in passion, secrets, and betrayal, Carina is pulled into a whirlwind of emotions and lies. Love isn’t just a risk…but it’s a war. And Dante may not be the hero she needs... he might just be her greatest lesson. She gave him one night. He gave her a child. But can she ever trust him with her heart? Heart-wrenching. Fiery. Addictive. This is a story of pain, secrets, and a woman rising from her ruins to find her voice, her power, and maybe... her second chance at love.

It started with one scandalous kiss caught on camera. She expected damage control not to be declared the girlfriend of the billionaire who ruined her life. He’s cold, calculating, and her ex’s powerful cousin. They agree to fake it for four months for money, for revenge, for survival. She became the fake girlfriend of the billionaire who ruined her life He’s ruthless. She’s vengeful. Four months. One deal. No feelings. But soon, the lies cut deep… and neither of them can tell if the obsession is still pretend. Amira Santis, a sharp-tongued investigative journalist, ruins billionaire Montez De Vitalio’s company with one exposé. In return, he blacklists her. Her career is over. But after an odd encounter when photos of Montez sharing a kiss with her in a hotel gets out, he has no option but to announce her as his lover to the public. Now with them both in a compromising situation, Amira takes his offer to pretend to be his girlfriend in the eyes of the public for a period of four months in exchange that he pays her and gets back at her cheating ex, who also happened to be his cousin but Amira is not the same girl he once destroyed. She has secrets of her own. And Montez? He didn’t plan on falling for the one woman who swore to ruin him. Their lies ignite an obsession neither can control, and soon, love and war become indistinguishable.