Scheming

Ophelia Lewis, a privileged young woman, had her world shattered when she lost her father in a tragic accident. With her stepmother and jealous stepsister, Samara, scheming against her, she is forced into an arranged marriage with Kent to secure her place as CEO of Lewis & Hale. However, betrayal strikes when she finds Kent and Samara in an intimate moment. Humiliated and cast out of her own company, Ophelia speeds away—only to fall victim to a rigged car accident orchestrated by Samara. She wakes up in a hospital, saved by strangers, only to discover she is pregnant. Determined to take back her life, Ophelia fakes her death, undergoes plastic surgery, and reinvents herself. Her plan? To infiltrate the business world, reclaim her company, and exact revenge. Her journey leads her to Aaron Donovan, a ruthless billionaire with a dark past. He hires Ophelia, unaware of her true identity. Their working relationship is a battlefield of clashing egos, yet undeniable chemistry ignites between them. As she rises in the corporate world, fate intervenes—Aaron’s company merges with Lewis & Hale, bringing Ophelia face-to-face with her enemies. As secrets unravel, Ophelia’s presence unsettles Samara, who senses familiarity but fails to uncover the truth—until she stumbles upon hospital records. A deadly game begins as Samara orchestrates the kidnapping of Ophelia’s son, Caleb. In a tense showdown, betrayal and bullets fly. Kent meets his end, and Ophelia finally puts an end to Samara’s reign of terror. Three months later, Aaron proposes, sealing their bond. As a final act of love, he gifts Ophelia ownership of Lewis & Hale—the company that was once stolen from her. With vengeance fulfilled and love found, Ophelia steps into a future she fought to reclaim.

All of it started in an auction where I didn’t know that will change my life entirely. “Where a-am I?” Unlike the girls that have been bought by these men, my bidding started at a jaw-dropping amount. I never thought that a girl like me would start bidding at $20,000 in an underground black market like this. I was just looking down, hearing the surprising amount they are willing to bid just to have me only until the bidding went up to million. A man who's in his 60's came, betting almost a million dollars which made the crowd silent. I thought that the old man will be my owner but I was wrong when a man was strong enough to oppose him, betting ten million dollars just to have me. "Can you just b-bring me back to my h-house?" I spoke, breaking the silence. "I won't waste fucking millions just to free you, woman. You will serve your purpose to me," he spoke out using his thunderbolt tone. The thought of fleeing away from him slipped off my mind as the tension between us has been added by a fuel in a scorching fire, a fire that we built and a deep connection we both agreed. I should be scared of him, I should be running away but the contrary was happening. I just found myself on his bed, naked whilst he was drowning me with his poisonous kisses. “I promise to keep you safe… and won’t let you slip away from me, Amore.” People say love is the most important thing in this world. At first, Ares didn't believe as he only see it as a hindrance but when he experienced it for himself, he could no longer get up on Mariana's scheming fire burning around him.

"You're here to play nurse, not to pretend you care," he snapped, his cold gaze locking onto hers. "And you are here to waste your life because it's easier than fighting for it," she shot back, her voice shaking but defiant. He wheeled closer, his jaw clenched. "Don't think for a second that you can fix what is so broken." I'm not here to fix you," she whispered, her eyes unrelenting. "I'm here because I believe there's more to you than this bitterness. He was the untouchable golden boy of his family, a magnetic presence destined to inherit a sprawling empire. His charm, his power, and his perfection made him unstoppable until a car crash shattered his life and left him confined to a wheelchair. His once-loyal followers turned their backs, leaving him drowning in the bitterness of betrayal. She was living proof of her family-a forgotten daughter whose dreams of becoming a doctor kept her sane amidst years of neglect. All she wanted in life was freedom, but fate had other plans. Forced into a contract marriage with the epitome of misery, she found herself engulfed in a battle she never asked for. Their worlds collide in a storm of resentment and vulnerability. Underneath his bitterness, though, lies the ruins of a man who had everything to lose-and the dim hope of someone who could help him find it again. As she works her way through his fury, and he pushes against her kindness, a bond forms-a bond neither expected. But with jealous rivals scheming in the shadows and old wounds threatening to tear them apart, their fight for love becomes a war for survival. Can two broken souls find strength in each other, or will the scars of their pasts destroy them both?

CASTELLO DI CARTE MAFIA CHRONICLES, BOOK 1 [Also known as PRECARIOUS: THE GAME OF HEARTS] 𝐁𝐄𝐋𝐋𝐀 When my mother's declining health forced me to reconsider my career options, my boss steered me in an unexpected direction. The was simple: get in, get the information, and get the out. Except, it wasn't that easy. Especially when my target was the most nefarious man alive in New York. The closer I got to him, the more I saw sides of him I never expected. He burned me with his scorching touch, demanding and eager gazes. He was determined to have me at all costs. One might think he would stop at that, but—devil, help me—he needed more. More than I was ready to give. There was a reason I never wanted to the Underworld. When my past came crashing onto my doorstep, every lie unravelled, but nothing prepared me for the worst. The truth about the connection between the man I desired and my dead sister. 𝐀𝐃𝐎𝐍𝐈𝐒 We all know what they say about sweet things: when consumed excessively, they turn from savoury to bitter. That was what she was. A poor excuse for a sweet I wanted to devour. I wanted to make her suffer with the same intensity. She deserved it. And so did her scheming sister. Only, I didn’t know the latter was dead, and I might be the one at fault. But did that stop me from craving her? , no. My desire to have her magnified. She became mine the moment she walked into my life with those hauntingly blue eyes. She could give me the one thing I never had in life: happiness. But being the master at ruining everything, how could I ever be the man she wanted me to be?

My mate, David Hayes, who is the Alpha, has been cold to me ever since he claimed me as Luna of the pack. He assumes that I gave him a dose of pheromones under the full moon. That was why I got the chance to mate with him and ended up being pregnant so quickly. So, as an Alpha, and for the sake of his reputation, he decides to mark me. That is how I became his "mystery Luna". The pack only knows that he has a Luna, but no one knows it's me. When I gave birth to our pup the next year, he showed no interest in the slightest. When a lupine maid brings the newborn to him, he glances at the pup with disgust and turns away. "Let's hope he's nothing like his mother—scheming, manipulative, and a disgrace to the pack!" I lie in bed, weak and exhausted, but the tears won't stop. … Today, David's childhood friend, Sophia Sinclair, returned to the pack. The moment he heard the news, he lit up with excitement. That night, after coming back from Sophia's place, drunk out of his mind, he pulled our pup into his arms. My son, Joseph Hayes, was over the moon. He snuggled closer to him and whispered to me, "Mom, he hugged me on his own… Does that mean he accepts me now?" I held him tight, tears stinging my eyes. "His mate has come back. We're leaving the pack." What he didn't know was that the healer had already told me I have Wolf Spirit Degeneration, which leaves me only three days to live. Before I die, I'll take Joseph to my parents, where he'll be loved and cared for, and not hated and abandoned by his own father. In three days, David will never see me or our pup again—and for the rest of his life.

The day before our mating ceremony, my Alpha mate suddenly demanded I give him five hundred thousand dollars. "You're just an Omega. Even if you're pregnant, you have no right to become the pack's Luna. But our pack is facing a financial crisis right now. We don't have enough weapons or healing supplies. If you can provide funding, the pack might accept a generous Luna who contributes to our survival." To help me, Dad emptied his entire life savings: "I'm old now. Seeing you happy is enough for me. I understand Damon's position as the pack's Alpha. This money—I'll pay it for you." But shortly after the mating ceremony, Dad was sent by my mate to the frontline battlefield to fight rogue wolves. He was severely injured in combat. I couldn't afford the expensive healing herbs he needed. I had no choice Damon Blackwood to help me save my father's life. I never expected his account balance to show only a few dollars! I demanded answers. He accused me of scheming against him and dragged me straight to the pack healer to force an abortion. "You just became Luna and you're already plotting against me? Think having my pup gives you power over me? Let me tell you the truth—I don't lack women willing to bear my children!" I worked every job I could find and borrowed money from everyone I knew. But I still couldn't afford those expensive herbs. The day Dad died, I couldn't even buy him a decent burial plot in the pack cemetery. On my way home from the funeral, I saw Damon with another woman in a luxury jewelry store, selecting expensive pieces. "Turns out all Omegas are the same—always scheming. I thought Sage was different from other women. Didn't realize she was just another gold-digger trying to climb the social ladder by becoming Luna. I guess I lost this bet. Pick any gemstone you want, baby. I'm buying." But when I finally gave up and turned to leave for good, he broke down crying and begged me not to go.