She Let Herself Go

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" "It is." "Please don't pull that with me." "Pull what?" "That." She pointed at my face. "Where I explain how pretty everything looks and you say yes but you would be referring to me." She waved her hands in the air, explaining. "It's cliche and kinda getting old." "Would you prefer I do this instead?" I pinned a loose strand behind her ear, my palm roamed her soft features and also on her lips. "Or this?" I leaned in to steal a kiss, stopping midway to see if she'd stop me and she didn't. I couldn't help the tiny smirk that lay on my lips after. "Aren't you going to stop me?" My raspy voice whispered in her ear. She shivered, unconsciously leaning into me for warmth. I stopped her fingers as she tried to wrap them around my neck. ********** She's not the bad girl he thought she was. He's not the good boy she thought he was.

On the day of the Sacred Forest Rite, my Alpha father and Luna mother were mysteriously murdered. Soon after, my fiancé Jem abruptly broke off our engagement and held a bonding ceremony with his childhood friend, Sarah. While I was still drowning in grief, Jem's elder brother, Nom, came to me with a proposal. He swore he would uncover the truth and bring my parents' murderer to justice. So I married him—and brought what was left of my pack into his. Seven years passed. No killer was found. No justice delivered. Then today, I overheard a conversation between Nom and his Beta outside the study. I learned the truth. Someone had seen Sarah at the scene of my parents' deaths during the Sacred Forest Rite. However, Nom silenced that witness. He shut down the investigation, convinced Sarah was innocent—that her presence was nothing more than a coincidence. However, my mother died with Sarah's earring clenched in her hand. It was never justice. It was a cover-up. Seven years of marriage, built on a lie—his way of protecting the one truly responsible. This time, I will take vengeance into my own hands. Alone.

When the yacht begins to sink, Penelope Griffith chooses me to fill the last vacant spot on the lifeboat. I'm saved, but Arthur Johnson drowns before the second lifeboat reaches him. He disappears into the ocean, leaving only a corpse behind. Penelope pretends not to care and still marries me. Yet, she proceeds to trample all over me during our five years of marriage, blaming me for Arthur's death. When I can't take it anymore and ask for a divorce, she chooses to end both our lives. The next time I open my eyes, I realize that I've been transported back in time to the day of the yacht accident. I decide to forfeit my chance of survival this time, letting the man Penelope loves the most take my place.

The cold seawater engulfs me, its relentless pull dragging me into the abyss. I kick desperately, my lungs burning, but the surface drifts farther and farther away. "Save me, Kane… save our child…" Pain lances through my body as I clutch my stomach, shielding the fragile life within me. The child I never thought I'd have, the child who was supposed to be our blessing. Through the watery haze, I see Kane Porter standing on the jagged cliffs above the shore. His tall, commanding figure is framed by the moonlight, his golden eyes burning with hatred. The alpha of the Nightfall Pack, the man who once whispered my name with reverence, now looks at me like I'm filth beneath his feet. His voice cuts through the roaring waves, sharp and merciless. "Don't think I don't know what you've done, Selene." The currents tug me deeper. My strength wanes, but his words stab deeper than the water ever could. "You drugged me with a philter, hoping to make me mark you—hoping to force your way into the position of my Luna. Because of your selfishness, Arya is gone. You destroyed her mind, pushed her into madness!" A shadow of despair twists across his face, but it vanishes beneath pure fury. "She fell from that cliff because of you." I shake my head, but I can’t speak. The sea is swallowing my voice. "Do you know what it’s like to wake up every day in torment? To live knowing the woman I loved died because of you?" His eyes glint like a wolf ready to tear out his prey's throat. "I want you to feel every ounce of that pain. I want you and your cursed child to die with her." The waves crash above me, and darkness claws at the edges of my vision. When I open my eyes again, I'm taken back to the day Kane's philter takes effect. He approaches me, his face flushed and his breathing rapid. He's already undone his buttons. "Hang on, Kane. Arya will be here soon!" I back away and open the door behind me. Then, I run off.

Riley Jordan thought office romance was safe, until she caught her long-term boyfriend with his pants down. Tangled between her boss’s legs. In the company conference room. One wild night meant to drown her heartbreak ends in a hotel suite, with a cold billionaire whose drink, like hers, had been spiked. She wakes up in his bed. He offers her a blank check for a night she can’t even remember. She tears it up and walks away. But Michael Gray doesn’t take rejection lightly. And when the woman who walked out on him turns out to be the marketing genius his empire desperately needs, he makes sure she’s left with no other option. Suddenly, she’s evicted, jobless, and barely surviving. Riley has no choice but to accept his deal. Only this time, she’s not the woman who breaks for anyone. What begins as control slowly turns into obsession. And when secrets finally explode, Riley must choose between her survival and the man who could ruin her.

**Don't go to the forest. Don't look out the window... He takes over your thoughts and turns your dreams into nightmares**. Camila Clear moves to Wisconsin with her mother and two sisters not knowing what the town and its people hold. Not until someone tells her about an ancient legend: SLENDERMAN. Camila decides not to believe and pass on those stories but when she starts experiencing strange things she has no choice but to admit it. Adrien Hoffman is the wealthiest and most coveted guy in town, however he keeps a secret and she wants to find out what it is. The constant disappearances that begin to occur in town put everyone on alert, but when Camila's younger sister, Bea, mysteriously disappears, she decides to go into the woods in search of her. But Adrien will not leave her alone, he will want to protect her even if he loses his life in the attempt.

It was hard for Charlotte to let go of her best friend, Dalton, the boy she fell in love with since she was nine years old, to make way for her sister, Caroline, who happens to be in love with him too. It was hard for her but in order to make someone happy, even if it meant sacrificing her own, she was willing to let go. It all happened around her senior year, where she let go of the only thing that mattered to her and after graduation, she moved away with no intention of going back. Four years later, on her college graduation day, her parents rather demanded her to come home with a reason that shocked her senseless.

In a world where the moon's gaze reveals the hidden truth, two extraordinary women embark on a forbidden love that defies all odds. Anya, a fierce and mysterious werewolf, has concealed her true identity from everyone she holds dear, including her lover, Maya. Unbeknownst to Maya, Anya has been chosen by the alpha of her pack to be her soulmate.  As Maya uncovers the shocking secret, fear and astonishment collide within her heart. But love, relentless and unyielding, compels Maya to delve deeper into Anya's world, discovering the true essence of her soulmate and forging an unbreakable bond. Their love becomes a beacon of strength and defiance against the confines of their society. However, destiny has another surprise in store for Anya. Hidden within her lies the key to unlocking her primal powers, destined to make her the first alpha female of her pack. Yet, how can she ascend the throne when a ruling alpha stands in her way? And what of her supposed soulmate, who walks the path of humanity rather than the moonlit realm? Now, Anya must navigate the treacherous waters of power, love, and prejudice, as she strives to claim her rightful place as alpha. As two opposing factions despise her very existence, she finds herself at the centre of a war that threatens her kind and challenges everything she stands for. With courage as her armour and love as her guide, Anya must unravel the secrets of her power, unite her fractured world, and defy the odds stacked against her. In this breathtaking tale of forbidden love, mystical forces, and epic battles, the ultimate question remains: can Anya and Maya triumph over hatred and forge a future where their love and acceptance can reign supreme?

There are monsters in this world. And they used to be us. Now it's time to euthanize to survive in a hospice where Emily, a woman haunted by her past, only wants to do her job and be the best mother possible. Post-infection Chicago. Christmas. Inside The Hospice, Emily and her fellow nurses do their rounds. Here, men and women live out their final days in comfort, segregated from society, and are then humanely terminated before fate turns them into marrow-craving monsters known as ‘Smilers.’ Outside these imposing walls, rabid protesters swarm with signs, caught up in the heat of their hatred. Emily, a woman haunted by her past, only wants to do her job and be the best mother possible. But in a world where mortality means nothing, where guns are drawn in fear and nobody seems safe anymore – at what cost will this pursuit come? And through it all, the soon to be dead remain silent, ever smiling. Such is their curse. It won't be long before that snow-speckled ground will be salted by blood. ©️ Crystal Lake Publishing

"What does she have that I don't possess?" Arla questioned sarcastically. "As far as I know, I'm better in bed than her. Do you want to find out?" "Don't test my patience," Liam warned, his voice firm and unyielding. Unfazed, Arla continued her seductive advances, pulling off the first layer of her nightwear as she walked towards him. "Don't you want me?" she asked, her voice dripping with temptation. "Say you want me." Liam, unable to resist her allure, pulled her onto the bed and laid on top of her. "Touch me," she purred "I'm all yours." Arla, the notoriously rebellious youngest daughter of the famous billionaire Williams, was born into a complex family dynamic. With four daughters from different mothers, the Williams household was no stranger to drama and tension. After causing yet another scandal, Arla's father had had enough and decided to marry her off to Liam, a ruthless mafia leader. Unbeknownst to Arla, Liam's world was filled with numerous mistresses, each vying for his attention and favor. However, Liam's heart truly belonged to only one woman: Vivian, his childhood love. Amidst the chaos and passion that swirled within the mansion, Arla found herself under the watchful eye of Liam's cunning and ruthless stepmother, who controlled and manipulated the mistresses with an iron fist. Unwilling to be tamed, Arla's arrival in the mansion would shake the foundations of Liam's dynasty. As she navigated the tangled web of secrets, deceit, and desire, Arla refused to bow to the will of those who sought to control her. With her fierce spirit and unyielding determination, she would leave an indelible mark on the hearts and lives of those who dared cross her path.