Shifting Dullness

In Valeburn, Atlanta’s most dangerous block, power doesn’t pass hands—it’s taken with blood. And no one understands that more than Jayce Navarro, the razor-sharp kingpin who built his empire brick by brick, silence by silence. He rules with cold precision, a name whispered like a gun being cocked—until the ghost of his past returns with vengeance on his breath. Eli Mercer is no longer the soft-eyed teen Jayce once kissed beneath the chapel steps. Fresh from the feds and wrapped in scars, Eli returns to the block with one purpose: burn down the throne that forgot him. But when fate—and the city’s shifting underworld—forces them into an uneasy alliance, old feelings smolder beneath their armor. Lust tangles with rage. Loyalty with betrayal. And love? It’s the most dangerous weapon of all. As enemies circle from the inside and the state threatens to dismantle Jayce’s entire operation, he and Eli must decide what’s worth saving—their empires, their reputations… or each other. But in Valeburn, every crown is cursed. And every favor comes with fire.

Vincent Okoye has spent a decade building a spotless reputation at London’s top tech advertising firm. Sharp, composed, and fiercely loyal, he’s finally on the brink of promotion, until everything unravels. The night he lets go of his carefully guarded control, he ends up in bed with a charming stranger. By morning, that stranger is no longer a mystery, he’s Ethan Levitt, Vincent’s new boss, old university flame, and the son of the company’s enigmatic CEO. Ethan offers him everything he’s ever wanted: recognition, influence… and maybe something dangerously close to love. But there’s a condition, complete obedience, in and out of the boardroom. Caught between the seductive pull of his past and the steady loyalty of Pascal, the man who’s stood by him for years, Vincent is forced to choose. But in a world of ambition, secrets, and shifting power, love may come with the highest price of all. Desire. Loyalty. Power. In this game, someone’s bound to lose. And Vincent can’t afford for it to be him

When Dr. Elara Voss signs a blood pact with the reclusive Wolf King to save her brother from Lycanthropy, she expects a clinical transaction—not the scorching bond that sears her veins under the full moon. The terms are simple: one year of her life to bear his hybrid heir, in exchange for the serum that will cure her brother. But the Wolf King’s golden gaze holds shadows older than the forest, and his touch awakens a primal hunger she never knew existed. With each lunar cycle, Elara’s body betrays her. Her senses sharpen to inhuman levels, her skin hums at his proximity, and her dreams spiral into vivid, forbidden fantasies. Yet the closer she gets to the King, the clearer it becomes that their pact is no ordinary contract. It’s a trap—one that binds her soul to his, and forces her to confront the truth: the serum she needs might not exist. As the pack’s ancient enemies close in, Elara must navigate a world of shifting loyalties, where every ally hides a fanged secret and the line between predator and prey blurs. When the King’s true motives emerge—along with a curse that could destroy them both—Elara must decide: is she a prisoner of her own desperation… or the key to breaking a thousand-year-old chain of bloodshed?