short story and

‘Callie,’ he began, his voice husky, ‘crying over your ex-boyfriend won’t solve anything.’ Confusion etched across her face, Callie furrowed her brows. ‘Then what will? ’ she demanded, her voice tinged with frustration. Elias leaned closer, his warm breath caressing her cheek. ‘You need to show him what he’s lost. Find a man who’s more handsome, more powerful, and richer than him. Then, make a grand entrance into his life with your new partner.’ Callie scoffed, her eyes rolling in disbelief. ‘Where am I supposed to find someone like that? ’ Elias’s fingers gently lifted her chin, locking their gazes together. ‘I can be that man,’ he said. ‘If you agree to be with me, I’ll protect you from any harm, including your ex-boyfriend.’ ********************************************** Elias Westwood, billionaire heir turned professional solider, a commanding presence on the battlefield, conceals a tender heart that beats for only one woman——Callie Hawthorne, a fearless surgical resident, possesses an innocent charm and wields her skills like a warrior in the operating theatre. Their first encounter thrusts them into a dangerous game of deception. Elias uses Callie as a pawn, their lips locked in a passionate kiss, fooling his pursuers. In that moment, Callie feels the allure of the enigmatic soldier, and a strange connection sparks between them. An impulsive decision seals their fate—a hasty marriage to escape an arranged union and prove Callie’s readiness to move on from a past love. Little did they know, this act would propel them onto an unforeseen path. Will Elias and Callie emerge unscathed from the shadows, or will their sacrifices shatter their dreams forever? Discover their fight for a future filled with hope, trust, and the promise of a happy ending.

Ellie Simms is a woman on the run. She had just escaped from an abusive ex-boyfriend who left his mark on her skin. A talented design artist, she finds solace in a new job with Harris Corp Designs, owned by the enigmatic Zac Harris. Upon meeting Ellie during her job interview, Zac immediately recognises deep pain within her beautiful, albeit withdrawn shell, rousing his protective instincts. When she finally opens up, Zac discovers that she is broken in more ways than one. After seeing the travesty carved into her skin, Zac takes her to his sister's tattoo parlour to cover it up, and Ellie chooses a butterfly, a creature as beautiful and delicate as herself... Ellie may think she's broken, but Zac sees the beautiful, brave woman she is as she fights for justice for herself and others.

“You arranged a marriage for me?" I exclaimed, my voice quivering with anger and disbelief. "How could you? How dare you play with my life?” I sat in disbelief, the weight of my parent's words sinking in like an anchor in my chest. Scarlett Morgan was forced into an arranged marriage with Ethan Donovan, the richest family in Brooklyn, by merging their company with the Donovans to save their family business from total bankruptcy. On meeting Ethan for the first time, she realizes that he's the handsome stranger she shared a passionate one-night stand with two years ago, and he has no memory of her. Caught off guard by this news, Ethan and Scarlett are thrown into a complex situation they never expected. Will they be able to handle the secrets that they have been hiding from each other? As they navigate the complications of their marriage, they'll have to confront their past and turn their unexpected connection into a beautiful love story. But how long will this last? What happens when their ex shows up?

After giving my son, Cameron Spencer, one of my corneas, he had a memory distortion and confused me for his father's childhood sweetheart, Joanna Lister. Such dreadful news caused me to be in so much pain that I refused to wake up. However, during the time that I was semiconscious, I heard my son and my husband's conversation. "Dad, does this mean Joanna will keep me company in the future?" "Yes, it does. You've put on a great act, son!" My attending surgeon couldn't stand their heartlessness and said, "Mr. Spencer, your son’s eyes are fine, but you lied to Mrs. Spencer in order for her to donate her cornea for Ms. Lister. If Mrs. Spencer finds out, I'm afraid..." "There's nothing to be afraid of. She loves Cameron and me so much and she's an orphan as well. There's nowhere she could go after leaving us. Joanna's all alone in this city and she's almost gone blind. We can't waste any more time!" I lay on the bed as my hopeless tears soaked the pillow. All they cared about was Joanna. But what they didn't know was that I was dying due to the operation.

Aderyn Brookes, a free-spirited and mysterious rebel, sets off on a solo drive through various countries in her luxury car. Her adventure takes a dark turn when she is abducted by two enigmatic men. Awakening in an otherworldly realm, she realizes she is the human mate of Dylan Black Bishop, the ruthless king of a werewolf kingdom. Dylan, who despises humans and believes them weak, initially wants to reject her. Unable to bear the mate bond, he orders his beta, Blake, to keep her in their pack house. As Aderyn learns about the werewolf world, she remains indifferent to Dylan’s advances, surprising him with her strength and resistance to the mate bond. Unlike other werewolves, Dylan cannot read her mind and becomes restless when she is not around. A turn of events reveals Aderyn’s dark past—she is a trained assassin, far stronger than Dylan imagined. Dylan begins to accept Aderyn’s past and her strength, and he learns to love her for the pain they both share, not just because of the mate bond. Aderyn eventually succumbs to Dylan's charms, and together they navigate the complexities of their intertwined destinies, finding love amidst the shadows of their haunted pasts.

On New Year's Eve, I lost both my first love and my virginity. I never thought that the courage I mustered to put on that sexy lingerie... would eventually be undone by my professor. -- When Audrey's bf cheated at the biggest college party, He called her a boring nerd in front of everyone. She’s heartbroken and wasted. Then she had a one-night stand with a hot stranger. The next morning, she shocked to find out that the new professor was the man from last night. She lowered her head and tried to escape the earth. Him: “No need to hide, Audrey. I believe we met last night.”

Francesca's life is turned upside down when betrayal and ruin shatter her world. After waking up next to Marco, a powerful mafia don and Lycan, and her ex-fiancé Gianni’s older brother. She is pushed into a dangerous game of power, vengeance, and forbidden desire. Forced to choose between the humiliation of her past and a future bound to Marco by an unconventional marriage, Francesca must navigate family betrayal, mafia intrigue, and her growing attraction to the man who could destroy or save her. Will her alliance with the enigmatic mafia Lycan be her salvation or her undoing?

When "the scentless" Elena thought she would be laid off by her manager, she never expected her new billionaire boss to be her high school crush Charles....Manager: "Sir, I think there's been a mistake. How is she staying? And I'm not? This isn't right.""You're right," Charles said, leaning forward over the table. "I'm sorry Elena. I forgot to mention you aren't going to be working here either."Manager's face set into a smug smirk."You'll be joining my team."There was a simultaneous gasp around the room.

Everyone in the Titanus region would have heard the older generation tell them this—during sky burials, the vultures wouldn't eat the corpses of people who'd committed heinous crimes. My husband is the sky burial practitioner who buries me. The vultures circle my corpse in the air above the burial site, but they don't prey on me. My husband frowns at the sight. "It looks like this person must have committed crimes when alive. They deserve this." Suddenly, I remembered him pointing at me, his eyes ablaze with flames of rage as he shouted, "Nancy wouldn't have lost her baby if not for you! Someone like you doesn't even deserve to get a sky burial!" It looks like his words are coming true. But later, he falls to his knees before my grave and weeps. He begs me to forgive him.

Isla Romano’s life was shattered the night Antonio DeLuca, the ruthless mafia boss, murdered her father before her eyes. Consumed by grief and vengeance, Isla sets her sights on the one person she holds responsible: Antonio’s son, Dante DeLuca. But as she infiltrates the DeLuca empire, seeking to destroy the man who ruined her life, Isla finds herself entangled in a dangerous game with Dante—one she never expected. Dante is everything Isla hates, yet there’s an undeniable connection between them that pulls her deeper into his world. Her mission was simple: destroy Antonio. But as her obsession with Dante grows, she must decide if vengeance will be worth the cost of losing herself—and the man she never thought she’d desire. In a twisted dance of power, passion, and revenge, Isla’s love for her father’s memory might just lead her into a darker path than she ever imagined, and Dante’s unrelenting obsession with her could either be their salvation or their doom. Will Isla’s thirst for revenge cloud her judgment, or will she finally come to terms with the truth that her heart may already belong to the enemy? ---