Skeleton Flower Myth

My husband died in a fire trying to save me, leaving behind a mountain of debt and a newborn child. I worked hard to pay off the debt while raising the child, only to unintentionally discover that my husband hadn’t died at all. Instead, he was sleeping with my cousin. “Honey, you’re so clever. You transferred all the company funds and faked your death, leaving that stupid wife of yours to shoulder all the debt. “She’s so clueless that she doesn’t even realize the son she’s raising isn’t hers, that I swapped him out. Once she’s done paying off the debts, the three of us can live a great life together.” I silently sneered, pretending I knew nothing, and continued to raise the child. Twenty years later, my son returned home after studying abroad. The company went public in New York. On the day of the IPO, my cousin appeared arm in arm with my husband, holding a paternity test. “Claire, your husband never died. We’ve been together all these years. Alex is my son. Now that you’ve been his mother for so long, isn’t it time to return him to me?” My husband also presented a divorce agreement. “I built this company from scratch. It’s premarital property. Sign the divorce papers, walk away with nothing, and you can leave now.” I smiled and told him, “I’ve prepared a special gift for you too. I wonder if you’ll like it."

Guy Marchand, PDG charismatique et redouté, règne sans partage sur un empire de parfums luxueux. Cette façade impeccable dissimule l'empire souterrain d'un réseau mafieux impitoyable qu'il dirige d'une main de fer, naviguant entre transactions troubles et alliances criminelles. Elara Vance, jeune femme au tempérament de feu dissimulé sous des apparences discrètes, officie comme serveuse dans le prestigieux restaurant Le Velours Pourpre. L'établissement appartient à Marius Croft, ami d'enfance et bras droit indéfectible de Guy Marchand. Leurs destins auraient dû rester parallèles, séparés par l'abîme qui distingue le jour de la nuit. Mais un après-midi, dans l'atmosphère feutrée du restaurant, leurs regards se croisent. Un échange silencieux de quelques secondes à peine... une étincelle qui mit le feu aux poudres. Entre eux, l'attraction est foudroyante, un vertige immédiat et réciproque. Pourtant, leurs mondes sont séparés par des murs infranchissables de secrets, de mensonges et de sang. Chaque pas qu'ils font l'un vers l'autre les rapproche du précipice. Dans ce jeu dangereux, ils risquent aussi bien de tout perdre leur vie, leur liberté que de tout gagner : l'amour qui pourrait soit les sauver, soit les achever.

Airin, faced with an unexpected pregnancy from a brief en counter with a man named Zidan, navigates the challenges of single motherhood when Zidan disappears upon learnin g about the pregnancy. Determined, Airin decides to raise her child alone while co ntinuing her studies. Despite facing judgment and pressur e at her university for bringing the baby to classes, Fachri, a young lecturer, consistently supports her and even helps care for the baby during lectures. Over time, their bond deepens, and Airin sees Fachri as a w arm and caring figure. Likewise, Fachri admires Airin's intel ligence and independence. As Airin contemplates choosing Fachri as the father figure for her child, Zidan unexpectedly reappears in her life. No w, Airin faces the difficult decision of choosing between Fa chri, who has been a constant support, and Zidan, the biolo gical father of her child.

A story told from both sides of the blade. Eleanore: My husband rode off to war with a kiss and a promise. Days later, I received news of his death and the name of his killer—Perseus, the ruthless Lycan King. Now, I'm his bride. A pawn traded for a treaty. They say power demands sacrifice. I say vengeance deserves patience. I won’t scream. I won’t break. And I sure as hell won’t fall in love with the monster who destroyed my world. He expects a Luna. He’s getting a storm in a black dress and a sword in his chest. Perseus: I killed her husband. She’ll remind me every day. I ripped her black wedding gown. She hasn’t forgiven me. I gave her my name. She threw my gift into the fire. But I see it in her eyes—the fire, the fury, the pain, the heartbreak all that I made her feel. And it calls to something ancient inside me. She wants to bury a sword in my chest. Joke’s on her—I already gave her my heart.

When Prince Aurelian is dragged before the Alpha King Vael, bloodied and shackled, he expects to die. Vael’s pack razed his kingdom, slaughtered his people—and now, Aurelian is nothing but a spoil of war. But fate is cruel. The gods made Aurelian his mate. Vael should kill him. Instead, he stares at the prince’s trembling lips, the delicate curve of his throat, the fire in his eyes, and all he can think about is how cruel the gods are and badly he wants to ruin him. "You hate me?” Vael murmured as he loomed over me, brushing his lips over the edge of my jaw and to the tip of my fingers too slow, too deliberate. One hand pinned my chest. The other dragged down his body until he gripped the base of his cock, still slick and half-hard, veins bulging like it hurt to hold back. “Good,” he growled. “I want you weeping when I take you—cursing me through clenched teeth while I fuck the fury out of your bones.” But Aurelian is not some broken thing to be claimed. A voice calls to him in the dark, a forgotten god whispering promises of power, revenge and freedom. All Aurelian has to do is surrender. Let it in. Let it take control. As rebellion brews and lust poisons every breath between them, Vael’s wolf wants to claim. Aurelian wants to destroy. But the bond is stronger than hate—and hunger always wins.

Having been blessed by wonderful parents, a few years of her growth were enough to mold such a beauty. Her once-perfect life ended with her parents' deaths during the rogues' invasion. Not long after, she was adopted by an abusive foster family, and not once did she trigger the thought of killing their ungrateful soul. Her mate, her last resort for a wonderful life, was supposed to cherish her. All her hopes crumbled into pieces when he did something a mate shouldn't.   He did not want her. Neglected, cheated, and abused. She experienced more than she ever could and felt more pain because of him. Because she loved him and was willing to endure it all. But Zainne also has her limits and has awoken from the delusion she used to believe in. When she was gone, Devan realized his feelings for her. He was far too late. After fate brought them back together, Zainne was not elated. This time, she believed that forgiveness and love were no longer in her vocabulary.

Two weeks before our wedding, Jonah Alston suddenly wants to postpone it. He says, "Sasha says she's having her first exhibition on that day. She'll be alone during the opening, and I'm worried she'll get stage fright. I have to help her. We're just going through the motions with the wedding, anyway. What does it matter whether it's a day earlier or later?" This isn't his first time postponing our wedding for Sasha Lester's sake, though. The first time he did it was because he claimed she missed having homecooked food after undergoing surgery. He'd flown abroad to care for her for two months. The second time was because he said she wanted to head into the mountains to get inspired. He'd gone with her out of concern for her safety. Now, this is the third time. I hang up and look at Austin Everett, my childhood sweetheart. He sits across from me, looking leisurely as he taps his emerald-embedded walking cane on the marble floor. I ask, "Do you need a wife?" On my wedding day, Sasha holds up her glass and waits for Jonah to clink it with his. However, his eyes are red as he watches a livestream—it's the wedding of the scion of Everett Group, the country's largest property development company.

I, Calista Summers, have been in a secret relationship with Vernon Grayson, the boss of the biggest mafia organization in Merdico for five years. To others, Vernon is the epitome of a perfect gentleman, cold yet aloof, attractive yet abstaining from women. With a net worth in the tens of billions, he holds a lot of power. He has also kept himself scandal-free since the start of time. However, not many know that I am his only exception. I am the team captain of the cheerleading squad at Duke City College. I am known to be brave, straightforward, and passionate about everything. Vernon is a whole decade older than I am. He is mature and dangerous, but those are the exact qualities that draw me to him every time. He always lets me rest my head in his lap while in the back of his limited-edition Rolls-Royce, kisses every inch of my body before the floor-to-ceiling windows of his office, and takes my breath away in hidden toilet cubicles at major public charity galas. And every time, he's so gentle with me that I keep mistaking his doting on me as his love for me. Yet, he can also get cruel and merciless with me, making me beg and whine at his mercy. As for me, I was really falling for him because Vernon never lets any other woman get close to him. He chooses me every single time, and I believe that's what true love is. However, things change when his first love, Samara Horton, returns from Urop. Vernon starts showing me his cold, aloof side that leaves no room for argument. He stops being gentle with me, his mask falls away to reveal his true colors, and he no longer treats me as his equal who shares his world. At that moment, I finally realize that I am nothing more than a dirty secret he needs to keep hidden from the rest of the world. I am but a pawn that he can easily cast away at his convenience. I choose to put an end to our secret relationship altogether. I leave, taking nothing of his with me except for the baby in my womb. The baby is his heir, but he doesn't even know that he exists.

That night, I returned from a business trip to surprise my wife. However, when I sneak home, I realize my boss is there, too. His smile deepens when he sees me; he tells me he's there to welcome me home because he knew I would return that night. My wife nods and agrees with him. For some reason, I can't help finding the looks on their faces odd.

Dua minggu sebelum pernikahan, Felix Darmaji tiba-tiba menunda upacara pernikahan kami. Dia berkata, "Shifa bilang kalau hari itu adalah pameran lukisan pertamanya. Dia sendirian saat acara pembukaan nanti. Aku khawatir dia merasa ketakutan kalau nggak sanggup menghadapi situasi itu, jadi aku harus pergi untuk membantunya." "Kita berdua juga nggak memerlukan acara penuh formalitas seperti ini. Apa bedanya kalau kita menikah lebih cepat atau lebih lambat sehari?" lanjut Felix. Namun, ini adalah ketiga kalinya pria ini menunda tanggal pernikahan kami demi Shifa Adnan. Saat pertama kali, Felix mengatakan bahwa Shifa baru saja menjalani operasi. Wanita itu merindukan makanan dari kampung halamannya, jadi Felix tanpa ragu pergi ke luar negeri untuk merawatnya selama dua bulan. Saat kedua kalinya, Felix mengatakan bahwa Shifa ingin pergi ke pegunungan terpencil untuk melukis serta mencari inspirasi. Felix khawatir akan keselamatannya, jadi dia ikut bersama wanita itu. Ini adalah ketiga kalinya. Aku menutup telepon, menatap teman masa kecilku, Callen Harlan, yang sedang duduk di seberang dengan sikap santai. Dia sedang mengetuk lantai marmer dengan tongkat berhias zamrud di tangannya, membentuk irama yang teratur. "Apakah kamu masih mencari seorang istri?" tanyaku. Pada hari pernikahanku, Shifa yang tersenyum manis sedang mengangkat gelasnya, menunggu Felix untuk bersulang bersamanya. Namun, pria itu justru menatap siaran langsung pernikahan putra kesayangan Grup Harlan, pengembang properti terbesar di negara ini, dengan mata memerah.