Stared

I stared at him, wide-eyed, aware of the heat from his body, rolling off in waves. Awareness swept through me, my stomach clenched and wetness flooded my core as I felt his nearness; and I sighed. He gripped a handful of my hair with an oath and brought his mouth down on mine, his hard lips slanting as they claimed my mouth. His heavy, strong body forced me against the wall and I trembled with need and fear… I was rigid for a while, unable to understand what was happening. My body begged me to hold his shoulders, to stroke him, to let go. But my almost Puritanical upbringing made me stay stiff and resistant. Till he sank his teeth into my lower lip and I opened my mouth in a gasp. * When the cynical, jaded Mafia Don Lucien Delano, meets eighteen-year-old, Proserpina Martinez, she falls in love with him without realizing that she is just a plaything for him. By the time she comprehends the reality, it is too late. Pregnant and alone the spirited young woman does something that takes the Don by surprise. She runs away. What happens next? Read it to find out how the stormy, passionate lovers battle their emotions and themselves. *

“The client requested natural conception.” At night, in a luxurious villa, Adela lay naked on the bed. The room was dark. She stared at the blurry patterns on the ceiling, her palms already drenched with sweat. The sound of water flowing from the bathroom gradually stopped. Adela struggled to breathe, her heart pounding as if it were about to jump out of her chest. This was her first time, but she wasn’t here as a lover. She was here as a surrogate mother. The bathroom door was pushed open. From the narrow gap came a warm yellow light. A man, wrapped in a towel, stepped out. Adela couldn’t see his face clearly, only sensing that he was a tall and imposing figure. …… Adela initially thought this was just a transaction—she needed money to fend off the ruthless men who came knocking because of her father’s gambling debts. But what she didn’t expect was for her fate to become entangled with this man. He was a man of absolute power and dominance, yet every time she was on the brink of despair, he was the one who held her up. More importantly, as time went on, Adela began to uncover the truth about her own identity. Her real family—her true origins—were deeply connected to this man. Their destinies became even more intertwined, especially after she gave birth to their child…

My sister's husband smirked. "You can call me the devil, but I know what I want." My eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as I stared at Damon's nûde body. This felt so wrong. He was my brother-in-law. "What do you want?" I breathed. Damon took a step closer, his gaze dark with intent. "You. I want you, Ava. I want to own you, and I’m done watching Walter hover around you like he has a chance. You belong to me." ~~~~~~ After a devastating breakup, Ava finds herself homeless in New York. Her older sister, Adrianna, offers her a place to stay, but moving in with her turns out to be the biggest mistake—or temptation—of her life. Adrianna and Damon’s marriage seems perfect on the outside, but cracks are beginning to show, and Ava gets caught in the middle. Damon is dangerous, possessive, and alluring. Despite every effort to resist, Ava finds herself drawn to him in ways she shouldn't be. Torn between loyalty and an undeniable attraction, Ava struggles against the forbidden pull of her sister’s husband. But when the tension between them becomes unbearable, one question remains—will she give in and damn the consequences? Find out in this gripping forbidden romance.

"kneel," His cold voice thundered in the quiet room. I shuddered as I quietly obeyed, gritting my teeth as I fought back the tears from falling down my eyes. Derrick eyes darkened as he stared at me, his eyes filled with disdain. He lifted my chin up with his feet. My gaze landed on his cold and stoic face He curled the corners of his lips up. You want to be my Luna? "You are not fit," He said, the words like daggers piercing in my heart. Raven, a young omega and the mate of Alpha Derrick, lived a brutal life under his indifference and cruelty. Forced to endure humiliation and torment. On the night she finally gathered the courage to disappear from his life. Derrick returned home drunk. Mistaking her for his lost first love, he forcefully claimed her as his mate. Raven fled that same night, only to discover she was carrying his child. She vowed to protect her baby at all costs and built a quiet, peaceful life in the human world. But five years later, Derrick came knocking. This time, he didn’t just want the children he wanted her. But Raven is no longer the meek and broken woman he once knew. Will she forgive the man who shattered her life?

"Kaden, please...you can't do this to me...," my voice cracked as I sank to my knees, my heart shattering into a million pieces He stared down at me, his face hardening as disgust flickered in his eyes. "Matilda I will not repeat myself. Sign the papers and leave. You fucking disgust me," Kaden snapped, each word cutting deeper like a blade to my soul Tears streamed down my face as I watched him wrap his hand possessively around another woman, leading her straight into our matrimonial room ~~~~~~~~~ Matilda never deserved this. All she did was fall in love with the wrong man. A man who hated every single thing about her. To him, she was a burden that ruined his perfect life When Kaden could no longer stand Matilda's presence, he threw divorce papers in her face, humiliating her in front of his mistress Six years later, Matilda returns with her two identical twins, the spitting image of Kaden What happens when Kaden comes face to face with the children he never knew existed? Will Matilda let the man who shattered her heart back into their lives? Or will she protect her children from the man who not only despised her but humiliated her in ways she'll never forget?

For over thirty years, my wife Janet faked being broke—for her flimsy ex. When our son Asher landed in the hospital, I begged and borrowed from everyone I knew. Still came up fifty bucks short. Janet? Said she was tapped out. So my mom sold off her own meds to cover the bill—never told me. She died without treatment. I handled my mom's funeral alone. When I went to pick up Asher from the hospital, I found a stash of Janet's old shopping receipts. Custom suits. Million-dollar watches. A damn private jet. I grabbed them and stormed off to confront her. Asher cut me off. "Dad, Mr. Sackett's sick. Mom's just helping him out. Why are you freaking out?" I stared at the kid who only lived because my mom died. It felt like something cracked inside me. Janet barely looked up. "Connor's educated. He deserves the finer things. Unlike you—crying over fifty bucks like some househusband. See? I didn't give you the money, and Asher's fine." Fine. If that's how they see it, I'm done with this family.

My love story with my Don husband was once the model relationship for couples all across Edale. But after his sudden death, the notary informed me that I was not the first in line to inherit his estate. I froze. Christian Fuzio was an only child. His parents had long passed away. We had no children. If I wasn't the first in line, then who was? That was when the boy walked in. His face was a perfect copy of Zoe Sgotti, Christian's assistant. The boy crossed his arms and sneered. "Mrs. Fuzio, the person my father loved most in his life was my mother. Of course, most of the inheritance belongs to us." Rae… Ray… Only then did I realize that the name he had whispered on his deathbed was never mine. I lunged forward to question Ray, but he shoved me into the traffic. The moment my head slammed against the ground, darkness swallowed everything. When I opened my eyes once more… I stared at my young, strong hands. Feeling the life that I had once lost growing inside me, I finally understood that I had been given another chance. Christian, this time, I no longer wanted your fake love. I would grant the three of you all the happiness that you wanted.

The day my mother brought her childhood sweetheart back to the villa, my father—who had already quit smoking—stood on the balcony and smoked through the entire night. Back then, his colleagues at the research institute all envied him for having a wife who was a CEO. They said he should have stayed home and enjoyed life—why work so hard outside when all he needed to do was keep a firm grip on the household finances? But my father never agreed. "Those things are all external," he would say. "As long as the feelings are still there, we'll be fine whether we're rich or poor. And if one day she no longer loves me, I'll leave with nothing and walk away alone." He never expected his words to become prophecy. My mother truly did stop loving him. Later, when she appeared before the media, arm in arm with that man, my father didn't look back. He boarded a flight overseas and disappeared from our lives. And as I stared at the photo in my social feed—my fiancée's hand entwined with someone else's—I knew it was time for me to leave too, just like my father had.

I fought with my husband, Alessio, the Don of the Moretti family, over the mistress who'd given him twin sons. The next day, he stormed into my bedroom and put a gun to my head. "Did you take my sons?! You vicious bitch!" While I was still in shock, he ordered his men to lock my eight-year-old daughter, Lucia, in the icehouse for three whole days of "training." He gave me an ultimatum: Lucia would stay there until I brought him his sons. Lucia froze to death in that icehouse. I returned with her death certificate in my hand, my heart a hollow stone in my chest, only to find him moving his mistress and their sons into the home we once shared. He was cheerful, dismissing the whole thing as a misunderstanding. He even had the audacity to tell me to go get Lucia to meet her "new little brothers." I just stared, tears tracking paths down my face, the life inside me extinguished. It wasn't until that thin piece of paper—the death certificate—fluttered to the floor that the color drained from Alessio's face. He finally realized Lucia was gone. Killed by his own blind, cruel pride.

I had been married for eight years when I inherited a fortune worth hundreds of millions that my grandfather left to me and my mafia boss husband. However, just as the lawyer was finalizing the transfer, we discovered my marriage certificate was fake. That meant the entire inheritance could only go to me. “Ms. Rivers, according to the system, you were divorced a year ago. Your husband, Zayn Levine, is legally married to… Whitney Sanders. According to the papers, you're single. In other words, Mr. Levine has no right to claim the inheritance.” Whitney, the woman Zayn had once loved before she went abroad, the one he never forgot. I stared at the lawyer’s message, unable to accept it. All of Zayn’s affection and tenderness over the years had been nothing but a lie. I had planned to tell him on our anniversary that after eight long years of marriage, I was pregnant. It was the miracle we had both been waiting for. Yet it seemed like he had never really been looking forward to it at all. As I gently rested my hand on my belly, I told myself that even if my twins grew up without a father, they would be just fine. In this place built on nothing but lies, the only thing left for me to do was run away.