Stepping Artinya

I was discarded the moment my husband gained power. Divorced. Humiliated. Left with nothing…while my mother lay dying. Serena Black believed loyalty and sacrifice would be enough to secure her place beside Antonio Romano. Instead, she discovers she was only ever a stepping stone. He replaces her with a pregnant woman claiming to be the legendary Black family heiress and erases Serena from his life without mercy. Divorced, humiliated, and stripped of everything, Serena’s world collapses… until fate throws her beneath the wheels of the most dangerous man alive. Dante Romano is the ruthless Don of the Romano Mafia empire. Cold, commanding, untouchable. He should have walked away from the broken woman bleeding in the street. Instead, he sees a scar that awakens a memory he buried ten years ago… and a desire he was never supposed to feel. To protect her and to uncover the truth, Dante offers Serena a contract marriage. Revenge in exchange for a ring. Power in exchange for her name. But nothing is simple when the man you marry is your ex-husband’s father. As lies unravel and bloodlines are questioned, Serena is forced to choose: remain a pawn in a brutal mafia game… or rise as a queen feared by all. And Dante must decide how far he’s willing to go for the woman who was never meant to be his. Because in this world, love is forbidden. And truth is deadly. When secrets collide and desire defies loyalty, will Serena claim her destiny or will loving the Don cost her everything?

Suddenly, there were sparks in the air as memories came back. My heart froze as I stared at him. The moment I dreaded most had come to life. “No. This couldn’t be happening,” I told myself. It was him. “My lady, this is the man who brought Asher home,” the maid announced beside me. “The Alpha of the Silver Fang pack, Kael Riverstone.” ***** In a single, shattering day, Aurelia’s world collapses when her husband, the Lycan king, parades a pregnant woman into their home—none other than Liora, the cruel tormentor from Aurelia’s past pack. The betrayal cuts deeper as Aurelia uncovers Kael’s heartless truth: his love was a lie, a scheme to exploit her rare primordial wolf blood. Framed for treason and cast out, Aurelia vows vengeance and returns to her old pack, rising from outcast to the fierce Alpha of Red Moon. Five years later, with her son Asher and her fiercely devoted beta Rune at her side, she’s forged a new life—Rune stepping in as the father figure Asher adores. But as undeniable sparks flare between Aurelia and Rune, threatening to ignite a passion she’s afraid to embrace, her past storms back. Kael, now wracked with regret, grovels for forgiveness, desperate to reclaim what he threw away. With Liora’s schemes lurking, Asher’s wild powers drawing danger, and a hidden bond with Rune unraveling, Aurelia must navigate a treacherous path of love, revenge, and primal strength. Will she seize her hard-won power and heart, or will the ghosts of betrayal pull her back into chaos?

“I reject you, Avery Miller…” “Don’t bother saying it. I gladly accept your rejection, Alpha Luca. What exactly do you want from me? If laying down my life will make you happy, then so be it!” “What use is your life to me? I want you to agonize for the thousands of souls slaughtered during that raid and spend the rest of your days redeeming the atrocities you and your father committed! I, Alpha Luca, will make sure you regret the day your existence ever crossed mine.” Just when it seemed the Moon Goddess had finally granted them their happily ever after, a brutal truth surfaced: the massacre of the D’Addario family decades ago was orchestrated by none other than Avery Miller’s father…the very man Alpha Luca once called father-in-law. Luca thought his vengeance was complete when he stripped Avery of her love and her wolf, when he broke her spirit and forced her to watch another woman become his Luna. But fate has a wicked sense of humor. Years later, the Moon Goddess intertwines their destinies once more. Only now, Avery is no longer the fragile, obedient mate he once knew. She’s a powerful business tycoon, a devoted mother to his children, and a woman who refuses to be tamed. Can she forgive the man who shattered her world, or is she opening herself to another heartbreak? And if forgiveness is possible, is she willing to risk her heart and her children’s future for a second chance with the Alpha who once destroyed her? “Come back to you? A second chance? Please. I’m worth more than a stepping stone.”

“I do not need you to love me.” He rebuts coldly. “I need you to marry me.” “I do not want to, Mr Bolt.” I reiterate in case the stubborn asshole hadn’t understood my view on the subject. “I believe you think you have a choice in the matter.” He smiles wolfishly. “Marry me or I’ll let those wolves have a field day with tearing your company from your hands.” “I would rather take my chances with them than you.” He smirks, stepping close enough that his sandalwood scent wraps me in a cloud I wasn’t eager to escape. “Marriage to me wouldn’t be so bad as you well know it.” He smirked running an eye up and down my body. “I’ll keep your days busy with clients and your nights very warm.” *** Maria Belluci had lived a rather peaceful life as the daughter of one of London’s elite businessmen but she had her carefully organized life torn away from her when she found her half-sister in bed with her fiancé a few weeks before their wedding. Distraught, she had a one-night stand with the famed billionaire CEO Sebastian Bolt and left before he could wake up. She decided to leave her family, who had sided with her half-sister and everything associated with them, behind to start over, but her story was far from over as this gripping tale of passion, desire, and betrayal spun her into the arms of Sebastian again. Would they overcome all odds stacked against them or would their romance shatter under the weight of adversity?

To save his mother’s life as she lay critically ill in the operating room, Dante had no choice. The hospital bills kept piling up. Every door he knocked on for help closed, one by one. Until an offer came—dirty, dangerous, and binding. To become a mafia boss’s kept man. Leonard Virelli was not just a wealthy man. He was the shadow ruler of the city—ambitious, manipulative, and accustomed to getting whatever he wanted. Including Dante. Dante knew this was not simply a “relationship.” It was an unspoken contract of ownership. Of a body paid for. Of a life slowly brought under control. He had never imagined himself stepping into a world like that. But for the cost of the surgery, for the only family he had left, Dante was willing to swallow his pride. What he did not expect was how dangerous Leonard truly was. The man did not only want Dante’s presence at his side—he wanted obedience. Loyalty. Perhaps even… his heart. Behind the expensive suits and cold smiles, Leonard harbored an unhealthy obsession. He was not used to being rejected. Not used to losing. And the more Dante tried to keep his emotional distance, the tighter Leonard’s grip became. Trapped between guilt, desperation, and feelings that began to grow without permission, Dante found himself asking a question he was afraid to answer: Did he sell himself to save his mother? Or had he unknowingly surrendered himself to a man who would never let him go? In the mafia world filled with blood and betrayal, love is not tenderness. Love is possession. And Dante has just signed a contract with the most dangerous man in the city.

My son just had surgery. I'm sitting by his bedside in the hospital when I come across a post online. "What's the worst thing you've ever done?" One anonymous comment stands out. "I used the upperclassman who funded me as a stepping stone. My sponsor was rich but clueless. After she paid for my entire college, I slept with her husband and got pregnant. "The craziest part? My son and her son were born on the same day, but my husband swapped the babies. Now, she treats my son like he's her whole world, working day and night to give him a better life. "But her own son lives with me, wearing hand-me-downs and eating leftovers. Today, my son had surgery. I was worried sick, so I slapped her son hard a few times. "Oh, and her family just got a three-million-dollar payout for relocation. My husband is going to the hospital later. He's going to use the excuse of buying a house near the schools to get the money. "Once we have the money, I'm buying a villa. Then I'll get my son back and kick her out!" The post includes a blurry photo of a boy begging on his knees. My breath catches because the charm on his wrist is the same lucky charm I gave my son the day he was born. Just then, my husband pushes open the door to the ward and walks in. "Honey, Sean's starting elementary school soon. Let's use that relocation money your mom received to buy a house near the schools."

When the Earth slipped into a relentless, record-breaking heat, I exhausted everything I had to develop a constant-temperature shelter. Yet, my fiancée, Janine O’Connor, insisted on wearing a bikini and going out to sunbathe with her personal secretary. In my previous life, I stopped her. I warned her that an apocalyptic heatwave was coming, and that countless people would be burned to death simply by being exposed to the heat. However, her personal secretary looked as though he had suffered a great injustice. “I’m sorry, Will,” he said. “But I can’t bear to see Miss Janine stuck in a shelter for the rest of her life. I’ve done my research. This is a period of natural selection for the Earth. Only by adapting quickly to the environment can people truly survive.” Even so, I threatened my own life and forcibly brought Janine back into the shelter. Relying on the shelter I built, Janine survived the apocalypse and rapidly built a survivor base. However, on the second day after she became the base’s leader, she had me hanged outside the shelter and burned alive. “If you hadn’t forced me to come back, Mark wouldn’t have been devastated and killed himself in the heat! He was about to develop a new type of shelter, yet you stole all the credit! I’ll make you pay with your life!” Even after my death, her hatred didn’t fade. She ordered someone to skin me and turn my hide into a rug, stepping on it every day. When I opened my eyes again, I was back to the day I tried to stop her from sunbathing with Mark Davis.

April Moore’s played by her family’s rules all her life. Now, she’s outlived most of her family and those rules she’s forced to live by have the world seeing her as worthless. April believed she loved David Moore, and she believed he loved her when they married. Soon after the wedding, his sweet compliments, and generous gifts disappeared. Two years later, April said goodbye to her deadbeat husband and enjoyed being challenged by an interesting billionaire. What’s a woman who’s claim to fame’s the yearbook’s ‘Ms. Plain Jane’ going to do with the football captain. Sure, it’s years after graduation but, the things he remembers! Damien Jones is busy pretending to maintain the image of a useless playboy. While he’s stepping in for his father at the new resort because his father wants to hide his slow death. Now corporate sabotage hits the resort during the wedding of a friend Damien is acting as best man for. It becomes complicated. The resort booked for the wedding for the week. The harm came from a guest or staff member. Competition is steep in this town and reputations can die if this leads back to someone. April’s full of talents and secrets. She always was. damien believes he has a chance with April. she’s lost the training wheels and she’s coming out swinging at life. to damien, April’s beautiful in everyway. But will society have something else to say about their relationship through the backdrop of their friends’ wedding and business gone awry? April and Damien will confront social climbing relatives, corporate saboteurs, steamy nights and more. After that, will they find love?

He was told to protect me and yet I want him to ruin me. “Zyran?” He didn’t turn. “What is it, Myra?” I took a shaky breath, my heart hammering against my ribs. “Our arrangement. I want to understand my part in it.” Finally he turned. His pale eyes gleamed in the dim light, his gaze fixed on me so intently, it felt like a predator tracking its prey. “Your part is to be my wife and mine to give you protection.” “But you are the only one giving. I want to give you something too.” “I’m tired of being just a painting on the wall,” I whispered, stepping closer to him, the air crackling with so much tension, I may have forgotten how to breathe. “You're my husband. In every way, so I want you to teach me.” A muscle ticked in his jaw, his eyes darkening with every word I said. “Teach you what?” “Pleasure.” I said, biting down on my lip out of sheer nervousness “Your kind of pleasure. Show me what you like. Let me learn how to touch you. Let me make you feel something…” I agreed to marry Zyran Theon because he was my brother’s best friend and by far the safest option. A year of cold indifference seemed better than a lifetime of horror. However I never expected to find a man shattered by his own psyche and a constant repression of his urges to claim me and even worse I never expected to want him too.

Raya Monroe had always belonged to Noah Vale, at least, that’s what she made herself believe. He saved her once, long ago, and from that moment, her heart beat only for him. She obeyed every command, bore every sacrifice, even when it meant stepping aside for the girl fate chose in her place, Nora. But nothing shattered her more than his final request. “Give her your wolf, Raya. And when it’s over… I’ll mark you as mine.” She agreed. And she died for it. On the other side of the lake, Riley Hart, Alpha princess without a wolf, newly mated, newly betrayed by her mate, alpha Eric, fell to her knees begging for the agony of rejection to end. “Who wants a wolfless mate like you?” Two girls. Two broken hearts. Two final wishes whispered into the same night. “Let me come back.” Raya whispered. “Please… let it end.” Riley cried. __ What if those wishes intertwined? What if death answered them both? Raya returns, reborn in a new body, carrying the pain of two fates, and her second life is bound to the wrath of the Alpha King, Ajax Blackstone. His armies are rising, his vengeance is unstoppable, and Eric and Noah’s pack stands at the edge of ruin. What is Ajax hunting? Can Raya take revenge from the pack that destroyed her… while living in the body of the girl that was cast aside? Or will fate destroy her a second time? One thing is certain. They took everything from her for love. Now love turned wrath is coming back for them all.