Stork Standing Test

The company held a management meeting, and my husband's secretary was standing at the door, checking everyone's identity. Every person who entered the conference room was greeted with a bright smile—until it was my turn. Then came a derisive snort. I frowned and handed over my badge from the Cybersecurity Department, but he didn't even bother to look. "Skye, Mr. Fraser only pitied you enough to make you a manager. Don't tell me you actually think you're something special?" I didn't respond. Instead, I turned around and dialed the CEO's direct line. "Someone just said this position was yours to grant out of pity. Is that true?"

On New Year's Eve, I prepare a feast. The clock strikes twelve, but my husband, Vincent Porter, still isn't home. My daughter, Lorelei Porter, tugs at my sleeve and holds up my phone. "Look Mommy, Daddy is at this lady's house!" Vincent has posted an update on Twitter. He is with Christine Snow, his childhood sweetheart. They are smiling at the camera, with a boy who looks about ten standing between them. In front of them sits a swan-shaped cake. The caption reads, "The most special day for the most special you." My heart sinks into my stomach. A marriage that came later in life can never compete with a pair of childhood sweethearts. I accept defeat.

Three years ago, my girlfriend suffered severe post-traumatic stress after saving my life. She later had a speech impairment that kept her from speaking normally. To cure her, I take on three jobs a day and survive on only bread and water just to come up with the money for her therapy and speech recovery treatment. I happen to be working part-time as a cocktail party waiter one evening when I see my girlfriend, who supposedly has a speech impairment, standing in a fancy dress and being fawned over by the crowd around her. Everyone is calling her "Ms. Holden" and "the heiress of the Holden family". But how can an orphan like her possibly be an heiress?

Xena Quinn posted in the homeowners' group: “Anyone interested in adopting a puppy? $200 each.” I took her at her word and rushed over to adopt one. When she opened the door and saw me, her expression immediately soured, clearly disgusted. “What? A woman?” She quickly raised the price to $2,000 per puppy, and I was so pissed off I just turned around and walked out. The next day, my boyfriend, Hugo Xavier, bought the dog for the original $200 price. Before I could even process what had happened, the doorbell rang. There she was, standing at the door in a revealing nightgown. “Hugo, are you home? I came to check on the puppy.”

Prologue “We can’t be together,” he whispered, voice breaking. “You are my destruction.” Tears burned her eyes as she shook her head, stepping closer even though it felt like standing at the edge of a blade. “And you… are my ruin too.” The words tasted like a goodbye neither of them could accept. They were bound by something older than choice, older than mercy. A curse carved into blood and grief, waiting patiently for the moment they would finally meet. They were never meant to love safely. And if they ever surrendered to it— One would die. The other would be destroyed by love. The curse waited patiently. And destiny, cruel and inevitable, had already begun to pull them closer.

“What does it look like, Victoria?” Amelia replied with a smirk. “I see. You’ve grown bold", my mother said. “No, no, you’re mistaken. I’ve grown rich! Victoria.” When Amelia Harper storms back into Ethan Caldwell’s life, she’s no longer the girl he lost, she’s the powerful widow standing between him and in control of Caldwell Enterprises. As lies unravel and a daughter he never knew enters the picture, Ethan is forced to confront a scandal that could ruin everything. Torn between revenge, love, and the truth behind Amelia’s disappearance, one question remains: Can they rebuild what was shattered, or will the past finish what it started?

Vida was a waitress who put in eight hours a day in order to afford her $300 monthly rent and three square meals a day. She enjoyed each and every fantasy story as if it were true, and she longed to live in and explore the worlds depicted there. But she was shocked to find out it was true. Meeting a royal is the last thing she expected, but it happens. She does, indeed. Her visions morphed into steamy fantasies, and before she knew it, the handsome stranger was standing outside the bar where she worked. The question recurs, "Am I dreaming again?" They repeated in unison, looking into each other's eyes in disbelief. What happened afterwards is ancient history. And the ride was quite exciting.

She has served the country to great extents. When she returns home from Vietnam with medals and valors of honor, she’s taken in by Homeland Security. With the elections coming up for the Presidency of the USA, Alyssa Pope is assigned the position of Director of U.S. Secret Service and a seat in the Oval room. She is to become the president’s shadow and trails. Richard Davis is the head of the Democratic Party and the US President. Married and with his wife expecting a child, Mr. President has to secure a United front to the press even though, his thoughts are occupied by the woman standing outside his door. A secret affair with the President… Alyssa is not ready to face the consequences of their encounters in the oval room when the surveillance cameras are off.

Fernando is the scion of the Quinn family, one of the wealthiest families in the capital. He should be living in the prime of his life, surrounded by honor and luxury. But three years ago, he was expelled from the Quinn family-the tendons in his hands and feet were mercilessly cut off. Michael, Joyce's father, took pity on him and helped him, even getting his daughter married to Fernando. From then on, all members of the Nagel family regarded Fernando as a failed man, someone unworthy of standing by Joyce's side. They kept trying to convince her to divorce him. However, little did they know... the man they despised was actually one of the richest men in the country. What will happen when the truth is finally revealed?

That moment when you are being stood up by your lover on your special day. When you are standing at the altar feigning smile at the one you ought not to marry..the one that fills the space of your beloved.. "Do you take .......to be your lawfully wedded wife" the priest asked. It was not meant to be her nevertheless for reputation, he obliged.. "Yes...I do" ### Clarissa is left with no other option than to fill the space of her run away cousin. Little did she know she was playing a game of fate and reality. Story turning, secrets unraveling, she finds out a truth, a truth that gets her to fall deeply in love with her story but at another end, the mistake of another causes her trouble.