Storm Watch C. J. Box Novels & Stories

Arthur Wilder was once an apology I thought was sent to me, but he turned out to be a calm before the storm. A storm that nearly cost my life and still lingers in my soul. Years later, when I thought I was finally in control, powerful and unstoppable, he was back to take charge of my life. In marriage. I should run. I should protect myself. Yet I found myself leaning into his darkness. What if in the midst of a yelling crowd, he stood silently beside me?

Right after my best friend, Freda Foster, is done giving birth, I cuddle with her newborn while playing with him. "Hi, darling. I'm your godmother, and he's your godfather." That's when my husband, Hugo Reid, suddenly speaks up. "I'm not his godfather. I'm his actual father." At first, I think I'm hearing things. Unexpectedly, Hugo's lips curl into a smirk. He repeats himself, "The baby's mine. On the day your father passed away, Freda and I did it the whole night. We used a whole box of condoms, too." I remain rooted to the spot. My throat feels very constricted to the point I can barely find my voice. A long while later, I finally choke out, "But… But we only registered our marriage yesterday…" Hugo laughs as he wraps an arm around me and starts consoling me. "Don't worry. Freda and I are friends with benefits, at most. If we wanted to get married, we'd have gotten married a long time ago." A pause later, he adds teasingly, "Wait, Freda is still keeping this a secret from you, huh? The truth is, we were in a relationship before. I'm the first man she's been with, you know."

"Fresh out of prison and you can't wait to prostitute yourself, you sure are a no-nonsense bitch." Framed and imprisoned, Zona is kidnapped just after her release from prison to a slave auction and bought by her nemesis, Mafia Lord Valerio, for five million dollars. Because of the misunderstanding that Zona is the murderer of his own sister, plus the misunderstanding that she has betrayed him physically and mentally in the past, Valerio, who used to be gentle and accommodating to Zona, now sits in the VVIP box of the auction and casts a gaze at her as cold as looking at garbage. Valerio does not want to kill her, so he humiliates her, in order to revenge, he wantonly plundered her spirit, body, tortured her like a broken doll, and threatened to set her free only if she paid him back five million dollars. Zona endures all the abuse and pain she is subjected to in order to clear her name and avenge the death of her best sister. When the real killer appears in front of her, will she be able to fight back and make the bad guy pay? When the truth comes out, how will Valerio deal with the "angel" that he has tortured so much? And when it's all over, what path will Zona choose, heaven or hell?

On the day of my wedding with my girlfriend, I was unexpectedly informed by the hotel that our ceremony had to be postponed by a couple of hours. With no time to notify relatives and friends of the change, I had to rush to the hotel entrance to intercept guests. Upon arriving, I was stopped at the door by security, who told me that a wedding was currently taking place inside. The host's voice could be heard as I saw my girlfriend, wearing a veil, smiling and extending her hand to a man who was half-kneeling. In the audience, all the bride's relatives who were supposed to attend our wedding were seated, clapping and cheering. The man on stage was her dream guy and also my current superior. Seeing me causing a commotion, my girlfriend warned me, "I'm just helping out. Alex is your superior. I'm also doing this to help you. Don't cause any trouble." Just helping out? I had booked the wedding venue, chosen the time, designed the wedding dress, and personally sent out the invitations. How could a wedding be rearranged so suddenly? I looked coldly at the ring box the man was holding. "It seems my taste is quite similar to my yours. If that's the case, this diamond ring is yours, including the wife." My girlfriend finally panicked.

He pinned me against the wall, his eyes burning with intensity. I tried to push him away, but he just smiled, his lips curling up in that annoying grin of his that looked sexy as hell. 'You can't resist me, can you?' he teased, his breath hot against my skin. I tried to deny it, but my body betrayed me, arching into his touch. He chuckled, his eyes glinting with triumph. "Don't," I whispered, my voice trembling with need. "I'm not ready for this." He paused, his gaze searching mine. Then, he leaned in closer, his voice low and husky. 'I think you are." When Tilda's fiancé cheats on her, she seeks comfort in a one-night stand with a stranger who pretended to be her groom to get her our a a bind but when she discovers he's her new boss, Richard, and the father of her young patient, Ivy, Tilda's world is turned upside down. As she explores her feelings for Richard, she must confront the consequences of their whirlwind romance as well as the Pandora's box they open. Will their love survive or will they end up like every Ill written love story?

Someone suddenly tags me in a parents' group chat. "Hey Madison, I notice that the lunch boxes you've prepared for your daughter have a nice variety and rich in nutrients. Why don't you prepare the same thing for my son starting from tomorrow onward? "I'm not going to leech off you. In fact, I'll pay you ten dollars per day. When it stacks up, you'll earn quite a lot per month." As I stare at the messages on the screen, I find the situation rather ridiculous. My daughter, Sophie Reed, is extremely picky, not to mention she has food allergies. All of the ingredients of her meals are flown in from their places of origin. That means one meal's net price is more than 500 dollars. Yet now, someone intends to use ten dollars just for me to replicate the same meal for them? I reply right away in the group chat, "No way." Unexpectedly, the next day, Sophie is in tears when she returns from the kindergarten. She tells me that her lunch box has gotten snatched by a fellow classmate. On top of that, the teacher scolds her for being selfish as well. Fine. Since those shameless people intend to take advantage of me, don't blame me for being ruthless at all.

"It's really hard to see the person who you love with another. Especially when he has more of them. All-day I watch him connect with these others. He does not even spare me a glance. Well, why would he? I am just a subject in his eyes."Lui Xian for years has been in love with the Emperor the man who owns every flower. Can he ever be enough for him? Or will he find someone who sees him?

I was supposed to be a star. Instead, I became a scandal, a prisoner, and a joke the world loved to watch fall. Framed by my own sister and betrayed by the man I once loved, I had nothing left except a voice that no one wanted to hear. Then Jesse Roberts walked into my ruins—cold-eyed billionaire, rumored killer, and the head of the most feared mafia family in Country M. He offered me a deal: Become his wife. Give him loyalty. Get my revenge.

When the Werewolf King emerges from the shadows, Lisa’s ordinary world shatters. His presence, both magnetic and menacing, marks her descent into a realm she never knew existed. Now trapped in his kingdom where pack law reigns supreme, Lisa faces an impossible choice: become his bride and bear the next heir to his throne, or watch as everything she loves is destroyed. But as she uncovers the dark secrets of the pack, Lisa realizes there may be more to fear than the King himself.

Alex found himself entangled in a destiny, just when he was about to enjoy his teenage days. He reluctantly accepted to save his hometown from a calamity which had been happening for some years. He discovered some secrets in the course of saving his people from the calamity, to his surprise. How on earth is the people he regarded to be his biological parents for eighteen years not his? Will he eventually accept his destiny? Will he embrace his identity? Watch out as secrets unfold.