Straight Jacket

My best friend breaks down and accuses me of skimming family shipments, which cost us billions. Without hesitation, my fiance, Don Scarpa Falcone, points a gun at me. The bullet grazes my ear. He sends me to prison himself, then gets engaged to my best friend instead. Before I'm taken away, the family butler begs him, "You raised her yourself. She's your fiancee. You can't just ruin her life like this!" "Break the rules, and pay in blood," he says, polishing his gun. "As for her future, I'll decide that later." Five years later, I walk out of prison. The entire Falcone family is waiting at the gate with him, as if my freedom were a handout. "Looks like you've learned your lesson. It's time to return and get back to work. Don't do anything stupid again," he says. I ignore him and walk straight to the stretch Lincoln behind him. The door opens. Chris Corleone, the king of the Aurelian underworld, raises his glass to me. "Welcome back, partner."

I was having lunch in the cafeteria when my pregnant coworker, Cindy Jenkins, reached across with her fork and speared the fried chicken drumstick right off my plate. She did not say a word until she had finished every last bite, then casually remarked, "I'm six months pregnant now, which is when I need the most nutrition. Plus, I'm carrying a boy, the only grandson in my husband's family. Do you all understand how important this baby is?" I stared at her, dumbfounded. "What's that got to do with me? It's not like I'm the father." She completely ignored me and said, "I'm just letting you all know. From now on, you're taking turns giving me your chicken drumsticks." The other coworkers at the table quickly looked down and focused on their food, nobody daring to say anything. Only me, the one person who never backed down, kept staring straight at her. Cindy slammed her fork onto her tray. "What are you looking at? Your drumsticks are mine from now on, got it?"

I've been mated to Alpha Damon for five years. I helped him build a business empire, but he kept delaying our marking ceremony 99 times. Right before the ceremony was supposed to happen, he told me the pack’s resources were tight. He demanded I stop the expansion of the Alpha’s manor and scrapped the nursery I’d designed for our future pups. Then he turned around and bought a thirty-million-dollar penthouse for Isabella, a new omega in our pack. When Isabella and I were in a car crash at the same time, he didn't even glance my way. He ran straight to her. He wrapped her in his Alpha scent, holding her tight. Their scents mingling was like a knife to my heart. In the pack council hall, in front of all the Elders, I looked at him with ice in my eyes. "I, Elena, reject you, Damon, as my mate." Through the gut-wrenching pain of the mate bond snapping, I sent a message to the Alpha of another pack. "I rejected him. I'll be at your Crescent Moon Pack tomorrow."

Because of a last-minute business trip, my husband missed the Thanksgiving family dinner. I spent the entire day helping out at my in-laws' place in the countryside with our five-year-old son, only to receive a complaint from the downstairs neighbor just before dinner. "Ari, could you please close your kitchen window when you're cooking? I can smell the hot sauce from all the way here. My husband has a lung condition—he can't handle it." My neighbor's words shocked me, and I immediately called my husband, who was allergic to chili peppers. "Honey, did someone break into the house? The neighbor said there was smoke coming from the kitchen." His breathing hitched for a second before he let out a casual laugh. "No break-in. My flight got canceled, so I was home alone cooking. When are you two coming back? I really miss you." I smiled and told him we'd stay a couple more days, but in the middle of the night, I packed up our son and drove straight home.

The day my husband's first love shows up at my house, I catch a faint, cloyingly sweet scent of gardenias in the air. My genetically-linked asthma flares violently at the scent of gardenias. As expected, halfway through the meal, my chest suddenly tightens. I can barely draw a breath before collapsing onto the couch. My younger brother sprints into my bedroom like he's lost his mind, grabs an inhaler, and shoves it straight to my mouth. "Tess!" he roars. "Why the hell is there gardenia perfume?" Everyone panics. My dad grabs a liquor bottle. My mom lunges forward, grabbing the woman by the hair. And my husband positions himself in front of her, protecting his beloved first love as she trembles. Amid the chaos, I muster the last of my strength. I reach into the crack of the couch, grab another inhaler, take a deep breath, and slowly push myself upright. I let out a cold laugh as I fix my gaze on the woman cowering behind my husband. "Finished with your little performance? It's my turn now."

I was hired to care for a sick child. I never saw his face. Never heard his voice. Until I stepped into the house of nightmares. Ezra Kade thought the job was simple, to take care of a bedridden heir hidden away in a mansion dripping with wealth and secrets. But the moment he crosses the threshold, he realizes he’s been fed a lie. The child isn’t a child. He’s a man. A man who watches him from the shadows. A man with a past written in blood. Kieran Valen survived the unthinkable—an accident meant to erase him from existence. For two years, he’s played the part of the broken, helpless heir, a puppet in his siblings’ twisted game. But Kieran isn’t weak. He isn’t helpless. And Ezra? Ezra just walked straight into the web, into his hands. In a house ruled by deception, where the walls whisper secrets and the floors are stained with the past, Ezra must decide… run, or let himself be caught. Because Kieran doesn’t just want a caretaker. He wants devotion. Obedience. Worship. And he’ll break Ezra apart to get it.

Kendra Hayes lives by one rule, stay invisible. Straight A’s, no drama, no mistakes. But when Professor West, the man who controls her grades and her future, starts blurring the lines between mentorship and something far more dangerous, her silence becomes a cage she can’t escape. Then Axel Cross storms in. The campus golden boy. Star quarterback. Infuriatingly confident and the last person she expects to notice the cracks in her perfect facade. One glance changes everything. He sees what no one else dares to, and suddenly Kendra has something she’s never had before… an ally. But West plays a long game and he never loses. With every step Axel takes toward her, the professor’s hold tightens. Rumors ignite. Secrets surface. Loyalties shatter. And Kendra is caught in a deadly tug-of-war between the boy willing to risk it all for her, and the man determined to own her completely. She can stay silent and survive… Or speak up and lose everything, except maybe her heart. If West doesn’t destroy them both first.

Book 1 of The Badboys' Series Shelly Anderson is an average student enduring a normal high-school life. Max Jackson is known as the most mysterious player and bad boy at school. She likes going unnoticed at school and does not like to be the talk of everyone. He is one of the popular guys and does not care about what others think. She likes her own free time, reading her books and spending it on Netflix and she prefers to be alone in a quiet space instead of feeling alone in a crowd. He is often seen hanging out with his two friends, Connor McAllister, the playboy of the school and Alex Maynard, the friendly one among these three but also a jerk to others. She is antisocial and a loser, well, nerd to others as she gets straight A's. He is a rich spoilt brat and gets whatever he wishes to have by hook or by crook. Dancing and reading books is her passion. Racing and fighting is his obsession. What happens when Max becomes her new neighbour? With them clashing again and again, will Shelly be able to cope with him? Will he be able to make her his without telling her about his dangerous secrets?

PASSION IN THE OFFICE One shot of vodka + a dare + one steamy kiss = LOVE? Willing to prove she really can ‘live a little, Navy Remington accepts to play truth or dare in a cool nightclub. She chooses dare… After one shot of vodka, enough to help her build up some courage, Navy goes straight to a gorgeous man at the bar, puts her arms around his neck, and gives him a passionate, steamy kiss. What Navy doesn’t know is that the man she just made out with in the nightclub, is mogul and playboy extraordinaire Victor Hook. Furthermore… he's going to become her boss... real soon. Even so, Navy won’t let anything get in the way of her ambition. And she’s determined to be taken seriously as she begins her career, and not give in to the heat that’s constantly driving her to distraction. Still, the more Navy and Victor ignore the fire between them, the stronger it gets. But she’s not going to end up in her boss’s bed, because saying yes to Victor won’t just be Navy’s wickedest fantasies come to life... it will be the end of her dreams.

For seven years, Elara has been on the run. Moving every few months, hiding her powerful witch blood, and shielding her younger brother, Orion, has become her miserable existence. The only thing she knows for sure is that her luck is fading. When an anonymous, blood-written note forces her into the fastest escape of her life, she is suddenly abandoned by the one person she swore to protect. Alone and vulnerable, she falls straight into the clutches of the most dangerous, wicked males in the supernatural world. Kaelen, Lysander, and Xavier are the ruthless lords of the Penumbra Syndicate, a Fae, a wolf shifter, and a vampire. They are cursed by an enchantress to find their one true love before a magical hourglass drains the last of its red liquid, condemning them to eternal torment. They are convinced the beautiful witch they’ve captured is the very woman who hexed them. Chained in their opulent mansion, Elara fights for her life even as she’s overwhelmed by a searing, impossible attraction to her three captors. As the clock ticks down, the men must decide: is Elara the wicked enemy who ruined their lives, or the fated soulmate who can finally save them all?