Sultry Wood Nymph

Camilla walks into my study, and the air shifts. She's a distraction I can't afford, but fuck if I can resist her. Her fingers trace the edge of my desk, her eyes locked onto mine. "What are you doing, Camilla?" I growl, my control already fraying. She's a walking temptation, and she knows it. She smirks, her voice a sultry whisper, already undoing me. "Pushing your buttons, Zeke. Seeing how far I can go before you snap." My control falters. I spin her around, pressing her against the desk. My hands roam over her body, and I can feel her submitting. "You want this?" I ask, my voice a low growl. "You want to see the beast you're unleashing?" *** Camilla Dawson never expected to see the sinfully hot stranger she once hooked up with in a public washroom ever again. But fate—or rather, a father she never knew existed—has other plans. Now, she's bound and delivered as payment for a debt, straight into the hands of none other than Zeke Russell—the ruthless kingpin who always gets what he wants. Zeke built his empire on power and control, and he never takes no for an answer. Business or pleasure, the rules are his. It’s been years, but he’s never forgotten the woman who left him wanting more. Now, with Camilla thrust into his world as a replacement for his promised bride, everything spirals into chaos. She was never supposed to matter. Yet somehow, she’s slipping past his defenses, unearthing secrets he’s buried deep—and igniting a dangerous obsession. And when enemies close in, there’s nothing he won’t do to keep her. After all, what’s one more crime in the name of love?

I stepped closer. Close enough to smell his cologne—cedarwood, leather, and power. My hand moved. Smooth, practiced. The pistol slide from under the apron into my palm. I raised it fast. But before I could pull the trigger— BANG. Not my shot. A scream tore through the restaurant as another man launched himself toward Romano’s table, blade flashing. Another assassin. What the hell— Romano didn’t flinch. He shoved the table forward, knocking the attacker off balance. The blade scraped across wood, not skin. I ducked instinctively as the room erupted into chaos. Gunfire cracked. Glass exploded. People screamed and dove for cover. “Get him out—NOW!” one of the guards barked. I aimed for the second attacker. Didn’t even hesitate. One shot—head. Gone. The guard saw me. Confusion flashed in his eyes. Then rage. I ran. I weaved between overturned chairs, plates, and screaming bodies. The smell of blood was real now, thick in the air. One of the guards grabbed me. I slammed my elbow into his ribs, twisted, and brought the butt of my gun down on his skull. He dropped like a sack of bricks. Out. I had to get out. My boots pounded the floor as I tore through the narrow hallway. But then— “Elisa.” His voice stopped me cold. I turned. Antonio Romano stood in the middle of the carnage, suit untouched, blood spattered behind him like art. His eyes were on me. And he was smiling. It was darker. Slower. Like a hunter seeing something worth chasing. Somehow, he knew who I was. “Interesting,” he said softly, tilting his head. “They sent you.” I didn’t answer. I ran. But that voice followed me. He knew my name. And he let me go. This wasn’t over. It had just begun.

Synopsis/Blurb: "I, Lysander Nightshade, reject you, Ilana Wood, and brand you unworthy of being my mate." With those cruel words, Alpha Lysander shatters Ilana’s human heart under the Blood Moon, choosing duty over destiny. Marked and broken, Ilana crosses paths with people who reveal to her that she is more than just a mere human. But when darkness threatens to destroy everything they hold dear, their paths collide once more. Will Ilana find the strength to forgive the man who rejected her? And can Lysander defy fate a second time, or will he lose everything—including the only woman meant for him?

Beatrice Blake was overwhelmed with happiness when she finally got pregnant but to her demise, her mate, Ethan Wood, denied the pregnancy. He accused her of getting pregnant out of wedlock despite the humiliation she had faced everyone from the members of the pack. Like accusing her of getting pregnant wasn't enough, she caught her mate having sex with her best friend, Eleanor, who had always been there for her whenever she was abused verbally by the elders of the pack. He rejected her. Unable to handle the rejection, she decided to give up and take her own life. However, she was stopped by an arrogant handsome man who turned out to be her mate, her second chance mate, Dean Anderson. He only accepted her as her mate because he wanted to claim his father's position as the Alpha. Will she be able to make the arrogant Alpha fall her? What if she was never pregnant for who she had always thought she was pregnant for? What if her supposed best friend was the mastermind behind her downfall? How will she deal with them when she finally grow stronger?