Summer Reading Jenn Mckinlay

After getting drunk with my best friend, Lyla Smith, at the bar, I end up sleeping with my fiance, Silas Clarke, whom I've only met for a few times. Not only that, but I only discover that I'm pregnant with his child two months later. Just when I'm debating whether or not I should tell Silas the truth, Lyla, who has been my friend since we were kids, keep advising me. "You never liked Mr. Clarke anyway, Elara. You might as well use this opportunity to screw this engagement over. "Since you and Logan like each other, he won't mind the fact that you're pregnant with Mr. Clarke's child. He'll definitely treat you and the child well. "When the time comes, you won't have to marry the man you don't like. Plus, you'll marry Logan, the man you love! Isn't this a dream come true?" Just as I'm about to agree to that suggestion, I feel a kick coming from my belly, which has yet to develop a baby bump. Next, a baby's voice echoes in my mind. "Mom, don't trust that mean woman! You'll get abused by that Logan jerk in the future, not to mention you'll be forced to sell your body because of the decision you'll make today! "Dad has already found out that you're the woman from that night! He's on the way here right now!" Upon hearing my unborn baby's thoughts, I tremble violently immediately. Although I don't have any feelings for Silas, I can still try to nurture a relationship with him. On the other hand, I only get to live once, so I can't ruin it no matter what!

At my son's tenth birthday, I unexpectedly gained the power to read minds. Standing before the candles, he made his wish. "I hope I score a hundred on my finals." Before I could commend his maturity, a second wish slammed into my ears. "I don't like Dad. I want Mr. Shaw to be my dad.'' My hands froze halfway through a clap.

Once, I was their princess. And then Kylee showed up. Having been in the foster system the majority of her childhood, my parents treated her like a charity case and gave her everything. At 13 years old, Kylee was adopted. Then the "accidents" started happening. Kylee would be walking past me and would suddenly fall over. "Oh, Mom! Sarah didn't mean it! Shes just having a hard time adjusting to her new sister!" Eventually, her little accusations turned into straight out bullying and, well, I'm sure you can figure out the rest. I did my best to ignore Kylee. I got a job as early as the law would allow. I saved my money. I got the best grades in school, becoming the class valedictorian. My parents didn't notice, though. They were too busy playing into Kylee's 5-year-long pity party. Don't worry, though. Soon I'll be gone to Harvard and you can have the happy family you wanted. I don't need you, anyways.

Nagscroll ako sa reddit ng napadaan ako sa post na naghahanap ng payo. Sabi ng poster na meron siyang HIV pero tinatago ito mula sa kanyang fiancee. Ang post ay merong libong mga like. Naintriga, pinindot ko ito para magbasa pa. Ng dumadaan ako sa mga detalye, napagtanto ko—bakit ang paglalarawan ng fiancee ay pareho ko?

He is the unchallenged Alpha of the Shadow pack. He crushes my hand, lets his true love drive me to the brink, and forces me to lick wolfsbane from my wounds in the punishment chamber, turning me into the pack's laughingstock. I am the Lunar pack's pawn in a political bonding. After enduring three years of humiliation and clutching enemy intelligence, I overturn his throne during the Moon Ceremony, making him watch helplessly as his beloved betrays him and his pack descends into chaos. Later, he backs down. He abdicates as Alpha and gets down on his knees at the pack's border every day, his voice hoarse from shouting, "I was wrong." I hold a blood-stained dagger, my gaze icy as I say, "Your regret is deadlier than wolfsbane and worth even less than my life." Our bonding is a calculated trap, and revenge is the move I am determined to play. Winning him back no longer matters. This time, I am not turning back. I want nothing but his endless remorse and the chance to break my chains and begin a new life.

I was growing up as the much-hated "fake heiress" in a wealthy family, and my life took a devastating turn after my death. My childhood friend who lived next door leaked my nudes online, branding me as manipulative and promiscuous. This ignited public outrage, with strangers celebrating my demise at my family's home. My parents, eager to sever any connection with me, destroyed our mansion that very night, even going so far as to feed my ashes to the dog. Everyone said I deserved it. On the day the true heiress married my childhood friend in a grand, live-streamed wedding, I gave them a unique wedding present from beyond the grave.

On our seventh wedding anniversary, my husband's childhood sweetheart called, claiming a burst pipe at her home. Without a second thought, he ditched our celebration to play handyman. Moments later, Vivian Duffy's social media lit up with a smug post. [No matter when or where, my Superman arrives at one call. How should I reward him?] Accompanying the post was a photo of scattered condoms and torn clothing on the floor. I forced a smile, picked up my phone, and dialed a number. "My pipe is broken. Care to fix it?"

After failing the mission, the System gave me one final chance, and to succeed, I had to give birth to a child. The System promised that if the baby were born safely, it would reveal the truth to my target and give me one last glimmer of hope. However, six months into my pregnancy, just when things seemed stable, I was dragged onto an operating table in the middle of the night by my husband and family. My husband stopped the anesthesiologist from giving me any pain relief. “Let her feel the pain,” he said coldly. “We need to keep the kidneys as fresh as possible.” My parents instructed the doctor to draw my blood. “She’s the same blood type as our precious girl. Let’s take some for backup.” Even my childhood friend, the boy who had always been by my side, was the one to slice open my abdomen.  They wanted my kidneys to save my sister, who was dying from kidney failure. No one believed I was pregnant. No matter how much I begged, they went ahead with the operation, tearing me open. The baby couldn’t survive, and I died on that operating table. However, as my soul began to fade away, something strange happened. Those who had murdered me—my husband, my parents, my so-called friend—they all lost their minds.

I'm the most sought-after makeup artist in horror games. Before each round begins, the bare-faced NPCs sit obediently in a row, waiting for me to work my magic. With my makeup skills, they're twice as intimidating to players, and their performance soars. Even the Demon Boss seeks me out. As I face the Demon Boss with all 16 heads and 32 eyes staring at me, the corner of my mouth twitches. "Sure, I can do your makeup, but it'll cost extra."

Lucien Dravon does not forgive. He built his pack from nothing after the Oakshade Packs burned everything he loved to the ground. Six years later, he is still waiting for the right moment to finish what they started. Then the High Council hands him a choice, take the enemy Alpha's daughter as his bonded mate, or watch everything he rebuilt fall apart. He chooses the alliance. He tells himself it is a strategy. He is wrong. Alira Vael has spent her whole life paying for her father's sins with her silence. She is not a fighter. She is not a schemer. But she walks into Ashveil carrying something far more dangerous than a weapon, and she has been waiting years for the right person to give it to. The moment their hands touch, fate makes a decision neither of them asked for. He wants to hate her. She already knows why. But the longer she stays, the more his walls crack. And the more his walls crack, the closer she gets to the secret that could either end the blood feud between their packs, or light it back on fire. He swore to destroy her family. She came to help him do it. So what happens when the enemy you were built to hate turns out to be the one person who was always on your side?