Tenderness

Elysia had loved Orion for ten years, watching from the shadows as he chased after someone else. Their contract marriage was supposed to be temporary—a favor for family, a mask for the public—but a year of shared mornings, quiet dinners, and unspoken tenderness made her believe maybe, just maybe, he had chosen her. Then the woman he never stopped loving came back. And in less than 24 hours, he handed Elysia the divorce papers. No warning. No hesitation. She didn’t beg. She signed and walked out of the home she helped build—quietly carrying the child he never asked for. But secrets don’t stay buried. When Orion finds out she’s pregnant, his world doesn’t crack—it detonates. The woman he thought he could cast aside… is the one now slipping through his fingers. “You erased me like I never existed.” her voice was calm, eyes distant. It broke him. “Because I thought you’d always be there.” She sighed. "I havr someone who looks at me and really sees me now. You can leave." Now, it’s not just about love—it’s about guilt, consequences, and Orion chasing trying to win Elysia back after she finally stopped waiting. Will she forgive him or move on with her new lover?

From New York Times bestselling author Krista Lakes comes a sexy standalone novel about a billionaire and the indecent proposal he gives the local barista. Billionaire CEO Jackson Weathers needs a family for a PR boost, and I've signed a contract agreeing to give him one. A doting girlfriend in public. A wedding ceremony to invite all the socialites to. And finally, a baby for him to parade around, to show he's really a wholesome, down-to-Earth man. I've tried to remain cynical about it. He's going to make all my dreams come true. So what if it's supposed to be a loveless marriage? Only, his tenderness in private has me hooked. The way he kisses me drives me wild. When we make love, I lose myself to him. His body feels like it was meant to be on top of mine, like we fit together like two puzzle pieces. I can't help but begin to fall for him. I can't tell him, or I risk losing everything. And nobody else can find out about our little "arrangement" or it will destroy his reputation. Still, I feel like I have to know how he feels, before the marriage, before the baby, before I give my entire life over to him. Is it still just pretend?

In the coastal quiet of Baler, a studio is born—not of architecture, but of intention.* Founded by Yam, a poet whose words cradle pain gently, and Franc, an artist who paints tenderness into walls, the studio becomes a refuge for those learning to stay—with grief, love, longing, and themselves. As visitors arrive, they leave behind more than footprints: a sigh recorded in bamboo, a poem tucked into the “Found Letters” shelf, a mural painted in crooked lines. Through zines, tea, silence, and sketchbooks, the studio teaches softness as revolution. Ren creates the *Window of Soft Returns*, an installation of anonymous voice recordings—each whisper forming a community of echoes. Drew builds the *Staircase With No Wrong Turns*, inviting people to walk through emotions without shame. Franc offers brushstrokes as brave work, and Yam curates writing circles that map healing in half sentences. Together, they host festivals that feel like hugs, and they begin traveling their archive, letting softness cross oceans. Even those who once left—like Miguel—return, discovering that some doors never truly close. Others, like Tala, capture the studio’s sound and turn it into a podcast of breath and becoming. Over seventy chapters, the studio transforms into something larger than itself: a mural of memory, a sanctuary for second chances, a place where return is sacred and voice is proof of survival. In the final bloom, the studio stands not as a monument—but as a reminder: > *“Staying isn’t easy. > But chosen together, > it becomes home.”*

“All this time, I was just a mere substitute to you? A replacement for someone you lost?” “It’s not that simple, Sheila. I—” “Don’t! I trusted you. Every embrace, every word, the heartfelt feelings—it was all for her, wasn’t it? Did you ever love me, Andrew? Did you ever feel something for me? Tell me!”  “Sheila, I……Sorry……” ********************* Sheila found out her boyfriend cheated on her and then lost her . Just when she thought things couldn't get worse, she realizes how naive she still was. Her father and stepmother, her so-called family, forced her to marry a stranger, and treated her like a bargain item at a mall sale. On the other hand, Andrew's father tried to pressure him into an engagement by threatening his inheritance. Andrew felt a sense of powerlessness as well as amusement, as he didn't care about the inheritance; he had already made a name for himself as a successful and feared business magnate. But when he saw Sheila's smiling face, Andrew's blood froze for a moment, and his eyes were filled with shock, doubt, nostalgia, and a hint of tenderness that he hadn't even noticed. He thought that maybe this was a chance given to him by fate, and this time he had to grab it no matter what, but he didn't know how the decision he made at this moment would change his life.

On the night Elena Carter discovers she is carrying her husband’s child, she believes her dreams have finally come true. For three years, she has endured Damien Rothschild’s coldness, cherished every fleeting moment of tenderness, and held on to the hope that one day he might love her back. But instead of joy, her secret gift is met with cruelty. A single letter, accusing Elena and her late mother of orchestrating the accident that nearly killed Damien’s parents, shatters everything. Betrayed and blinded by rage, Damien casts her aside, accusing her of lies, greed, and manipulation. Worse, he threatens to destroy her brother’s future unless she signs the divorce papers. Heartbroken but resolute, Elena walks away, pregnant, abandoned, and determined to protect her child from the man she once loved more than life itself. Five years later, Elena has rebuilt her life. She is stronger, successful, and devoted to raising her twins in secret. But Damien Rothschild is a man who never forgets. He never lets go. When he learns that she carried his children, nothing will stop him from claiming back what he lost. Now Elena must face the man who broke her, the father of her children, and the billionaire whose love is as dangerous as his power. Will she let him back into her life, or will she protect her heart and her family from him forever?

I married a man just hours after being abandoned at the altar. Now I’m staring at a stranger who calls me his wife. Sofie Davis never imagined her perfect wedding would end in ruin, her white dress soaked by rain, her dreams shattered at her feet. Left behind on a day meant to honor her late parents, Sofie is drowning in heartbreak when James Alexander Reed steps forward with an impossible offer: a contract marriage. James, a powerful and emotionally walled-off billionaire, has watched Sofie from afar, drawn to the sincerity and compassion that set her apart from the world he knows. For him, the proposal is a shield against the fortune-seekers orbiting his wealth and a chance to finally get close to the woman he’s never forgotten. For Sofie, it’s a desperate attempt to reclaim her dignity, rewrite the ending, and survive the public humiliation she never asked for. As their fragile arrangement begins to blur, Sofie’s fire and empathy chip away at James’s defenses, revealing a tenderness even he didn’t know he still possessed. But both carry wounds that run deep: grief, betrayal, and the quiet ache of loneliness masked by control. Their journey is messy, tender, and slow-burning. And when love finally demands more than convenience, Sofie and James must decide if what’s growing between them is worth the risk or if it’s safer to walk away before their hearts are fully exposed. Unbound Desires is a story of second chances, healing, and the kind of intimacy that only blossoms when two people dare to be truly seen.

My childhood sweetheart who promised to marry me the moment I graduated proposed to Camille Willow, my sister, during my graduation ceremony. At that moment, Dennis Malcolm, the most eligible and admired bachelor in Blington City's elite circle, stepped forward and confessed his love for me immediately after my childhood sweetheart's proposal was accepted. For five years after our marriage, Dennis showered me with devotion, treating me with such tenderness that it felt as though I were the center of his world. But everything shattered the day I overheard a conversation between him and his close friend. "Dennis, now that Camille's on top, are you really going to keep pretending with Tracy?" "It doesn't matter. I'll never have Camille. Besides, as long as I'm here, she'll never disrupt Camille's happiness," he answered. The paper notes he held dear, each one carefully preserved, revealed a harsh truth. Each one carried her name, accompanied by heartfelt wishes: "May Camille be released from her burdens. May she find peace within herself." "May Camille achieve all she dreams of, and may her heart love freely." "Camille, we were never meant to be together in this life. I can only hope that in another, we will walk side by side." … Five years of devotion shattered in a single moment of clarity. I crafted a false identity and planned an elaborate drowning to vanish without a trace. From this day forward, in this life and all others, we shall never cross paths again.

Althea Johnson did not walk blindly into darkness. Before the contracts, the demands of blood and legacy — Dominic Valtieri had loved her. It was fierce, dangerous, and real enough to make her believe she could stand beside a man the world feared. Behind his ruthless reputation, she had seen a man capable of choosing her. For a while, he did. Until the weight of his name consumed him. By the time they marry, Dominic is no longer the man who once held her like something precious. He is colder, controlled by a dynasty that demands an heir and sees love as weakness. Still, Althea clings to the ghost of what they once were, hoping the man she loved is still buried somewhere inside him. On their wedding night, that hope dies. There is no tenderness—only possession. No love—only purpose. She is not a wife to him, but a necessity. When she discovers she’s pregnant, the truth becomes unbearable. Dominic did not choose her again. He chose what she could give him. An heir. A legacy. A continuation of a name built on power and fear. To him, she is no longer the woman he loved. She became a vessel. But grief hardens into something far more dangerous than heartbreak. Because Althea remembers who he used to be — and that memory burns. If legacy has consumed Dominic Valtieri, then she will become the one thing his empire never accounted for: defiance. She will not allow her child to be raised as a pawn in a dynasty built on fear. She will not let love be twisted into ownership. And if she must burn his empire to the ground to set her child free— She will.

I bloomed early, my curves more defined than other she-wolves my age. The year I came of age, my Alpha brother, Asher, was terrified I’d be snatched up by some rogue. He asked his best friend—Alpha Caden of the Nightshade Pack—to personally look after me. What my brother didn't know was that the very first time we met, Caden got drunk and took me. He pinned me against the wall, claiming me with a primal urgency. He left his scent all over me, kissing every inch of my skin like he was obsessed. But the next day, he told me that if my brother found out, he would kill him. And so began our four-year secret affair. For four years, I was his personal healer by day and his secret lover by night. Until his first love, an Omega she-wolf, came back. I watched them in a passionate embrace as Caden kissed her with a tenderness he never showed me. As for me? The same mouth that had been tangled with mine just yesterday was now spitting venom. "Aria, don't forget it was you who faked the scent of my fated mate to seduce me four years ago." "Are you going to make a scene and try to force me to marry you again?" In that moment, I finally saw him for who he truly was. I called my brother. "Asher, I'll do it. I'll accept the marriage alliance with the Silvercrest Pack."

When I was in college, my mom had terminal cancer, and our family company collapsed due to heavy debts. Just when I was at my lowest, my childhood friend Zach Hall rushed back from overseas. For seven years, he stayed by my side and helped me heal. …Until the night before our engagement ceremony, when I was diagnosed with terminal stomach cancer. I wanted to tell Zach, but instead, I overheard a conversation between him and the lead surgeon who had operated on my mother. "Zach, your fiancee's mother could've been saved back then. But you stopped me from treating her, just so Jessica could get that poor woman's corneas. If Jessica is the one you love, why marry your fiancee?" "I do feel guilty toward Annie, but I don't regret it. It was the only way for Jess to pick up a brush again and keep chasing her dreams." Through the crack in the door, I saw clearly the tenderness on Zach's face when he mentioned Jessica. "What if Annie finds out?" the surgeon asked. Zach fell silent, rubbing the band on his ring finger. "I don't know. I've already decided to marry her. I'll love her, protect her, and spend the rest of my life making it up to her." The pain hit me so hard at that moment that I almost collapsed, as if my heart was being ripped out.