That's Not How It's Done Novels & Stories

At an interview, my husband, Julian White, reveals that he has already allocated his assets properly. The host in charge of interviewing him makes a joking remark that he must have left large amounts of money to his son and wife. With a gentle smile on his face, Julian denies it softly. "I only left them enough money to sustain their lives. The rest of the assets are reserved for my adoptive daughter, Rosy, only. "This is a promise between me and her mom. I had promised her that I'd make sure her daughter would lead a lavish and worry-free life at her grave." When I hear Julian's statement, I pause in my actions of preparing a meal for the children. Then, I look up at the television in disbelief. Meanwhile, Julian is prattling on and on about his deceased first love, Vivian Bennett. Some time later, the host speaks up again. "Does your wife know about this?" Julian is left feeling taken aback for a moment. But his smile doesn't change at all. "She won't disagree with my decision. Over the years, she's been nothing but great to Rosy. Heck, she's even better than most caretakers out there." I take off my apron and walk out of the kitchen. Then, I scoop up my son, Jude White, who's in the middle of picking up toys for Rosy, into my arms and return to my room. It's been six long years, and I've finally had enough with this family. Since Julian doesn't intend to give me and Jude anything, then he can find himself another "caretaker".

Growing up, Sophie's life has been woven from threads of privilege and shame. As the illegitimate daughter of the esteemed Rowling family, she lived in shadows, her identity shaped by the secrets and lies that surround her birth. Despite her family's wealth and status, Sophie's existence felt like a whispered rumor, forcing her to live under the cruel and merciless shadow of her stepsister Mandy, the golden child Mandy was the epitome of everything Sophie could never be: legitimate, adored, and untouched by scandal. While Mandy basked in the spotlight, Sophie was relegated to the shadows, forced to make do with the leftovers – hand-me-down clothes, shoes, and even food. And now, it seemed, she has been reduced to a mere substitute in a marriage arrangement meant for Mandy, a typical hand-me-down marriage. Left to navigate the treacherous landscape of her new family alone, with no genuine support from her husband, Sophie knew she had to stand up for herself and fight for what she believed in.

How does Iris, a boring college student pique the interest of Smoke, a not so human entity. There's a fine like between love and obsession, but he crossed that line long ago.

Three days before our engagement, Zach Jefferson called me. “We’ll need to postpone the engagement party by a month. That day is Sienna’s first concert since she returned, and I need to be there. “It’s just a postponement. It’s no big deal.” He had postponed our engagement three times that year. The first time was because Sienna Lynch had been hospitalized with appendicitis. He said he had to take care of her and rushed over. The second time, Sienna said she was feeling down. He was worried she might get depressed and immediately booked a flight to see her. It was the third time. I simply said, “Okay.” After hanging up, I turned to the good-looking and refined man beside me. “Are you interested in marrying me?” Later, during Sienna’s concert, Zach left her without hesitation. With red, teary eyes, he rushed to my engagement ceremony. “Yulia, are you really getting engaged to this man?”

I've dated Andrew Carter, my surgeon boyfriend, for seven years. We plan 66 weddings, and he cancels every single one for Selena Merrick. The first time, Selena botched a patient's injection. "Wait for me," he said, and I waited the entire day. The second time, she slipped and fell in the shower. We were just about to exchange rings, but he ditched me at the altar without a second thought, leaving me to face the ridicule from the guests. For all 65 weddings I held, Selena always found an excuse to lure Andrew away. At the 65th wedding, she claimed her dog was dying and threatened to take her life. My mom collapsed from stress-induced angina, yet Andrew still ran to Selena. Afterward, he kneels and begs us for forgiveness. "Selena is just a pitiful orphan, but you're the one I'll always love," he declares. I give him one last chance, yet he never fails to disappoint me. That is it. I break up with Andrew and join Doctors without Borders. Goodbye. Let's never meet again.

When Scott Williams broke Cassie Newman’s heart, the last thing she wanted was to be the lady everyone talked about. The world-famous wedding planner who helped couples live their dream marriages, yet couldn’t save her own. The unfortunate woman who became the tabloids favorite gossip. She disappeared, shocking everyone, ran to a new city, changed her name, and started over, living her life, trying to bury the horrible past as she enjoyed her new marriage and new family. But just when things seemed perfect, Scott returned, acting as if he would die if she didn’t give him another chance. Now, he is determined to ruin Cassie Newman’s marriage. But will she let him?

Dylan is torn in between Maeve and Alyssa. He meets and falls in love with Alyssa the first day they bump into each other at the coffee shop he was working at back in chicago before his mom dies and they have to relocate to England to stay with his aunt Sue and his younger sister's Melissa and Alicia, while there he discovers a lot about his biological dad whom he never knew existed and Maeve helps him all along. He falls for her but he kind of still has feelings for Alyssa, Maeve's best friend, a lot of secrets between the two families but at the end of it all he realizes that she had always been the one that he always loved and nothing was going to change the fact that she was all he ever wanted to have

Natalie Hayes had one plan, finish her degree, chase her dreams, and maybe finally tell her best friend's brother that she had been in love with him since tenth grade. Then two pink lines on a pregnancy test changed everything. She is pregnant for Luca Wolfe, dangerous, powerful, and connected to the Vitale mafia empire, while still deeply in love with Bryan Rollins, the boy who has always shown up for her, and isn't walking out without a fight. Forced into Luca's world for the safety of her unborn twins, Natalie navigates mafia politics, a powerful Don who considers her children his heirs, a rival family targeting her as leverage, and the impossible reality of falling in love with two men in two completely different ways. As threats close in and her heart becomes harder to read, Natalie must decide who she is, what she wants, and whether the life she is building inside this complicated world is one she is choosing or one she is surviving. Now Natalie's caught up to make an impossible choice between the boy who would die for her and the man who kills for her. One woman. Two men. Three children. No easy answers. It's complicated doesn't even begin to cover it.

I'm in the hills for a project inspection when a sudden downpour hits. I lose my footing and tumble down a steep slope. Lying in a pool of blood, I fumble for my phone and call my husband, Joel Grant, who's supposed to be nearby. "Rachel has anxiety. I only brought her back to her hometown to help her unwind. Can you stop being so paranoid and jealous for once? You're due in two weeks. I'll be there, okay? Just behave." In the background, I hear Rachel giggle softly. "The models have to be in their birthday suit for sketching, right?" Joel hangs up without another word. My sister-in-law—and best friend—Chloe Murphy finds me. She's sobbing as she cradles me, desperately trying to call her husband, Michael Grant, for help. "Are all pregnant women insane these days?" Michael snaps. "Don't start with the same manipulative crap as Anna. Joel and I are busy modeling for Rachel. We don't have time for your petty dramas." Then he blocks her. My injuries are too severe. There's no way help will arrive in time. Despite being heavily pregnant herself, Chloe hoists me onto her back and carries me down the mountain to the nearest hospital. Somehow, I survive. My baby doesn't. Chloe, devastated and physically pushed past her limits, loses her child too. "I want a divorce," I whisper with my eyes swollen from crying. "Me too. I'm done with Michael." We filed for divorce together. That's when Joel and Michael finally lose their minds.

Abigail Guzman risked her life to save a stranger named Gina, only to find Gina was the real heiress to the Guzman family while she was a fake! The Guzmans, instead of appreciating her sacrifice, kicked her out to make way for their baby girl. Unbeknownst to them all, Abigail's biological parents were the richest in the country! Moreover, the man she rescued from a group of international killers turned out to be Ronan Lucero, the world's wealthiest heartthrob and her fiancé!