The Center Cannot Hold

I had been secretly married to my CEO husband for six years, but he still would not let our son call him “Dad.” After he missed our son’s birthday again because of his secretary, I took out the divorce agreement and left with our son for good. The usually calm man lost control and stormed into the office to demand where we were. This time, neither my son nor I would come back.

I dropped my car off for maintenance at the service center. When it was finished, I told the staff to put it on the tab of my cousin, who ran the shop. The staff member nodded and started to process it, but then the female manager stepped in. "We don't do tabs here. You've got to pay up now," she said, slapping the bill down right in front of me. Premium Diagnostic Scan: $80,000 Exhaust System Sound Enhancement: $100,000 Engine Harmony Calibration: $100,000 Total: $280,000. I laughed at the absurdity. Since when did my cousin start running a rip-off operation? The manager crossed her arms and gave me a snooty once-over. "Always trying to mooch off Chad. I've seen plenty of broke relatives like you. If you can't swing it, don't act like you can." Unwilling to argue with her, I pulled out my phone and called my cousin. "You have ten minutes to fire the manager, or your shop is finished."

Wealthy art dealer Damien Kennedy has successfully avoided two things: returning to the hometown that haunts him and taking a wife. Now thanks to his controlling grandfather’s machinations, he’s reluctantly ended up doing both. But Regina Duquesne quickly proves she’s no mere platonic bride of convenience. The only way she can make this marriage outlive their one-year agreement is if she can make her sexy husband open his heart and forget the demons of the past... before it’s too late. Because there’s an enemy on the horizon, threatening to take away all they hold dear, including their newfound passion.

Traveling to the center of the earth to retrieve her son from Center Land is intense enough without having to deal with Amazon rogue women, prehistoric animals, and... yes... the aliens and zombies that they thought they'd left on the surface are there too! Is there no escape from the horror? They have a plan to end the aliens and zombies once and for all... but... will it work? The answer is in "Center Land", book three of the apocalyptic romance-thriller series, Kendra's Journey.

She promised to loathe him. He never meant to hold her. The heart was never addressed in their contract. Elena Vega has to marry the guy who broke her family's inheritance in order to save it. Julian Thorne is a millionaire who is cold and calculating. His proposition is straightforward but cruel: one year of perfect, public marriage in exchange for her family's safety. There are no feelings and no true closeness; it's all a show for the cameras. She enters his world of chilly luxury, holding on to her wrath as her only protection. But the line between their fake love and real, dizzying tension starts to blur. A lingering touch, a kiss stolen in the dark, and whispered secrets in the dark—none of these things were in the tiny print. The most dangerous thing for them right now isn't that their lie will be found out; it's the horrible, unmistakable truth: they are falling for the one person they were told to stay away from. A marriage based on hate. A love built on secrets.

Arranged marriage, age-gap, forbidden love, enemies-to-lovers, forced proximity, Romeo and Juliet vibes, family saga, Mafia/cartel romance, slow burn, redemption, morally gray hero, dangerous romance The Roríguez cartel is spinning out of control, tragedy putting the alliance and our future in question. I’m Emiliano Ruiz and throughout the last few years, I’ve witnessed my sisters being doled out to members of the Luciano Mafia. The cartel has also taken famiglia women. It doesn’t matter if it’s the Luciano famiglia’s turn to take a bride. My mind is set—it’s my turn. I never imagined marrying a young bride until I caught sight of Isabella Luciano. She’s only eighteen, and with her long yellow hair and big brown eyes, she’s a vision to behold. She sees me, however, through the tinted lens of her father’s hatred. Carmine Luciano’s disdain of the cartel and the alliance isn’t a secret. His opinion won’t stop me. I’ll prove to Isabella that even bad men can be good husbands. No matter what her father says or what happens in our war, Isabella will be mine. Have you been Aleatha’d?

When I opened my eyes again, I was pinned against the floor-to-ceiling window of the skyscraper by my stepbrother, Rocco. The man I had been infatuated with for a decade. He panted, his hot lips and tongue trailing along my collarbone as he murmured, "Don't go." In my past life, on the night I received my acceptance letter from London Business School, Rocco got blind drunk. Late that night, I gave in to his pleas for me to stay. I willingly gave myself to him. After a debauched night, his cherished fiancée, Clara, caught me walking out of his room the next morning, my clothes in disarray. She ran out in tears, her parting words ringing in the air, "I'll let you have each other." A month after she disappeared, the family search party found her engagement ring at the edge of a cliff. At the bottom of the cliff lay mangled remains, battered by the waves until they were unrecognizable. Rocco clutched that ring and didn't sleep all night. On the surface, he acted as if nothing had happened, even arranging a trip for me to Sicily, telling me to go and relax. The night I landed, I was kidnapped by assassins from a rival family. I screamed for him to pay the ransom, only to hear him give the order himself over the phone: "Don't make her death a quick one. The Costello princess? She's nothing but a damn liability. Torture her. Break every bone in her body. " "This is what she owes Clara." You like playing games, Rocco. But in this life, I refuse to play along.

Si Ziantynna Quinzel ay kilala bilang spoiled brat ng pamilyang Quinzel. Ang ganoong katangian ni Ziantynna ay nagsimula ng aksidente niyang marinig sa kaniyang ama ang kasunduan na ipapakasal siya sa isang lalaki na ni minsan ay hindi pa niya nakikita. Dahil doon ay ginawa niya ang lahat upang mabahiran ng pangit na imahe ang kaniyang magandang reputasyon ngunit ganoon pa man nangyari pa rin ang kagustuhan ng kaniyang ama. Kaya naman sa kaniyang ika–dalawampu't tatlong kaarawan ay dinala siya sa isang bahay na mala palasyo ang laki na ang nagmamay-ari ay si Zacharias Lamprouge. Ang negosyanteng lalaki na may tagong katauhan. Dahil sa kawalang kakayahan tinanggap na niya ang katotohanang makukulong siya sa piling ng lalaki. Ngunit magagawa rin kaya niyang tanggapin ang katotohanan sa kaniyang pagkatao kung malaman niya ang nakaraan at kung sino talaga siya?

Calista Ivelle is a beautiful, sweet girl who is mistreated by her family. Her stepmother and stepsister always torture her. Her dad hates her thinking she is the reason for her mother's death. She is leading a miserable life by herself. But the very first day of at university, the seniors ragged her saying she has to kiss the person coming through the main gate. While completing the task she kisses the person who is famous among the girls. Rhino Wyatt a handsome, dashing and sexy industrialist who is the crush icon of England. Every girl in England has their eyes on him. But he doesn't let girls come near him. He is a very angry person for those girls afraid of being close to him. But one day, while entering the university, a girl kisses him and makes him angry. Rhino decides to punish her and starts to bully her. Will Calista be able to go through Rhino's teasing? Will there be something between them or Rhino's teasing will ruin everything? Will Rhino ever be able to know how miserable life Calista's leading? Or will the social status between them destroy everything? Let's read and find it out…

Guys this is my first story ,so please be kind and support meee. Please🥺🥺🥺🙏🙏 Ceo of opexior ,Drake knight is a cruel ,heartless business man .all he care about is on expanding and making his business powerful. But when emily ,a sweet ,kind and generous girl enter his world .how will his life change. Drake will do anything and everything to keep her with him .even if he has to blackmail or threatened her. #i will update every day or even soon if possible