The Defining Decade Novels & Stories

Astrid, a strong-willed and determined young woman, is forced to return to her pack after a decade away. She has encountered animosity and bitterness, especially from her father, the alpha of the pack. Astrid has a hard time adjusting to her new life in the pack. She meets Kaidën, a mysterious and brooding person who seems to be hiding secrets, and she gets to see her childhood friend Evelyn again. Kaidën's mate, Xylara, is presented as a stunning but ruthless and cunning person. Under the full moon, Astrid and Kaidën have a tense but fascinating encounter. Astrid starts to suspect Kaidën is involved in the weird happenings in the pack. Astrid is left feeling shaken by her encounter with Kaidën. She meets Alpha Eric, her arranged mate, and is repulsed by his behavior. When Kaidën steps in, Astrid is drawn to him. Xylara's hostility toward Astrid becomes more and more obvious. When Xylara tries to suffocate her while she is sleeping, Astrid learns of her true motivations. Astrid also finds Lucas, a pack member, tied up and gagged. Astrid is warned to keep away by Kaidën, who is attempting to shield her from himself. Xylara's evil character is further revealed as Astrid starts to solve the pack's mysteries.

Book One in De Niro Series but can be read as standalone. After being thrown into a hell by her family where vultures in men's skin were waiting for her to reach at a ripe age, Destiny Carter somehow escaped the hell she had been living for over a decade only to be chased and recaptured by those monsters but her destiny was with her in the night when she was saved by Him. Her knight in shining armour: Stefano De Niro,whom the whole country feared. He is ruthless, cruel and human form of Satan as his prey describes him.He is known to leave people in fear by only giving a look upon them and when his eyes landed on the most innocent and pure soul lying unconscious in his arms,he knew that he was never going to let her go. What happens when she find herself in his empire? All about him screams danger to her, then how she is ever going to let him come near her and show her the side of him that no one has ever see? Stefano,the mafia heir to the De Niro clan, wants a scared and hopeless yet full of light Destiny Carter all for himself as after years she awakened his hibernated heart that started beating...for her!

On our tenth anniversary, Evan Rodger and I decided to tattoo each other's names on our chests. After the tattoo session, I woke up with my head still feeling groggy. To my dismay, I found the words "Old Crone" tattooed in a bold font across my chest. Upon noticing the way my expression dropped, Isabel Hawthorn, who was the tattooist, snickered, "You’ve been dating Evan for a decade, but he still hasn’t registered your marriage together. What does that make you if not an old crone?" I smashed the mirror on the spot, which spewed broken shards in her direction. Evan practically threw himself in her direction and pulled her into his arms to protect her. He snapped at me with a ferocious scowl, "She’s just a young, naive girl who was trying to make a joke. Why are you picking on her?" I stared intently at the parted collar of his shirt. What was supposed to be my name tattooed on his chest had been replaced with "Isabel Hawthorn, My Only Love". Isabel wrapped her arms around Evan. She expertly played the victim and appealed dearly to him, "Evan said he liked my name last time, so I was only trying to make a joke. You wouldn’t be upset at me, would you, Claire?"

"Your love makes me sick." Those were the final words my husband, Vittorio De Luca, left me in my past life. On our wedding day, Elara Hale had crashed my ceremony, begging Vittorio to run away with her. But he chose to stay by my side. Yet, when Elara died of an illness shortly after, he harbored nothing but hatred for me. He detested that I had clung to him for over a decade, forcing him into a marriage he never wanted. More than that, he loathed himself for not running away with Elara. When I opened my eyes again, I was reborn before everything went wrong. I looked at him, "Vittorio, I'm getting married." He looked a bit troubled. "You know I’m busy with a critical territorial expansion. My mind is entirely elsewhere…" “Never mind.” I offered a faint, indifferent smile. Relieved, Vittorio leaned in and pressed a kiss to my forehead. "Don't worry. We've been together for twelve years. I'll do the right thing and take responsibility." He didn’t know what I meant, but I knew what I’d do in this lifetime. I would never choose him again, let alone marry him.

**Synopsis**: When Claire Mason, a successful but emotionally guarded architect, returns to the small coastal town of Seabreeze after nearly a decade away, she expects nothing more than a brief stay to settle her late grandmother’s estate. But as she strolls through the familiar streets, memories of her first love, Ethan Hayes, begin to resurface—along with the pain of their abrupt and unresolved parting. Ethan never left Seabreeze. Now a local business owner, he’s built a quiet life by the sea, haunted by the ghost of the girl who left him behind. When Claire unexpectedly walks back into his life, the old spark between them reignites. However, both have changed in the years apart, and neither is willing to easily trust the other again. As they are drawn together by the memories of their youth, Claire and Ethan must confront the mistakes of their past and the truths they’ve been avoiding. But with the wounds of their old love still fresh, and new challenges threatening to pull them apart once more, they must decide if they can leave the past behind and take a second chance on each other—or if their first love was always destined to remain just a memory. "My First Love" is a heartwarming and bittersweet tale of love, loss, and the enduring power of first love, set against the backdrop of a picturesque coastal town where the past and present collide. ---

On the third anniversary of our engagement, my fiancé—Dominic Corleone, heir to one of the most powerful Mafia dynasties in New York—told me he was not ready to form a new family so that our wedding would have to postpone. I told myself to wait for some time, the bond between the Corleones and the Valentinos—our families’ sacred alliance—would hold us together. But what followed were his endless betrayals and tortures. I walked into a bridal boutique and saw him laughing with Liliane, the childhood friend who always lingered too close. I watched him destroy the wedding gown I had spent months designing—then crush my hand beneath his heel until it bled. And when I thought I had hit rock bottom, he proved I was wrong—by getting behind the wheel and running me down. He thought I’d beg and cling to him, terrified of losing the Corleone name and privilege that came with it. But instead, I made one phone call and insisted firmly on canceling the engagement. However, that call didn’t just end a marriage arrangement. It unearthed a secret that had been buried for over a decade…and turned a marriage born of duty into a story of dark devotion.

Natalie Grace Ivanov , daughter of Dimitri Ivanov the CEO of crime ,is a strong and sophisticated girl .She is smart and knows her way out of a problem , being a fine contriver . Adrian Victor Smirnov is the son of the second largest mob in Russia and the biggest potent rival of Ivanov mob . Adrian is a brutal manipulator with an intricate personality. Russian criminal culture is something special , the thieves-in-law hold many powers Natalie goes to USA for further studies for 2 years . Adrian sees this as a golden opportunity to know more about the Ivanov gang through her , thinking of her as a gullible girl and goes to the same college. With nothing in his mind but vengeance for the past not knowing that Natalie is not the one to be fooled . -- They hate each other's guts yet understand each other the best . They think they don't want each other yet burn with the thought of someone else with them They want to just get done with each other yet become everything together . Love and hate ... same passion , same impulse ... " Love was never good to me but all I know is that if I wanted a place in this world , it would be next to her ." "We are too bad for others but too good for each other ." -- Both loyal to their families , both take life as it comes and never complain With a decade of enmity between the gangs but what would they choose at the end love or hate ? Read to find out.

Ten years of devotion. Two years of a hollow marriage. One night to break it all. Lanka Monroe was a stray, a broken pup rescued from the dirt and raised within the cold, prestigious walls of the Wolfe Crest Estate. For a decade, he worshipped the man who saved him—Andrew Wolfe, the lethal, untouchable Alpha of the North. But the hero of Lanka’s youth became the tyrant of his adulthood. To the pack, Lanka is the seductive social climber who drugged the Alpha to secure a mating bond. To Andrew, Lanka is a stain on his reputation, a burden to be endured until his "true" match returns. When Andrew’s old flame, Serena, reappears to reclaim her throne, the fragile peace shatters. Lanka is tired of being the ghost in the hallways. He’s ready to tear the ancestral earrings from his flesh and walk out of the estate with his pride intact. But as he hands over the divorce papers, a dark secret in the Wolfe bloodline comes to light. Andrew doesn’t just want a mate anymore—he needs a donor. And suddenly, the Alpha who wouldn't touch Lanka is the one pinning him to the bed, demanding the very pup he once forbade. In a world of ancient pack laws and silver-tongued lies, Lanka must decide: Will he remain a sacrificial lamb for the Wolfe family, or will he let the bond burn to ashes to find his own freedom?

In her third year of dating Jackson Hunter, the cool and proud Lumina Walker took out a secret loan of one million dollars to repay his debt. She even resorted to performing stripteases in a bar. Everything changed when she overheard a shocking conversation between him and his friends. "You're ruthless even to yourself! Just to get back at Lumina, you pretended to be a bartender for three years, tricked her into taking out a loan for you, and used her nude video as collateral. You even got her to strip at your bar! " "If she ever found out that you're the loan shark and own the bar she stripped at… She'd probably drop dead from anger right there and then!" another chimed in. Celia Price was Lumina's living nightmare, her tormentor for nine years since their middle school days—relentless bullying, harassment, and abuse. The painful twist? Celia was Jackson's secret love all along—for a decade, to be exact. Yet Lumina didn't cry, didn't fight back. So when her Uncle Howard called and ordered her to marry the mute oldest son of the powerful Morgan family from Crown City, she agreed without hesitation.

Nadia Thompson had been in a high-profile, five-year relationship with Harry Jones, the kind everyone in Highport City’s upper social circle knew about. On the day they were supposed to get married and register their marriage, she got ditched. Nadia had enough. She swore a vicious oath, walked away, and turned her fiance into her ex-boyfriend. After one phone call from a certain someone, she got married on impulse. She registered her marriage with Julian Jones, Harry's older brother, despite them not getting along well. Julian was a well-known heir in Highport City’s upper social circle and a terrifying financial shark who built his own empire overseas. After they married, he spoiled Nadia and indulged her in everything. When Harry humiliated Nadia and called her worthless, Julian sent him crashing straight to the floor. "My wife's the apple of my eye, the one I hold the dearest. No matter how she is, I will spoil her. If you say one more word about her, I can get your name erased from the Jones family records!" Only much later did Nadia learn that the man she used to fear had loved her in secret for a decade, and that their marriage was part of a plan he laid long ago…