The Eight

I was eight months pregnant, at a charity gala with my husband, Don Massimo, when a rival family hit us. The crowd panicked. I was shoved to the floor, hard. Blood everywhere. Massimo lost his mind, screaming for medics, desperate to save my baby. But when I woke up, they were gone. Both of them. No baby, no Massimo. I remembered the gunfire, Massimo shielding me with his body. A cold dread washed over me. I hauled myself into a wheelchair and raced down the hall. That’s when I heard them—Massimo and the doctor. "Boss, I'm sorry. We did everything we could. The baby… he didn't make it." Tears streamed down my face. They killed my baby. The rival family killed my baby. But his next words shattered my world. "There was only one medical team. I had to make a choice. Bianca… she was carrying my child, too." Massimo sighed, then gave the order. "No one tells Arabella. She'll raise Bianca's son as her own. He will be my only heir." I slapped a hand over my mouth, my vision blurred by tears as I turned away. The man I loved was a lie. Fine. If he wants a war, he'll get one.

The night Gloria Leach—my husband's ex—died in the rain, he floored it and drove us off a cliff. That's when it clicked. Evan Patterson had always hated me for getting between him and Gloria. Then I woke up, I was back on the wedding day. This time, he didn't even pause. Ditched the rings. Ran straight to her outside the church. I didn't cry. Didn't make a scene. I just called it off. While they turned their reunion into a show, I said yes to someone else. In this life, Evan and I were strangers. Until eight years later. An auction. I placed a no-cap bid on the final item—sapphire cufflinks. Won. I was leaving when Evan stepped in front of me, scowling. "Robyn, stop embarrassing yourself. Even if you bought every cufflink on earth for me, I still wouldn't love you. Gloria's the only one in my heart." I didn't even look at him. Just reached for the little girl beside me. "Sweetheart, say hi to the gentleman." He saw her face—mine, copied clean. His eyes went red, and his grip snapped around my wrist. "She's our daughter?"

Woo Hana Lim and Park Kaden Lee. She loved him since kindergarten. He never noticed her. When he started dating a girl called Scarlet in high school, Hana realized that it was a one-sided love, and she became cold and stopped going after him, swallowing her feelings. After a big betrayal and a fight, Hana was the one who took care of Kaden, and that was the night when they slept together. But unfortunately for Hana, when he sleep-spoke his ex-name and when he woke up, didn't recognize her either and that was the stopin. A week after that fateful night, Hana got accepted to Harvard and started studying abroad. Sometime after that, she discovered she was pregnant, with him, and kept that a secret from her family, which knew his, but she decided to have the baby. Now, eight years after that, she's famous abroad, her son, Taeyang is seven and a genius. After an accident, she had to come back to South Korea with her son, having to face everything she left behind. What is Kaden gonna do when he discovers that he has a son? What is her family gonna do when they found out that Tae-Tae's father was closer than they ever thought?

I've been caught in a relationship with a divorced man for eight years. We've broken up and reconciled too many times to count. In the end, I tallied ninety-four breakups and five divorces between us. One more would make it an even hundred, but I'm too exhausted to continue this cycle. The first breakup happened when I was giving him my virginity. Halfway through, his ex-wife called asking him to pick up some bread, and he simply left. The fifth breakup occurred when he abandoned me, newly pregnant, on the highway to comfort his ex-wife who was having complications with her own pregnancy. I ended up in a car accident and miscarried. He arrived at the hospital with his clothes disheveled. Despite all the pain he caused me, I could never bring myself to truly leave him. Our most recent divorce happened for an equally absurd reason. His ex-wife and their child were participating in a family reality TV show that required them to appear as a complete family unit. To protect his ex-wife's public image, he divorced me yet again. When filming wrapped, he called to discuss remarrying. This time I refused, because I'm going to marry someone else.

Dave and Fatima has been eight long years partner in life, they got married after five years of relationship. Their marriage life is an almost perfect life they ever have, but nothing is perfect in this world full of shortcomings. Their almost perfect marriage life can’t be perfectly perfect because Fatima can’t bear a child – which is Dave’s always dreamed to have – a child. Then there’s Joan – Fatima’s best friend – knew how much Dave wants a child. If Fatima can’t, she can, but will Dave allow her to bear a child which he dreamed to have with Fatima? Will he bite the temptation? He promised, he made a vow in front of the altar, in front of everyone, in front of their parents, in front of the woman he love the most. What will be his decision? Will he just forget having a child with Fatima just to protect their marriage life and figure it out together or will he cheat with Joan to have a child and betray Fatima? What will Fatima gonna do? will she allow them to be together just to give the person she love a perfect life he wanted? What will happen to their marriage life? Aanhin mo nga naman ang pagmamahal mo sa isang tao kung hindi mo naman kayang ibigay ang kan'yang gusto?

Nalina (Lina) Romirez wasn't your typical nineteen year old. She had a secret that only those closest to her knew about. For her parents, they knew things would be different when their only daughter was born with a missing hand. By the time she was eight she had already mastered the art of operating a mechanical hand. It was so well built that no one could ever tell that it was fake, not even the wolves that went to her school. They were ferocious creatures that no one ever dared to mess with. Their pack (BitterFang Pack) lived deep in the woods and setting foot on their territory was an instant death sentence. Lina has never seen the higher members of the pack nor the Alpha. She didn't care much for them as her only goal was finishing her academic studies and moving out of the town. She wanted a life of her own and she was set on achieving just that. But as they say, destiny brings people together and crossing paths with the reigning Alpha wasn't something Lina had planned for. Not only was he the depiction of strength and dominance, but he also had striking features that couldn't go unnoticed. He knew she was his other half. But Lina wasn't planning on entering their territory again nor crossing paths with the Alpha for a second time. Well, that's what she thought.

On the night before Christmas, Aria Smith believes she is living the life she built with love, sacrifice, and quiet resilience. Married for eight years, a devoted mother to her eight-year-old daughter, and the primary provider in her household, Aria has learned to carry responsibility with grace. Her marriage may not be glamorous, but it is steady—or so she thinks. One dinner. One toast. One familiar promise. That is all it takes for her world to feel complete. Until a single message dismantles everything. What begins as an anonymous warning becomes undeniable proof that her husband has been living a double life, one funded by her success, hidden behind her trust, and thriving in the shadows of her marriage. As the truth unfolds through videos, transactions, and names she has never heard before, Aria is forced to confront a devastating reality: the man she loved is a stranger, and the life she believed in was built on a lie. With Christmas morning approaching and her daughter watching closely, Aria must decide what comes next: silence or confrontation, survival or transformation. But as the night deepens, it becomes clear that this betrayal is only the beginning, and the choices she makes now will change everything. The Night Before Christmas is a gripping emotional drama about marriage, deception, and the moment a woman realises her strength was never in question, only delayed.

Already claimed, and boxed into a sham “impending union”, Luna Michelle is forced to live like a prisoner in her own pack, even though she’s the true leader. With Alpha Patrick away at a Summit, she grabs the first real chance she’s had to run. But escape isn’t simple when his influence still chokes every corner of her life… and the pack has been trained to see her as the problem. Then fate intervenes. A sudden accident stops Beta Jason from travelling with Patrick, and Patrick orders him to stay behind and keep Michelle under watch. What should be eight days of surveillance becomes something neither of them expects: stolen moments, quiet truths, and a dangerous pull that turns watchman into ally. Trapped together, Michelle and Jason must navigate suspicion, control, and a pack on the verge of breaking, while a forbidden romance sparks in the one place it should never exist. Content Warning / Reader Discretion This book contains themes that may be distressing, including abuse, domestic violence, manipulation, and coercion. If these topics may be triggering for you, please consider not reading. This story is entirely fictional and written for entertainment. The author recognises the real-life seriousness of these issues and expresses sincere empathy for anyone affected by them. Reader discretion is advised.

When Matteo Ricci threatens to end our engagement for the 100th time unless I take Lydia Capone's place in the famiglia's drug trial, I don't cry or make a scene. I just sign my name on the engagement termination agreement and calmly hand over the man I've loved for eight years to my twin sister. A few days later, Lydia storms the mafia summit like she owns the room, insulting the Pirelli family and daring anyone to stop her. I'm forced to step in and bear the full weight of her chaos. And now they're saying Lydia's body can't handle the trial after all, so they want me, the older sister, to take her place. The moment I agree, my parents smile at me for the first time in years. Even Matteo, who barely notices me, hovers nearby and murmurs, "Don't be afraid. The trial isn't lethal. When you get out, I'll take you for your favorite spaghetti alla Napoletana." But he has no idea that there's a late-stage stomach cancer diagnosis tucked inside my pocket. No matter what horrors the trial holds, he will never witness me walk out alive.

On our tenth wedding anniversary, I made a special trip to the salon to have my hair done. While settling the bill, I noticed an extra charge on my account. It was a coloring and perm package. Judging by the price, it was a package meant for waist-length hair. Mine had been cropped short for seven or eight years. I called my husband, Jason Moore. "Have you used my salon membership card recently?" There was a brief pause on the other end of the line before he laughed lightly, "Oh, I lent it to Quincy a few days ago." Quincy Hahn was his business partner, a fine arts student with long hair. She treasured her natural curls more than anything. She would never be willing to dye or perm it. More importantly, her elder sister was a major shareholder of this salon. Why would she ever need to use my card? I said nothing more and ended the call. Then, I headed straight to a location displayed on my phone. In the cafe, a long-haired lady was nestled in Jason's arms. Her freshly permed curls were soft and bouncy, framing her blushed face with certain demureness. Jason had always complained that my short hair made me look rough and manly. I lacked gentleness and charm. It seemed this long-haired lady suited his tastes perfectly.