The Gaze

Illustrator Isabelle Montrose arrives in Valmont’s rain-soaked quarter, sketchbook in hand but ideas elusive beneath the amber glow of Café de Minuit. One evening, architect Alexander Vale seeks shelter under the same streetlamp, crimson umbrella in hand. His measured gaze meets her restless creativity, and a silent bond forms as raindrops dance on cobblestones. As Isabelle’s graphic-novel deadline approaches, self-doubt claws at her confidence; Alexander, torn between family expectations and his passion for design, struggles in silence. A misread glance threatens to sever their fragile connection, forcing both to confront fear and longing. In lavender-tinted twilight and beneath flickering lanterns, Isabelle and Alexander choose vulnerability over solitude. Together, they discover that true art—and true love—arises when two hearts light each other’s darkest moments.

Two months into my cold war with Sean, the lover he’d been keeping finally danced her way right up to me, the real deal. Everyone expected me to react the same way I always had before, kicking up a huge scene to stake my claim. Instead, I looked at the intimate photos of Sean and her in the group chat, smiled, and sent them my blessing. [Looking good. Wishing you two a long and happy life.] The chat went dead silent. Sean must’ve sobered up from his little paradise because in the middle of the night, he drove home and pounded on my door. He was furious. “Do you think this is funny?” However, I only met his gaze calmly. “Honestly, after all these years, none of it is.”

[WARNING STRONG MATURED CONTENTS] Beside me, I sensed his movement as he turned towards me, his eyes searching for mine. I purposely avoided meeting his gaze, instead focusing on calming my racing breath. But try as I might, my breath still trembled, betraying my inner turmoil. Despite my rapid blinking, a single tear escaped, making its way down my cheek. I heard the covers rustle as he shifted closer to me. His finger gently brushed against my face, capturing the tear. "I'm sorry, Hailey," his voice resonated in the dimly lit room, both deep and gentle. His touch was followed by a soft stroke through my brunette hair and a tender kiss on the crook of my neck. "I know this isn't what you wanted," he murmured, regret evident in his voice. "It doesn't matter," I replied quietly, my gaze still fixed on the ceiling. His apology felt like a stab to the heart, but I couldn't hold him responsible. Our circumstances were far beyond our control.Swallowing hard, I tried to push down the ache in my chest. "It was unavoidable, it isn't your fault," I muttered, fighting back the tears that threatened to spill. He sighed heavily, running a hand through his dark, tousled hair. His arm wrapped around my waist, pulling me closer to him. I allowed my cheek to rest against his strong chest, finding some solace in his comforting presence. The steady rhythm of his heartbeat brought a sliver of comfort to my shattered emotions. "I wish I could have given you more time to get to know me before all of this," he confessed, a touch of bitterness seeping into his words. "But those old Elders insisted on sealing our union immediately."

“So you’re a virgin, then.” He says it so blatantly it rattles me to the core. “No! I mean, would it matter if I were?” “I suppose not,” he muses, his gaze shifting back to me. “But when I look at you, I want to violently fuck you until you cannot move for days.” ---- On a hiking trip with a friend, Meara accidently breaks an ancient curse, releasing a powerful Alpha from another time. He wants revenge from who imprisoned him as much as he wants her, and Meara may be the only one who can stop him. But she has a life she isn't ready to give up. And yet, there is no escaping a seductive Alpha and a deadly curse that has been unleashed across her Pack that threatens her life.

What happens when your best friend turns out to be your new stepbrother? ~ Elizabeth Roberts has one secret. She harbors unusual feelings for her best friend, James Hall. What James doesn't realize is that his every subtle gaze makes her heart flutter and his every new relationship with another girl breaks it all over again. Having to hide it all while being his best friend, and supposedly the only girl he can’t get is harsh enough for Elizabeth but what happens when they are put together under one roof? What happens when her best friend turns out to be her next-room stepbrother? Will Eliza fight against her growing unruly yearnings for him or will she finds herself giving in despite the new connection between them?

I never meant to betray my sister. But from the moment Adrian's dark, smoldering gaze met mine, he became my secret addiction. His touch sets me on fire, his possessiveness borders on obsession. And despite him being my sister's boyfriend, I'm powerless to stop. Then there's Alexander. The charming guy I met on campus. He's everything Adrian isn't. He's sweet, kind, safe, and he makes no secret of how much he wants me. With one boy, I'm breaking all the rules. With the other, I'm denying all my desires. But now I'm trapped between one love I can't have and another love I can't resist.

“Will you die for them?” The Alpha King’s voice was cold enough to silence the hall. And Althea heard the answer long before she spoke it… not from herself, but from the minds screaming around her. ‘Just sacrifice yourself.’ ‘You’re nothing.’ ‘You should die for us.’ Her gift or curse let her hear and read every hateful thought, every desperate plea. And even then, she still stepped forward. She chose to protect the weak, the innocent, the only ones who had ever shown her kindness… even if the price was her life. But Gavriel Kingsley, the Alpha King, didn’t kill her. He wanted something else. Ownership. "You are mine now," His voice barely above a whisper. “As a slave?!” The King chuckled, his gaze dark as midnight. “As my breeder.”

For the socialites, security, stability, and comfortability matters more than finding the right love for you. That's why fixed marriage is proposed. Mary Emily Trañilla is the heiress of a famous clothing line. She never argues and go against with her parents' decisions because she knew they're doing everything for the best of her. She's destined to be engage to Simone Kennedy Garcia, a CEO of the leading hotel and restaurant company in the Philippines. She was so sure of that decision not until she meet the gaze of Simone's half-brother, Apollo. How frightening and exciting would it be to have a secret love affair with your fiance's half brother? Would you dare to swing through the string of destiny and fight for what you really feel or just fearlessly cut off the tie to stand by what the socialites believed in?

A tremor ran through Araceli as his gaze caught hers. His touch, unexpectedly gentle, sent shivers down her spine. His words, a husky whisper, "I see the longing in your eyes, Angel," hung heavy in the air. ***** The irony wasn't lost on her. Araceli, who craved nothing more than a family's warmth, found herself entangled with a man who, despite his wealth and power, seemed to yearn for the very same thing. He was Zayn, CEO to a vast fortune, yet trapped in a gilded cage of a loveless marriage with a wife who has her eyes on another man. Fate, it seemed, had a cruel sense of humor, bringing them together at this crossroads in their lives. Both teetering on the edge, they fought the undeniable pull, the storm of emotions threatening to consume them

Desiree is running from a dark past and just when she thinks she's finally escaped and is free, a case of wrong place wrong time gains her the attention of a cold and ruthless billionaire who would do anything to have her in his bed, including digging up her past and holding it over her head. What starts as a merely sexual relationship with Desiree being forced into Killian's bed blossoms into more as she becomes addicted to the possessiveness of his touch and his gaze and he in turn falls for her unwitting charm. But with the Pandora's box that is her past suddenly opened, enemies that were thought long gone begin to appear and threaten to destroy the relationship they've managed to carve out for themselves. Can they work together to overcome the rising danger or will they be torn apart by secrets and lies?