The Gaze

His tie hung loose, his eyes darker than sin. The scent of whiskey lingered on his breath as he leaned closer. “Tell me to stop,” he murmured, the words brushing against my skin like a dare. “You’re drunk,” I said, staring into those grey eyes as my heartbeat filled the silence. He smiled faintly, his gaze trailing from my hair until it fell on my lips. “Drunk,” he whispered, his thumb grazing my mouth as if testing how soft it was, “but not blind. You want this as much as I do.” ----- After her husband’s mysterious death, Mara Lawson becomes the center of a scandal threatening to destroy the powerful Lawson empire. Elias Lawson, her late husband’s twin, is everything she should resist—dangerous, magnetic, and forbidden. David Hale, her ex-lover, the man who walked away once and now wants forgiveness… and another chance. Between the man who broke her and the one who could ruin her, Mara is caught in a web of passion, guilt, and secrets that could shatter them all. Because in the Lawson world, love is never pure—it’s just another sin waiting to be punished.

He entered her life, and their destinies became entangled in the most tragic of ways: she embodied sunshine, while he exuded darkness. He craved vengeance against his enemies, while she sought to destroy those who had killed her parents. Both had vengeful hearts, yet when it came to each other, they were willing to ruin themselves and the world to protect one another. Having been betrayed before, he vowed never to show vulnerability again to the world. Yet, against all odds, he found himself unable and unwilling to resist her pull. He offered her everything, even the world itself. His obsession with her intensified to the point where he forgot she was a forbidden fruit, entrusted to him to protect until the end of his life. Yet whenever her innocent eyes met another's, jealousy burned within him. He coveted her gaze for himself alone; it was as if she had cast a spell on him, binding him to her indefinitely. Despite the world knowing his weakness, he wore it proudly, even though she was a rose full of thorns in his life, capable of endangering his very existence

I was just the maid. He was the billionaire heir—cold, untouchable, and engaged to another woman. I had no business wanting him. He had no reason to touch me. Yet, the first time Damian Blackwood’s scorching gaze met mine in the darkened hallway of his mansion, I knew—I was already his. It started as a mistake. A single, reckless night where his lips crushed mine, his hands claimed my body, and I let him ruin me completely. But Damian doesn’t do mistakes. He doesn’t do love. He takes, possesses, devours—and once he has a taste, he never lets go. Now, I’m trapped in his world of forbidden passion, dangerous secrets, and ruthless obsession. Every stolen kiss is a betrayal. Every whispered command is a sin. And every night in his bed brings me closer to destruction. Because in Damian’s world, love is weakness. And I just might be the one thing he’s willing to break all his rules for. A scorching-hot billionaire romance filled with lust, obsession, and devastating passion. Perfect for fans of dark, forbidden love stories.

Luna Baxter and Simon Fulmer have been married for five years. One day, she receives a provocative voice message and intimate photos from Simon's first love. They're sent from his phone, too. "I've only been back in the country for half a year, but he took the bait as soon as I laid it. He's prepared blue fireworks for me tonight, but I don't like the color blue. To avoid wastage, you can have them on your wedding anniversary." Luna and Simon's fifth wedding anniversary comes a month later. She looks out the window at the blue fireworks lighting up the sky. Then, her gaze lands on the empty seat across from her. Simon's first love challenges her again. She sends her a photo of them having a candlelight dinner. Luna doesn't cry or kick up a fuss. She silently signs a divorce agreement and asks Simon's secretary to prepare for a wedding. "What are the bride's and groom's names, Mrs. Fulmer?" "Simon Fulmer and Sophie Sutherland." Seven days later, she flies to Naavi to give them her blessings. She throws them a wedding.

I don’t even know how our lips met. It just… happened, and he tastes sweet, like a gourmet dessert, and instantly, I want more. I can't even form a thought right now as I part my lips and our tongues dance together. It’s a primal force, instinct maybe, something telling me that at this moment, I have everything I have ever wanted in my life. I have a mate. I am complete. *** I always thought I was leading a good life, although I never quite felt like I belonged, until I met Devon, the gorgeous, sexy Alpha of the Emerald Moon pack whose mesmerizing gaze drew me in. Wolves? How could I be one of those? I find out I’m a hybrid, wolf and mage, and all this time I’ve never been a human at all. No wonder I didn’t fit in. But just as things are starting to come together for us, it’s all quickly torn apart as mysterious outside forces with an ancient hatred invade our world and threaten everything. Will the love of a true, fated mate save everything, or will it be my downfall?

Cesare Xandri, the rising gangster of the Nalitan mafia, unexpectedly lost a bet at an elite private casino in Ithel, the kind that smells like cigar smoke and blood money. The penalty was simple, he had to call his hard-to-tame pet. The phone was on speaker. The men circled him, whistling and hooting, waiting to be entertained. He asked what I was up to in a relaxed and amused tone. I replied softly, insinuating he was sinful, hiding my defiance behind innocence and fake devotion. When I finished my insult, the room fell silent, then burst into loud and uncontrollable laughter. The call ended. Less than thirty minutes later, the mansion gates were smashed open. He stormed in smelling of gunpowder, a Beretta still in his hand. He pushed me against the wall furiously beneath the Virgin Mary statue. I leaned into him without hesitation, fingers brushing the heated gun, and I met his gaze without fear. I chose virtue and rejected him in my past life, in return I was thrown into the open sea to die. I intended to be his temptation when I got a second chance at life, I wanted to be a beautiful sin that ends his story under the Cecilian sun.

“I’m not a fool, Jagger.” Jordan’s voice is ice, his walls towering. “Everyone I’ve ever let close has betrayed me.” Jagger steps closer, his gaze locking onto Jordan’s with an intensity that makes his breath hitch. Then, in a voice low and steady, he says, "Then it’s about damn time someone proves you wrong." ******** Betrayed by his wife. Poisoned by his own brother. Killed by the two precious people in his life. But when Jordan opens his eyes, he’s not dead—he’s been reborn three years in the past, back when the poison had only just begun to eat away at him. This time, he won’t be their fool. This time, he’ll make them pay. As he begins his revenge to avoid the future, his only ally is his divorce lawyer, Jagger Walker—a man too dangerous to trust, yet too irresistible to ignore. But when Jagger starts breaking down the walls around his heart, Jordan faces a new dilemma. He came back to take revenge and claim his son. But will he dare to love again? And can he change the unfortunate future ahead of him?

"Mom, Dad, I’ve decided to come home for the blind dates you mentioned. I’ll be back by the end of the month." In the early spring, with the lingering chill of winter in the air, Valerie Stonecutter pushed open the door while speaking softly into the phone. Her gentle voice drifted through the rain like a thread weaving through the mist. Pulling her collar tighter against the cold, she heard her parents breathe a sigh of relief on the other end. "Val," her father began, his voice heavy with age. “Your mom and I haven’t been in good health these past few years. So now that you’ve made up your mind, that’s good. When you’re back, I’ll have your Aunt Laura arrange a few suitable candidates for you to meet." Hearing that her parents were already making arrangements for her future, Valerie’s gaze flickered, her emotions momentarily unsettled. After a few more words of small talk, she ended the call. She glanced around her home with a heavy heart, her thoughts tangled in a quiet storm. Then she retreated to her bedroom and began to pack.

Elena Rossi thought it was just another job. One more shift. One more night serving drinks to rich, powerful men. She didn’t know she was the real product. Trapped inside an exclusive, invite-only event, Elena finds herself dressed up, displayed… and sold to the highest bidder in a private auction she never agreed to. And the man who buys her? Cillian O’Rourke. Irish CEO. Ruthless Mafia king. A man with blood on his hands and control in his veins. Now she lives in his world, in his penthouse, under his rules, surrounded by danger she doesn’t understand. She fights him. Defies him. Swears she’ll never belong to him. But Cillian isn’t interested in forcing her. He wants her to want it. To feel it. To come undone under his gaze until resistance turns into need. Because when Elena Rossi finally breaks… She won’t be trying to escape him anymore.
She’ll be begging for him. One job. One auction. One man who decides she belongs to him, and won’t ever let her forget it.

The omega gasped, body heating up under the grip of the other's hands on his hips. Tears of pleasure clouded his vision and he fisted his hands in the silk sheets. "I can't..." he whimpered. "It's too much..." "You can," Xavier growled in his ear, a predatory glint in his eyes. "Arch for me, Sweetheart." Vernon, despite the tiredness in his limbs, obeyed the alpha's command. ************** Forced into a marriage with Xavier Donovan, one of the most ruthless alphas in Virex City, Vernon Giordano expects the union to be an outright disaster. He has read enough about Xavier in the papers to believe that. Imagine his surprise when he discovers that none of it is true and that his husband is a gentleman who looks at him like he hung the stars. Under Xavier’s tender touches that send his heart spiraling, and beneath an intense gaze that makes him question everything he’s ever felt, Vernon finds himself falling hard and fast for his husband. But their marriage is fraught with danger, secrets, and betrayals from both sides that threaten to ruin their budding relationship. Can Xavier and Vernon hold on and fight for their love? Or will they crumble under the threats of friends and foes alike?