The Lean Startup

Without Kaelen's knowledge, I had his little plaything sent out of North America. That same night, he cast a blood-vine curse on my parents, banishing them to the wilds—a wasteland prowled by rogues. He was going to trade my parents' lives for the whereabouts of his plaything. Kaelen pushed a communication crystal in front of me. Inside it, my parents were ensnared by blood-red vines, the thorns digging deep into their flesh. Drops of dark crimson blood fell, one by one, onto the barren earth. A countdown timer pulsed in stark red digits on their chests. 23:59:59 23:59:58 He sat across from me, a black suit tailored to perfection molded to his lean, powerful frame. His long fingers tapped a light, steady rhythm on the solid wood table, as if he were waiting for a trivial business deal to close. "Estelle, you have twenty-four hours." His voice was low and calm, laced with a venomous tenderness. "Tell me, where did you send Cassandra?"

Emily Carter has finally broken free from the suffocating grasp of her billionaire ex-husband, Daniel Blackwood. Rebuilding her life from the ground up, Emily now runs a thriving tech startup in New York City, determined to succeed on her own terms. But as she starts to enjoy her newfound independence, Daniel's shadow looms large. Despite his charm and charisma, Daniel is a master manipulator, and he’s not ready to let Emily go. When his empire begins to crumble, he reemerges with a dangerous plan to reclaim his lost power—and Emily's heart. As Daniel's schemes grow more sinister, Emily finds herself caught in a web of deceit, betrayal, and dangerous power plays. With the support of her loyal best friend, Sam Brooks, and a rival entrepreneur who might just be more than he seems, Emily faces off against the man who once had everything under control. As secrets unravel and hidden agendas come to light, Emily must navigate a world where every ally could be a foe and every choice could lead to disaster. In a high-stakes battle of wits and will, Emily must decide whether to cut the cord entirely or find a way to reclaim her freedom and her future.

Trigger warnings: 18+, contains BDSM, hardcore sex, Sub and mature content. "Crawl over, Claire. Crawl over, and get what you want, that is the least you can do for how hard I intend to fuck you.” ******************** Just like everyone else who ends up in college with their curiosity spiking up the ceiling, Claire's was no different from them. A text confirming her boyfriend was at a fraternity party making out had her racing out, until she met the one person she would have never expected to cross paths with. Under the influence of aphrodisiac, she had given herself to him, with no recollection of who he is or where he was from until fate brought them together. With her working in his startup firm as an assistant, and his claws deep in her, Jerald wasn't ready to let her go, and she wasn't ready to do so as well, not even when she found out he was her boyfriend's elder brother. He made her feel things she hadn't felt before, and touches her in places she wouldn't have expected was possible, what awaits them when it seems their luck had run out? And the world suddenly seems to be against them?

It honestly feels like I've been transported back to the Middle Ages. For the benefit of my pack, I just swore an oath to a man I've never met. The pack where I'm supposed to be the leader. The pack I'm not sure how to lead. I should learn fast, though. Because here he is, out of the blue, almost catching me by surprise. His green eyes, which shine like polished emeralds, make me stop in my tracks. His sharp jaw and short beard give him a dangerous look. His words of superiority, which were as smooth as velvet, hurt me deeply. So, this is my very hot husband who doesn't care about anything. I'm not even close to ready for this marriage. But he just walks into my space, all lean muscle and stalking grace. I have to use everything I have to get myself and the situation under control. What the heck did I sign up for?

Leona Langham and Sebastian Kane are the match made in heaven that's acknowledged by the entire school. Sebastian is the hottest guy in school. He's tall, lean, and has an extremely handsome face. Oftentimes, he wears a black windbreaker that makes him look like a protagonist from an action comic. Many girls find themselves falling head over heels for him. Unfortunately for them, Sebastian only has eyes for Leona. They are childhood sweethearts who have grown up together. They celebrated their first birthdays together. When they turned seven years old, their families betrothed them to each other. When they turned 14, Sebastian gave Leona a love letter. When they turned 16, Sebastian confessed to Leona. When they turned 18, they promised to apply for the same university. But on their senior year, a new transfer student named Maureen Shadwick joins their class. The homeroom teacher specifically assigns Maureen to Sebastian when she's organizing pairs for the tutor sessions. She stresses to Sebastian, "If you don't accept this assignment, you can forget about maintaining your relationship with Leona at school."

*Excerpt from a small excerpt: Shophia Marin ran as fast as she could to escape the large mansion. Running a long distance, he probably couldn't catch up, she turned her head to see that the mansion was no longer there, so she took a break under the tree. System, is Ralius still chasing me? [ Host, stop chasing but... ] But what? [But when people ran out of here, it pissed him off... the host made him black... he was right behind the host] Huh!!! "Shophia Marin, I'm too far from the villa to run away to relax." - Ralius lifted Marin's chin and forced her to lean against the tree trunk to support her head with her hands, dark eyes looking at her. The black male villain is terrible, the system saves me. [Sorry host I can't help] "You are becoming more and more intelligent, next time I will monitor you." - Ralius carried Marin on his shoulder and returned to the mansion. "Forgive me, I don't want to be here." - Don't trust this useless system in the first place.

I ditched a shot at studying abroad to help my boyfriend, Gavin Censori, launch his startup. Stuck it out with him through seven brutal years. Then boom—success hit, and so did the ghosting. On Valentine's Day, he hit me with the classic "work's crazy" excuse. Instead of showing up, he had some random delivery dude drop off a box of cosmetic samples. Samples. Later that night, his secretary Rebecca popped up on my feed, flexing hard. Caption: [With a boss like this, why go home early?] Pic: A box of high-end makeup. Same brand. Hers weren't samples. I dropped a comment: [You're doing great at your sidechick job. Gold star.] Gavin called instantly, losing it. "What's your problem? She's just an employee! I bust my ass making money for you, and you're always jealous!" I laughed. Didn't even yell. Just dumped him. Seven years, and I'd never touched a dime of his. Joke's on him—his precious startup? Secretly bankrolled by me. Fast-forward three years. Business summit. He rolled in wearing a tailored suit. The second he spotted me with a bag of bottles, his smirk kicked in. "Didn't like those cosmetics I gave you, huh? Now look at you—reduced to bottle collecting?"

" sometimes the strongest hearts carry the heaviest scars." Two years after losing her parents, 21-year-old Jane is left raising her two little brothers on her own. Abandoned by her oldee sister and juggling two exhausting jobs, Jane barely has time to breathe_let alone chase her long-forgotten dream of studying law. Every day is a battle to survive: Working long hours, skipping meals, some strange dreams, and hiding her tears behind a fake smile. But even when she breaks down in the middle of the street or collapses from exhaustion, she always gets back up- for Elhoïme and Mathias, the only family she has left. Just when she thinks no one sees her pain, Brian, a kind coworker and a long time friend, start offering small gestures of help- cofee, silence, time, understanding. She pushes him away at first, afraid of needing anyone. But his quiet presence slowly starts to feel like hope. Can Jane allow herself to lean on someone else for once, without losing her strenght- or her heart?

"You are not my mate," he tells me firmly, pushing me against the wall and holding my wrists over my head to stop me from struggling. "You're just an impostor, a liar!" A smirk appears on my lips. "Me? An impostor and a liar?" I lean forward, making sure that our lips are only inches apart. "I can prove it. Let me go and I'll show you who I am." He swallows hard, his gaze wandering from my eyes down to my lips, going farther down with renewed purpose. . . . * * * Meredith Lane is the most beautiful girl in the kingdom of Raven Solstice. With her angelic features, she could have been blessed by the gods themselves. But there's one catch. She's a mere human in the world of Lycans, and the daughter of a Duke's lowly maid. Inhibited by her status and forever hidden from the public, Meredith decides to break some rules and explore what the world has to offer. And it just so happened the universe granted her the attention of a Lycan Heir, Zeus Antonov. But what if someone is just out there lurking, waiting for the right chance to take Meredith's beauty, along with her royal mate?

Claire met Sebastian on her wedding day. He is the older brother of her husband-to-be. Fate took its time to play with her when she felt a very huge attraction to the man on the very same day she was bound to be someone else’s wife. From the intense look he gives her to the way his lips curved up into a smirk, she can’t help but feel foreign sensations running down her body. Sensations she’s not allowed to feel for someone who’s going to be a family soon. Sebastian knew he needs saving when he felt a very strong urge to pull the bride and lean her on the altar and take her there senselessly. With her strawberry blonde hair curled to the side of her shoulder exposing her delicately creamy-white skin, thoughts of running his tongue there invaded his mind. Damn him to hell for thinking thoughts like that to the woman his brother was about to marry. But the heavens must be in his favor when things around weren’t what he expected it to be. This time he was determined to steal her from his brother, and no one can stop him. Not even fate.