The Matter With Things

Jeff Pritchet isn’t much different from other teenage boys, with one exception. His monstrous, spider-like appearance and loner persona make him a target for bullying, when all he wants is a friend who sees beyond the surface.The unconventional pair find themselves marked for hatred, and when his bond to Aarav is threatened, Jeff discovers a sinister side he never knew he had, proving that, when pushed too far, emotions can be deadlier than venom.©️ Crystal Lake Publishing

When Elena Peterson goes to work, the last thing she expects is to be plunged into a world of chaos by what is waiting for her in the office. Her former boss, may have just sacrificed her to the devil himself, by his outrageous request in his will! Jason Richardson didn't expect his father to be cunning and calculative, even in death. He surely didn't expect his father to will everything to his personal assistant, with the condition that he married her, or loses everything! What was he thinking when he wrote that?!

“What is this?” Aria asked as she stared at the envelope. “A marriage contract,” he told her, “I need you to get married to me and be my wife and then I'll help you get revenge against your ex-husband. That way we both get what we want.” Aria's gaze was fixated on the envelope. Contract marriage?, She questioned herself. This could be the answer she needed right now. A revenge that would put her ex-husband in the worse of all places. She wants to make him feel so miserable, just as he has made her feel. *** After being betrayed by her ex-husband, Aria is left with nothing, not until the ruthless young millionaire Damien Blackwood offers her a deal: marriage, power, and retribution. As she steps into his world, she soon realizes that vengeance comes with a price… and a passion she never expected. But in a game of secrets and betrayal, is she the player—or the pawn?

Some months ago, Jessica had to give up the man she loved because he had married another woman after she had been kidnapped and everyone thought she was dead. Now, she's suffering PTSD from the memories of what she suffered during the time she was kidnapped. She gets shipwrecked on an island with the twin brother of the crazy lady who kidnapped her, and although she hates him, things get heated between them. Once rescued, she vanishes, as she wants nothing to do with him, but somehow, she can't get the memory of his kind eyes out of her head. Soon, she finds out that she's pregnant from the one night they had on the island, and is torn on what to do.

A debt. A contract. A marriage. A university! Ashley's father borrowed money from a wealthy billionaire to expand his business. Unfortunately, the expansion failed making the company and the family on the brink of bankruptcy to the extent of almost selling his last property which is their house to pay back the debts. But one fateful day, Mr. Walter came to the Black's family house and gave them an absurd offer which would help them pay their debt and get their company back on its feet. The offer was simple. Since Mr. Black was owing Mr. Walter about 10 million dollars, he offered to forget about the money and even help the company to get back on his feet if... Ashley gets married to his philanderous son, Michael, for a year! Read to follow up with the rollercoaster story of Michael and Ashley's one year contracted marriage while still in college, their heartbreak, their scandalous past and how they later fell madly in love with each other!

They met, they fought, they got married. Both of them had sworn to never see each other's face on their first meeting, on their second meeting their marriage was being fixed. Jennifer Wingsley, a twenty three years old girl who was waiting for only one thing in her life, true love. Christian Brown, a devil with handsome face. Words like love and marriage never existed in his twenty six years of life. Pure hatred was what they felt for each other since the first time they met. Bound into an arranged marriage, how will they survive under the same roof?? Chaos is bound to happen with these two totally opposite persons tied to each other for lifelong. Will the hate change into love?? Will they survive this marriage or end up killing each other?? Join in the journey of Christian and Jennifer.

Emerald Greene, a teacher with a broken heart, is rescued from drowning by a mysterious man. They start a no-strings-attached fling, but Emerald's world turns upside down when she discovers he’s the father of one of her students. Torn between being a mistress or letting him go, Emerald faces a choice that’s even harder when she realizes she needs him for revenge against her ex. Will she stay for love or leverage?

Isabella Sterling had it all—a prestigious law firm and the perfect husband. But her world shatters in one devastating day. Returning from the hospital with life-changing news, Isabella attends a heart shattering ceremony: her husband of six years announcing another woman as his fiancee. In the blink of an eye, she loses everything, including her law firm, to her deceitful husband, Daniel West, and sister, Christabella. Betrayed and fueled by revenge, Isabella turns to the country’s most dangerous billionaire, Nicholas Montgomery, to reclaim what she’s lost. Little does she know, In the high-stakes world of wealth and power, Nicholas Montgomery, the country’s most influential billionaire and tech genius, has it all—except peace of mind. Haunted by a traumatic past and obsessive control issues, Nicholas is a man who meticulously manages every aspect of his life, including his emotions. Well, not until a certain fiery, auburn-haired, hazel-eyed, 5'5 woman storms into his life, threatening to unravel everything. She was meant to be his wife only on paper, a tool to enhance his public image—not the woman who ignites his darkest desires or the one he'd burn the world for.

Meet Zariya Serein Cortez, the late Princess Amity's reincarnation. Zariya is an ordinary student who left the modern world to complete the mission that had been assigned to her. She must complete the mission in order to return to the present world. Its purpose was to keep the peace and protect Norland from the Kingdom of Lacandia. To accomplish this, she will pretend as a servant of the Kingdom and meet the five Princes who will have a major impact on her life. But what if she fell in love with the third Prince, unexpectedly? Her heart beats for the man who was only a part of her past in an unexpected place and time. Will her feelings for the Prince have an impact on her mission? Is it appropriate for Zariya to fall in love with a man from the past while she is living in the future?

My husband's latest lover is a dab hand at making coffee. I'm curious, so I go to her coffee shop to try a cup. When I get home, my husband grips my neck tightly as he warns, "Stay away from her." I'm reminded of how he did the same thing to my betrothed at the time before snatching me away. "Do you like her that much?" I laugh and watch as Ray Prunier loses control. I guess I'll give him what he wants, then.