The Ohio State Library Novels & Stories

In the bustling city of Charles State, the world of high fashion and jewelry is about to be turned upside down. Lydia Josephs, the long-lost daughter of the renowned Josephs family, returns to take her rightful place as the MD of Josephs LIFTX. Her elegance and determination captivate the city, but her arrival stirs up old wounds and hidden secrets. Frank Lanka, the charismatic MD of Lanka CULT, is haunted by the ghost of his past. His deceased wife, Ruth, left an indelible mark on his heart, and he has never been able to move on. When Lydia Josephs steps into the spotlight, Frank is struck by an uncanny resemblance—she looks exactly like Ruth. The lines between past and present blur, and Frank is forced to confront the choices he made eight years ago. Lydia, however, has her own secrets. She is Ruth, thought to be dead in a tragic explosion orchestrated by Frank's ex, Dera Pete. Rescued and given a new identity, Ruth has returned as Lydia to reclaim her life and seek justice. Her heart is set on revenge, but she is also drawn to Frank, the man who once broke her heart. As Frank and Lydia navigate the treacherous world of corporate politics and personal vendettas, their chemistry is undeniable. Frank's proposal of a business alliance with Josephs LIFTX is more than just a strategic move—it's a chance to reconnect with the woman who haunts his dreams. But Lydia is wary, knowing that Frank's intentions may not be as pure as they seem. In a dramatic turn of events, Frank's past catches up to him. Dera's jealousy and manipulation threaten to destroy everything he holds dear. As the tension escalates, Frank must choose between his desire for redemption and his fear of losing Lydia forever.

I'm back to that night I was drugged with an aphrodisiac. My sister, Rosa Spencer, drags the most aggressive guy in the village, Theo Dawson, into the woods without hesitation. In my previous life, both Rosa and I had been drugged at the same time. She jumped at the chance to be with the promising young intellectual, Dexter Newman, and I was stuck with Theo. After what happened, Dexter took responsibility without a second thought. He threw a huge wedding in the village and married Rosa. Meanwhile, I ended up marrying Theo in a rush, with nothing but a tattered quilt. Seeing this, Rosa burst into laughter. "You were born unlucky, and you'll never beat me! My husband's going to college. His future's limitless!" Yet, to my surprise, Theo changed completely after we married. He spoiled me endlessly and even became the richest man in the state. Dexter, on the other hand, failed his college entrance exam due to cheating and could only make a living by doing odd jobs. After seeing me become the wife of the richest man in the state, Rosa suddenly ran to my house in tears. "My husband's a total loser. Years have gone by, and we can't even afford a decent apartment!" Out of sisterly sympathy, I landed her a well-paying job. But when she came to thank me, she smashed a whiskey bottle over my head. "We're sisters! How come you get to live better than me?" When I opened my eyes again, I was back to that very night Rosa and I were both drugged with an aphrodisiac.

“This is an arranged marriage, just the other day you were threatening me with a divorce.” Allysa screamed at Lucas but his eyes grew darker as he marched forward, cowering into her space. He held her against the wall,his breath fanning her ears as the hairs on the back of her neck stood erect. “I say many things when I'm angry,but giving you a divorce? It's never going to happen… he dipped his head and kissed her feverishly, taking everything she had to offer as her hands wrapped around his neck. “We're bound for life Allysa, divorce? It's never going to happen……. ******************************************* What exactly can make a play boy, the most wanted dude in the state, the most arrogant, wealthy, sophisticated and nonchalant get married and decides to play cool?? Ever wondered? Meet LUCAS, he's everything a girl wants, successful at 24 and a heartbreaker. When a sexual photograph of a young lady and himself gets to the hands of his grandma, he found himself battling between accepting an arranged marriage or forfeiting his position as the CEO….. ALLYSA is all a man needs, from her cheerful smile to her sweet gestures. She's every man's dream but not the dream of her arranged husband. After the photographs makes rounds between their parents, they're both faced with a marriage ahead of them, spending the rest of their lives together and probably making babies…..but Is Lucas ready to make the marriage work? Is he willing to let go of his ego,his love for the single life and accept Allysa? Is Allysa willing to accept him? Is she willing to overlook his attitude and make the marriage work out?? Find out!

She was ready to differentiate into Alpha the next second in the hotel, but her intentions were thwarted by the unexpected arrival of A+ Alpha... Under a strong influx of cedar-scented pheromones, Letitia ultimately differentiated into Omega. "Ahhhhh...... no!" Letitia was alarmed, kicking and punching wildly with both hands and feet, but in front of the A+ class alpha, it was like an unreasonable child. Samuel, the CEO of the Ruiz family, grimaced helplessly. His long legs pressed her flailing legs, then he pulled the belt off his robe and tied her hands firmly to the post at the head of the bed. The aphrodisiac had taken over his will and there was only one thought left in his mind: to possess her......Letitia's voice rose abruptly and she struggled with unprecedented panic . Her tender omega cavity was only just awakening when an unexpected visitor knocked on the door. "No! Not there, Samuel!" She looked at Samuel with pleading red eyes as tears fell from her eyes. Samuel smiled and released his pheromones to gently soothe the frightened rabbit beneath him. It's okay, you'll be mine forever. They were knotted... After one-night stand, Letitia thinks he doesn't remember anything and runs away. But when she found out she was pregnant with his child, he told her that they were a couple forced to be matched well under the state matching mechanism and were destined to marry. She reluctantly agreed to his proposal of marriage. But she never tells him whose child she is carrying... On their wedding night, Samuel thoughtfully tucked the corners of her covers in for her, then leaned down to listen and heard her dreaming. "I don't ...... want to ...... marry him." Samuel's smile froze at the corners of his mouth. He never just wanted to mark her...

Alpha Devon had finally found his mate. There was only one problem (not really) she was human (or so he thought). Mykayla along with her younger sister Breaynia and their cousin Danique had recently moved to Washington State. They had no idea that they had moved into the Sylvyr Moon Packs territory. Sylvyr Moon, being the sole pack in the state, is one of the strongest and most powerful in the Pacific Northwest. Alpha Devon but now he has to find an easy way to explain the supernatural world to her. However, Mykayla is already well versed in the supernatural world. She along with her sister grew up alongside a pack in New Mexico. While exploring their new neighborhood Mykayla feels like she is being watched. Across the street stands Devon watching her. Their eyes meet but when Mykayla looks back up, he is gone (or so she thought). Unbeknown to them Mykayla is hired at Alpha Devon’s company as his PA. While Mykayla tries to fight her developing feelings for her boss Devonn is trying to make the bond stronger between them. One night Devonn’s beta, Kaleb, comes running into the room while he is speaking with his parents letting them know that Mykayla’s apartment building is on fire. That triggers a whole chain of events that no one saw coming. A manilla envelop is left attached to main gate of the territory Alpha Devon knows this is deeper than just some other asshole Alpha that has his sights set on his mate. The pack needs help! Alpha Devon’s cousin Naetaya tells him that she has some friends that can help. No one could prepare for who or what her friends were.

Jasamina Rutherford was forced by her parents to marry a politician who's so much years older than she is, because they wanted money and social influence. Ludale McCully is a beast in human form and a psycho. He abused her a lot. But, when she gave birth to her baby and he beat her so badly, Jasamina damned all the consequences and ran away with her new born baby. Out on the cold streets; bruised and battered, no food, money or supplies, and with a baby hidden inside her coat, she was at the end of her rope when she ran into him. ***** Tanner Dantes lost his family in the most brutal way a person would loose a lost one. It was so traumatizing and horrifying that he took to the streets. He drank himself to stupor, just to keep the memories at bay. Sober is not an option, because sober means remembering. Then, a woman ran into him one cold dark night. She was so bruised, there was no part of her body that wasn't 'occupied' with either a fresh or an old wound/bruise/scar. And, she has a baby strapped so protectively inside her clothes. She fainted in his arms. . . A woman on the run from her powerful psychotic husband and a man who'll drink himself to death than to go sober and let reality in. How will they heal? Was she able to escape her husband? With Tanner's state of mind threatened, will be help Jasamina? Can he stay sober long enough? Especially when she reminds him of everything he's trying to forget? With this two damaged soul trying to wrap their lives around each other, how did they overcome their greatest enemy of all? Why don't you go on this ride with me, let's find out!

Since childhood, Shamila has been living in the orphanage with other children. The clothes she own once belonged to other people and she doesn't even know who named her Shamila. When she gets a scholarship to study in one of the most prestigious Schools, Maslow High School, she thinks it is a game changer. Little does she knows what awaits her, the students in Maslow High school are all evil and they have divided the school into two cults each headed by a prominent and rich bully. Before long, the two bullies fight over who will own her and amidst all the bullying, Shamila discovers the untold secret of the School. More then half of the students have supernatural blood running in them and the school is merely a ground to numb them and hide them from the society. Her original adoption documents also say her name is Shamila Maslow. Will the bullies bow down to her new supernatural state as the vampire who could perhaps be the next in line owner of Maslow High School and other royal properties, or this is just a prank that has been carefully organized by one of them to make her believe she is an important vampire so that the aftermath can make her ashamed and humiliated beyond repair. This is Maslow High School and students only go home at the end of the school year, Shamila has no home and all she has at the end of the year is the orphanage. Is this her real home, are the people surrounding her also numbed by centuries old magic enemies, friends or family? she has one year to find out, either she arrives at the truth or die as a result of the gruesome bullying by the bullies before the year ends.

Uptil the age of 9, Roselia had lived the life every child dreamed of, a loving father, mountains of toys and dollhouses and whatever else that she desired. But her world came crashing down when her father died all of a sudden. Then Roselia runs away from her home at the age of 12 for reasons that would haunt her forever. She gets on a train and travels to a different state which is when she is rescued by a man. Little does she know that the man, Derek Clifford, is the heir to the ‘Cliffords dynasty’, a billionaire family, known for masquerading their money source as a ‘family business’. But the biggest revelation awaits Roselia at the Clifford mansion… that the person responsible for her father’s ‘unexpected death’ might just be a very important member of the Clifford’s family. Just then, Derek leaves to go overseas. 6 years later What Roselia hadn’t expected was that her love for the man who saved her life 6 years ago might just get in the way of her exacting revenge as she stays in the Cliffords mansion in the guise of a chef. Derek Clifford had not ever dreamed that he would fall in love. Power was all he had ever desired. That is until his cold grey eyes latched onto the all-grown Roselia and his carefully-knit life comes falling apart. But deep down perhaps he had known that it wasn’t just moral obligation that had made him so fiercely protective of her back in the past. Unfortunately for Roselia, Derek has a dark side to him, a side he never wanted to reveal to her. Would she run or would she stand with him? Would Derek even let her go? Could he?

After being banished from her pack by her father for exceeding the age of release her wolf. Reyna was in a state of dilemma. Not knowing what to do next, Reyna was ambushed by some rogue werewolves who wanted to harm her. Just when she thought all hope was lost, she was saved by a man who was more dangerous than those wolves who wanted to harm her. They later asked her to follow him to his pack but after seeing her reluctance to follow him, he introduced himself to her as Jake and he told her his pack was safer for her. When she got to his pack she found out he had a younger brother who was more likely than him and His name was John. As time went by, Reyna and John developed feelings for each other. Meanwhile Jake decided to keep his feelings for Reyna to himself since he never wanted to hurt his brother. But one unfortunate day, John was kidnapped by the Alpha of the Rogue pack causing Jake and Reyna to come together to save him. Which lets them spend more time together. The time Reyna and Jake spent together made Reyna see Jake in a different light. Causing her to start having feelings for Jake. What will Reyna do when she finds out that the love she has for Jake is more than an obsession? Will Jake and Reyna be able to save John for the Rogue? What will Reyna do when she finds out Jake has feelings for her too? What will John do when he finds out Reyna and Jake love each other? Who will Reyna choose to be with between the Alpha Brothers?

Life is unpredictable. The people whom we deem to be closer to us may not be one. The people whom we think love us may not love us. Laya, who is twenty-two years old, has high ambitions. But they were shattered when she heard that she was going to get married. No one asked her opinion or cared about it. Shattered. She wondered if her parents were alive. But sadly, there were no if’s and maybe in life. But she felt blessed when she got married to Rahul Ravi Raj, a billionaire. He is sinfully handsome, whenever he was close to her, butterflies fluttered all over her body. And he never left a chance to tease her sexually. When she thought her married life would be glad for him, fate had its last laugh. He left her for business for three months, with his mother. And his mother who was pressuring Laya to get pregnant got to know they didn’t consummate their marriage. Taking her son's absence as the chance, she tortured her. Laya almost died because of her physical abuse. By the time, Rahul returned she was in the hospital. Seeing her in that state, he realized whatever positive and budding feelings she had for him were dead. Now, all she had for him were hate and fear. But little did Laya not know was her marriage wasn’t a flash marriage or an arranged marriage. Rahul married her for his reasons. And one of the biggest reasons for marrying her was to save her from dangers. Can he win back her love for him? Can he save her if she goes away from him? What were his reasons for him to marry her?