Novel & Cerita The Rejected Life Of Mala Luca By Jennifer Francis

Luca sits in a leather chair, a glass of whiskey in his hand, his eyes on the door as if he has been waiting for me. "Please." My voice comes out raw. "You need to listen to me." He doesn't move. "I'm listening." "Lucinda killed my mother." The words tumble out. "She burned down my house. She framed me for the theft. She forced me to sign that confession. She—" Luca laughs. The sound is cold. Flat. It cuts through the room like a blade. "Lucinda?" He sets down his glass. "My stepmother? The woman who has been nothing but kind to this family?"

The Stranger in the Shadows Lila The tequila burned all the way down. I sat on the cool marble tiles of the pool deck long after Luca slammed the door, the bottle warm against my thigh. My legs were numb, my throat raw, and my heart? Fractured. Again. I shouldn’t have gone out there. Shouldn’t have tried to comfort him. I knew better. I knew how men like Luca worked brilliant, broken men who tore through affection like a storm and left ruin behind.

Pov: Marshall Ackerman There was so much I hated and every day I had to go through the routine of rejecting women who wanted me to be in a Jacktic relationship with them. I wondered when they were going to take the hint that I didn’t give a rat’s ass about such things and I would rather be alone than spend my time forming a futile connection with some woman just because it’s somehow better than being a lone wolf.

Luca got up from where he sat and paced around trying to remember but nothing came up. “I don’t think you dated her, Luca, according to what I gathered from everything Claudia told me, she kind of had a one-sided crush on you, should I say, love, she was in love with you and told you about it but you rejected her which kind of drove her into a bad state, it got worse when you married your wife a few months later; according to Claudia, that led her to take her own life,” Nora explained. Luca just stood there with his mouth open, he couldn’t believe it, he couldn’t believe someone would kill themself over him, he never thought of that happening, now he needed to remember who he had rejected.

“You are still pretending?” I looked at him and slapped him. The sound was not loud, but it silenced the room. Cassian froze. Seraphina forgot to keep crying. My hand stung. I held Cassian’s gaze. “From today on, I will no longer stand between you and Seraphina.” His face darkened. I continued, “I, Lyra Rowan, under the witness of the Moon Goddess, reject you, Cassian Draven, as my fated mate.”

Not because death was unfamiliar. Death was part of this life—a constant in our world. Always had been. But Luca wasn't just another soldier. He was family. A slow breath left me as I opened my eyes again, my gaze landing back on Marcelina. She was still asleep, still breathing. At least she managed to survive her own fucking curse tonight. The thought should've calmed me. Instead, irritation flared hotter. I wasn't a man who believed in supernatural bullshit. Not magic, not curses, not destiny. Hell, I barely believed in God.

“You still deserve choices, Ophelia.” I reached for the door, but it opened before I could step out. Luca stood there. He froze when he saw Malcolm in the driver’s seat, his eyes flicking from him to me, to the paper bag in my hand. For a brief second, no one moved. Malcolm gave a polite nod. “Good evening.” Then he started the engine. “Call me,” he said quietly. I nodded, watching as the car pulled away. Luca remained where he was, jaw tight, eyes dark with something I couldn’t immediately name.

All the hidden pieces behind the story finally lined up. Whether it was out of love or for profit, Ralph had only ever had one goal: to save Fiona, so she could go on living and keep making games for his company. “001,” Ernesta said, “this story should be called The Con-Artist Game Designer and Her Murderous Adoptive Father.” After a brief silence, 001 finally responded. “Boo hoo hoo.” It was imitating the sound of crying, but with its flat, robotic voice, it sounded oddly creepy.

“For old times’ sake… if our friendship, or all the good sex we had, meant anything to you… you’d help me.” Luca turns to me, and his eyes are filled with honest pain. His tone carried pity for me but also a hardened resolve as Ricardo’s trusted man. “No. No, you don’t get to do that. Don’t use our past to manipulate me. I’m sorry but I can’t help you, Alma.” The rejection aches me. The tears come harder, spilling down my cheeks. “Please, Luca. Please, I promise you, this isn’t me trying to manipulate you. This is really important.”

"Why hasn't the chef answered yet? Is there a problem in France?" *** Luke Lucasio has arrived in an Asian country. He has to meet a woman who dared to threaten him with the words child and Luke Lucasio's pack secrets. "What's her name?" asked Luke, now wearing a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up. He walked faster than Joe to the car after leaving the inn. "Liana Maladia, Alpha. We checked the point where she sent the message." "Where is it now?" "This point is at Liana Maladia's house, but according to my data, this woman works as a cook in one of Alpha's French restaurants."