The Rock Stare

Preston High was supposed to be my chance at a better life. Instead, I’m the scholarship girl, the outsider everyone whispers about. Every hallway stare reminds me I don’t belong. I’ve spent my life surviving, not feeling. Love? I don’t even know what that means. Then Asher sees me, the quiet boy with kind eyes who makes me feel safe for the first time. But just as I start to breathe again, Adrian crashes in, the arrogant bad boy who rules the halls with his smirk and dares me to feel things I don’t understand. Two hearts. Two risks. One choice. Preston High is testing more than my strength… it’s testing my heart. And when the truth finally forces me to choose, one question remains: will I discover what it means to be loved, or will I lose myself trying?

At an investor banquet, my fiancé Tanner Clarkson’s secretary, Willow Thorne, recklessly throws a glass of wine at an investor and hurls insults without thinking. In retaliation, the investor demands that Willow make it up to him with her body, or he'll pull his funding. To ensure the company's successful IPO, Tanner hands me a glass of spiked wine. Then, he pushes me to the investor, expecting me to extinguish his flames of rage. His eyes are filled with feigned hesitation as he says, "Willow isn't like you. She just graduated—she's pure and innocent. Stop fighting it, Kathy. I'll make it up to you once the company goes public." When I regain consciousness, I stare at the man across from me, my voice hoarse. "About that deal you mentioned... I'll sign it."

WARNING: MATURE CONTENT! I never should have applied for a job to the Cromwell's Corporation–because the only available position is to become his fake wife... James Ethan Cromwell a half British-Filipino billionaire. Tall, dark and handsome, not to mention his oozing sex appeal. He had an appearance that was tightly restrained, dominating air, and a smoldering stare that instantly made me shiver. His absence of humor is the only aspect that sucks worse than his attitude. But to be honest. Sadly, he's also the one who could save my mother's failing health. So, when he offered me the chance to work with him; to pretend as his fake wife, I accepted it. Besides, it's only a couple of days during his family's visit. It's not like I'm in danger of falling in love with the most notorious bachelor in town. But at the end, I eat my own words–ended up falling so hard for him.

In the remote town of Black Hollow, death wears the mask of wolves—but the truth is far darker. Dr. Evelyn Hart, a brilliant but skeptical forensic pathologist, is sent from the city to investigate a string of brutal killings. The townsfolk whisper about curses, ancient legends, and a beast that stalks beneath the full moon. Evelyn trusts science, not superstition. But when claw marks gouge trees higher than any wolf could reach, when the dead are crushed with impossible force, and when glowing eyes stare back at her in the forest, her certainty begins to fracture. Drawn into a chilling web of blood, folklore, and fate, Evelyn discovers she bears a mark older than the town itself—a mark that ties her to a man both dangerous and magnetic, a man who claims she was destined to be his mate. As her body betrays her and the wolf within claws free, she must choose: cling to the human life she built… or embrace the monstrous destiny that waits under the moon.

The night I find out I'm pregnant, my family's villa suddenly goes up in flames. I endure the suffocating smoke and run the risk of being disfigured as I run to my son's bedroom. However, it's empty. Just then, I hear his excited exclamations outside the window. "Monica, you look so cool when putting out fires! I bet you'll get first place in this upcoming Firefighter Challenge!" I'm about to head downstairs to lecture him when a wall collapses and crushes me. As I drift in and out of consciousness, I hear my stern, stoic husband praise Monica Sloan for her courage. If I'm guessing correctly, my husband and son have started this fire to please her. I stare at the door, which is so close and yet so far. I send out one final text before dying of asphyxiation.

Barrett, alone and hurt. Everything she has worked hard always ended up in vain. The day she has ever awaited would be the biggest tragedy of her life. As she traveled alone in the mountains, the fangs that almost bit her bare neck didn’t bother her. And finally, as she fell on the high cliff where only the hard waves hit the spike stones, her body was wrapped in cold scales that embodied death. The moment she met him, everything rings danger in her head ,"You smelled great and desirable, won’t you be my mate? “ this handsome gentleman grins and confidently grabs her wrist in order to capture and make no escape. As she stared deep into his eyes “Don’t stare too much, I might hold on to you for the rest of your life.” he inches closer and the deep golden emerald eyes that mesmerize her more as if enslaving her very own soul.

I stare at her while she's bent down. "Are you deaf?" I asked her again and she didn't answer me. "Hey!" I can't stop myself from shouting at her because I think she doesn't know how to speak. Napahawak ako sa aking ulo dahil tanging pag-iyak lamang ang tanging sagot niya sa lahat ng taong ko. I rested and looked at her. "Anong pangalan mo?" I ask her in Tagalog words because maybe she's not understand me. "J-Judy p-po S-Senyorito," she answered me while she's shaking. Now I understand that she doesn't understand me if I speak English. I can't stop from smelling and thinking what punishment I should do to her. Because she's my slave at isa siya sa pagmamay-ari kong alipin.

"He's gone, Elizabeth," her captain Charles Johnston tells her. Elizabeth blinks back her tears. Her face full of shock and disbelief. Her frozen stare interrupted by his words. "He left his badge." "There's no way," she thought. He wouldn't leave her like this. No warning, no phone call, no letter. She was more to him than that or at least so she thought. That conversation has plagued her for 3 years. For 3 long years, Detective Elizabeth Ryan tried to shut out him, to finally be able to move on. But just as she does, he abruptly returns seeking more than what either of them anticipated. Will Elizabeth be able to forgive him, or will the past be too much to swallow? What happens when life throws her too many twists to handle?

“You’re mine, Lily. I don’t care about your age or your past. You belong to me now.” William looked deep into my eyes with that smoldering stare, and I melted into his arms as his lips pressed down on my neck. It no longer mattered that he was old enough to be my father, or that he was my friend’s dad. All that mattered was that he was about to consume me. And I would let him. *** In the world of art and love, Lily and William's passionate journey unfolds. As Lily's paintings captivate the globe, their love is tested by a vengeful ex-wife and a dangerous art thief. Together, they navigate fame, deception, and the power of their shared dreams. A gripping tale of resilience and the bond between two hearts, will their love survive the shadows threatening to consume them? Billionaire Daddy’s Little Artist is created by Scarlett Rossi, an eGlobal Creative Publishing author.

*completed*Victoria Gibberson, an 18 years old telepathic girl who can read the mind of others whenever she wants. It was a curse more than a giftHer parents died in a car accident, one year back, and thus, the first thing she did after completing high school was changing her place of residence, moving to a small town called Pearly Canines with her aunt. But there was something strange with this place. There was a strange lure in this place.The thing that was most strange to her was, she felt an undeniable attraction to this guy called Alexander Hunter. He would stare at her deeply as if knowing her deepest secrets, showcasing her his utmost care.It didn't help her when one night, he came and leaned towards her before whispering seductively in her ears,"Hello, mate. Let's fall in love with each other." *Find me on IG- @scribbler_angelina *