The Witching Hour Anne Rice

Elara Robertson is caught in a dangerous game after her father gives her away–as payment for his debt. She finds herself tangled up with Marco De Luca, a cold-hearted mafia boss. Just when everything seems dark, she finds a bit of light in Léo, the Chief chef who seems to understand her. But everything changes on one crazy night, forcing Elara into a marriage with Marco that feels loveless and suffocating. She’s left feeling trapped and tormented. Now, Elara faces a tough choice: will she find the strength to break free and reclaim her happiness, or will she become just another victim of Marco De Luca?

​The Price of Peace is the final showdown and book three for the No Regrets crew, where the masks come off and the bills finally come due. Shane O’Brien is done playing house. He’s been living his life like a "glorified roommate" with his wife, Isla, ever since she broke their vows with her best friend's husband, but now the cold war is turning hot. While Shane finds a temporary sanctuary with Maya Cruz, Isla is weaponizing their children trying to save a marriage that might already be lost, but will she realize this too late, or burn the whole house down. Speaking of Maya, she has a few secrets of her own, one that involves Mayor Rogers and a scandal that could level the city. ​In the courtroom, Crandon Morgan is fighting to keep his name clean after a very public mental meltdown. He’s looking for a comeback, but he finds a distraction in Tempest Summers, a new law junior associate with a haunted past and a hunger for a kind of justice the law books don’t cover. ​Meanwhile, Kole Michaels is trapped in a different kind of nightmare. A past mistake named Akeisha is using a legal loophole to pin a child named Urmagisty on him. With his relationship with a different Keisha on the line and his daughter Mabel watching, Kole has to prove he’s being set up before the lie becomes his life. ​In this game, peace isn't free, you have to pay for it in blood, truth, or with everything you own.

During a long holiday, my husband booked flights for a family vacation. On the way to the airport, I suddenly saw numbers appearing on everyone’s head. The numbers on my husband’s head indicated sixty years, but my parents and I had only six hours indicated on our heads. While I was puzzled over the meaning of those numbers, I noticed that the driver next to us only had six seconds indicated over his head through the car window. Five… Four… Three… Two… One. When the number turned zero, a massive truck immediately rammed into the car next to us. I saw flickers of fire, flesh and blood exploding before my eyes. People were screaming for help, but I could not hear anything. I trembled as cold sweat drenched my entire body. It was because my flight would be taking off in six hours.

He’s the cold hearted captain who can’t afford to be gay. He’s the Italian heir who can’t afford to be found out. When a viral video of a "physical altercation" threatens a $500 million merger, their families demand damage control—a forced partnership to save the wedding and the brand. Six months of lies. One secret affair that could destroy both legacies.

The day I win a brand-new BMW, I suddenly receive a call from myself, ten years in the future. "Kieran will ask to borrow your car in a bit. And whatever you do, do not lend it to him. He intends to use it to pay off his gambling debt." Even with such an impossibility happening to me, I do not doubt a thing. When Kieran asks for my keys, I shut him down at once. That very night, he drives his old beater car to visit our parents. Along the way, he loses control of the car and collides with another vehicle. Just like that, he slips into a coma. The guilt hit me so hard that I eventually pass out. Mom and Dad stay by my side day and night until I can stand on my own two feet again. But the future version of me sounds cold when she calls again. "They only want to push you onto an operating table. They want your heart to save him!" Growing suspicious, I check their bags and find a donor report. Rage burns through me. I immediately block them on all platforms and throw them out of my home. When news that Kieran dies from blood loss arrives, I learn that they only ever needed my blood—not my heart. I try to find them to tell them the truth and apologize for my mistake. But the mysterious phone rings again. "They hate you because Kieran died. If you go to them now, they will drag you into a suicide pact." I freeze at the revelation, then tell my future myself that I will wait until they calm down. Later, I learn that a thief breaks into their home and kills them. I try to rush over and see them one last time, but a truck hits me and kills me on the spot. I die without ever understanding why the version of me from ten years in the future wanted me dead. When I open my eyes again, I am back on the day I won the prize.

While inspecting the hotel owned by my family, I start to feel hungry after ordering some food at the hotel restaurant. Before the food is served, I munch on a small piece of bread roll for the time being. Suddenly, the lobby manager comes up to me and hands me a piece of paper. "Hello, sir. We do not allow outside food here. It has been 8 minutes and 30 seconds since you entered our restaurant. The total cost of your meal is 1,500 dollars. You'll be fined 1.28 million dollars." I am briefly stunned as I look at the piece of paper detailing the amount I should pay. Then, I take a picture of the piece of paper and send it to the group chat that has all the members of the board of directors. I tag my elder sister in the next message I send. "I've received a fine at the hotel owned by my family. Is this how you've increased the hotel's revenue?"

As I'm unable to get a ticket for my return trip after the Thanksgiving holiday, I specifically booked a first-class seat home. Just as I find my seat, I see an unruly child jumping around on it. I patiently smile and say, "Kid, this is my seat. Where is your seat?" He makes a face at me. "It's mine now, old hag!" I grab him by the collar of his shirt, wanting to lift him out of the seat. At that moment, a woman's piercing voice sounds behind me. "What are you doing? Let go of my son!" I release my grip and say as gently as possible, "Please control your child. This is my seat." Suddenly, she raises her voice. "He's just a child! Can't you, as an adult, give way to him? You're young and dressed decently. How can you have no compassion at all?" I'm so angered by this distorted reasoning that I laugh. "If you're so compassionate, why didn't you spend the money to buy your child a first-class seat?"

Sebastian Miller was my Alpha mate. Because I asked him to remove his Beta, Charlotte Lewis, from her position, we had a huge fight. After that, he shut me out completely. Three months later, he assumed I had realized my mistake and suggested that we go on a vacation to Highfeather Forest. The moment Charlotte found out, she exploded. She screamed at Sebastian, made a scene, and even threatened to leave the pack. To calm her down, Sebastian canceled our trip. He used a business deal as an excuse and gave the vacation spot to her instead. Afterward, he offered me a shallow explanation. “I’m the Alpha of this pack. The pack’s interests have to come first. As the Luna, you should understand that.” I looked at the post Charlotte shared on her feed. The two of them stood by the lake, close and intimate, like true mates enjoying a private getaway. I knew everything they had done, but I said nothing. I only nodded. Sebastian mistook my silence for understanding. He seemed pleased with me, even promised that one day he would make the trip up to me. What he did not know was that I had already signed the withdrawal agreement to leave the pack. I had also gone to a witch and obtained the potion to sever a mate bond. It was time for this to end.

Jerome has spent his entire life being told what an Omega should be, submissive, weak, and destined to serve Alphas. But Jerome refuses to accept that fate. Determined to prove that Omegas can be just as capable and intelligent as anyone else, he makes a dangerous decision: he falsifies his identity and applies to an Alphas only academy. To the shock of even himself, Jerome is accepted. Keeping his secret becomes his greatest challenge. He lies to his mother, telling her he has been admitted into an ordinary college, and secretly moves into the academy where the most powerful young Alphas in the country are trained. Every day is a gamble. One mistake, one slip of his scent suppressants, and his deception could be exposed. At first, Jerome manages to survive through sheer determination. He studies harder than everyone else, learns to mimic Alpha behavior, and pushes his body beyond its limits to keep up with the brutal expectations of the academy. Slowly, he begins to believe he might actually succeed. But things don’t always work as we plan right? Everything begins to unravel when Ajay, an S-Class Alpha known for his dominance and sharp instincts, notices something strange about Jerome. Ajay sees through Jerome’s carefully constructed facade and uncovers the truth: Jerome is not an Alpha at all he is an Omega hiding in the heart of an Alpha institute. Instead of exposing him, Ajay makes a cruel bargain. If Jerome wants to remain in the academy and keep his dream alive, he must obey Ajay’s commands and belong to him alone. Trapped between humiliation and the destruction of everything he has fought for, Jerome has no choice but to accept. Will his secret stay safe? OR Is this the beginning of Jerome’s downfall?

Natasha is always bullied because of her old-fashioned look. Clyde del Espania, the man of her dreams is the opposite. He is so good-looking and one of the heirs of the Dynasty Agency. She believes that Clyde will also notice her one day. She knows that she isn't exactly beautiful. Sometimes, they'd even call her weird, but she doesn't give them the chance to get inside her head that much. She is certain that the drop-dead gorgeous man, Clyde del Espania, will be hers with the help of the love potions written in her grandmother's book. What could happen if the enchantment that she has been anticipating always failed because of Kyle del Espania, the guy that she dislikes so much who also happens to be Clyde's twin brother? He knows how hard she loves his twin brother so he decides to help her in order for Clyde to notice her and fall for her. The guy also has a different goal for doing so as the girl that he loves is now engaged with his twin brother. But how could they continue with the plan if she is the one who seems to be enchanted by her love's twin brother? What if Kyle turns out to be the guy that she truly loves? Will she be successful in enchanting him to fall for her instead when he still loves his ex, Claire?