Thick As Thieves

“Your marriage was just a game.” Those were the words that shattered Aurora Snow’s world. Five years of marriage. Seven years of sacrifice. Seven years of love… that turned out to be a game. For seven years, Aurora Snow believed her husband was a poor, crippled man who needed her. She worked endless menial jobs, gave up her dream scholarship, and carried the burden of their family just to support him and their son. Until the night she delivered a package to a luxury party… and discovered the horrifying truth. Her “crippled” husband stood tall among billionaires. And the lavish party? It was for the woman he truly loved. To make things worse, Aurora learns her entire marriage was nothing more than a cruel test—an amusement between young wealthy elites to see how far a "principled woman" could suffer for love. Heartbroken and humiliated, she demands a divorce. But fate has other plans. After nearly drowning in despair, Aurora wakes up in the mansion of a cold and powerful billionaire—Damon Stone, a man feared in the business world and plagued by a dangerous secret, a condition that no medicine can cure. He offers her a deal. A contract marriage. Be his wife. Help him control the uncontrollable urges that threaten his sanity. And in return, he will give her protection, power, and a home for her broken family. Aurora agrees. But the deeper she enters Damon's world, the more shocking truths begin to surface. The silent little boy in his mansion… The mysterious night she cannot remember… And the baby she thought she lost forever. Because the greatest betrayal of her life was only the beginning. And the man she married to escape her past might be the one fate chose for her all along.

As a martial arts genius, can he be despised, even his own wife can't protect? You can rest assured, I am a martial arts person, creating magic with one hand, bringing you to the peak of life. As long as you're by my side, no matter what you do, the sky will fall down, I'll let you up.

Hindi pinili ni Elara Virelle na mapasakanya ang lalaking kinatatakutan ng buong siyudad. Sa isang kontratang nilagdaan para iligtas ang kapatid, isinuko niya ang kalayaan niya kay Kael Mortis, isang bilyonaryong may kapangyarihang bumili ng katahimikan, tao, at kapalaran. Sa mundo niya, ang pagmamay ari ay proteksiyon at ang pagsunod ay kaligtasan. Hindi siya sinaktan. Hindi siya ikinadena. Mas masahol pa. Inangkin siya. Habang unti unting kinokontrol ni Kael ang bawat galaw ni Elara, natuklasan niya ang isang lalaking mas mapanganib kapag nagmamahal. Isang lalaking sanay mag angkin, hindi magmahal. At isang pusong unti unting natututong pumili. Pero sa mundong binubuo ng lihim at dugo, ang pagmamahal ay kahinaan. At ang babaeng minarkahan bilang kanya ay maaaring maging dahilan ng kanyang pagkasira. Hanggang saan ka lalaban kapag ang lalaking umaangkin sa iyo ay siya ring lalaking hindi mo kayang iwan? Siya ang lalaking hindi niya dapat minahal. Ngunit siya rin ang lalaking hindi na niya kayang takasan.

A group of unexpected guests suddenly barged into my relative’s funeral. The woman, Xena Carter, leading them claimed to be my husband’s girlfriend and declared that she was here to punish me, the supposed mistress. Out of respect for the funeral, I did not want to make a scene, so I calmly suggested she wait until it was over. But out of nowhere, she lashed out and ordered her group to shred all of my clothes. My relatives around us did nothing and watched coldly as it happened. I calmly dusted myself off, stood up, and led her over to the urn. "This urn for my mother was bought by your boyfriend. It cost nearly a million!" As expected, the mistress flew into a rage, smashing the urn to pieces. "You shameless family of lowlifes! Don’t think you’ll get a single cent from my boyfriend, even in death!" What she did not know was that when I said "mother," I was referring to my husband’s mother, my mother-in-law. She was causing a scene at my mother-in-law’s funeral, and she had just smashed her urn to pieces.

On my way to work, I came across a livestream from an influencer who posted about her relationship, tagged at my company’s location. She was talking about her office romance with the CEO of a major corporation. But wasn’t the CEO of her company my husband? I clicked on her profile and saw that it was full of wedding-prep posts. The man never showed his face, but his build looked almost exactly like my husband’s. So I left a comment in the livestream: “I heard the CEO of Gibson Corporation has been married for a long time. So what does that make you...?” The streamer muted me, then instantly burst into tears. “The internet isn’t lawless. If you keep spreading rumors and calling me a mistress, I’m calling the police.” Her fans immediately swarmed me. “You’re probably the other woman yourself. That’s why your mind went there.” “I checked her profile. She’s some woman in her thirties. She’s obviously jealous because the streamer is young, pretty, and has a rich, powerful boyfriend who dotes on her.” “The account’s brand new. She’s obviously just a troll.” I tried to say more, only to realize I had already been kicked out of the livestream, and my account had been reported until I couldn’t even log back in. I stared at the proof of our marriage in the drawer for a long moment. Then I raised my hand and smacked my sleeping husband awake. “Exactly how many wives are you planning to have?”

Aria thought she was human ordinary, unwanted, and heartbreakingly rejected by her fated mate, the ruthless Alpha King, Kael. Cast aside and humiliated in front of the entire pack, Aria flees, believing she's nothing more than a broken soul with no place in the werewolf world. But fate has other plans. When a hidden power awakens within her, secrets buried by time rise to the surface she is no mere human. She is the last descendant of a royal bloodline long thought extinct. A Queen in waiting. Now, with power surging through her veins and vengeance burning in her heart, Aria must return not as the girl who was cast away, but as the Queen she was born to become. But the Alpha King who rejected her isn’t the same man anymore. Darker. Colder. And dangerously drawn to the woman he once let go. Will Aria rule beside him or destroy the very kingdom that once shattered her?

Nina Facelo was a typical nerd who love novels and books so much more than her very own life. A good neighborhood girl who likes to help others but prefers to be home at all day. On her way to buy the physical book of the infamous romance-fantasy novel, Illuminating Darkness. She was stabbed by a thief after helping a poor old woman. Clutching her stomach, she witness how blood flowed like a fountain until her vision started to darken. She thought she was going to die. But suddenly, she woke up in a different body. The body of Lady Marina! The wickedest dame of the Avalor Kingdom! The suspected villainess of the infamous story, Illuminating Darkness! She knows she is going to die again like every villain in a story. Though shocked and confused, she is determine to stay alive and find answers. But in order to not be discovered she must pretend to be Lady Marina. Will she be able to find answers and escape the fate of a wicked dame?

Warning: This is an erotic/ mature piece and it's rated for solely mature audiences. Reading with discretion is advised. "Do you feel that?" The leather crop landed on my thigh, I held onto his shoulders, unable to breathe or stop my hips from grinding out their release. "Every inch of you," his mouth latched onto my throat. "Mine." ______ Arlari Marquez thought returning to Mexico after college would mean fresh beginnings. But instead of thriving, she is barely surviving, until her anxiety comes crashing down one night. Her younger brother, Danny, makes the mistake of his life, stealing from Severiano Cortez, the most feared mafia kingpin in Mexico. Everyone knows Cortez shows no mercy. Especially when it came to his prized possessions. Arlari knows her brother’s life is already forfeit… but she intervenes. When she finds Cortez, she discovers he doesn’t want ransom. He doesn’t want money. What he wants…is a perfect sub. Ninety days. That is the deal. She will submit to him, body, mind, and soul, for three months. In return, Danny’s life will be spared. But what happens when the man who demands submission becomes addicted to the submissive? Severiano Cortez finds himself unable to wield the same brutality he has shown countless others. Instead, he unravels under the weight of a desire he never planned for, one that threatens to turn the predator into a captive. And she? The more she stays, the more she sees the shadows lurking in his world. Because Mexico is a dark place. And his dominion? Even darker.

I yelped, squirming, but I quickly stopped myself because I knew that, judging by the position he had me in, one wrong move and I'd fall. And sure as hell, London wasn't going to catch me. The glint in his eyes said so. He had me trapped, subjected to taking whatever he was ready to dish without writhing. His head peeked up at me from in-between my legs, and he squinted before hoarsely saying, "Oh, and one more thing... not a single sound from you, and don't touch me. Don't say I didn't warn you." What? He wasn't expecting me to just shut my eyes and keep it in. Hell, soft were already leaving my lips when he was me like a deprived lunatic a few minutes ago, and now I was... "What?" I asked in blurry understanding. "Meaning, you're not allowed to make any sound, and you're not allowed to touch me, and that includes tugging on my hair; you'd give me a headache." He huskily said this before licking my inner thighs again, inching closer to my wetness. "Or else?" I dared to ask. He gave me a devilish smile before chuckling,"You're free to find out, no?" *************** London was a devoted Gamma in his former life but was reborn as the Alpha and Lycan King and harbors a deep hatred for women and the concept of a mate bond. Although he couldn't call his past life,he gets a second chance in his new life with a woman who had lost everything precious to her in one night, but he rejected her, and now his rejection might cause him to lose everything he had ever wanted, especially since his mate was hiding an important secret, or maybe he wouldn't since he doesn't give a damn.

Crystal Vale learned one thing growing up: visibility was dangerous. So she disappeared—behind thick glasses, baggy clothes, and the careful art of being forgettable. No one knows she hides a secret. Beneath the plainness is a woman so stunning she could stop traffic. But she buried that woman years ago. Standing out only brought trouble. Then she saved a billionaire's grandmother, and her invisible life ended. Ethan Vale is cold, ruthless, and devastatingly handsome. He married Crystal for one reason only: his grandmother's inheritance. To him, she's a transaction. A placeholder. The invisible wife who cooks his meals, waits up at night, and loves him quietly from the shadows. He never looks at her. He never sees her. He has no idea his plain, forgettable wife is hiding the face of a goddess. For one year, she endured. For one year, she hoped. For one year, she loved him in silence, believing that maybe—just maybe—he would eventually see her. He never did. The breaking point came the night his ex walked out of his bedroom and Crystal's world shattered. That night, she finally understood the truth she'd been running from: she could love him forever, and he would never, ever see her. Turns out Crystal isn't nobody. She's Crystal Laurent. Heiress to an empire that makes the Vales look like peasants. Daughter of the most powerful family in the city. The lost girl who was stolen twenty-three years ago—and never stopped being searched for. Now Crystal has a name she never knew. A family more powerful than Ethan could ever imagine. And a decision that will shake two empires to their core. Ethan Vale threw away his invisible wife without a second glance. But Crystal Laurent? She's going to make him remember her forever. Even if it destroys them both.