Trembling Hand Equilibrium

By month four of my IVF treatments, my husband's childhood sweetheart posted a picture of herself cradling her baby bump. The caption? [Having a happy ending with my first love. A family of three.] And there he was—his hand in the shot, making a cutesy heart with hers. Oh, and the cherry on top? He was still wearing his wedding ring.

"I am a weapon of Valkyrie and only her command do I follow. What she hates, I destroy and what she cherishes, I protect."  .... Betrayed and sold by her friends and Pack into the slave establishment, Valkyrie was bought by none other than the ruthless Alpha prince, Alpha Ryker. As a pleasure slave, Valkyrie must fulfill her duty to the man who sees her as nothing more than something beneath his shoe. "You're wolf-less. An Omega. A witch!" He snarls, yet he craves her body like a venom craving its antidote. But things fell apart on the night of the blood moon when something primal unlocked in Valkyrie, and a dangerous secret unfolded. In a Pack where Omegas are nothing but breeders, she wants revenge, she wants blood, until she's taken captive by the notorious rogue king popularly known as 'Scarface.' His name is whispered in fear, with trembling lips and only within the thick walls of rooms.  Now she must choose between vengeance and saving herself. . This isn't just a story of an Omega or a unique being whose eyes held the power to the rise and ruin of great men; it's a tale of betrayal, revenge, love, and webbed secrets and lies.

“Hayden, don’t.” I said. My legs wouldn’t stop trembling as he started to come forward. I shook my head as my tears started to roll down my cheeks and the way he looked at me sent chills down my spine. “Please.” He put his palm on the wall as he moved closer to me and caged me in his strong arms, leaving me no space to escape. “Serena!” he spoke, bringing his lips close to my ear. Everything of his was intimidating including his hoarse voice. After all, he was the devil himself. "Hayden…” I couldn’t take proper breaths as his fingers started to stroke my cheek. He clenched his jaw as he brought his finger close to my lips and his eyes darkened. The next thing he said scared me to the core. “I don’t understand if I should kiss you or KILL YOU.” ______ Serena's life was never exciting, and she never wanted it to be exciting. However, things don't go same when she meets a handsome stranger, who is filled with lies and secrets and his world is filled with guns and knives.

" You're mine, cara mia…” Adrian's breath crept up my skin as he held me still with his arm around my waist. I hissed, pulling back and failed. “In your dreams, Adrian.” His low chuckle scared me, but I acted tough. I couldn't afford to lose face before him. His other hand ran up to my hair and pulled, making me help and he whispered in my ear. “Disobey me again and I'll make you cum while my men watch.” That was Adrian Moretti the devil, and Mafia Don to the top elite cartel and Serena was his surrogate. He had bought her as his surrogate and didn't love her, but why? Serena craves freedom but she can't bring herself to hate his touch. What happens when she finds out he has a hand in her father's death and planned all of this to make her his? Read on to find out!

When Isadora Giordano is forced into a contract marriage with the disfigured billionaire whose scarred face and missing hand have spawned endless town gossip—her world shatters. Darren Barlowe has everything money can buy—except love. He makes a deal with Isadora’s desperate father: He clears his debt in exchange for his daughter's hand in marriage. On their wedding night, Darren uncovers her deception. She has a lover and she finds him repulsive. Fueled by pride and heartbreak, he offers an escape clause: two months as his wife. If she still detests him when the contract expires, she walks away wealthy and free. Isadora's walls crumble as she discovers the wounded soul behind the fearsome reputation and unexpected feelings begin to surface. But when her former lover reappears and a deadly conspiracy unfolds, she must choose between the safety of her past and a scarred man who might be her future. Can they can survive the forces determined to tear them apart?

In the southern land of Clandestine Empire lies the city of lawlessness where the thirteen-year-old Dio is satisfied with his life. A warm home despite the chaotic city, a loving grandfather, and a humble living are all he needs in his life. However, everything changed when his grandfather died in a fire. He lost everything-- his family, his purpose, and his will to live. At a young age, he was lost with no hope for the future. “How about I help you find meaning in your life again?” It was an offer that he doesn’t even need to consider but because he wants to uphold his grandfather’s dying wish, Dio held the hand that was offered to him. It wasn’t salvation, just a temporary solution to push him to move forward. Little did he know that the hand that he took would lead him to know the reason why his grandfather had to die and how it was all connected to him. Will he be able to continue moving forward and face the future or give up on life and focus on revenge?

It's Family Day at my daughter, Hannah Neel's, preschool, but my wife, Samantha Miller, says she has to work and tells both Hannah and me not to go. Seeing the disappointment on Hannah's face breaks my heart, so I bring her to school anyway. As soon as we step through the gates, I see Samantha. She's holding her childhood friend—Oscar Barnett's—hand, with a little boy clutching her other. The three of them look like a perfect family, laughing and chatting, as if they belong together. When Samantha sees us, her smile fades, and she lets go of Oscar's hand. "Zach, it's not what you think. Oscar's raising his son alone. Today's his fifth birthday, and he just wanted to give him a little taste of a mother's love," she says quickly. I study her for a moment, then kneel and gently take Hannah's hand in mine. "Sweetheart, say hello to the lady."

I was locked in the cellar by my triplet alpha brothers after my stepsister, Elsa, framed me for killing her wolf by giving her an almond cake. The exit was secured with silver chains, and my wolf howled and begged them to release me. But my three alpha brothers refused. Alpha Kane, the eldest, growled, "You wicked she-wolf! You knew she was allergic to nuts, yet you deliberately gave her an almond cake to suffocate her! Don't you know it could fatally harm her wolf? You must stay here and reflect on what you've done!" Alpha Kelvin, the second, and Alpha Karl, the third, mocked, "What a despicable wolf you are! Still making excuses instead of facing the truth. Stay here and suffer what you deserve!" After that, they shifted into their wolves and took the trembling Elsa to the werewolf infirmary. Meanwhile, I struggled to breathe as the air in the cellar was filled with silver dust. My wolf howled in agony, but it was useless. Eventually, I died there. It wasn't until three days later—after they brought Elsa back from the infirmary—that I finally crossed their minds again. But by then, they didn't know—I was already dead in that silver-dust-filled cellar.

I’m sorry, it was an accident. I swear it was an accident!” Silver stuttered out in fear. Rodriguez stared at the trembling girl before him, heart torn in two. He’d usually revel in a sight like this, but not today. Instead he simply swiped away her tears. The feeling of her silky skin underneath his rough palms, sent a jolt of electricity through his veins. *** Silver was a waitress at the Blue Phoenix Bar. One night she found a flash drive left behind by some customers. She kept it, in hopes that the men would come back for it. Unaware that she has inadvertently stumbled into a sprawling operation between the top echelons of the Russian Mafia. Rodriguez is known to be the most dangerous man in the world, The Russian Mafia Don. When he discovers that a vital flash drive is missing, he goes into a destructive rage and blames the waitress who took it. He soughts after her life but meeting her alone is enough to change his mind. He decides instead to kidnap her and take away her freedom, making her a slave in his empire. But as it turns out, his slave holds a strong attraction to both his heart and body.

Selene Whitmore has known only pain. Half-blind, mute, and scarred from years of torment, she has spent her life as a captive, treated as nothing more than a possession by the ruthless rogue, Sebastian Kane. She stopped screaming long ago. She stopped fighting. She stopped hoping. Until the night Alpha Killian Blackwood slaughters her captors and finds her trembling in the dirt—his fated mate. Killian is a warrior, feared and respected, but nothing prepares him for the fragile girl who flinches at his touch. He swears to protect her, to give her the freedom she’s never known. But his pack whispers—how can a broken, silent human be the mate of a powerful Alpha? Selene tries to disappear into the shadows, but fate won’t let her. Neither will Killian. Because Sebastian isn’t done with her yet. When warnings turn into attacks and the past refuses to die, Selene must make a choice—remain the powerless girl she was or become something no one ever expected. Can Killian convince her to trust him before it’s too late? Or will Sebastian drag her back into the darkness she barely escaped?