Tugs Humanized

"Enid knows that something is wrong with Asher. He doesn't...want her? That can't be possible. The mating bond doesn't allow that. So, what is wrong? With her? No. Something else. Something darker...more sinister, tugs at the back of his mind, telling him, that she can't be his. And she would get to the bottom of it. Because this alpha is hers."

She lives a life that isn’t truly hers, with a past she’s never questioned, and a man who claims to be her husband. But when she’s hired to care for a stranger’s child, something stirs—familiar eyes, a voice that tugs at her soul, and a home that feels too much like memory. Unseen beneath calm waters lie truths long buried. He’s been waiting for her return. In a world where love can be forgotten, will the heart remember what the mind cannot?

The day of my wedding photoshoot, my family's adoptive daughter tugs my veil off and asks loudly, "Aren't you our family's adoptive daughter? What are you doing here? Today's the day Ian and I are supposed to have our wedding photoshoot. Aren't you going to disgrace Ford Group by being here?" In the past, I would've run away in tears. Unfortunately for her, I'd been reborn. I slapped Aspen Miller and retorted, "What right do you have to speak to me? Who do you think you are, having a wedding photoshoot with Adrian? Are you worthy of being associated with Ford Group?"

On New Year's Eve, I prepare a feast. The clock strikes twelve, but my husband, Vincent Porter, still isn't home. My daughter, Lorelei Porter, tugs at my sleeve and holds up my phone. "Look Mommy, Daddy is at this lady's house!" Vincent has posted an update on Twitter. He is with Christine Snow, his childhood sweetheart. They are smiling at the camera, with a boy who looks about ten standing between them. In front of them sits a swan-shaped cake. The caption reads, "The most special day for the most special you." My heart sinks into my stomach. A marriage that came later in life can never compete with a pair of childhood sweethearts. I accept defeat.

On our tenth wedding anniversary, my husband, Jaxon Wilde, walks through the door with his hundredth new mistress. From my neck, he snaps the necklace that was once our token of love and fastens it around hers. Amid the guests' jeers and mocking laughter, the lady tugs timidly at my gown and murmurs, "Mr. Wilde wants me to wear this dress tonight, Scarlett." It was a dress altered from my wedding gown ten years ago, and I wore it tonight like a fool, hoping he might remember. But now, he wants to strip his wife bare in public and give it to his mistress on the wedding anniversary. Under the weight of everyone's sneers, I look up at him and give him a genuine smile for the first time in a decade. "Let's get divorced, Jaxon."

Denzel murmured into her ears, "I want to kiss and devour every inch of you till the entire pack hears you screaming my name." "Denzel..." Cinnia panted as pleasure shot through her body. ... Cinnia Ramilek, a remarkable werewolf-witch hybrid, has spent five years on the run until one night of wild passion with a magnetic stranger changes her life forever. Little does she know, this mysterious man is none other than Denzel Montgomery, the ruthless Lycan Prince and Alpha of the Nightfall Pack, and the intensity of their connection is undeniable. However, Cinnia's new reality is shattered when she uncovers a painful truth about Denzel. Overwhelmed by her conflicting emotions, Cinnia decides to distance herself from him, yet a detail that she can't ignore, tugs at her heart and leads her down a perilous path where burning desires and dangers intertwine.

Danni’s world shatters the day her father dies. Her mother has become a hollow shell of who she once was, and Danni is left to pick up the pieces alone. Every day feels like a battle just to breathe, to move, to find something resembling normal. Then her ex shows up — stirring old wounds and turning her already broken life into chaos. As if that weren’t enough, the people she trusted most begin acting... strange. Secrets twist around her like shadows, and nothing feels real anymore. And that’s when he appears — the mysterious stranger who keeps showing up just in time to save her. There’s something familiar about him, something that tugs at her soul. But the more she dreams of the haunting white wolf that stalks her nights, the more she wonders if her mind is unraveling… or if something far darker is calling to her.

My husband doesn't love me or our daughter. It's been six years since she was born, but he's never held her. The doctors say he has an emotional disorder, and that he doesn't know how to express the way he feels. But when his true love returns, he smiles at us for the first time. He even brings our daughter a gift. I think it's because he's finally seen sense… until she and I see the photo he uses as his phone's wallpaper. In it, his eyes are crinkled as he smiles. He has one arm around a little girl whose front tooth is missing, and he holds his true love's hand with the other. My daughter tugs on my hand, and her eyes redden. "Mommy, do you think we should leave? Should we give Daddy three final chances? Let's leave him if he still doesn't want us after that."

Broken. That's one word that can be used to describe Adrienne Knight. For her, life has no meaning. Made to believe she was no more than a piece of worthless property, Adrienne developed a rather grim outlook on life, and rightly so. Happiness seemed to elude her at every turn. From a mate that turned bad, to being tortured within an inch of her life by the same person she thought would protect her. She trusts no one and sees everything as a threat. When Alpha Lucas finds his mate, she isn't what he'd expected. She was a shattered puzzle he had to put together, piece by tiny piece. Some pieces are lost and he has to make new ones, making his job that much harder. It tugs at his heart when she flinches when he touches her, or when she braces for a hit at every movement of his. He wants to kill every person responsible for the mess that was his mate. But slowly, he manages to pull her from her downward spiral and into the light. Their love is one borne from darkness and pain and not even the joined forces of heaven and hell can tear them apart.

The world might think billionaire Xavier Gaines has it all, but he’s got a big problem. His successful software company is about to sign a government contract that’ll land him smack in the glare of the public limelight, and his lifelong battle with social anxiety has marked him as a cold, uncaring bastard in the eyes of the press. To dispel the unflattering image, he needs help, and there’s only one person he trusts with the job—Peyton Smoke. Gorgeous, kind, and funny, she agrees to be his media relations director and soon imbeds herself so deeply in his life, his world will crumble if anything upsets the balance. He cannot screw up their solid unit. No matter how achingly he desires her. Yet, how is he supposed to resist when she tugs emotions from him he didn’t think he was capable of experiencing? Especially since it appears he’s not the only one fighting their undeniable attraction. Ever-after might be possible...if he can convince her to believe in love again.Counterbalance is created by Kelly Moran, an EGlobal Creative Publishing signed author.