Twelve Minutes

My ex-wife, Erica Scarver, who's the head nurse of the hospital, devotes her efforts into saving an ICU patient. Meanwhile, I, the hospital dean, just start a livestream calmly. A few minutes later, the patient is out of the critical state. But Erica collapses instantly because she contracts the virus instead. "Hurry up and save your ex-wife! She's now infected because there's a hole in her protective suit! She's in a critical condition right now!" The medical staff looks at me worriedly. After all, I'm the most renowned medical expert in the entire hospital. But I remain unmoved. "Why should I save her? Don't you know that I've just wrapped up a surgery, so I can't enter the quarantine zone at all?"

At the celebration, the pampered heiress in Crownridge, Aveline Sage, confessed her love for me in front of the entire school. I turned her down flat. I was one of the Sage family's candidates—handpicked top students from every state—to improve their next generation's genes. In a few days, when the exam results came out, whoever earned the highest national score would become her fiance. For three years straight, I had been ranked first in the country. In my previous life, I achieved that top score. I got engaged to Aveline and became the envy of everyone—the son-in-law of Crownridge's most powerful family. But on the day of our engagement, her first love, Caspian Lorne, jumped off the top of the Sage Group building. His body was shattered beyond recognition. Aveline hired the best mortician to restore his face and placed him in a crystal coffin, where she slept beside him every night. During our honeymoon, she brought Caspian's body along, then kissed and clung to him right in front of me. When I confronted her, she looked at me with disgust. "The Sage family sponsored your education for twelve years. You knew Caspian and I were in love. Couldn't you let him win just once? You've been in first place for twelve years. What would it have cost you to lose? You ruined his future, ruined our love. You deserve to die." She drugged me, turned me into a fool with the mind of a three-year-old. I couldn't recognize my parents. I lost control of my own body. And I died in agony. … Then, I opened my eyes again, back on the morning of the exam. Last time, I beat Caspian by a single point. This time, I left an answer blank. Let him be the top scorer. Let him marry her. I hoped they grew old together, with plenty of children to match their love.

Deck the halls with daddy issues and scream "yes, Santa" until the neighbors complain. She sold herself to save her mother. He bought her to settle a score. Neither expected twelve days of captivity to feel like coming home. Ten years ago, Evangeline Rose fled Willow Creek and the cruel boy who made her life hell. Now she’s back with a new name, a new body, and one desperate choice: enter the town’s secret Christmas auction where wealthy men bid on willing women. When the hammer falls at five hundred thousand dollars, Eva expects a stranger. Instead, she gets Grayson Holt—her former tormentor, now a devastatingly dangerous man in a half-open Santa jacket who just bought twelve uninterrupted nights with the virgin he once swore no one would ever want. She should be terrified. He's the reason she hid in bathroom stalls and cried herself to sleep. But the first time he kisses her, his hands shake. The first time she fights back, he groans her name like a prayer. And somewhere between the firelight and the snow and the silk ribbons around her wrists, they both realize the ugly truth: He didn't buy her to break her. He bought her because he's been broken without her. The boy who spray-painted "fat ugly bitch" on her locker is the same man who falls to his knees in the snow on the last morning and begs her not to leave. The girl who swore she'd never forgive him is the same woman who has to choose: walk away free, or stay with the monster who finally admitted he's been in love with her since the day he made her cry. Eva spent a decade learning to hate Grayson Holt. Turns out she's been loving him the whole damn time.

"So, what do you think about my brilliant idea?" he continued this time, with a glimmering smile on his face. "My name is Ghino Frost, by the way. Just like you, I was betrayed and cheated by the ones I loved the most."     Ghino's proposal completely tempts me as it makes me realize the reason why I dream of someone impossible. Dylan is my best friend - the love of my life.     And it appears that my one-of-a-kind dream - holding his hands - kissing his lips - and making love with him forever stays in a dream. Dylan and I will never happen.     But I badly need anything that can distract me and survive for the night. Just for the night. "Fine," I finally spoke up after a few minutes of considering everything. "Let's do it. Let's have sex."

Je regardai le téléphone cherchant à comprendre ce qui n’a pas marché. On s’entendait tellement Yama et moi. C'était ma meilleure amie et maintenant c’est limite si on peut se parler quelques minutes sans que ça vire à la dispute. Je l’ai encouragée quand elle sortait avec son mari alors elle pourrait en faire de même pour moi. J’ai quand même le droit de passer du temps avec Salif autant qu’elle en passe avec son mari. Pourquoi les gens ne peuvent pas comprendre que j'aime cet homme et que j'ai besoin de lui ? »

I was the top engineer at the National Deep-Sea Institute—and the only person in the world with real deep-sea rescue experience. When my younger brother's submarine went down and he called for help from 35,000 feet below, I hung up on him. Then, calm and unhurried, I went straight to the police station and turned myself in for leaking classified research data. A few minutes later, my father called, furious. "Your brother's life is hanging by a thread—where the hell are you?! I demand you to get to the site and save him right now, or you won't see a single penny of the family fortune!" I pulled the blanket over myself and said into the phone, perfectly composed, "Busy. Don't bother me—I'm trying to sleep."

I was the top repair specialist at a luxury goods store. Ninety percent of the shop's revenue came from my work alone. In three years, I turned a run-down little shop on the brink of closing into a nationwide chain. All because I clocked in two minutes late one morning, the newly appointed supervisor, Tom Menzie, locked the front doors and announced he was taking everyone on a company trip. I asked why no one bothered to tell me. Tom sneered, "Well, those who can do more are trusted with more. We're going on vacation. You stay and work overtime. If you can't handle it, then get the hell out!" I was so mad that I laughed. I called the owner directly. "I heard you're firing me."

His brunette hair was groomed and trimmed into taper fade and that highlighted his facial details. In other words, he was the reason the word 'perfection' was created. She had just spent 5 minutes and his beauty already intimidated her. She feared what would happen in a year. “When is the interview beginning?" she asked after accessing him from top to bottom. “There would be no interview, miss Wilson. Get ready, we are getting married 2 weeks from now” he blurted out and her mouth dropped in bewilderment. Amelia Wilson, a clumsy waitress gets entangled with a gay Billionaire who has the desperate need to proof his sexuality as straight. What happens when his past lovers starts hunting her one after the other. find out in this story

Twelve years ago, Detective Myra Black lost her brother to a murder the police never solved. Now, she wears the badge — not for justice, but for vengeance. When a high-profile case lands her face-to-face with Raffaele Moretti, a cold, calculating Mafia boss with secrets buried deeper than graves, everything she's built starts to unravel. He’s dangerous, untouchable, and frustratingly calm... and worst of all, he might be the key to her brother’s death. But the more Myra digs, the more the truth turns to smoke. And the more Raffaele protects her — with his dark past and darker loyalty — the more she questions whether she’s hunting a killer… or falling for one. In a city where truth is currency and lies are survival, can a woman sworn to the law trust the heart of a man who lives in the shadows?

Twelve million pesos. Iyon ang halaga ng utang ng pamilya ni Calessia Zerdan, at ang presyong nagdala sa kanya sa poder ng CEO na si Marc Landon Belmonte. Sa ilalim ng isang personal service contract, kailangan niyang sundin ang bawat utos ng lalaking kilala sa pagiging walang awa. Ngunit habang lumilipas ang mga araw, nagiging mas mapanganib ang relasyon nila, lalo nang magsimulang mabura ang linya ng kontrata at pag-ibig. Hanggang may bumalik mula sa nakaraan, dala ang katotohanang kayang sumira sa lahat. Mapipilitan si Calessia na pumili… kalayaan, o ang lalaking una pa lang, hindi niya dapat minahal.