Unscramble Waited

Four days after my death, my four-year-old daughter finally sensed that something was terribly wrong. The fridge door slammed into her forehead when she tried to get a snack. Normally, I would've been there in a heartbeat—arms open, kisses ready, whispering, "You're okay, sweetheart, Mommy's here." But this time, I just lay on the bed, cold and still.​ She didn't understand. She thought the sweet treat would make me respond. So she held the final piece of chocolate up to my mouth. "Here, Mommy. Have some chocolate..." But I didn't even blink. She climbed into my arms, clutching my clothes tightly. "Mommy... Mommy, wake up..." She waited for me to stroke her hair, to tell her that everything was going to be fine. There was only silence.​ Completely lost and scared, she found my phone. "Daddy, why is Mommy still sleeping?" she asked, her voice filled with desperation.​ In response, Oliver sent a photo of himself having Christmas Eve dinner with his childhood sweetheart. His voice was icy cold when he replied, "She's just sleeping, not dead. It's Christmas Eve, and I'm busy. Tell her to stop playing games and come apologize when she's done sulking." Then he hung up.​ But when the truth finally hit Oliver—when the coroner's report came, when the police knocked on his door right in the middle of his laughter, when he realized I'd been lying dead for four days while he toasted—he broke.

"Did you kill him?" The detective asked again."I've already answered you like a thousand times... Yes, he was a monster. Yes, he beat me up a lot but I didn't do it. I didn't kill Jude!" Amanda replied."I'm sorry. I know what it's like to be a victim of abuse and all that, but you need to understand that murder is a serious case too. You'll have to forgive us for asking you continually it's just that you were the closest to him we've got here.""I wasn't. There was someone else he was seeing that knew a lot about him than I ever did," Amanda replied.*******The night was growing colder and the rains seemed to have agitated in full force. Amanda sat on one of the soft leather chairs that squeaked with her every move in the living room with tears in her eyes as she watched the rains drop on the floor forming small pools and waited for Jude to come back. She was worried sick about his whereabouts even though all his presence caused her were pain and more tears. The protruding bump on her stomach, made it quite difficult to move around at ease so she was stuck with calling his busied line while she watched the clock tick its way into the midnight mark.*****A heart rending story told differently. Stronger than Pain captures a dysfunctional Nigerian home where a callous man, beats his wife on a daily basis. Time flies and now he is dead. All the characters have a reason to kill him, but she's their number one suspect. The Question still remains, who pulled the trigger?

Our third wedding anniversary was coming up, but my wife, a programmer at a major tech company, suddenly claimed she had to work overtime to meet deadlines. She said she couldn't go on the trip we'd planned. That very afternoon, however, her intern posted a video on social media. My wife—the same woman who normally wouldn't even open a door for fear of chipping her manicure—was holding a screwdriver, repairing an old flip phone. The caption read: [Having a programmer wife is the best. Even when Grandma's phone breaks, we don't need to pay for repairs.] I chuckled, liked the post, and commented: [Right up her alley.] Within minutes, the company group chat exploded. There were over ninety-nine unread messages speculating on when I'd finally snap. Not long after, my wife called. Her voice was ice-cold. "What was that comment supposed to mean? How is Shawn supposed to face anyone at work now? "His grandma's phone broke, so I fixed it. What's the problem? Your parents have always spoiled you. You can't possibly understand real hardship. "Delete the comment. I'll make it up to you over the New Year; we can take that trip then." The New Year? I'd already waited through two other major public holidays. I'd even taken special leave for this trip, and she still bailed. Now she was dangling empty promises again? I hung up on her. My leave ended around the same time as our divorce cooling-off period.

They were never meant to fall in love. But fate doesn’t follow contracts. Kellynne Mea Morleigh never believed in settling. She’s waited her whole life for a love story worth telling. One that begins with butterflies and ends in forever. No boyfriend since birth, by choice. Because she knew what she wanted. But when her family’s company teeters on the edge of collapse, she’s forced into a marriage that feels more like a business deal than a dream. Her groom? Elias Callum Fenwick. Young, brilliant, and dangerously untouchable. Elias is a billionaire by reputation, a strategist by nature. Raised to chase power, not affection. To him, marriage is just another transaction. One that unlocks the inheritance left by his late grandmother. And Kelly? She’s the key. They enter the marriage as strangers. No vows of love. No promises of forever. Just a contract built on convenience, wealth, and legacy. But behind the facade of a cold, calculated union, sparks begin to fly. Arguments turn into conversations. Clashes reveal vulnerabilities. And slowly, Kelly starts falling—not for the idea of love she once held, but for Elias himself: his honesty, his quiet sacrifices, and the way he listens even when they fight. She never meant to fall. He never planned to care. But love doesn’t ask for permission. Just when she begins to believe in their story, a devastating truth shatters her world... Elias had a past with his secretary, a woman who still lingers in the shadows of their present. Seven years. That’s how long the contract binds them. But when hearts are broken and trust is betrayed… Will Kelly fight for the love she never expected—or walk away before it destroys her?

The Browns and the Bradleys are multibillionaires. Although Bradleys were richer than the Browns, yet they both were well known and respected in the society. Ryan Bradley is the only son of the Bradleys whose marriage is fixed with the only child of the Brown's, Olivia Brown, when Olivia turns nineteen. But Olivia is not happy about the marriage because not only she thought that Ryan was very Arrogant, Adamant and rude to her but also that Olivia loved her imaginary prince Santa! She would have thought that it was a child’s imagination if her love for Santa, whom she imagined to be a handsome young prince from a faraway land, would have been one sided. But he may be or may not be ‘The Santa’ but was definitely the one who loved her too and sent her letters and gifts. Not only that, Olivia and her lover Santa has made a promise to each other that once Olivia turns eighteen, they would unite their mind and body in love making, the Christmas that would come next to her Birthday and they will live together happily ever after. Olivia has waited years for her eighteenth birthday and dreamt of losing her virginity to her only love her Santa! So when she comes to know about the unwanted arranged marriage, she runs away from home, but gets caught and then forced to marry Ryan. Soon the Christmas after her eighteenth birthday comes and she as per her previous promise goes to the designated place to unite with her lover, her Santa, ignoring her feelings for Ryan. But to her surprise she ultimately couldn’t accept to lose her virginity to Santa......... But will she be able to have her happily ever after with her dominant husband??

Choices and chances… one decision or one of many that make us live a life of happiness and content…. one that makes us muddled and ordinary… or one that leaves us with regret and unwillingness…. Mira was just an ordinary girl who was loved and pampered. The two most important people in her life were Alina and Jason; Alina, her best friend and Jason, her sweetheart. Mira's peaceful life took a turn for the worse when her stepmother forced her to marry a simpleton whom she had never met. She hated her stepmother. She did everything she could to make life unbearable for the two people responsible for her misery- her stepmother and her husband.She succeeded in getting rid of both; one passed away and the other gave her a divorce. She finally got the life she wanted, a life where she married her sweetheart. But why was nothing as she imagined? Why was her husband who loved and waited for her to get a divorce never around? Why was her father about to be executed for treachery? With her last breath, she got her answers- Everything she knew was a lie; Jason whom she loved with all her heart hated her because of a lie; Alina, whom she trusted and cared for more than anyone else, was the cause of her misery. Her stepmother and her ex-husband whom she hated, loved her to death…. Literally! It was too late by the time she got the answers for her questions, or was it? Mira was one of those fortunate people, who got a second chance. What choice will she make? Will history repeat? Will she make amends to the ones she wronged? or…. Will she correct the misunderstanding with her sweetheart for her happily ever after?

“All my life I’ve waited for a love like this, Misha. And there you are… I look at you and I can’t believe you’re mine….” Maxim placed his hand over her belly. His expression was so intense. “And this baby that you carry, ‘amor mio’. This is my baby… OUR baby. I couldn’t feel it more if you had conceived in my bed.” His voice had a husky rasp that made Michela’s pulse pound. “My sweet prince… I didn’t plan on falling in love with you. In fact, everything about you entering my life when you did, wasn’t how I wanted it to be. But now… I can hardly breathe when you’re not around. There’s no one else for me, Maxim. Only you. Forever you.” An honest mistake brought together two lonely people, who knew nothing about each other’s existence, who weren’t meant to be together. Michela ‘Misha’ Roberts, an accomplished lawyer, an eternal single lady, in love with her romantic independence, wanted a baby, but not a man in her life. An IVF procedure granted her wish... Sort of… Misha was now carrying a child, but a mix-up happened in the clinic, and the baby she was expecting was the Royal heir of Massimiliano ‘Maxim’ Federico Arturo di Montbéliard, Prince of Carpathia! Maxim gave up on the hope of fatherhood long ago, but now the fascinating, lonely Prince of Carpathia, will seize this surprise second chance. However, tradition is high on the prince’s agenda, and he'll never stand for an illegitimate child... He must marry the mother of his heir. The fiery Michela is about to discover that royal marriage is a command, not a choice!

Seven years I spent with Jason Shaw, but I never got a ring. Rather, all I received was an invitation to another person's wedding. That day, as a wedding planner, I was at the rehearsal, making last-minute adjustments. Looking up, I saw the man whom I waited every day to reply to my messages, walking down the aisle, arm in arm with another bride. "Her boyfriend had something urgent come up, so I'm filling in for him," he said, standing straight, his tone light, a small smile on his lips. But his eyes couldn't hide the hurt, like a child who lost his favorite toy. As if that wasn't enough, he told me to hand over my wedding plan. He patted me on the shoulder, saying sincerely, "There's no rush for us. We've got plenty of time. I promise I'll give you an even better wedding. Just help me out this time. It's not like I'm not going to marry you." He didn't know that I had revised the wedding plan hundreds of times, even counted and recounted the bouquets seven times. To me, it wasn't mere work—it was a dream I held for five long years. I didn't argue anymore, just quietly stepped aside. Later, I lay alone in a hospital bed, listening to the rain tapping against the window from outside. I counted each drop as the hours slipped through my fingers. Perhaps those who worked so hard to create happiness for others had lost the right to their own happiness.

It’s been two years since Kenzo was forcibly claimed by an elvish prince. Since then, a clear divide has been created among the elf factions - those who believe that only mates should be allowed to claim a dragon and those who believe that anyone should be allowed to claim them. Dragons are no longer safe, being hunted and ambushed by elvish troupes who want them. These elves do not care about mate bonds, nor do they care that the hybrid dragons are still children in their human form. They only care about the power that being a dragon rider brings them. These troupes are no longer permitted to attend the academy. Kenna is a hybrid, part fire dragon, part Lycan. She got her mother’s fire dragon gene as her primary gene, so she has a dragon form. Kenna has known for years that the elf king, Yhendorn, is her mate. He has waited years for her to mature in her human form to claim her dragon properly. Now, Kenna is nearly eighteen, and she knows that Yhendorn will be coming for her. Yhendorn is leading the battle against the elf factions who try to force dragons into unbonded claims. He disagrees with how some elves claim dragons, taking them away from their fated mates. While he battles to bring an end to the improper dragon claims, he knows that the time for him to claim his dragon is quickly approaching. Will Yhendorn finally be able to claim his fire dragon? Will Kenna submit and join Yhendorn on his quest to change the elvish laws? Can the two of them fight together to bring the change that is so desperately needed between the dragons and the elves? Find out in this seventh installment of the Elemental Dragon series.

"Skye, please," Jaxon's voice was desperate, but I couldn't bear to look at him after what I'd learned. "Listen to me first, baby." "What is there to explain?" My words were bitter. "Why keep it hidden until now?" He didn't respond. I let out a mixture of sobs and laughter. "See?" "Skye, please. My situation is difficult. Just give me a chance to explain. I have too much on my plate." I shook my head. "No, I don't need to hear your lies." "Is it that hard for you, Skye? I always listen to you." His words hit me. "Are you blaming me? Sorry, Jaxon. This setup is tiring. I waited for you, but you were not there when I needed you most. I tried to reach out, but you were too busy with things you didn't tell me. So, I was left alone like I was no one." I could see a mix of emotions in his eyes—emotions I couldn't fathom, emotions I saw for the first time since we started our relationship. "I'm sorry, Jaxon. I want to let go. I tried so hard, but I'm choosing myself this time. You stole the only friend I had!" As I opened the door, my heart broke. "Baby, please. Don't give up on me. I love you." "I can't feel it, Jax. I'm too drained. I'm sorry." I stepped outside the room. "And I hope not to see you again."