Victorian Last Names

During the award ceremony at our annual dinner, my boss, Hank Reid, suddenly announced an impromptu addition to the agenda. “Annual department competition! The department that ranked last has to come up and receive a little award of motivation!” The screen lit up. They scrolled through all the departments’ results. The sales department got first place, the operations department got second place, and the marketing department got third place. However, there was nothing from the administration department. That was because the administration department did not have KPIs. Hank smiled at us. “Let’s welcome our colleagues from the administration department to come up and receive their awards!” Two of my colleagues carried a whole basket of brooms onto the stage. Everyone was laughing. “You should sweep away your bad luck from last year. Let’s hope you won’t get last place again next year!” Hank personally passed the brooms to all of us. Cameras flashed as people took photos of us with their phones. The sales department was laughing the loudest. “Finally, the administration department has some recognition!”

I woke up staring at divorce papers—from the guy I'd crushed on all through college. My name. His. Right there on the page. He said I cheated. Last thing I remembered? Getting ready to finally tell him how I felt at our graduation party. Now suddenly, we've got a four-year-old. And him? He looked at me like I was some rando off the street. No trace of the sweet, soft guy I used to know. Just ice. What did I miss? What the hell happened in the last five years?

“I won’t be erased. Not this time.” Anya Petrova never asked to inherit a fortune—let alone a war. For years, the down-to-earth preschool teacher built a quiet life for her daughter, Zoe, far from the icy world of billionaire empires and old European bloodlines. But on her 25th birthday, everything changes. Her late father—powerful shipping magnate Nikolai Volkov—names her in his will. The catch? She must live for one year in the penthouse of her cold, infuriating half-brother, Dimitri Volkov, ruthless CEO of the Volkov empire… a man she secretly knows far too well. Because five years ago, at a masked gala, Dimitri was the stranger who left her breathless—and unknowingly made him the father of her child. Now, forced into a dangerous game of legacy and lies, Anya must navigate the treacherous world of old-money elites who will stop at nothing to erase Zoe’s claim to the Volkov name. But Dimitri is no longer the cold enemy she feared—and together, they uncover secrets darker than either imagined: an ancient blood feud tied to Anya’s mother, and a rival family prepared to strike in the shadows. The stakes? Everything. Zoe’s future. Anya’s heart. A fortune worth more than gold—one built on love, truth, and a family worth fighting for.

Michelle Finley, a stripper who endured working in hell to pay off her father's debt, thought that her life would turn into normal after the last night of working in an afterhours. However, her supposed last night from hell turned into an unforgettable disaster when she was forced to escort a God-like billionaire for money and ended up having a one-night stand with him. What's worse is she got sold to him in return for money. Now, she needs to find a way to get away from him. But, how could she possibly escape from the ruthless and wild billionaire?

The Billionaire's Marriage #2 [Please read "He's My Ruthless BIllionaire" first.] Hailey & Robert are back. Their marriage has been happy and loving for the last year and they were finally getting the child they've wanted... until everything goes wrong once again. Yes, Robert left the Mafia when Hailey married him. But did the Mafia leave him? What would happen when his twin brother returns? What happens when the truth of who did all those things to Hailey before comes out? Could they survive the trial one last time?

Grandpa died, and we immediately went for each other's throats over the inheritance. Then a blizzard hit, trapping us all in the family estate. An app appeared on our phones: [THE LAST ZOMBIE: FINAL RECKONING]. We had to pick a hiding spot. The last one standing—the last human standing—would inherit everything. I chose the dark, silent recording studio in the basement. Away from them all. When it was time to pick special powers, my family chose powerful weapons or pocket dimensions full of supplies. I chose Bio-Stasis. It slowed my cells to a crawl, and my body along with them. My stepbrother's fiancée, Chloe, called me an idiot. "Hiding from your family and picking a useless power? You're on a suicide mission." They threw a zombie-slaying party upstairs, already celebrating an inheritance they hadn't even won. Until, one by one, they turned. And started tearing each other apart. What they didn't know... was that I'd rigged the game from the start. The only way to win was to stay completely silent.

EXCERPT: Students were running for their lives, vampires were hunting down their preys, friends betrayed friends by leaving them behind and saving their own lives first and soon, they all spread across the streets, causing chaos and killing anyone that they came across. There was carnage everywhere and from where Amber and the others stood, horror filled their eyes and Amber knew just what was happening. It was like the story that Hazel had told her back at the bookshop. The Chosen One didn't make a sacrifice. She wanted revenge and these were the army she was after. The last war was not really the last after all. Now, the fate of mortality lies in her hand. She was the Chosen One, but she does not remember any of that, even though she has a feeling that she knew these people. *** This is a story of Amber Willow, a seventeen year old girl living in a small City called Cinder. Though, her life doesn't always go according to the way it should, she believed she was just as normal as the rest of the kid out there but what she didn't realize was that, she was the One sent to bring an end to the existence of the wild creatures and because of that, other covens wanted her dead. The day she remembers who she really is, is the day the war would continue from where she last ended it and this time, she would not make the same mistake she made the last time. Her revenge would begin and it would start from the ones who took away the people dear to her. One by one, she would haunt them down and put an end to their immortality. ---Kyra Blackburn

“Coming back after just leaving a few hours ago with no injury on you, I guess you must have chicken out” his mocking voice said making me stop in my tracks, turning around. “Seems you have something against me, elder” I said, looking at him. “I have nothing against you, girl. I have something against the creature living rent free inside of you” he said. Guess someone is blunt today. “What happened to the creature inside of me?” I asked, looking at him calmly. “They are vile, unfit and too weak to stand against a demon like us” he spat at me. “And what is your solution, elder?” I asked. “Leave the king and go back to where you came from, we don’t want you here. Our king deserves better” he said, glaring at me hatefully. Hated for being a wolf Being abused physically and mentally by a demon who has an unhealthy obsession over her mate Trying to prove herself to her mate’s kingdom while trying to protect her loved one’s, Lillian definitely have enough on her plate, will she prove herself she is not the names she is being called or will a bigger threat, not only claim her life but the one’s around her and the throne?

A Hispanic boy with social anxiety must go through the last semester of high school, where his entire perspective will change as the semester goes on.

Maya Rivers never thought desperation would lead her back into the arms of the man who once shattered her. To save her sister’s life, she agrees to become a surrogate through a private, anonymous agency—no names, no attachments, no complications. But when the intended father is revealed, her world comes crashing down. The baby’s father is none other than Adrian Knight—her cold, ruthless ex-husband and the billionaire who accused her of betrayal, tore apart their marriage, and left her heart in ruins. Adrian wants an heir more than anything. What he didn’t expect was Maya—the only woman he ever loved and lost—carrying his child. Bound by legal contracts and unresolved emotions, he demands she move into his estate, forcing them into a tense, unwanted reunion under one roof. As Maya’s belly grows, so does the tangled web of secrets between them. Old wounds resurface, passion rekindles, and truths long buried begin to unravel: the betrayal that destroyed them was a lie, their divorce was never finalized, and this pregnancy is far from ordinary. Now, with their future—and their twins—hanging in the balance, Maya and Adrian must face the question neither dared to ask: Is love enough to heal what was broken, or will pride and pain tear them apart forever?