Waited Waited

On the day that was supposed to be my wedding—the bride wasn’t me. The ceremony I’d waited for five years for turned into a joke when Valentina, my sister, walked down the marble aisle in a white wedding dress. Her arm was linked with Luca’s — the man who was supposed to be waiting for me at the altar. “I’m sorry, Bianca,” she said softly. “But you are no longer the bride today.” Then she touched her stomach, eyes gleaming with triumph. “I’m pregnant with Don Romano’s child.” Her words detonated inside my skull, and the whole world went silent. As if afraid I wouldn’t believe her, she lifted something glossy up towards the light. A black-and-white ultrasound image. It read clearly: Gestational age — 12 weeks. My eyes burned, tears stinging as I turned to Luca, desperately searching for anything—a denial, an explanation, regret. Instead, he only sighed, weary and resigned. “Bianca, I’m sorry.” he said helplessly. “Valentina doesn’t have much time left. This wedding… it was her last wish.” “I’ll make it up to you,” he added. “We can have another wedding later.” My father, Moretti, stood behind him, wearing the same stern expression he’d worn my entire life. I have never seen him smile at me, not even once. “Bianca,” he said sharply, “Your sister is dying. Let her have this.” My brother nodded without saying a single word, as if that was enough to be a solid answer. All my life, they had chosen her—her tears, her whims, her needs—over mine. Today was no different. Something inside me quietly cracked. Fine. If no one in this family cares about me, I’ll leave.

As a werewolf who grew up as a rogue, Katia did not follow any rules, nor even know what the law was. She doesn't even know that her mate exists. So when she unexpectedly met the other half of her soul, Alpha Reui, the alpha of the Exodus pack, Katia was baffled and shocked. She was given the option of attending a werewolf university or becoming fully mated with the alpha and bearing his pup. Katia, who was always impulsive and naive, thought that attending the school would get her away from the alpha's eyes and possessiveness. Or so she thought. For 6 years, Alpha Reui patiently waited for his mate since he had shifted. He was loyal and untouched for her. So to let her go easily is the last thing he'd do. And Katia knew she couldn't do anything to stop him from his craziness, so she just let him be. Unsure of her new life as a student of the strange school for werewolves, Katia was left with no choice but to ask the alpha's help, much to the latter's delight. Katia never thought things would turn pretty much contrary to what she expected it to be. She was a rogue, unwanted, and a monster. She has no family at all. Or that's what she thought. As she unravels the secrets and mysteries of her forgotten past, Katia soon realizes that she is nothing like what people describe her to be. As she flipped through the folded chapter of her life, Katia didn't expect to find love and light in the midst of her dark, chaotic life. And for the very first time, Katia started trusting someone to take care of her heart. But... Was it really worth it? Was it really worth the risk?

⚠️ Trigger Warning!!! This is an intense dark romance novel. Reader's discretion is advised. **** "You were born for me. You waited for me. The moment you came into this world, you cried for me, and you will keep crying for me until your last breath, Ixora." ---- Drexton Blackthorn had his bloody, thirst-filled eyes on a couple for the sins they committed. He swore to make them pay. But everything changed when she was born. She became his target. Just like a ferocious tiger, she was his prey. The moment she was born, she became his. The moment she breathed her first, she became his to destroy. His to taint. She lives all for him. He plans to make her shed blood; only then will his thirst for revenge be quenched — only then will his long wait come to an end. Ixora Castellan, his prey, became his little stalker—or so she thought. Little did she know that she was the stalked. He knew things about her...things neither her body nor mind could discover. The game was his, the prey was his, the hunt was his. But slowly, the hunter becomes hunted. This game of revenge was slowly turning into a game of obsession—an obsession he wasn't ready to succumb to. He wants every inch of her. Her body, her soul, her mind, her heart. She wasn't just a part of his want; she was his need. But she wants to be free...Is that even possible? How can she escape from his clutches, his web, his wings, when she's not even sure who she is? Play pet, little thief, Ixora Castellan...She doesn't know, but one thing is clear, she is whatever he wants her to be. She's lost her identity to him. Her ruin. Her tormentor. Her destruction.

 “Take me, please?” I shuddered as sweet relief flooded through me and ached for more.  “If you want me, you can have me, all of me, but you might not like what I ask in return.” He gritted teeth as if he was tested by his own self-control.  I could feel his struggle, judging by the tightening of his hard muscles pressed against my back.  He was rough tonight, as if he was here to punish me for being a very naughty girl. *** Outcast and wolfless Amelia Hayes has been bullied her whole life. Before turning eighteen, she survives the fire, and her handsome alpha, Ryden Braxton rejects and banishes her. Two years later, she returns beautiful and strong, but she also brings threats to the pack. While Ryden wants to claim her, she’s also mystified by her constant sensual dreams of a stranger.  With werewolves dying in mysterious deaths, she has to entrust her secret with her mate— the power of fire within her that can cause more destruction than salvation. When her past which she has no memory of, pulls forward to her present, she becomes so drawn to a dangerous Alpha King Lucius with a primal instinct to claim her— the very same man in her dreams. After too many betrayals in his pack, Ryden has to work with his ruthless rival to protect his mate against their formidable foe.  Lucius has waited too long to reunite with Amelia but has to put his anger aside to get his revenge against the being who killed his wife and his entire pack twenty years ago. With Amelia still bound to her past and present, will she choose between the two alphas who equally love her, or choose the one that sacrifices a lot for her to live?

I step into his office and he's waiting for me seated behind his desk. He eyes me intently. His amber eyes bore deep like he's trying to look into my soul. My face is neutral with so expressed emotions. “You can't work under me anymore Ms. Robinson.” He says and I wonder why am not surprised. So the rumors were true. “Are you firing me sir?” I ask and everytime I say the word Sir it feels so foreign in my tongue even now. He sighs and gets up from his seat staring at me with a professional look on his face. “I can't continue like you don't know what I want Ms. Robinson.” He replies and I frown not wanting to get into the same topic once more. I look away. “You know it's not possible. You are....married sir.” And I am forced to go down memory lane which brings nothing but pain and sadness. It had been four years since he left to study abroad. He left me with the hope of him returning and uniting with me. For our love. We loved each other since elementary school and I even did the deed at fifteen. I waited for him. I depended on his promise and didn't look anywhere else for love because my heart had already been claimed by him. But I was in for a shock and a pain wrenching stab to my chest when he returned but not alone. He returned not as mine but as someone else's. He was far away from me now. He returned as a married man with his wife. Now he wants me back but not as his equal but as his secret lover. As his mistress.

While I was nine months pregnant, the apple of my husband’s eye moved into our house. Whenever she saw me, she would make a sad face. My husband was sure that I was flaunting my pregnancy to make her angry. “Rachel is frail, and she can’t get pregnant, yet you’re walking around making her upset?! Do I seriously have to teach you a lesson?!” He ordered the bodyguards to lock me in the attic that had not been in use for a long time and told them not to give me food. I pleaded for mercy and told him that the ultrasound scan showed that the twin babies were too big. I told him that the doctor had claimed that I had to be hospitalized while I waited for my delivery. But he laughed as if he had heard the world’s greatest joke. When he spoke, his voice was as cold as ice. “You’re still three days away from your delivery date! Enough with the pitiful act! Repent while you’re in the attic! This is what you get for making Rachel upset!” The contractions hurt so much that I clenched my fists to the point that my nails broke, but no one unlocked the door to the attic. My piercing screams echoed in the attic for a long time until my whole body was soaked in blood, and one of my babies was stuck between my bloody legs. Three days later, my husband ate his breakfast that was not up to his taste and said, “Have Jane make breakfast for me, then have her apologize to Rachel with a gift. If she’s sincere enough, I’ll send her to the hospital to deliver the babies.” But no one dared go up to the attic because the blood that flowed down from it had already reached the second step of the stairs.

After five years of marriage, the doctor told me I was pregnant. It was something I had waited for so long. Yet, along with that good news came a nightmare. My medical tests showed that I had cancer, and it had already spread. The doctor gave me less than a month to live. I froze, gripping the report so tightly my knuckles turned white. Tears streamed down my face as I thought about how my unborn child would never get to feel a mother's embrace. My grief was interrupted by the ping of an incoming text message. It was from Mom. [Since you're so selfish and refuse to donate a kidney to save Nattie's life, you should divorce Davon. Let him marry Nattie instead. At least that way, you can fulfill her dying wish.] My tears fell harder. It was not that I refused to donate a kidney to Natalie Rivera, my sister, who was in the final stages of kidney disease. In truth, I only had one kidney left. Five years ago, I had already given one to Dad. Now, with my life counting down to its final days, I decided that I would donate my remaining kidney to Natalie. I would also let my husband, Davon Parker, go with her. Before I went into surgery, my parents praised me for finally being thoughtful, saying I had finally learned to care about my sister. They said that once the surgery was over, the whole family would go on vacation together. Davon even said he was proud that I was no longer selfish and promised he would make it up to me in the future. None of them knew I did not have a future. After the surgery, what would be pushed out of the operating room would be a cold, lifeless body.

WARNING: MATURE CONTENT "The bed," she mumbled softly, pointing at the bed. "Whoever said it only happens in bed?" I asked as I ripped the remaining of her naughty dress. "My best friend bought me that dress she'd kill me," she uttered in shock. "Tell her I ruined it," I uttered authoritatively, and she chuckled. I took off my sweatpants and she gasped. Soft, pleasurable noises left her throat, and it felt so beautiful watching her moan to my strokes "Baby... fuck... I... oh goodness." "Wait... no, don't... stop," she stuttered out, and I smiled proudly knowing I was doing the right thing. ************* Laura Ben graduated last year and was lucky to land an assistant job at a prestigious tech company. On her best friend's birthday, her friend treated them to a night at the renowned and exclusive male strip club. The performance was enticing and captivating, but Laura found herself drawn to a stripper wearing a half mask. Possessed by an inexplicable urge, she waited by the stage door, hoping for a glimpse of him. And when she finally saw his face, she was shocked, so much so that she stumbled, catching his attention. The captivating stripper was none other than her boss, Bryan Finch, the CEO of Premium Tech. Now that Laura knows his deepest secret, she uses this knowledge to blackmail him. Unknown to her, Bryan is being forced to strip because he killed his ex-fiancée and someone has been blackmailing him ever since. With the leverage she holds over him, Laura offers a proposal: promote her, or risk his secret being exposed. But will Bryan submit to her demands, or will he fight back? What is he hiding about his involvement in the death, and how long will he be forced to live this double life?

Five years ago, Olivia Derie made a deal with the devil himself. To save her mother from dying from stage-four brain cancer and settle her crushing debts, she signed away her freedom to ruthless Mafia don Vincenzo Moretti. The terms were simple: marry him, give him a child within nine months, and disappear from his life. But Olivia quickly realized Vincenzo’s cruelty knew no bounds. Beneath the cold façade was a man who viewed her as nothing more than a means to an end. When she discovered she was pregnant, the stakes became higher than her own survival. Fearing for her unborn child’s life—especially when Vincenzo made it clear he intended to dispose of her after the birth—Olivia did the unthinkable. She ran. Now she is back thinking she could start all over again with her daughter but the one person she never expected to see again walks back alive to her life: Vincenzo Moretti, But he doesn’t forgive, and he doesn’t forget. Now he’s found her. And he wants everything she took from him: He wants his heir. His wife. And the revenge he’s patiently waited years to exact. Olivia isn’t just his bride—she’s his obsession. Even though she ran, even though she stabbed him and vanished, he’s never let go. Now that he’s found her, he won’t let her slip away again. “When we meet again, Princess,” he whispers, “you’ll learn you were never free. You’re mine—now and always.” ---

I kept on running with Kay as we manoeuvred our way through the messy crowd. Kay pulled me through and we finally got out of the club. We couldn't take the main entrance because Yoshim's men were there. We were running through the dark alley, panting and gasping for air. Relief washed over me when I realised that I finally left that hell hole. We kept on running when I heard a gunshot. I immediately halted and felt a warm liquid trickling down my arm. I looked around and saw no wound, I glanced at Kay and my eyes widened. I immediately brought my hand to my mouth trying to suppress the scream that wanted to come out. Kay held his arm as he bled profusely, he groaned in pain and fell on his knees. “Oh my God, Kay are you alright? Ugh, what am I going to do.” I said while hyperventilating. I heard footsteps and looked up only to be met by those same devilish eyes. He wore a grin on his face. And to his left was Gail who clung to him like a barnacle. How did he even know I escaped? “Haha, I overheard your little conversation with the guard, so I told Yoshim.” She smiled while talking. “Gail, what the is wrong with you?” I said with anger and tears in my eyes. She shrugged her shoulders and her mouth curved into a smile. I pressed my hand on Kay's wound to stop the bleeding, he groaned in pain and I couldn't stop my tears. “I should've gotten rid of you a long time ago.” Yoshim said while pointing a gun to my head. I closed my eyes and waited for him to pull the trigger.