Where Loyalties Lie

What can a mother do for the sake of her daughter? " Take it off, your suit!", Asher summoned Max when he accidentally splash water on her uniform. "What?---I---ahhh--", she stuttered. Max has no escape. How can she do it if she's not a guy? Read to find out more.

Richard, a 49 year old widower with two daughters. Richard had spent his life devoting his time to his girls and to his work. Ava, a 23 year old girl from a countryside with little or no knowledge on how to survive in Bellamy- city of bright lights and dreams and fortunes. These two crossing paths could only be coincidental as they lead different lives with a huge age gap between. But, maybe they were waiting for each other all their lives to fill the gaps. It would take a lot to be together. But how much can one take? An angry girlfriend. A selfish daughter. They'll find out that love is never enough!

I've been caught in a relationship with a divorced man for eight years. We've broken up and reconciled too many times to count. In the end, I tallied ninety-four breakups and five divorces between us. One more would make it an even hundred, but I'm too exhausted to continue this cycle. The first breakup happened when I was giving him my virginity. Halfway through, his ex-wife called asking him to pick up some bread, and he simply left. The fifth breakup occurred when he abandoned me, newly pregnant, on the highway to comfort his ex-wife who was having complications with her own pregnancy. I ended up in a car accident and miscarried. He arrived at the hospital with his clothes disheveled. Despite all the pain he caused me, I could never bring myself to truly leave him. Our most recent divorce happened for an equally absurd reason. His ex-wife and their child were participating in a family reality TV show that required them to appear as a complete family unit. To protect his ex-wife's public image, he divorced me yet again. When filming wrapped, he called to discuss remarrying. This time I refused, because I'm going to marry someone else.

It was the fifth year of my engagement to Jake Zimmer. Just as we were preparing to get married, his first love came back. Suddenly, every promise he had made to me meant nothing. Because of her, he began to resent everything I did. That was when I realized I was nothing compared to the woman he truly loved. I was tired, so I let go. I gave them my blessing and walked away from Jake’s life for good. But then, he changed his mind. He came back in tears, begging me not to leave.

There are monsters in this world. And they used to be us. Now it's time to euthanize to survive in a hospice where Emily, a woman haunted by her past, only wants to do her job and be the best mother possible. Post-infection Chicago. Christmas. Inside The Hospice, Emily and her fellow nurses do their rounds. Here, men and women live out their final days in comfort, segregated from society, and are then humanely terminated before fate turns them into marrow-craving monsters known as ‘Smilers.’ Outside these imposing walls, rabid protesters swarm with signs, caught up in the heat of their hatred. Emily, a woman haunted by her past, only wants to do her job and be the best mother possible. But in a world where mortality means nothing, where guns are drawn in fear and nobody seems safe anymore – at what cost will this pursuit come? And through it all, the soon to be dead remain silent, ever smiling. Such is their curse. It won't be long before that snow-speckled ground will be salted by blood. ©️ Crystal Lake Publishing

Valerie My own image haunts me Two billionaires deceived me and broke my heart just because of my face. Now the woman who stole their hearts smiles blissfully as I'm forced to plan her wedding. Drew threatens to ruin me if I break my silence. Aiden's volatile nature scares me. But I am worth more than a borrowed life. My once hopeful heart now burns with an icy flame. I will reduce their empire to embers. Their lies will have ruinous consequences. I am Valerie. When Valerie's heart is shattered by two men and she is forced to plan a wedding for one of them she swears revenge to ruin them for life. But will Valerie escape the trap these two billionaires that have caught her in? Or will exposing their lies ruin her too?

On the day of my marking ceremony, I don't receive flowers or a mate's embrace. Instead, I receive news that my boyfriend, Liam Hagerty, was caught in a snowstorm and his body was never found. I lose the man I love, and the pup in my belly loses its father. The grief nearly destroys me, but everyone keeps saying, "Aurora, stay strong—at least for the pup." On the day of the funeral, Liam's twin brother, Jasper Hagerty, returns from the border patrol with his mate. Every time I see Jasper's face—the exact same face as Liam's—my heart aches all over again. Then one night, I accidentally overhear a conversation between my mother-in-law—the old Luna—and Jasper. "Liam, you have to go through with this. Your brother died saving you, and your sister-in-law's been through so much. Let her give birth and have something to rely on. Then, you can host your marking ceremony with Aurora." Silence follows. Then "Jasper" speaks. "But what about Aurora? She's carrying my pup..." His mother sighs. "Aurora is strong and considerate. She'll understand." Jasper says in resignation, "Alright, Mom. I'll do as you say." That's when I realize Liam never died. The man I thought was my brother-in-law, Jasper, is just Liam putting on an act. Heartbroken beyond words, I call my older brother, Axel Maddox. "Axel, I want to come home. Liam is already dead, so there's no reason for me to stay here anymore."

I agreed to transfer schools with my childhood friend who was constantly being bullied, but she backed out on the last day. Her friend teased, "I can't believe you pretended to be bullied all this time just to get rid of Harry. He's your childhood friend. Are you really willing to let him go to another school all by himself?" Lena said indifferently, "It's just another school in this city. How far could it be? I've had enough of him always being around me. Getting some distance between us is just what I wanted." I stood outside the door for a long time that day before deciding to turn and leave. However, on the transfer application, instead of writing Haleswood High School, I wrote the high school that my parents wanted me to go to, which was abroad. Everyone seemed to have forgotten that Lena and I had been worlds apart from the very start.

In order to save Alpha Varkon Stormclaw, who was poisoned with wolfsbane, I've used my life force to trade for the antidote with the witch. After the transaction, I become unusually weak. My wolf sinks into a deep slumber as well. Because of that, the elders have cast me out of the Moon Goddess Church. Nyla Ironcrest, the newly-appointed Luna, locks me up in a silver cage that's filled with wolfsbane. "How could a lowly and filthy defective she-wolf like you be a good match for the prestigious Alpha?" Varkon, who has once loved me with all his heart, gets tricked by Nyla into thinking that she's his savior. Not only does he sever our mate bond from me, but he also turns a deaf ear on my pleas for help. Defeated and devastated, I breathe my last breath in the silver cage. However, Varkon kneels before my corpse later on. He's struck with so much pain in the chest that he goes crazy. At the same time, he keeps spitting out blood. But I can never hear his confession of atonement ever again.

The day I find out I only have three days left to live, my mate comes home with a mate termination contract. He wants to break up with me and form a new bond with another she-wolf who's pretending to be dying—just to fulfill her so-called final wish. "Sweetheart, I don't have a choice," Caleb Lowe says, holding me in his arms. "Ruby's been poisoned with silver. She's got about a week left. Her dying wish is to marry me. But don't worry. You're the only one I love," he adds, looking at me with those sincere eyes. "Once the bonding ceremony is over and she's gone, we'll get back together—just like before." I look down and give a small laugh, then sign the termination contract. Forget it. I'm dying anyway. Who he ends up with doesn't matter anymore. I might as well let him have what he wants.