Why Are You Laughing

All it takes for me to be locked inside a sauna for eight hours is an accidental splash of hot water on Wayne Miller's secretary's hand. Right before I lose consciousness, he finally orders someone to let me out. He hisses, "Consider this a warning. If I ever see you lay a hand on Naomi again, I won't let you off so easily." I lie on a stretcher and answer with quiet composure, "Understood."

The things we want are so very rarely the things we need. Clifton Heights, a modest Adirondack town, offers many unique attractions. Arcane Delights sells both paperbacks and hard-to-find limited editions. The Skylark Diner serves the best home-cooked meals around, with friendly service and a smile. Every August, Mr. Jingo’s County Fair visits, to the delight of children and adults. In essence, Clifton Heights is the quintessential small American town. Everyone knows everyone else, and everyone is treated like family. It is quiet, simple, and peaceful. But shadows linger here. Flitting in dark corners, from the corner of the eye. If you walk down Main Street after dark, the slight scrape of shoes on asphalt whispers you're not alone, but when you look over your shoulder, no one is there. The moon shines high and bright in the night sky, but instead of throwing light, it only seems to make the shadows lengthen. Children disappear. Teens run away. Hunters get lost in the woods with frightening regularity. Husbands go mad, and wives vanish in the dead of night. And still, when the sun rises in the morning, you are greeted by townspeople with warm waves and friendly smiles, and the shivers pass as everything seems fresh and new... Until night falls once more. Handy's Pawn and Thrift sits several blocks down from Arcane Delights. Like any thrift store, its wares range from the mundane to the bizarre. By daylight, it seems just another slice of small town Americana. But in its window hangs a sign which reads: We Have Things You Need. And when a lonely traveling salesman comes looking for something he desperately wants, after normal visiting hours, after night has fallen, he will face a harsh truth among the shelves of Handy’s Pawn and Thrift: the things we want are rarely the things we need. ©️ Crystal Lake Publishing

I love you so much till my eyes and heart don't want to open up to my circumstances. The state where you are the only one and I am one of you. I don’t care even if your common sense tells me to leave you. I still endure, with my character that has less trust in you. Whether my suspicion in excessive or you who really don’t put me first, you choose to leave, keep your heart away from me, throw away your feelings that you used to convey to me, then you act like we were never there before.

Ciara Lewis suffered an indescribable pain in her heart when her parents broke her soul into a million pieces. They promised to go with her every step of the way but ended up imposing the worst pain she could ever imagine. Her father abandoned them to be with his mistress, the reason her mother suffered depression and took her own life. At the thought that she couldn’t move forward, she found a light with the help of Zachary Denver Ford. An intelligent guy and blessed with so many opportunities. Ciara and Denver fell in love and were undoubtedly happy in their relationship. Ciara thought the heavens had sent Denver to cover up the pain she endured in her heart, but she was wrong.  Denver got bumped between her and a massive opportunity that could offer them the best future. When he chased his dreams, Ciara felt rejected and her life went upside down. Denver promised to win her back, but EVERYTHING HAS CHANGED to the extent that he wished he had never left.

For months Alex has watched Olivia as she calls out to every protective instinct he possesses. When Olivia's life hits rock bottom as a result of her mother's Alzheimer's, Alex sees his opportunity to insert himself into Olivia's life. Knowing how vulnerable she is, her acceptance of his proposal is inevitable; spend one year as his wife in return for paying off her debts and her mother's care fees. Unfortunately, the foundation of their marriage is based on a secret that Alex is determined to protect from both his family and Olivia; his BDSM lifestyle as a Dom. However, when Olivia uncovers Alex's secret, instead of the disgust Alex is anticipating, Olivia embraces his dominant side and slowly begins to explore her own sexuality. Unfortunately, their happiness is threatened by a plot between Alex's unstable ex-submissive and Liv's deadbeat alcoholic father who abandoned her and her mother when she was young. When they fail to extort Alex for money over his lifestyle, they turn to exposing Olivia and Alex's fake marriage to his mother. A final showdown between Olivia and Alex's ex-submissive finally exposes how Alex's mother was sent their pre-nuptial agreement and the key players in the plot are held accountable. Olivia also forces Alex to confront some home truths about his journey into the BDSM world. In the end, both Alex and Olivia find their happy ending by embracing both their love for each other and learning to love themselves.

Laurie moves away from home after a tragedy takes the lives of her family. She meets Kate and they form an instant connection. Laurie soon discovers that there is more to the woman than meets the eye.

Warning: 18+ only. Featuring hardcore taboo and age-gap erotica. This is an erotic boxset containing yet another twelve stories of irresistible steam, steam, fun, and naughty stories. If you're not up to eighteen, this book is not for you. Get ready to be intrigued. To feel. To...burn. --------- "You think I'm a softie?" My voice is deceptively gentle when the rest of me is so hard. "Do you know why I pulled over?" "Why?" she says, seeming to hold her breath. "I pulled over because I know tight pussy when I see it." I frame her jaw with my right hand, tilting her blushing face up toward mine. "I'd like to fuck you on all fours, right here in the middle of the road, little girl. Rough as you can stand. Still think I'm a softie?" "No," she gasps, the green of her eyes deepening to a forest shade. "I don't." "Good."

Following the gruesome murder of his parents by his ex, Robinson as since made himself stoic, shutting off everyone from his life, except for Mariam. After an unsuccessful search for funding for her orphanage, Madeline finds herself standing in the doorway of the man who almost hit her days back, about to begin work as a nanny. There is no denying that Robinson is an arrogant idiot — even Madeline who sees good in people thinks so. Yet, beneath that cloak of arrogance and nonchalance for others is a man still carrying pains from years back. After realising she has fallen for him,, Madeline will begin trying to bring Robinson back to his former self, while Robinson will try getting back into his shell. Will Madeline succeed? Or will Robinson remain his arrogant self?

Ericka, an orphan, maltreated from a young age, finally gets adopted by a prestige family but soon after, her perfect life turns disasterous after the sudden death of her foster dad. Her foster mother blames everything on her and soon after gets her married into one of the most successful family in the country. But what happens when Ericka finds out that the man she's about to marry is none other than her childhood best friend, who she had abandoned years ago?. Xander, her childhood bestfriend maltreats her because of this during their marriage.

Allie, is a young girl trying to take care of her small family. she is caught in a fix when her clumsiness leads her into breaking expensive chinas she was meant to transport. Ahmad is a young ruthless man starting up his second empire. He is also the heir to Tilespree, although he doesn't want to have anything to do with his father's wealth. He's trapped when his father gives him two options, an arranged marriage or a quick one with the woman he loves or he faces being cut off of his source of income. Threatened, Ahmad looks for other solutions. He comes up with one and it involves Allie. Will she succumb to his force? will his plans fail? you'd have to find out!