Withering Roses

BLOOD AND PETALS PROLOGUE She sells flowers. He spills blood. And he will stop at nothing to make her his. Elena Rossi has always lived quietly among roses and lilies, dreaming of love as gentle as the petals she arranges. She thought she found it in Daniel, the man she planned to marry. Until her wedding day when a dangerous stranger walked into the church and shattered everything. Adrian Volkov is a king in the underworld, a man feared for his ruthlessness and power. But to him, Elena is not just a prize. She is an obsession. A storm he cannot live without. And he will burn the world and anyone in it, to claim her. Torn from the life she knew, Elena resists him, manipulates him, and even runs from him. But Adrian is relentless. His love is dark, his touch both punishing and tender, and his obsession inescapable. When betrayal and bloodshed close in, Elena must face the truth: She doesn’t just fear him. She doesn’t just hate him. She loves him. Petals and Blood is a haunting, passionate tale of obsession, betrayal, and the dangerous kind of love that blooms in shadows.

(Prev Title Alpha Hades and The Red Rose) "On a hot summer night, would you offer your throat to the wolf with the red roses?" Quote co. Meatloaf and Jim Cummings 1976/1977 from 'You Took The Words Right Out Of My Mouth.' Alpha Hades is an Alpha with a tragic past. He has crafted the persona of The Dark Alpha, to deter his rivals from attacking his pack. As a child, his parents and all previous pack members were wiped out in a rogue attack. He alone survived with the help of his wolf, Cerberus, and the assistance of a human girl called Lydia. But now, Cerberus is dying, and Hades is searching for Lydia in the hope that she is the key to saving him, as Cerberus is convinced that she is their mate. The Red Rose is a human huntress, who is feared by all wolves. She hunts rogues and single-handedly, deals out justice to them as she searches for the Rogue Alpha. He is the one responsible for all of the attacks on the packs, and for an attack on her when she was a child. What will happen when these two meet during a pack dispute? Will Hades find Lydia, before it is too late? And will The Red Rose be able to end, the Rogue Alpha's killing spree?

​“I dragged you out of that filthy gutter, Leylie. I paid for your mother’s last breath and your sister’s cheap little dreams. I turned a nobody into something almost presentable. And now you’re going to repay that debt in another man’s bed. That’s all you were ever good for, anyway. ​●●●LEYLIE●●● ​My fourth wedding anniversary started with a bouquet of roses and ended with Finnian Thorne, my husband, forcing me to watch him have sex with another woman. ​He says I’m ungrateful. He says I’m selfish. ​But the truth is, I’m just a pawn in a billionaire’s game. ​To keep my family alive, I have to follow his final, twisted order: Seduce Hayes Doyle — his business rival, and destroy him with a single lie. As Finnian serves me divorce papers and throws me to the wolves, he makes one fatal mistake. He hands me over to a man even more ruthless than himself. Instead of a target, I find an ally. Instead of a victim, I become a weapon.

Alliyah Agustin thought her life was finally falling into place. She was about to marry her long-time boyfriend, Chester — the man she’d built her dreams around, the man everyone envied her for. The venue gleamed with gold, the air smelled of white roses, and her so-called best friend, Kassandrah, stood by her side as maid of honor. Everything was perfect. Until it wasn’t. When the ceremony began, Chester was nowhere to be found. In his place stood a stranger — dark suit, darker eyes, a smirk that didn’t belong anywhere near an altar. The crowd murmured, the priest hesitated, and before she could even process what was happening, the papers were signed. She had just married Alexander Nicholas Astley, one of the most powerful billionaires in the country — and the most feared man in the underground world. What Alliyah didn’t know was that her “perfect” fiancé and “trusted” friend had sold her — a deal made to clear a debt, sealed with her hand in marriage. And in the dangerous world she was dragged into, her survival would depend on one impossible question: Was Alexander her captor… or her savior?

My name is Amelia; I'm 17 and work as a server in a small town in New York. It's been 15 years since my mom started this game of hide and seek with my dad and he still hasn't found us, I don't think he loved us enough look. My mom has been in a coma for the last 2 months, leaving me alone and worried, until my father finally found me. It's not like my life was all roses, but since he's found us, it should get better, right? Better meaning I shouldn't get kidnapped, I shouldn't be told that we are monsters, and I certainly shouldn't be forced to live in a pack of wolves, but here I am living a better life now aren't I. I could handle all this, but what was to follow, I never wanted from the very beginning. All I ever wanted; my only dream was to have my family back and go home. Trying to deal with all this is one thing, but what comes next is mind-blowing!

"In a garden full of flowers, the beast chose her. Among the roses she was, and although her petals were tainted with blood, to him, she was the prettiest of them all" Fate and it's funny ways. It's so fascinating when things could be so twisted, yet perfect at the same time. There has to be darkness for the light to shine and before every beautiful rainbow, there's an ugly storm. Isn’t this what our parents tell us in order to keep us calm? Rosalya was in an urgent need of this saying. She is found in a very hard and tricky situation when her world is suddenly flipped upside down. Her life going from quiet to loud, from sad and boring to interesting and wild. An Alpha King is the least she imagined would appear in her life, but that’s what life gave her. The change wasn’t exactly received happily... but it was definitely something that she would not regret in the future. She’s just a small delicate flower... one that manages things that she never knew were in her reach. Happiness and sadness, love and despair. Before every happy ending, there’s a roller coaster of a journey. Let’s see what this one holds for us to read.

How would you feel when you get framed for something you didn't do, betrayed by your fiancé and have everything taken away from you in just one night? *** After Nicole lost her job, and was betrayed by her best friend and fiancé, her reputation is ruined as she is framed for things she knew nothing about. All she craved was revenge against the people who put her in this sticky situation. With her career at the brink of collapse, she finds herself stuck in a contract marriage with the Lord of the entertainment industry; a striking hot billionaire, who only needed her to claim his father's conglomerate. But as time went on, they found themselves falling for each other, but it wasn't all roses, especially when her ambitious best friend didn't want her happiness. Nicole is faced with diverse challenges, but she is determined not to go down without a fight. But how long can she remain strong, especially when a dangerous secret is revealed, threatening to break them apart? Will she win and save her reputation or will she lose and suffer the consequences? The battle line is drawn, and she has to be smart to win.

When the soft and caring Emmalyn marries Kelvin Price, the cold and ruthless Alpha, to save her father’s pack, she does not expect to fall in love with a man who had always thought of her as a second choice and a weakling. An unexpected turn of events takes place, pulling the couple closer but can a love founded on lies, betrayal, and deceit ever survive in the cruel werewolf world where enemies looked forward to destroying them? **** When Emma’s older sister, Tiana, runs away from her arranged wedding to Kelvin Price, Emma is forced to marry him in her place to save her parents’ faces and the pack. Kelvin Price is known to be a cold and elusive Alpha who Emma did not think she could end up falling in love with. She was more content with her sweet boyfriend, Marcus. She knew she would only have herself to blame if she expects a life full of roses when she returns with him. What happens when an unexpected turn of events takes place, forcing the couple closer? As they grow closer, they must fight the demons of their past and of the lives that once left them- especially when her sister, Tiana, returns with just one aim. To snatch back what was once hers. Kelvin Price.

How do you explain when you don't have a choice in life and all you have is to follow your destiny to the one you love? After being locked up for centuries, you're eventually freed only to follow a destiny and then you're locked up again. This was what happened to Princess Bellamy. The first daughter and second child of the Queen. After being locked up for several years, she is eventually released. But what does the future hold for the young princess? Will she be able to achieve all she's ever wished for? Will she be able to fall in love ? Or will she follow her destiny? Will she carry the burden of her people? Will she save the ones who love her and those who don't from the evil ahead? What happens when the young princess eventually falls in love but discovers that love isn't always a bed of roses? What happens when she has to choose between love and power? Will she choose the one she loves or the one who would give her more power? You'll find out all about this young princess's trauma, tragedy and happiness in this book.

"You're a dangerous woman, Elena," He reached, turning on the shower beside her head. "I think your demons are making you see things wrong, Mr. Rossi," she murmured through the water spilling down her head. He laughed, "They are right; you're my trigger," his nose buried into the crook of her neck, he muttered, sending shivers down her spine. "And too bad a lot of people cross you..." ***** Her life came crashing down when she signed a contract marriage with the calm President Nikolai Rossi, who only had eyes on one woman who wasn't her. To make matters worse, she couldn't help but fall in love with him and his son, knowing he'd never reciprocate. After a terrible divorce, three years later, Elena Vero is a mother of one. She now has to return to Italy for business, unfortunately falling into the waiting palms of her ex-husband, who surprisingly wants her back. But being his wife has never been a bed of roses and never will it be, especially when she finds out he isn't all that he seems.