you were always a losing game

Dirty Game Book 1: Sky Avenido is a typically quiet, mysterious, genius and boy next door in their school but looks can be deceiving. You don't know his real self. He's obsessed with her. Dirty Game Book 2: Austin Jimenez can't accept the loss of his battle against Sky Avenido to Reese Santillan's heart but he will do everything just to get the only girl he loved in his entire life, even if he does His Dirty Tactics. Dirty Game Book 3: "Y-Yuri? Anong ginagawa mo dito?" Nauutal kong tanong habang nakatingin sa lalakeng ilang araw nang ginugulo ang buhay ko. "Is that how you welcomed me? My bestfriend's girlfriend?" He smirked that I almost lost my breath. Sana hindi ko nalang siya nakilala. Sana hindi nalang siya ipinakilala sa akin ni Zane. He is Yuri Avenido. My boyfriend's bestfriend who wants me so badly. This is the Dirty Game series of Sky, Austin, and Yuri.

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

WARNING: Please, before reading this book, note that it contains: violence, abusive scenes, and mature scenes. "I was supposed to kill you, Cassius," I whispered, my voice trembling. "Do you think you can?" he replied, his gaze piercing. He gently took my hand, the warmth of his touch contrasting sharply with the coldness of the IV drip that fed into my arm. "I would shoot a bullet into your head if..." I started, but before I could finish, he sealed my lips with a kiss—soft yet filled with an urgency that took my breath away. **** Zara Singh, an undercover assassin, receives a contract to seduce and eliminate Cassius DiMarco, the most feared Mafia king who is known for his ruthlessness. But what would happen when she finds herself unexpectedly drawn to Cassius? And what would happen when Zara finds out Cassius had a hand in her parent's death? Would she be able to forgive him? #2

Alva has been arranged to get married to Lucas, the young heir to the Rossi Empire. On the day that has been arranged for her engagement, Lucas changes his mind, choosing to marry her timid, less attractive servant and throwing the family into chaos. Lucas Rossi is the, strikingly handsome, yet intimidating heir to the Rossi Empire. A man barely seen, completely avoidant of the paparazzi and with rumours spreading here and there about how he is only half human, yet no one can tell what the other half of him is. When he agrees to marry the politician's daughter in paper alone for the sake of business bonds, he is astounded by his sudden pull to the Hazel, whose life is turned upside down when she catches his attention instead. Why has he left the ethereal looking heiress to settle for a mere maid?

A 28-year-old billionaire, Alexander Montgomery, spent two years without a woman after his divorce from his ex-wife four years ago. He dedicated those years to intensifying his business, swearing off the search for a life partner. However, the game changed at a matchmaking event with Isabella Heyes, where her green eyes sparked a sense of familiarity. Unsure if she was the missing piece, he used his connections and money to get to know her. What started as mere curiosity turned into a strong attraction. But as his ex-wife reappeared, attempting to shatter their budding connection, he couldn't face a truth that threatened their growing emotions. Will they emerge victorious in the challenging game of love, or will they reach a crucial moment where they must choose between holding firm or giving in to surrender? Billionaire's Game Series #1

Kia felt strangely happy when she found out that the man she was going to marry was the man she once loved, but it was the opposite of Ludian because the woman she hated was now in front of her. How will Ludian accept the fact that Kia is the one he has to marry just for the sake of his father's reputation? Kaya bang tiisin ni Kia ang magiging trato sakaniya ni Ludian makasama niya lamang ang pinakamamahal niya.

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.

Bree despises herself after an embarrassing night with an unknown man, and her world nearly comes crashing down when she realizes that Louie, her beloved fiance, was secretly having an affair with her cousin, and that what happened to her was also part of their plan. She wishes to leave the country and settle in the States in order to leave the negative memories behind. But, even before that, Bree humiliated them at the engagement party in order to exact revenge. She and Calix, Louie's billionaire but disabled uncle, will meet during the celebration. The man who claimed her virginity.

On her birthday, Vicky Shaw's beloved husband, Tyler Hart, was found to be having a candle light dinner with his childhood sweetheart. The birthday present he gave her was a text message requesting a divorce.During their three years of marriage, she did everything she could to keep him with her, throwing all the beds in the other rooms when he was not in the house so he had nowhere else to sleep other than with her.After a fateful car crash, however, she had amnesia and was no longer the woman who loved him deeply. When Tyler finally visited her in the hospital, the first thing he asked was to get her to agree to the divorce. The new Vicky agreed immediately.Everyone knew how much the old Vicky loved Tyler. Only Tyler knew he had loved her dearly.

When sincere love ends up in betrayal, can love be found again unexpectedly? Anaya's world topples when she sees her fiance proposing to another woman. Shattered and devastated