1760 Book(s) Related to it happened one summer: a novel book review

“A MASTERPIECE OF THRILLER AND MYSTERY. Blake Pierce did a magnificent job developing characters with a psychological side so well described that we feel inside their minds, follow their fears and cheer for their success. Full of twists, this book will keep you awake until the turn of the last page.” --Books and Movie Reviews, Roberto Mattos (re Once Gone) GIRL, ALONE (An Ella Dark FBI Suspense Thriller—Book 1) is the debut novel in a long-anticipated new series by #1 bestseller and USA Today bestselling author Blake Pierce, whose bestseller Once Gone (a free download) has received over 1,000 five star reviews. FBI Agent Ella Dark, 29, is given her big chance to achieve her life’s dream: to join the Behavorial Crimes Unit. Ella has a hidden obsession: she has studied serial killers from the time she could read, devastated by the murder of her own sister. With her photographic memory, she has obtained an encyclopedic knowledge of every serial killer, every victim and every case. Singled out for her brilliant mind, Ella is invited to join the big leagues.But when a killer strikes in the swamps of Louisiana, Ella soon comes to learn that the real thing is nothing she could expect. Face to face with a real murder, a real killer, and a real ticking clock, Ella realizes she can’t rely on her knowledge. She must learn to trust her instinct, and allow herself to enter the dark canals of a real killer’s mind. If she gets it wrong, her career is at stake.And so is the next victim’s life.Will Ella’s talent be an asset? Or the source of her downfall?A page-turning and harrowing crime thriller featuring a brilliant and tortured FBI agent, the ELLA DARK series is a riveting mystery, packed with suspense, twists and turns, revelations, and driven by a breakneck pace that will keep you flipping pages late into the night.Books #2 and #3 in the series—GIRL, TAKEN and GIRL, HUNTED—are also available.

A new fantasy by the Bestselling author! CHARLOTTE TWEED & THE SCHOOL FOR ORPHANED DRAGONS (Book #1) tells the story of Charlotte Tweed, a 15 year old orphan who longs to know who she truly is, and who her true parents are. Charlotte is kicked out of every foster home she is sent to, and living with a cruel family and sent to a school where she is bullied, Charlotte ducks off the fire drill line one day and cuts school. During this fateful walk she meets Tom Throtteldon, a wizard from another land, and he tells her he’s come to take her home.Charlotte is brought to the land of Annarunnus, the land, and is led to the famous Bellins School for Magic, where she must train to learn who she is and how to use her unique powers. Charlotte also discovers that a rare and precious event has taken place: dragon eggs have been found, hatching just two days before Charlotte’s arrival. Each student receives their own baby dragon to bond with, tame, and train. At Bellins Charlotte meets new friends, and struggles to discover herself and to bond with her obstinate baby dragon. She also meets Tyron, one of the handsome Outcasts. But dating is forbidden at Bellins, and they will have to decide if they will risk it all for love.

“Sophie Love's ability to impart magic to her readers is exquisitely wrought in powerfully evocative phrases and descriptions….This is the perfect romance or beach read, with a difference: its enthusiasm and beautiful descriptions offer an unexpected attention to the complexity of not just evolving love, but evolving psyches. It's a delightful recommendation for romance readers looking for a touch more complexity from their romance reads.”--Midwest Book Review (Diane Donovan re For Now and Forever) “A very well written novel, describing the struggle of a woman (Emily) to find her true identity. The author did an amazing job with the creation of the characters and her description of the environment. The romance is there, but not overdosed. Kudos to the author for this amazing start of a series that promises to be very entertaining.”--Books and Movies Reviews, Roberto Mattos (re For Now and Forever)FOREVER, WITH YOU is book #3 in the romance series THE INN AT SUNSET HARBOR, which begins with book #1, FOR NOW AND FOREVER—a free download!35 year old Emily Mitchell has fled her job, apartment and ex-boyfriend in New York City for her father's abandoned home on the coast of Maine, needing a change in her life. Tapping her life savings to restore the historic home, and with a budding relationship with the caretaker, Daniel, Emily prepares to open the Inn at Sunset Harbor as Memorial Day comes.But all does not go as planned. Emily learns quickly that she has no idea how to run a B&B. The house, despite her efforts, needs new, urgent repairs she cannot afford. Her covetous neighbor is still determined to make trouble for her. And worst of all: just as her relationship with Daniel is blossoming, she learns he has a secret. One which will change everything.With her friends urging her to return to New York City and her ex-boyfriend trying to win her back, Emily has a life-changing decision to make. Will she try to stick it out, to embrace small-town life, her father’s old house? Or will she turn her back on her new friends, neighbors and life—and on the man she has fallen in love with?FOREVER, WITH YOU is book #3 of a dazzling new romance series that will make you laugh, make you cry, will keep you turning pages late into the night—and will make you fall in love with romance all over again.Book #4 will be available soon.

“Sophie Love's ability to impart magic to her readers is exquisitely wrought in powerfully evocative phrases and descriptions….This is the perfect romance or beach read, with a difference: its enthusiasm and beautiful descriptions offer an unexpected attention to the complexity of not just evolving love, but evolving psyches. It's a delightful recommendation for romance readers looking for a touch more complexity from their romance reads.”--Midwest Book Review (Diane Donovan re For Now and Forever) FOR YOU, FOREVER is book #7 in the #1 bestselling romance series THE INN AT SUNSET HARBOR, which begins with For Now and Forever (book #1)—a free download!Fall has arrived in Sunset Harbor, and as the town clears out, Emily Mitchell enters her second trimester. Their new rooms at Trevor’s house open for their first guests, while their new spa and restaurant open for business. All the while, they pursue their bid on the island, hoping to add yet another dimension to their life at Sunset Harbor.Amy insists on throwing Emily a layette in New York City, and Emily returns to her old home, in shock at how much she has changed—and at the unwanted guests who show up. She is mortified to learn that there will be a new resident of Sunset Harbor—a NYC developer who will open a rival inn—and destroy Emily’s business.Chantelle goes back to school, but her new grade is an unpleasant surprise, and as things don’t work out, the drama puts her into a tailspin.Roy is getting sicker, and as the weather turns cold, he invites them all to a getaway in his home in Greece, and Emily, although worried for her growing baby, cannot refuse. It is a trip that will change all of them forever, culminating in a Thanksgiving none of them will forget.FOR YOU, FOREVER is book #7 in a dazzling new romance series that will make you laugh, cry, keep you turning pages late into the night—and make you fall in love with romance all over again.Book #8 will be available soon. Sophie’s new romance series, LOVE LIKE THIS, is now also available!“A very well written novel, describing the struggle of a woman (Emily) to find her true identity. The author did an amazing job with the creation of the characters and her description of the environment. The romance is there, but not overdosed. Kudos to the author for this amazing start of a series that promises to be very entertaining.”--Books and Movies Reviews, Roberto Mattos (re For Now and Forever)

In an elite suburb of New York City, girls are dying. That doesn’t happen in Greenvale, with its immaculate lawns, exclusive yacht clubs and multi-million dollar mansions. But behind its perfect façade, its trimmed hedges and luxury cars, a darkness lies. Girls, dependent on Adderall, outmaneuver each other to get into top colleges, while the mothers’ need to live vicariously only makes it worse. Bella DeFranco is one of the Bronx’s top SVU detectives. At only 37, she disarms everyone with her stunning good looks, yet she is as tough as most men—and a lot smarter, too. Yet when is summoned to Greenvale, she finds herself getting lost in a case that even she can’t comprehend. She stumbles into a land of secrets, a place where husbands hide their pasts from their wives, where friends are not what they seem, and where no one wants to know too much. As she digs deeper into layers of suburban dysfunction, she comes to learn that, behind all the fake smiles, there is a subtle violence--rivaling even her crime-ridden streets of the Bronx. With a killer on the loose, time running out, and a new partner who never recovered from his washed-up alcoholic days, the odds are stacked against Bella. She is determined, though, to save these girls, whatever the cost. Yet as she gets close, the depth of psychosis she discovers shocks even her….

I stare at him, watching his chest expand.

How is it that someone so strong, so powerful, so dangerous to find become so small when faced with an adversary? The adversary being me.

I see him, knees on the cold tiled floor, his eyes fixated on me in equal parts disbelief. I disconnect my vision from his small form, looking briefly at what I'm wearing.

This morning when I woke up, the sun was shining, snow melting on my front lawn. My kids were sleeping, my husband gone, as usual, working, making money.

Everything was normal except when I woke up this morning, I received a message. This message contained a lot of things I've been waiting to hear but one part, in particular, stood out and made today different. This person on his knees in front of me was the big difference in my day. So when I woke up this morning and decided what I was going to wear I decided I would not wear black because black represented the sign of mourning. I wasn't going to wear white. After all, white represented a sign of new beginnings and not blue.

Blue, well blue was a sign of trust and green with a side of healing so when I woke up this morning I decided I would wear beige, it was an indifferent color something that matched any mood any desire any belief it doesn't necessarily represent anything but nor did it negate anything.

'You know what is so satisfying about killing you?"

'What?" He inquires with that tilt of his mouth and thin lips I have seen a time or two. Many women found this man handsome. sexy even. I was not different, but I knew more than many of them what made him, his colors, the layers that fell away leaving only the middle left and when you looked at it with naked eyes you'd see it was rotten.

I laugh.

'I became a player in this cat and rat game much later. I find it comical that I am the one who gets to catch you, considering there are many people who started in the beginning. What is even funnier is I am the one who would get to kill you."

'You didn't catch me Mrs. Catelli."He says my surname with a pinched face as though he can't bear the sound of it coming from his lips.

'Then what do you oppose I did?"

He smiles, but it is not a nice one. It is filled with the ugliness which has corrupted him over the years.

Copyright © 2022 Shan R.K

All rights reserved.

This is a work of fiction from the Author's imagination.

No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any manner without written permission from the author except in the case of brief quotations for reviews or fan-made articles.

Any names resembling any living person are purely coincidental.

First Edition.

April, 19th 2022

Written by Shan R.K

Dedication

I dedicate this book to you the reader. Please enjoy it and look out for the anthology on my website coming soon for free.

Cindy and Mattheus, finally together, prepare to take time off and live together—when a stunning upset in their relationship tears them apart. Cindy flies home to New York, resigned to never work as a detective—and never see Mattheus—again.And then a shocking phone call comes out of the blue: it is Mattheus. A new body has turned up. Cindy at first refuses—until he tells her who it is: his wife. They finally found her, on the shores of Key West. Brutally murdered, they suspect, by an abusive boyfriend.Mattheus’ world is upside down, and Cindy has no choice but to fly back down to the islands and help him uncover what really happened. Why did she turn up now, after so many years? How did she turn up in Key West, so far from where he’d last seen her? Why had she never contacted him? Who was she dating? And have the police caught the right man?Their investigation takes them deep into the underworld of Key West, a gorgeous, idyllic place where the locals gather to watch the sunset every night with an evening drink. It is an enchanting place—but as Cindy learns, it is also a place with a dark underbelly. Cindy prods deeper into the murder and her investigation takes her into the world of an abused woman’s shelter. Soon, she is convinced the police have the wrong man. She and Mattheus, thrown together again, reconsider their feelings for one another. But there may not be time: Cindy finds out too much and comes in danger herself. As the murder hits too close to home, it may be too late for them both.DEATH BY DECEIT is both a stand-alone novel, and is also Book #5 in the Caribbean Murder series, following DEATH BY HONEYMOON (Book #1), DEATH BY DIVORCE (Book #2) and DEATH BY MARRIAGE (Book #3) and DEATH BY DESIRE (Book #4).

DEATH BY REQUEST is Book #11 in the #1 Bestselling Caribbean Murder series, which begins with DEATH BY HONEYMOON (Book #1). It is also a standalone novel.In Death by Request (Book #11 of the Caribbean Murder Series), Cindy and Mattheus are given a shocking case they have never faced before: a clear-cut case of euthanasia might turn out to be something more ominous. Tara and Owen Danden, celebrating their 25th wedding anniversary in Jamaica, are on the water, in a boat he rented, when the weather shifts and Tara falls overboard. As Owen tries desperately to save his wife, the boat spins and hits her head—sending her into a coma. Pulled out of the water, barely alive, Tara is airlifted to an elegant hospital on the island, and remains in a coma for two months. When she finally dies, however, there becomes a question of whether she truly died of natural causes. Based on scanty evidence, Owen is taken into custody and quickly hires Cindy and Mattheus to clear his name and find out who wanted Tara dead. Cindy and Mattheus’s journey takes us through an intriguing exploration of comas, euthanasia and what happens to those in altered states. As the investigation proceeds we watch Cindy and Mattheus’s relationship ripen, and take a new turn. We also meet Tara’s crazy family, learn the secret they’ve been hiding, and see what bearing it might have on the case. As a new suspect finally comes into focus, all is not what it seems to be…

DEATH BY MARRIAGE is Book #3 in the Bestselling CARIBBEAN MURDER series, following DEATH BY HONEYMOON (#1) and DEATH BY DIVORCE (#2). A well-known criminal lawyer is found dead in a back alley in St. Thomas, and Cindy and Mattheus are called in to investigate by the grieving widow. The local police have pinned her for the murder, and Cindy and Mattheus are her last hope in vindication. As Cindy and Mattheus dig deeper into the victim’s past, they learn that all was not as rosy as it seemed. They discover mistresses, gambling debts, vendettas, and a number of people who had motivation to want him dead. Most shocking of all, as they dig even deeper, they discover a whole secret life that he lead, one so lurid that the people who knew him best can hardly even conceive it. As a hurricane closes in and the police are insistent, despite all evidence, to arrest the widow, Cindy and Mattheus find themselves in a race against time to find the killer. When another body turns up, all involved realize the stakes may be even higher than they seem. And as Cindy and Mattheus develop feelings for each other, each grieving from the death of their own spouse, Cindy comes to realize there is even more at stake than she thinks. Books #4--#16 in the series are now also available.

To annul the engagement, the aloof heiress of a wealthy family spent three years planning thirteen accidents to try and kill me.
Car accident, falling object, poisoning... I survived covered in blood, only to be met with her disgusted question: "How come you're still alive?"
She let her scheming childhood sweetheart crush my father's ashes, and even personally drained my last remaining blood to save me, all for her sweetheart's self-inflicted injury.
She thought I would be like a dog, clinging to her side forever without any boundaries.
Until that day, I calmly handed over the annulment agreement, clutching the diagnosis of late-stage brain cancer, and completely disappeared from her world.
Later, when she finally found out the truth, she searched the world frantically, only to find my emaciated, cold corpse.
That arrogant and haughty young lady has completely collapsed.
She personally sent her childhood sweetheart to hell, knelt before my body wearing a veil, and desperately raised a gun:
“Ivan, walk slowly on your way to the underworld... I’m giving my life for you.”

What is one to do when they catch the attention of dark beings? Should they run away from the sweet promise of unending pleasure, or do they give in? Tabitha Sullivan has to make that very choice when she catches the attention of two dark brothers with a need for blood and sweet torture. Not only them, but also an icy man with a vendetta against her kind. However, he is willing to go against his very nature to claim her for himself.
What will Tabitha do? Will she fight the draw she feels toward these men, or will she give in?
Read A Taste Of Sin to find out!

Lorraine never expected to lose her virginity to her cold, unreadable CEO Tristan—let alone five times in one night. Even more shocking? He keeps showing up to save her, stepping in not once, but twice, to protect her from a toxic ex. After several heartfelt proposals, she finally agrees to a contract marriage—thinking it's a practical solution to a messy life.

Tristan has had his eyes on Lorraine for years—the brilliant top designer working quietly under his nose. The contract is just the beginning of his plan to claim her completely. He's ready to offer her everything: protection, devotion, and a love she's never dared to hope for.

But when jealous exes and relentless suitors re-enter the picture, threatening to tear them apart, their fragile arrangement is put to the test. Can a marriage built on strategy survive long enough to become something real?

Louis and Olivia were lovers for years. He proposed marriage to her, and she accepted and gave her virginity to him. When he discovered that she was pregnant, he became distraught and ended the relationship.
Afterward, Louis regretted and Olivia met someone better - Denise, Louis's brother.. Denise and Olivia fell in love and got married after a month. She conceived immediately and when she delivered a set of twins. Then, Louis came up to claim the children.
Arthur, Louis' father and Denise's uncle, a widower of thirteen years fell in love with Nichole, Denise's mother, and a widow. Their marriage strengthened the bond between the two families, but it brought a lot of hatred from the members of Bailey's family, who had eyes on Nichole and wished to marry her. This led to a secret plan to eliminate him and have Nichole by his cousin, Mr. Stephen Bailey.
Louis refused to love again. He opted for surgery for memory erasure, which failed. Cassandra, who loved him unconditionally, accepted to marry him but conceived through IVF because he would not sleep with her. She named the child Olivia to make him happy, but he was not. When she got tired of the unbalanced relationship, she opted for a divorce. Would Louis' life be empty because of one wrong step?

Grace thought New York would be her fresh start until she loses the competition she was hoping for, and ends up in a one-night stand with a mysterious stranger who touched her like he already knew her. Like he had no intention of forgetting her.

By morning, he’s vanished without a word, leaving her with no clue of who he is and a pregnancy she had to deal with.

Years later, Grace has moved on. She’s in love again, and her boyfriend Nicholas Santos is about to propose and give her the future she’s always wanted. But when he takes her home to meet his family, her world crashes.

Because standing across the room is Nick’s older brother, the same man she swore she’d never see again. The man whose hands she still remembers, whose absence nearly broke her…The man who has no idea he’s the father of her child.

Now, caught between the man who healed her heart and the one who awakened it, Grace is pulled into a storm of buried desires, dangerous secrets, and a chemistry that refuses to stay in the past.

Because some nights aren’t meant to be forgotten… And some flames were never meant to burn out.

BLURB:

All Hara wanted was to raise her unborn child away from her abusive - cheating mate, Roland.

The Red Cross pack was the strongest pack in the werewolf kingdom, and Hara had chosen it as her safe haven.

She becomes a waitress in a bar and it was as normal as any random job, not until she meets Ryder, the Alpha of the Red Cross pack and the owner of the bar.

Upon seeing the pregnant Hara who was also his fated mate, he immediately falls in love with her.

Hara was caught in a dilemma. No matter how she thought about it, the twisted situation she was in wouldn't end right. Not when her heart seemed to be longing for the alluring stranger who claims to be her fated mate. Not when Roland was back, and asking for a second chance. And certainly not when she realizes that there were so many secrets yet untold.

Would she be strong enough to make the right decisions? Would she go back to the man she once loved, or would she stay with the man who loves her?

Join Hara on her twisted journey to finding happiness.

"Sign the divorce paper,"

"You... want a divorce?"

"Sandra’s back. You know the drill,"

"Johann, I..."

"You don't love me. I don't love you. Our marriage is nothing but a filial duty,"

"Would it make any difference if... I say I'm pregnant?"

"That's bullshit, and you know it, Kendra. I always take precautions."

A request from a dying mother and a filial duty of a sole heir brought two innocent hearts together.

Johann Petersen had no choice but to break up with the love of his life, Sandra Fell. One cold winter night turned his life around when his grandfather demanded he married someone else, in the name of courtesy, friendship, and paying a life debt.

Kendra Summers knew from the start that Johann married her not for love, but she was hopeful that he would fall in love with her one day. Yet, on the night of their second wedding anniversary, before she could announce her pregnancy, he handed her the divorce paper.

Will their marriage end shortly and leave them broken?

Or will their child salvage the slightest chance of hope to blossom a love that is hidden?

Hara only desired to raise her expectant child away from her abusive and unfaithful partner, Roland. She chose the Red Cross pack, the strongest pack in the werewolf kingdom, as her safe haven.

She gets a job as a waitress at a bar, which is as typical as any other job until she meets Ryder, the Alpha of the Red Cross pack and the owner of the bar. As soon as he sees the expectant Hara, who is also his destiny mate, he falls in love with her.

Hara was caught in a tricky dilemma. No matter how she viewed it, the convoluted situation she found herself in could not end well. Not while her heart yearns for the enticing stranger who claimed to be her destined partner. Not when Roland returned and requested a second chance. Especially when she realizes there are so many secrets to be revealed.

Would she be capable of making the right choices? Would she return to the man she once loved or stay with the man who loved her?

Join Hara on her perilous quest to find happiness.


Having him so close was enough to shatter my resolve and rekindle my desire for him. His possessive grasp around my waist caused me to collide with him.

When I glanced up, our foreheads touched. He closed his eyes while emitting a howl that would make any werewolf weak in the knees.

"Ryder.."

"You're mine, Hara. I knew it from the instant I laid eyes on you. And every time I fucked you senseless, that was me declaring, you're mine and mine alone."

I, Alpha Devon, reject you as my mate.” You will never be good enough for me. You’re nothing—absolutely nothing—but a piece of trash that will be left for the dogs to feast on.

Elena, a werewolf who hasn’t wolfed out yet, was mistreated and maltreated by her own pack and family, and worse, her sister despised and hated her for no reason at all.

She gets even more dissatisfied with her life when the Alpha of a Great Pack rejects her as his mate and accepts her sister instead. His reason? She wasn’t up to his standard, and he wouldn’t want to associate with a low life.

What happens when the moon goddess gives her a new mate, a far more dreaded and wealthy one, mocking all those who despised, abandoned, and rejected her?

The story takes another twist as Elena doesn’t accept or recognise him as her mate. She was too broken to even see or understand that her mate was right in front of her.

Will he be able to love Elena as expected and bring her out of the misery she has accepted as her reality? Or will he further make her life more miserable than her previous mate?

Emily was taken at 15 when Alpha Riden killed her pack.
She fell in love with the alpha's son Ryan, but when he disappeared, her life got worse.
When ther here was no sign of the alpha and luna. Jeremy managed to save her.
But when alpha-ridden hunts Jeremy and her down. While Johnny decides to bring in an old friend.
Now she had to choose between revenge and love.

Meet Teresa, a young orphan grappling with life's adversities after losing her parents in a tragic plane crash. Her life takes an unexpected turn when she encounters Auden Anderson, a promiscuous billionaire with a complex past and a morally ambiguous family heritage. Their relationship blossoms into marriage, but Teresa's dreams and expectations soon crumble into heartbreak.

However, a glimmer of light and hope emerges as Teresa meets her Nanny, Amelia, who becomes a catalyst for positive change. Transforming her identity, she emerges as Charlotte Knowles. She rebuilds her life, taking back her family's legacy. In a surprising twist of fate, she finds herself reunited with those who once spurned her—her ex-husband and former mother-in-law. The question arises: Can love transcend betrayal?

Join Charlotte's journey from the depths of despair to the heights of triumph in this enthralling tale of second chances and the transformative power of forgiveness.

My name is Jack Morris, a bottom-rung janitor on the docks.
Every day, people walk all over me, and I live on moldy bread.
Until one day, an old man I saved handed me a photograph. "This is my granddaughter. She's being held at the Black Swan Casino."
That used to be my place. Ten years ago.
Her father was a brother who died in my place.
I was once the king of the underground.
And now, at the banquet celebrating the tenth anniversary of my death, they're treating that old man's granddaughter like a toy.
If my disappearance only made those animals more brazen...
Then they can finish that drink and celebrate their own deaths next.

At her engagement party, her fiancé had betrayed her.She announced she wanted to take revenge on her fiancé.


A man's icy lips covered hers as he devoured her, giving her temporary respite from the heat. She reached out and flung her arms around his neck, sucking his lips greedily.

Loud moans and pants soon resounded around the room. Their shadows on the wall opposite overlapped with a burning passion.

As the light was dim, Charlotte couldn't see the man's face clearly. The only thing that occurred to her was how beastly he was in bed. He savagely took her until dawn.

For twelve centuries, the exiled vampire king waited for the prophecy foretold to restore his fallen power. But never expected the girl destined to save him to be the reincarnation of the wife he lost.

Anastasia has spent 18 years of her life beneath her grandmother's watchful eye, hidden from a world she never knew wanted her dead. Sheltered. Obedient. Ordinary – or so she believed.

And the illness slowly stealing her life is not just a disease. It is an awakening.

The man she has quietly loved from afar – the impossibly perfect, untouchable Mr. William – is not who she thought he was either.

He is older than memory. A king without a kingdom. A vampire betrayed by his own brother, stripped of his power, and exiled from the ancient realm of Umbralord centuries ago.

And Anastasia is the one prophecy foretold would restore what was

She knows what she is to him:

A prophecy. A key. A sacrifice.

Anastasia knows there is no escaping destiny . So she makes him an offer.

For six months. He was to date her. Love her. Not out of duty or pity, but as if she truly belonged to him.

What neither of them knows is that the heavens have always been cruel. She was the nemesis placed into his perfect life from the beginning.

Because Anastasia is the reincarnation of the mate William lost twelve centuries ago – the same woman whose death ignited a war that nearly destroyed an entire kingdom.

And this time, fate is not letting go.

~ARJUN KASHYAP, 28 years Old, Co Owner of K&K CORPORATION, a multi billionaire company of India, A new emerging face among the herd of top Businessman of the World.

A VIRGIN BEAST. No one can double cross him. Who hates women around him But loose his Beastly heart to a Broken BEAUTY whom he loves to call JAAN (Life)..

PASHIKA SINHA, a 22 years old, A struggling and broken BEAUTY who is fighting with the Cruelty and the double standard of the world, unknowingly created a havoc in BEAST's life.

ARJUN: "You are Mine and I am Yours JAAN"

PASHIKA: "I am no one to you so stay away from me, You BEAST"

For ARJUN, it's Love at first sight but for PASHIKA, its Hate at first sight.

Two different souls from two different world clashed and their unconditional love with unexpected twists and turns reveals hidden truth and so many secrets from the past.

A complete roller coaster ride of BEAUTY and the BEAST.

....

DEATH BY DESIRE is Book #4 in the #1 Bestselling Caribbean Murder series, following the FREE book DEATH BY HONEYMOON (#1), DEATH BY DIVORCE (#2) and DEATH BY MARRIAGE (#3). In the midst of gorgeous St. Bart’s, a few days before Christmas, a Senator’s daughter is found stabbed and strangled on the beach—the day after her engagement party. While the rich and famous are pouring in to celebrate the holidays, the local police are desperate to keep it quiet and not cause an uproar. But the Senator’s family wants justice for their daughter, and they hire Cindy and Mattheus to solve the crime. As Cindy and Mattheus investigate, they meet the elite crowd surrounding the Senator’s family, an exclusive world of unimaginable wealth, of luxurious parties on yachts and private villas. They learn of all the people who may have wanted the young woman dead, all the jealousies and rivalries, the secret ex-es and affairs. They meet her devastated fiancé, her twin sister and her distraught Mom—all intent on the killer’s being found. They meet the corrupt police force, who wants them stopped, and a rich Russian mogul who controls half the island—and has his own agenda to bring down the senator. As they delve deeper, they learn the many secrets of this exclusive family and the young woman, and discover that all was not as perfect as it appeared to be. As they get close to the answers, Cindy faces personal danger, while at the same time her relationship with Mattheus grows deeper—and faces a crisis of its own. And as the two of them are about to leave the island, a sudden twist in events changes everything. Ultimately, they come to learn that on the pristine, perfect St. Bart's, everything is not always as it seems to be. Books #5--#8 in the series are now also available!

Cindy and Mattheus, still reeling from Key West, unsure where their relationship stands, prepare to take some time away from each other—when a shocking call arrives. A beautiful bride is missing, the night before her destination wedding in the magnificent Cayman Islands. The groom, the last one to see her alive during their scuba diving outing, is the prime suspect.But the groom’s family insists he is innocent, and they hire Cindy and Mattheus to find out the truth. Cindy understands the pain of an ocean accident all too well, and the case strikes uncomfortably close to home, evoking memories of Clint at every turn. Police and Coast Guard search the sea and land, but the bride, Allie is nowhere to be found. Family, wedding party and guests have all been detained at their luxury hotel to be questioned. Was it an accident? Did the bride run away? Or has someone killed her? Who could have wanted her dead?As Cindy and Mattheus investigate and interview those at the celebration, we journey into the incredible wealth and opulence of the Islands and the lifestyle of those who have come down to celebrate the wedding and vacation there. As their relationships are exposed, we see the effects of wealth, greed, and intense jealousy, and how it runs their lives. We also meet Mac, a charismatic, suave partner in the firm who develops an attachment to Cindy, and Vivien, a gorgeous guest, who no man can resist. As Vivien goes after Mattheus, and Mac pursues Cindy, we watch Cindy and Mattheus’s relationship struggle and become infected by jealousy and suspicion as well.In a shocking turn of events, Cindy finds out more about Allie than anyone knew. And as the investigation takes a deadly turn, Cindy’s life is in danger, not once but twice. Once again, we see the forces of darkness try to undermine the search for truth. Will Cindy and Mattheus untangle the web of secrets among the rich and famous before it is too late?DEATH BY JEALOUSY is both a stand-alone novel, and is also Book #6 in the Caribbean Murder series, following DEATH BY HONEYMOON (Book #1), DEATH BY DIVORCE (Book #2) and DEATH BY MARRIAGE (Book #3), DEATH BY DESIRE (Book #4) and DEATH BY DECEIT (Book #5).

In the kingdom of the Alpha King, Janelle, a trusted servant, conceals a burning desire for revenge against her parents' killers. When she discovers her true mate is the prince, her world is thrown into turmoil. Torn between love and vengeance, Janelle's quest for justice takes a dangerous turn as secrets unravel and betrayal lurks at every corner. Will she choose love or succumb to the darkness of her past?

On the rugged, wild, eastern shore of Barbados, Cindy and Clint are enjoying their dream honeymoon, when paradise quickly turns into hell. Cindy finds her newly beloved taken away from her, drowned in a freak accident in the ocean. The local police are quick to declare it an accident, to insist that he was caught in a sudden riptide. But Cindy, left all alone, is not convinced.Cindy must return to her and Clint’s now-empty home in New York and face her in-laws, who never wanted Clint to marry her, and who did everything to make her engagement and wedding hell. She must deal with all of these women’s backbiting, gossiping and unspoken accusations, while she tries to get a handle on her own grief and to get clear on what really happened to Clint.Cindy is mailed an anonymous photo of a woman she had never met, addressed to Clint. As she tries to unravel the mysterious package, as she begins to dig deeper into Clint’s emails and files, she realizes how many secrets Clint had been hiding from his past. She realizes that she didn’t really know the man she loved. And she also realizes that Clint was murdered.She digs deeper, into the depths of Clint’s massive corporation, DGB oil, and as she starts to unearth information she shouldn’t, she goes too far. Soon her own life is in peril. On the run, she realizes that the only way to get answers, and to save her own life, is to return to where it all began: Barbados. As she heads into the dark underside of the island, into the heart of the local villages, she is shocked to discover what really happened to her husband on their honeymoon.But by then, it may already be too late.Books #2--#14 in the Caribbean Murder series (DEATH BY DIVORCE) are now also available!

On the eve of the Eva's seventeenth birthday, the story begins. Her father's enemies are abusing her. Alpha's daughter, Eva, is the protagonist of the story. Her pack was killed. She was the only survivor. Due to her young age, the pack that slaughtered her family decided to turn her into a slave. She was mistreated and hungry since she was a child, and she did all kinds of menial tasks.
When confronted with insults, the heroine was obstinate, fighting back and talking back. She still retains Alpha's blood in her bones, despite being a slave. When she became an adult and her powers awakened, she secretly intended to flee this pack. She still believes in love and hopes that the moon goddess will provide her with a mate who will cherish and protect her at this time.
The pack's leader's son, Alpha Liam, knew the Eva once was his chosen mate at his 18, but he despised her low status on the one hand and was pulled to her beauty on the other. He looks down on her and plays around with other girls, influenced by the pack members.
On her eighteenth birthday, the Eva's wolf awoke, and she realized that Liam was her mate, and she was furious because Liam was the son of her father's assassin. Alpha Liam reject Eva.
Eva released. However, the wolf within her is a little depressed. Alpha Liam's mother and her daughter assaulted Eva again while she was preparing the inheritance ceremony for Liam. Eva was saved by an Alpha from another pack. This was Alpha Raquel. He was invited to participate in the inheritance ceremony of Alpha A.

When Alaia turns 18, she knows that she will eventually find her mate. What she doesn't know is what will happen when she finally does. The betrayal of rejection knocks her down, but she's not meant to be down for long. She is meant for greatness. Follow along as she overcomes to get everything she has ever wanted, but was too afraid to ask. She was Once Rejected, but now Twice Desired.

When Emma turns 20, she finds her soon to be beta mate, believing that would improve her life. Emma envisions a brighter future, only to have her hopes shattered by Hudson's deceitful betrayal and cruel intentions. Locked in the dungeon because of her rejection, Emma has no choice but escape.
Destiny, however, has a different path for Emma.
Bennett Campbell, Alpha from the Silvercrest Pack, stumbles upon her and brings her to safety. The surprise deepens when Hunter, the pack's esteemed doctor, and Parker, the youngest of the Campbell brothers, discover that Emma is also their fated mate.
Awakening to the protective presence of three powerful men, Emma navigates her newfound sanctuary with caution and gratitude. Will Emma accept her mates? Will the pack accept her? Will the warmth and understanding of Campbell brothers mend her wounded spirit?

What would you do when fate binds you to two mates—one who shattered your heart, and the other who's being shattered every day?
Alpha Aira Stone—fiery, fearless, and one of the mischievous Stone sextuplets—is no stranger to chaos. But nothing prepares her for the moment her world begins to unravel. The boy she’s loved her entire life—her brother’s Beta, her secret childhood crush—walks away to chase his dreams, leaving her behind with nothing but a hollow “I’m sorry” and a heart full of scars.
His silence was rejection.
His absence, betrayal.
And Aira? She doesn’t forgive easily.
But when the Moon Goddess finally reveals her fated mates, the joke is crueler than she could have imagined—because one of them is him. The Beta. The wimp. The one who turned his back on her.
And the other?
A mysterious transgender demon—shackled by torment, enduring daily abuse at the hands of a monstrous werewolf pack in a distant, brutal land. A soul tethered to hers by pain, fate, and an ache she can’t ignore.
Now, with her pride in pieces and her heart pulled in two, Aira must confront what it means to lead, to love—and to choose. Because some bonds are blessed.
Others are broken.
And some... are born in chaos.

“Raise your gown.”

My breath catches at Demetrius' command.

“What?” I whisper.

“You’re in heat, Talitha.” He says, voice low yet edged like velvet-wrapped steel. “Though you may deny it with your tongue, your body is more honest. It aches, it hungers, and it seeks relief. I can smell how badly you want it, Wildling. How badly you want me.”

My fingers curl into the linen of my shift, knuckles blanching, as a tremor runs through me. “I-I thought you were angry with me.”

“I am. By the Goddess, I am fucking livid.” He growls at once, guttural and strained. “But as much as I would love to punish you to my heart's content, I will not have my mate writhing before me in agony while I stand here pretending as though I do not want to pin you to this damn wall and claim you until the bond between us is unbreakable. To fuck you until your legs can no longer bear your body weight, talk less of aiding you in trying to escape me again.”

•••

Found as a pup with an unknown bloodline, Talitha grows up in an Alpha household until the Luna bears her own child, and Talitha becomes disposable. When the Goddess grants her a mate, Cain Lukoji, Talitha dares to dream of freedom. Instead, she is betrayed, brutalized, and rejected, forced to flee while pregnant and utterly alone.

Years later, Talitha is living quietly and peacefully with her daughter until Alpha King Demetrius Yarrow arrives, claiming her as his fated mate. Furious to find she’s already a mother and has built a life without him, Demetrius refuses to let her go.

Now Talitha must decide whether fate is finally offering her salvation or condemning her to a far crueler yet gilded cage.

Not your regular billionaire romance

She had a son with the most dangerous man in the city.
And he can never find out.

Four years ago, Aurielle Duval spent one reckless night with a stranger—
a night that left her with a little boy who has his impossible blue eyes.

She never learned his name.
He disappeared before sunrise.
And she rebuilt her life alone… until the day she walks into an interview at the world’s most powerful company.

Its CEO is Kieran D’Angelo.
Cold. Untouchable. Ruthless.

The man she prayed she would never see again.

He doesn’t recognize her
but he watches her, tests her, and claims her as his personal assistant.

What Kieran doesn’t know is that Aurielle carries more than his past.

She is the erased daughter of the D’Angelo empire—
a child they tried to destroy before she ever opened her eyes.

And the son she hides?
He’s the living proof of a truth that could tear the family apart.

When Kieran’s dark, charming cousin Dante returns—
obsessed with Aurielle and hungry for power—
a dangerous game begins.

Love, obsession, and blood collide.
And in a family built on lies,
the woman they tried to erase may be the one who brings the empire to its knees.

I’m running. Not just from the past, but from the man who made it a living hell. My father—human, cruel, a monster in his own right. He hated what I was, what my mother was, and he made me pay for it every day. Silver chains. Bruises. Screams. But I’m done being his punching bag.

But then the wolves find me and my little brother.

Their Alpha, Lucian, is cold and ruthless—and my mate. He rejects me without hesitation. Weak. Broken. Not fit to stand by his side.

Fine. Let him underestimate me. I’ll survive, for Henry and for myself.

Years later, I return, no longer the girl he cast aside. There’s a new threat, one that could destroy his pack—and I’m the only one who can stop it.

Lucian looks at me differently now—like he sees what he lost. The mate he pushed away. And there are times I can't resist...

In her past life, she trusted the wrong people—and betrayed the one man who loved her most. Blinded by lies, she pushed her fiancé into ruin. Yet even as the world turned against him, he forgave her. And in the end, he slaughtered all her enemies… before using the final blade to follow her into death.
Now reborn, she swears to rewrite her fate.
This time, she tears apart the fake innocents, crushes the traitors, and rises in brilliance—only for one purpose: to win back the heart of the man she once destroyed.
But little does she know…
He never truly left.
From the shadows, he has already laid his trap, created a world where she can only fall—back into his arms.
A love once buried in blood and regret will now reignite amidst vengeance, redemption, and fate's cruel game.

Twenty-one-year-old Adrian Blood had nothing — no parents, no money, he was just a scholarship and a girlfriend he thought was worth saving for. Valentine's night stripped even that away. Teresa chose his bully. Ricardo's men put him in the garbage, literally.

Then a voice activated in his head.

The Chosen Heir System doesn't do sympathy — it does missions. Its first order: save the sister of the man who just destroyed him. Adrian ran through the rain, bleeding, and did it anyway.

One mission. One million dollars.

Ricardo Rodriguez has no idea what he just created. And the system is only getting started.

In this era of universal awakening, I've drawn the most tragic "BOSS" route.

For the sake of my fiancée Celine's guild, I signed an exclusive binding agreement. For four whole years, I was treated like an ATM for loot drops, and was mercilessly killed 2173 times.

When Celine led 137 elite members of her guild, armed with a permanent kill item, to stab me in the heart, preparing to dig out my core to pave the way for her new love, she thought she was about to usher in the supreme glory of being the first to kill me on the entire server.

But what she didn't know was that the hidden max-level reward for the BOSS route was "system administrator privileges".

The sword tip stopped at my chest, freezing time across the entire server. I looked at the greedy traitor before me, smiled, and pressed the "Level Reset" button.
"Sorry, this game is now in my hands."

Strip away god-tier equipment and wipe out max-level accounts. This time, I will bring down the reigning number one in the entire server, making him start from level 1 in the newbie village and personally pay the price for those two thousand bloody battles!

When my own father pinned me against the reef and ripped my scales off one by one, my sister buried herself in my fiancé's arms and cried. "Don't blame my sister. She was born worthless."
Right there in front of everyone, they decided to offer me to the Sea God as a sacrifice. They couldn't even be bothered to send anyone to see me off.
But when I was dragged, half-dead, into the black prison, what came for me wasn't death.
It was the Sea God himself.
He wiped the blood from my tail and said, "Good. Let them keep piling on their sins. I'll make them drop to their knees and beg for your forgiveness."

Emerald Isle MC is a romantic suspense series that follows the motorcycle club's five officers as they navigate club life in Cascade Falls, North Carolina while finding love amidst running several local businesses, operating an underground fighting ring, and supplying guns to the Russian mob.


She is his ol’lady— his queen . . . and no amount of scars would ever change that.
Finn "Shamrock" Adair
Fifteen years ago, I became the President of the Emerald Isle MC . . . at the ripe age of twenty-two. It wasn't supposed to go down like that, though. Back then, I was young, enjoying life, and in love with the girl of my dreams.
Faylinn O'Shea wasn't just any girl. She was my Vice President's daughter, my sister's best friend, and a club princess— but she was mine. And our rival club, the Devil's Den MC, did the only thing they could to hurt us— they took my Faylinn.
I've run the club for the last fifteen years and spent every night searching for her. But, even though her brothers have accepted the probability of her death— I can't. So, I'll keep searching until I bring her home, dead or alive. I won't stop until we have a reunion or a funeral.
My determination pays off, but the reunion isn't as epic as I'd hoped. Fifteen years as a prisoner was bound to change her, and Faylinn isn't the sweet, little love of my life anymore. Of course, she's still the love of my life. I just don't know if I'm still hers.
I know one thing, though, I'm going to get revenge for her— for all the time she lost, and I'll become a savage worse than her captors to make sure they pay for what they did to my woman.


Books Included:
Shamrock
Dire
Timber
Claddagh
Grey
Shamrock's Purgatory
This book contains content, situations, and themes that may be sensitive for some readers.
Reader discretion is strongly advised.

Savage Sons Mc books 1-5 is a collection of MC romance stories which revolve around five key characters and the women they fall for.

Lydia has always tried to play by the rules: work hard, be honest, get good grades, and good things will come. For the most part, it’s gotten her far. She’s entering her senior year at Aegis and is on track to get her brother a decent lawyer and out of prison, while their grandfather is still well enough.

Soon after catching her boyfriend fucking her mentor, the Fortuna Nike informs her of the rules and conditions of her scholarship that weren’t even hidden in the fine print: an arranged marriage with whatever member they choose.

If she complies, her brother’s freedom is guaranteed. It should be an easy decision, but the thought leaves her shaking with dread.

Just as she resigns herself to the demands of the Fortuna Nike, Dorian Knox, a well-known playboy of the Fortuna Centurions, approaches her with a mutually beneficial—if insulting—offer: pretend to date him and bypass the Society’s matchmaking.

Unfortunately, Dorian is also the asshole who got her fired.


Dorian knows what he looks like, what he drinks like, what he fucks like, and most importantly, what he plays like. He revels in every wild party and vicious check into the boards as it’s the closest he’ll ever get to telling the Society to fuck off.

After his center’s high school sweetheart romance falls apart, the Society decides that Dorian needs a rebrand to help manage the fallout of the Centurions’ image. Threatened with losing everything he’s worked for and the freedom of his younger sister, he decides to play along… to the very letter of the Society’s laws.

He just needs a woman to play at being his girlfriend who won’t catch feelings and will do as she’s told.

The irritatingly no-nonsense maid who sets his blood on fire will have to do.

“Sophie Love's ability to impart magic to her readers is exquisitely wrought in powerfully evocative phrases and descriptions….FOR NOW AND FOREVER is the perfect romance or beach read, with a difference: its enthusiasm and beautiful descriptions offer an unexpected attention to the complexity of not just evolving love, but evolving psyches. It's a delightful recommendation for romance readers looking for a touch more complexity from their romance reads.”--Midwest Book Review (Diane Donovan) “A very well written novel, describing the struggle of a woman (Emily) to find her true identity. The author did an amazing job with the creation of the characters and her description of the environment. The romance is there, but not overdosed. Kudos to the author for this amazing start of a series that promises to be very entertaining.”--Books and Movies Reviews, Roberto Mattos (re For Now and Forever)FOREVER AND FOR ALWAYS is book #2 in the romance series THE INN AT SUNSET HARBOR, which begins with book #1, FOR NOW AND FOREVER—a free download!35 year old Emily Mitchell has fled her job, apartment and ex-boyfriend in New York City for her father's abandoned home on the coast of Maine, needing a change in her life. Tapping her life savings to restore the historic home, and with a budding relationship with the caretaker, Daniel, Emily prepares to open the Inn at Sunset Harbor as Memorial Day comes.But all does not go as planned. Emily learns quickly that she has no idea how to run a B&B. The house, despite her efforts, needs new, urgent repairs she cannot afford. Her covetous neighbor is still determined to make trouble for her. And worst of all: just as her relationship with Daniel is blossoming, she learns he has a secret. One which will change everything.With her friends urging her to return to New York City and her ex-boyfriend trying to win her back, Emily has a life-changing decision to make. Will she try to stick it out, to embrace small-town life, her father’s old house? Or will she turn her back on her new friends, neighbors and life—and on the man she has fallen in love with?FOREVER AND FOR ALWAYS is book #2 of a dazzling new romance series that will make you laugh, make you cry, will keep you turning pages late into the night—and will make you fall in love with romance all over again.Book #3 will be available soon.

The masked stranger slammed into him with one devastating thrust, stretching Carter so perfectly he sobbed against the desk. “Fuck—yes, just like that!” he begged, hips slamming back as the masked alpha set a brutal rhythm, fisting his hair and stroking his cock in time.

“Finally mine, after all this time,” the man growled, then sank razor-sharp teeth into his neck and pleasure exploded through him like lightning.

Until the mask slipped and Dallas Cross, his childhood bully and bane of his existence, stared back with a vicious, satisfied smirk.

On the day Carter was supposed to propose to the love of his life, Carter walked in to find her in bed with his mortal enemy, Dallas Cross, wealthy heir of the Cross Group global empire.

One week later, a drunken club hookup leaves him marked, mated, and impossibly, pregnant with Dallas’s heir. The ruthless werewolf storms back into his life, demanding Carter pack his bags and move into the luxurious pack mansion to accept their unbreakable bond and carry his son… or watch his bankrupt family lose everything.

Trapped between red-hot hate, an unexpected pregnancy, and the tiny life already growing inside him, Carter faces an impossible choice.

His strict parents are pressuring him to forgive the cheating fiancée and save them from ruin. Meanwhile, Dallas’s possessive alpha instincts won’t let him go, blocking every escape, and whispering dark promises of protection, pleasure, and forever.

With every heated glare turning into uncontrollable lust and every denial crumbling under the mate bond, Carter must decide: run from the enemy who destroyed him… or surrender completely to the powerful alpha who now owns his body, his heart, and his fate.

It had only been seventeen minutes since my wife passed away. My daughter was sobbing on the phone.

"Dad, they're trying to drive me out."

I stared at the medical report in the doctor's hand.

The first natural antibody carrier.Toxin levels in the blood: zero.

The same poison that killed my wife, that killed my six-year-old son…had left me completely unharmed.

The doctor lowered his voice."Mr. Miller, you have to stay. They're sending people to pick you up."

I let out a cold laugh.

"My daughter is trapped in the basement storage room right now. Is anyone here going to help her?"

Silence fell over everyone.

I grabbed the glass water cup from the bedside table.

"Five years ago, they handed me a disciplinary penalty and fired me from the rescue team. Everyone said I was good for nothing."

The cup smashed against the floor.

I picked up the longest shard of broken glass.

"Today, I'll show you all how a useless man saves lives."

Founding out her boyfriend got her sister Pregnant, Zoe Gil flirted with an unknown stranger and ended up marrying him in a flash.

But why did the stranger turned out to be the most richest and powerful man in the city?

The dealership called to inform me that my Rolls-Royce Starlight Headliner had been replaced with a pink one and was ready for pickup.
I was bewildered. I hadn't driven that car in ages—why would anyone change the headliner without my knowledge?
I confronted my husband, who managed our garage, demanding an explanation.
"Honey, maybe they got their wires crossed. I'll swing by the dealership later and sort it out."
I wasn't about to waste my breath. Instead, I called my friend directly—she happened to own the dealership.
"William's having an affair. I'm going to catch him red-handed."

Emily lives under constant threat, controlled by her cruel stepmother and stepsister. When her stepmother falls deeply into debt to one of the most feared mafia kings in the city of Texas, the mafia demands only one thing in return. She must hand over her daughter for a flash marriage tonight.

In exchange, Emily’s stepmother sells her to Mr. Ethan, a ruthless mafia boss. All the rumors about Mr. Ethan an old, fat, and merciless man only push Emily further into despair.

While staying in the mafia’s mansion, Emily meets a guard who accidentally enters her room. In her confusion and loneliness, Emily out of habit constantly talks about her terrible, cruel, and unbearable husband, as if Mr. Ethan were someone else entirely. The guard merely watches her coldly, without a smile, without a single comment.

When a shocking secret is revealed and the guard turns out to be Mr. Ethan himself, Emily is forced to face suffering and punishment far more severe than before.

To make matters worse, her stepmother and stepsister refuse to let Emily live in peace when a painful separation occurs between Ethan and Emily. Yet fate brings them together again when Emily, once more trapped by her mother’s schemes, is forced to become a strip dancer, living in a dark world she never imagined she would enter.

With Ethan’s help, Emily begins to take revenge on the stepmother and stepsister who destroyed her life amid games of power, vengeance, and under the ruthless command of Ethan himself.

Eighteen years ago, my mother traded her newborn for a gold-plated life, leaving me in a rust-stained trash can like a piece of discarded waste just to marry her rich boyfriend.

Now, she was back, weeping about "maternal regret" and "postpartum shadows”, saying she had regretted her decision every second of her life.

Overjoyed that my mother wanted me back, I packed my belongings and rushed to meet her.

However, the moment I stepped foot at her doorstep, I overheard her conversation with her darling daughter with her new husband.

“Of course, sweetheart! You will always be my one and only darling. I’m only adopting Vanessa back to wed her to Mr. Blackwood to save your Dad's bankrupt company.”

“You are not lying to me, Mom, are you?” Ramona, my step sister, tugged to my mother’s arms. “You won't share my love with sister Vanessa, will you?”

“Never.” My mother replied, her voice contained no warmth when mentioning me. “How can a village’s trash can compare to our princess?”

“If we wouldn't have to please that old hag of Blackwood company, we would never have brought your sister back.”

“An old master of Blackwood company and a village girl with no literacy, I think that's a match made in heaven.” Ramona smirked, followed by the sound of their laughter.

My legs at the doorstep froze, the momentary joy I felt shattered. The cold heart that had melted seeing my mother shed tears, became ice.

I watched the duo of mother and daughter, laughing and making fun of me, completely unaware that the company they were trying to please by offering me, was actually owned by me.

I was the CEO of Blackwood Groups.