2180 Book(s) Related to what was ryder looking for in his backyard

Kiara Black and Trey Thompson have a one night stand after meeting each other at a bar, attempting to find solace from their personal problems. Days later, Kiara attends a welcome home party for her best friend’s brother that she’s never met before. After finding out that she accidentally slept with Candice’s brother, she makes it her mission to avoid Trey at all cost, but he’s determined to make her fall in love with him.

"Satisfy me, and you'll have your reward. A reward for each time you do well." The words echoes in Aurora Duttman's mind as she stands frozen, realizing she's become a plaything for her new husband.
Aurora's life has been a tangled web of mistreatment and betrayal. Her father and stepmother have manipulated her, while her Ex boyfriend's infidelity has left her heartbroken.
In a bold act of revenge, she vows to lose her virginity to the next man she meets. That man turns out to be Luther Hawthorne, a mysterious, ruthless, and feared disabled billionaire.
With an arranged marriage to a man she's never met, Aurora uncovers a shocking truth: the man she lost her virginity to is the same man she's married to.
As she walks this treacherous new world, Aurora must confront the darkness of her past. Will she be lost in desires for her husband, or will she forge a path of revenge?
Warning: Mature Content

Kara lives with her mother and is forced to move to Boston. Because of her mom's new job. She leaves her friends and her college plans behind. She decides to make the best of it and continue her dreams of learning Karate and going to medical school. Once there, she gets attacked. A mysterious, handsome older man saves her. She later learns that he is her karate instructor. She falls in love with him and he feels the same about her. He teaches her things both on the mat and in bed. Will their love conquer all or be their doom?


A dream
We were somewhere near a waterfall. I was wearing a bikini, and he was wearing swim shorts. We went swimming. Then, I laid a towel down so I could give it a little bite. Not hard enough to hurt, but hard enough to feel it. At the same time, he is sucking on my left nipple. He is squeezing the right nipple with his fingers. He then leaves a trail of kisses from my left nipple to my right nipple, giving it the same attention, and he squeezes the left nipple like he did the right nipple with his fingers.

Elena, "I called her name as I pulled my lips away from hers".
"Let's stop. You're going to regret this tomorrow," I said, breathless.
"No, I won't," she whispered, before kissing me again - harder this time. God knows I was trying my best to control myself.
We kept kissing as she began unbuttoning my white shirt. Her hand slid down to my trousers, fumbling with my belt.
"No... I can't do this," I said, my heart racing. Ryder will kill me if he finds out.

Blake has been secretly in love with his best friend’s sister, Elena,who is five years older than him ,since he was ten. Their families are close, almost like one big family, which only made it harder for him to confess how he felt.
Now Blake is twenty and in college, while Elena, twenty-five, is already a successful CEO. When her boyfriend Aiden proposes, Blake decides it’s finally time to bury his feelings and move on.
But everything changes the night Elena kisses him.
The moment her lips touch his, the walls he built collapse. The feelings he tried so hard to kill surge back to life — fierce, uncontrollable, and impossible to ignore.
And Blake realizes one thing:
He can’t walk away anymore.
He has to fight for her — even if claiming her means risking everything.

During a trip to Athens, in the ancient temple of Apollo, Cecilia's life changes forever. Gerardo is deeply hurt because his ex-girlfriend Beatriz has broken up with him and has committed herself to a new man, his best friend, just two weeks after ending things with him. Desiring to forget his painful past, Gerardo travels to Greece and there he meets Cecilia. Both share a love for ancient sites; she is a beautiful journalist who is studying the temple of Apollo for a report. But amidst hundreds of tourists, they experience an attack by werewolves, with Cecilia and Gerardo being the only survivors. What do these monsters seek in the temple of Apollo? And why do they look at Cecilia as if they want to devour her and possess her at the same time? Gerardo wonders if he is capable of defending this beautiful young woman and facing supernatural beasts, but Apollo will grant him what he needs to defeat the Lycans. Cecilia will have an intimate connection with Gerardo, joining him forever, and later, when she is kidnapped by the Alpha Lycan of the pack, he will reject her upon discovering the truth.

"I love you,"
"You do realize that you are married to my best friend, the Beta of the pack right?"
"We aren't married yet. Just engaged,"
"What's the difference?"
"I can choose not to marry him."
"Sorry, not on my watch. We should probably stop seeing each other,"
Morticia, after being engaged to the Beta of the pack, finds herself falling in love with the Alpha of the pack. She tries hard so as not to embarrass her parents by sticking with Jacob.
Jake tries his best to hide his feelings for Morticia while trying to protect his friendship with Jacob but things take a drastic turn when he finds out Morticia is his mate.

Olivia Steele flees her oppressive stepfather, seeking refuge in an arranged marriage with Seth Brown, a man she's never met. Drawn in by Seth's striking looks and practical lifestyle, Liv wonders if this union could bring solace to her family. But as doubts creep in and Seth reveals his lack of intention, their marriage hangs in the balance. Can Liv find true love in a relationship born out of duty, or is she destined for a life of unfulfilled promises?

Twenty-two-year-old Scarlett "Scar" Justice thought she could hide forever behind fake names and stolen lives. But when killers track her to Chicago's deadliest neighborhood, she runs straight into the arms of the one man who could destroy her completely. Vincent "Viper" Capone is thirty-eight, ruthless, and heir to the most feared crime family in the city. He rules with bullets and blood, and his enemies don't live to see morning. When he saves Scar from assassins, he doesn't know she's the daughter of FBI Director Marcus Justice—the man sworn to bring down everything Viper has built. All Viper knows is that this mysterious girl with fire in her eyes makes him feel things he thought died long ago. As gang wars explode across Chicago and bodies pile up in the streets, their forbidden attraction becomes impossible to ignore. But in a world where love is weakness and trust means death, their secret romance could start a war that burns the entire city to ash. When the truth comes out, Viper must choose between his family's empire and the woman who stole his heart. And Scar must decide if love is worth betraying everything she's ever known—or if some secrets are too deadly to survive.

Isabella Vaughn was poisoned by her husband Marcus and his lover Serena, dying in his arms for her pharma empire.
She awakens on her funeral day, reborn in the body of Lila Harrington, the dazzling heiress engaged to Julian Blackwood, heir to her family’s fiercest rival.
With a new face and enemy access, Isabella vows revenge. But Julian notices the change: sharper eyes, hidden secrets.
Trapped pretending to love the man who might see through her, her vengeance could destroy them both.

To make his "cousin" happy on Christmas Day, my husband brought home a cat.
The cat jumped into my mother's arms, triggering her allergies and causing an immediate asthma attack.
I frantically rushed her to the hospital emergency room,
only to witness my husband feeding medicine mouth-to-mouth to his "cousin."
While my mother lay unconscious, he didn't even ask about her condition.
Watching their retreating figures, I thought of the invitation letter in my email inbox offering a million-dollar annual salary job.
It seemed our five-year marriage had finally run its course.

Three years ago, I saved the life of Alessandro Gambino, New York's most powerful mafia boss.

He fell in love with me, a bartender.

His family was dead set against us, but his love won out. We got married.

After we married, he disappeared every month for "punishment day," claiming his family beat him with sixty-six lashes for breaking their rules by staying with me. Watching him suffer tore me apart.

Actully, I'm Sloane Lucchese, sole heir to the largest arms empire on the East Coast, hiding from a family war. I decided to reclaim my family name as soon as possible, so his family would finally accept me.

Finally, on our fifth wedding anniversary, I found out I was pregnant, and my father called to say they'd announce my return in two weeks.

I was going to tell Alessandro everything that night, both pieces of good news.

But that same day, I stumbled onto a secret—one that would destroy me completely.

In my past life, my Mafia Don husband left me and our unborn baby to burn just to save my half-sister.

Reborn, I watched him crush my fingers in a door to protect her once again.

"Hurt her, and we get a divorce," he sneered.

He thought the threat would break me. He didn't know his signature was already on the divorce papers hidden in my bag.

On the day of their lavish wedding, I took the hand of his deadliest rival, looked down from a helicopter, and pressed the detonator to his estate.

Betrayed to death by my own brother, I was reborn before the apocalypse descended.
He rushed to seize the god-tier [Copy] talent first, leaving the trash [Purification] talent for me.
He thought that with this talent, he'd have no worries and reign supreme in the apocalypse.
Meanwhile, I quietly closed the last door of my fortress.
He didn't know that his prized copying ability had a fatal flaw.

At my ex-wife's century wedding engagement banquet, she pointed at my nose and humiliated me publicly: "A waste of space who lays bricks, get out!"
Her wealthy new lover pressed my face hard into broken glass and forcibly dragged away my desperately crying five-year-old daughter.
I wiped the blood from the corner of my mouth, drew the "Ghost Mark," and dialed the Pentagon hotline that had been dormant for five years.
Three seconds later, twelve Black Hawk helicopters shattered the dome, and a special task force descended from the sky. A two-star general, amid the terrified gazes of the assembled elite, saluted me with a thunderous: "Ghost Commander, troops have arrived as ordered!"
My ex-wife, who had been so arrogant just moments ago, instantly collapsed to the ground.

In my past life, I spent everything loving Ronald Wright, only to watch him chase after his first love and marry her in the end. I died alone and sick in a hospital, forgotten.

After being reborn, I gave up. On our wedding anniversary, I asked for a divorce. I walked away from being a full-time housewife and became the youngest rising star in the design world.

But something changed. The husband who once ignored me suddenly cared. He came home every day, afraid I might cheat on him.
I sneered, “One day, you’ll be the one begging for a divorce.” He laughed, “Keep dreaming.”

I waited for him to realize, just like in the past, that he still loved the other woman and would force me to leave, giving me millions in return.

But this time, he pulled me into his arms and said, “What’s money after a divorce? I’m worth billions. It’s all yours. But you—you’re mine.”

Catherina Hanshaw Dalton has spent six years believing she lived a fairytale, married to billionaire Xavier Dalton, cherished by him, and building a life rooted in devotion, even amid one heartbreak she cannot control: their inability to have a child. Though Xavier assures her she is enough, Catherine senses his quiet disappointment, a wound deepened by the venomous hostility of his mother, Lydia Dalton. Lydia never misses a chance to insult Catherine’s infertility, idolize Xavier’s sister Mia and her children, or imply Xavier married beneath his status. Catherine endures it all, clinging to the one constant comfort, Xavier always defends her. Or so she believes.
This Christmas, however, Catherine’s dread of another humiliating Dalton family gathering turns into confusion. Lydia is gracious….kind, even. The manor is full of relatives, business partners, and esteemed guests, including Hunter Powell, Xavier’s ruthless business rival. The brief moment when Cathy’s eyes meet Hunter unsettles her, but nothing prepares her for Lydia’s “special Christmas gift.”
During the toast, Lydia presents Caroline Turner…a beautiful young woman who is allegedly four months pregnant through surrogacy…with Xavier’s child.

When Alexander Carter, the ruthless and irresistibly charming CEO of one of the country’s largest corporations, walked into my office, I thought he was there to terminate my contract. After all, I had just lost everything in a project sabotaged by his company. But instead, he made me an offer that would change my life: marry him for one year.

Sounds crazy? Maybe. But with my younger sister depending on me and the bills piling up, refusing wasn’t an option. In return, he offered enough money to rebuild my career and a contract to lead a project I had always dreamed of.

There was just one rule: don’t fall in love.

Simple, right? Or so I thought. Until I realized that behind his cold demeanor and flawless suits was a man full of secrets. A man who started to unravel me with every touch, every whispered word, every lingering glance.

Now, as I fight to keep up the façade of the perfect wife and uncover the conspiracies within his world, one question remains: when all this ends, will I be able to walk away unscathed?

Noah, usually inseparable from his father, had spent the entire week insisting that only I take him camping. His declared mission: mastering "real survival skills"—a not-so-subtle jab at his dad's preference for cushy glamping.
Liam played along, hamming it up as he swung our son goodbye. But beneath the teasing jealousy, something felt off. He packed the trunk too fast. Checked the gas without being asked. Almost assembly-line efficiency.
And that line about a last-minute client flying in from Chicago? Didn't sound like bad luck. Sounded like an excuse.
All week, he never pushed back. Just quietly, almost eagerly, waited for us to leave.
I figured he wanted the house to himself: scotch, cigars, silence.
Then the call came—and I got it.
He hadn’t cleared the house for peace and quiet.
He’d cleared it for her.

My daughter Lily was shot dead while she was performing on her own stage.
I rushed forward to shield her, and a speaker crashed down onto my right shoulder. The bone shattered.
My husband, Vincent, “shot the gunman dead” at once and sealed off the entire opera house.
When I woke up in the hospital room, the pain almost suffocated me. My right shoulder was wrapped in thick bandages, and when I tried to raise my arm, all I felt was a numb.
“…This isn’t what we agreed on.” The doctor’s voice was low and unsteady. “We only needed her blood sample for matching. Why did it have to go this far?”
“Lily’s blood type is a perfect match. This is the best possible outcome,” Vincent said. “I married Elena for this moment. I’ve been waiting for it.”
The doctor was silent for a few seconds. “But she’s your daughter… There’s no need to sacrifice a life, even if she is a Salaceno.”
Vincent cut him off. “You know how long an artificial heart can last. Camila’s daughter won’t hold out for long. I can’t put her through another surgery.”
“Camila’s child is the one I should cherish.”
At that moment, my blood ran cold. In his eyes, my daughter was nothing but an organ container.
He had no idea. All that talk about protecting his precious daughter—she wasn't even his.

They told me the baby was gone, but they didn't tell me my heart was being carved out, too.

I woke up on the operating table, paralyzed. Through my blurred vision, I saw my beloved husband, Marco, trembling with excitement as he held my medical chart.

"Her blood is perfect," he whispered. "It is a perfect match for Isabella. We can proceed with the transplant now."

"Finally. It wasn't in vain that I brought her back." My revered father let out a sigh of relief. "If it weren't for this day, how would someone who wandered outside for so many years be qualified to step into this house again?"

When my husband said "I love you," he actually meant "Your heart is perfect for the woman I truly love."

I couldn't scream; I couldn't move.

I could only watch helplessly as the silver scalpel pierced toward my chest, while my sister, Isabella, lay on the operating table next to me, smiling in her sleep.

I was never a long-lost daughter, nor was I a beloved wife.

I was just a mobile blood bank waiting to be slaughtered.

To help his life-saving benefactor, he personally pressed a pregnant me on the operating table to draw bone marrow.
I cried and begged him, "James, I'm pregnant. It's your child. Don't do this to me..."
But he had a look of disgust in his eyes. "Elizabeth, you'd lie about something like that just to get out of helping Mandy?"
Until there was a river of blood in the operating room and that unformed child turned into a pool of bloody water, he finally panicked.
Later, when he knew that the person who saved him in the fire ten years ago was actually me, he held my ashes and knelt outside the operating room for a full three days.

"Never call a girl a bi-t-ch," I said, my gaze locking onto his as he blinked awake, the bright blue drink I had just doused him with still trickling from his dark locks. "Or she might just give you a taste of her temper."

I flashed him one last sardonic smile before brushing past him and walking away, practically swaying with attitude.

Well, this year promises to be... interesting.

Carla Summers: a self-proclaimed connoisseur of sarcasm and the living embodiment of impulsive missteps. In an attempt to flee her tumultuous past, she relocates to California with her mom, hoping for a fresh start—and perhaps a chance to get it right this time around.

In her new home, Carla quickly befriends Josie and Tamia, her newfound accomplices in mischief, and for the first time in years, her life begins to feel like it's settling into a semblance of normalcy.

However, she also crosses paths with Asmodeus Stewart—the school’s irresistibly infuriating bad boy—and his entourage of less-than-stellar characters.

She detests him, and he returns the sentiment in full.

Yet, as poets often muse, the boundary between love and hate is perilously thin. Sometimes, when two people despise each other, that animosity can evolve into something far deeper.

A hopeless entanglement, one might say...

Arya V​itale, t​he da⁠ughter of​ his sw​o​r‍​n enem​y was supp​osed t‌o be a bar​g⁠aining⁠ chip
A p‍awn i​n a bloo‍d w‌a‌r but‌ from‌ the mome‍nt Giova​nni D‍e-Sa‌ntis laid ey‍es​ on her​, he didn’t see a p‌awn… h​e saw his

So he too‌k her
S​t⁠o⁠le⁠ her from her wed​d‍ing, force​d her into⁠ a cont‍r‌act marr‍⁠iage⁠,⁠ and br‍an‍d‍ed her w⁠ith his n​ame in ever​y way th‌at m⁠attered‌

To t⁠he wo‌rld, i⁠t was a b⁠us‍in‍ess stra⁠​tegy

T​‍o him‌ she was ne‌⁠ver meant‌ to be hi⁠‌s,​ it was an obsession

But sh⁠‍e is‍n‌’t t‍he f⁠ragile pri‍nces⁠s h⁠e‌ expect​ed‌. She’‌s sma​rt, sha‍r​p, hot-head​ed⁠, sassy, and far too goo⁠d a‌t ma​king hi‍m fee‍l things​‍ he buried long​ ago
And when she runs away he h​unts h‌er

Becau‌s​e Giovanni doesn’‍t​ lose
​Not h​is em‌pire
N​ot‌ hi⁠s‌ war

‍And never t‌he wo​m⁠an h‌e​‍’s‌ marked​ as his own
But some war​s ca​n’t be w‍on with bullets⁠

Some secrets⁠ re⁠fuse to stay buried

And the dead‌l‌iest betrayal may not come from his enemies at a​ll…
What happens when the​ one thing he can’t cont‌rol
is the only th‌ing that co‍uld destroy him ‍ is the only thing that could destroy him?
And a war that demands blood….even if it’s hers.

Damien Shaw survived three years in the frozen hell of Antarctica, until he received a phone call.

"Is that you, Daddy..."

His daughter was strapped to a cold operating table, waiting to have her organs harvested.

His wife Sophia was stripped naked and put up for sale at an auction.

Enraged, Damien descended upon San Francisco with countless elite assassins.

He vowed to make everyone who had humiliated his wife and daughter regret ever being born into this world!

Mia has always had a sharp eye, It's what makes her a great photographer and what's been making her life hell for the past month as someone is following her. When she escapes her mafia ex and moves into a new apartment, she thinks she's finally safe. She thinks the man across the hall is the one good thing in her life right now.

But she's wrong. Dante Voss has been watching Mia since the night she pulled him out of a burning building without knowing who he was. A man like him doesn't believe in accidents but he believes in her. The stalker she's been afraid of is her neighbor. The neighbor she's falling for is the stalker. And the line between being protected and being owned has never been thinner.

Some men don't pursue you. They simply make sure there's nowhere else to go.

Kingsrow International College is not for all kids. It’s for top kids, super smart kids, and kids who work hard. Atlas Knox Wainwright is all three. He’s head of the Kingsrow Knights basketball team. He’s the best kid in the school. He’s the boy no one can touch. His life is neat, in his hands, and just how he likes it.

Then Aurelia Hattie Miller from Houston, Texas comes, and all things change.

She talks big. She’s not neat. She speaks her mind and does what she likes. She does not fit in a fancy school like this, and Atlas tells her so. But when her marks go bad and his plan gets too much, they have to hang out each day. She needs him to teach her. He needs her to keep him on track. Both are mad about it.

But when you hang a lot with someone, you get them. You know their true self. Aurelia sees the hard weight Atlas holds in quiet. Atlas sees she tries much, even when she looks chill. While they yell and do night school time, they quit saying “no” to how they feel.

Until the big game comes. Until Atlas picks the ball, not her. Until all breaks.

Now he must pick what counts top: the good life he made, or the girl who flipped it.

Lucille was one of the most skilled female assassins, and on the previous night, she embarked on a top-secret mission. However, the mission's details were leaked, leading to her untimely demise at the hands of a traitorous companion. She never discovered the identity of the person who betrayed her before her death. But by some miracle, she was granted a new life, and was reborn as a girl with the same name. Determined to uncover the truth and seek revenge for her family, Lucille seized her second chance at life. She planned to avenge her loved ones. However, her plans were complicated by Joseph, an apparently frail man who was actually skilled in martial arts. And he seemed to fall for her deeply, now this newfound knowledge only added to the complications of Lucille's revenge plan...

"You are like a father to me, I can't marry you."
"If you can't, then I guess you prefer to be an orphan if your mother dies."
Juliet Jones, was torned in between saving her mother's precious life, and getting into a contract marriage with her father's closest friend, George Watson.
And when she was left with no better choice, and the time is ticking faster on her mother, she got married to Mr George, to save her mother's life.
But unfortunately it was too late, and her mother died, after she had already signed a contract agreement with Mr George.

Seraphina already knew what pleasure felt like, a secret she shared with her mother’s old friend.
Now, that secret is always with her. When her mother moves in with a new fiancé, Seraphina has to go with them to his large house. But she does not expect to meet a charming stepbrother, who quietly watches over her. A dangerous sexy eyes that want her in ways she cannot ignore. Seraphina tries to forget her past, but her sexual hormones kept failing her. How long will she hold herself?.......Sexual emotion know no boundaries....

“Don’t move.” His voice is low, commanding, and my body obeys before my mind can even process it.
I'm pressed against the cold marble wall of the palace, his hands traces my thigh, my body heated up in desire or fear, I can’t tell.
“Tell me you want this,” he murmurs, pressing his hardened cock against my pulsing center,
“Tell me you crave me Aria,” his lips brushes my ears.
“Tell me you want me to fuck you till the entire of Olympus hear you moan my name.” he nibbles on my ear.
I bite back a gasp, because yes, I want him. I want him in ways I shouldn't, in ways that terrify me.

Aria Hale was never meant for the underworld and she hated the king of the underworld more than anything.
After Aria is betrayed by her sister and fiance, She finds herself in the underworld and soul-bound to Hades… the god of death, danger and impossible desire. He's commanding, possessive and devastatingly handsome, with powers that makes her ache and his dominance that ignites a sudden fire inside of her that she can’t seem to control.
Although enemies at first sight, they are forced into a marriage that pushes her limit and in turn she challenges the control of Hades. In those stolen electric moments, their desire becomes impossible to resist.
But Aria is not done. Thrust back into earth by a mysterious shadow that she strikes a blood oath with. She comes back to earth for revenge against those who betrayed her and stop their plans before it happens.
But the underworld is bubbling and she is more dangerous than Hades expected….Far more dangerous.
Will Aria give into the passionate love between her and Hades or will she risk everything for her revenge and power?

"Run, mi amor, run, while I watch."
"I feel his eyes everywhere, always watching!"
Ever heard of a hunter becoming the hunted?
That is what happened to Victoria Alexander.
After years of getting betrayed by her husband and best friend, Victoria returns to the city, stronger and more determined to ruin his seemingly happy home.
But things turns out sour for her as her mission for revenge turns into a game in a serial murder case.
While hunting her ex-husband's happiness and an unknown serial killer, Victoria suddenly becomes the hunted.
The thrilling part is that she isn't hunted by just anyone but a powerful shadow, hidden in the dark, watching. Always watching with nothing but a single phrase that leaves chills in her.

Mandy's emotions ignite when she meets Jason, her brother-in-law. Amid a whirlwind of feelings, she finds herself trapped in an emotional dilemma, forced to choose between love and the burning desire that consumes her.

I was their real daughter.

The lost princess they found, brought home, and promised to protect.

But every time she cried, I was the one punished.

Every time she bled, I was the one accused.

When she disappeared, they said it was my fault. They tore my memories apart to prove it.

Fine , only if they stand where I stood, feel what I felt, will they ever know my pain.

"What if I told you I don 't care?" Amelia shot back, her tone sharp and unwavering.
Miguel 's lips curved into a sly smile, his eyes gleaming with challenge. "Then I 'd say you 're lying to yourself, Mia. Because no one fights this hard unless they feel something."
Amelia Hart 's quiet, predictable life is upended when her mother marries the wealthy Emilio Sanchez, bringing Amelia face-to-face with her new stepbrother, Miguel Angel Sanchez.
Wanton, arrogant, and infuriatingly charming, Miguel is everything she detests in a person. But sharing a home—and a school—turns Amelia 's disdain into a fiery rivalry, and their clashes soon spark something neither of them can deny.
Torn between her lifelong crush on the handsome, dependable Christian Grammer and the undeniable pull toward Miguel 's dangerous charm, Amelia 's world becomes even more complicated than she imagined.
As secrets are exposed and the pressures of their families, the media, and their own hearts collide, Amelia and Miguel must decide whether to risk it all for a love that feels as impossible as it does inevitable.
In this passionate enemies-to-lovers story, where love and hate blur at every turn, the greatest risk might just be following their hearts.
The Fine Line Between Us is a story of forbidden romance, self-discovery, and the courage to follow your heart.

Some rules are meant to be broken. Eva knows she shouldn’t fall for Josh—he’s her brother’s best friend, a constant in her life, and completely off-limits. But when his teasing, protective gestures start to stir feelings she can’t ignore, Eva is forced to confront a truth she didn’t expect: the heart wants what it wants, even if it’s the last thing she should risk.

#YAwritingcontest

On the morning before Christmas Eve, I was polishing my shoes in my apartment, preparing to meet my girlfriend Camilla's parents, who lived in the uptown, the next day to discuss marriage.
Through years of hard work, I finally bought a house in the city.
I suddenly had a splitting headache, and a blue system interface appeared on my retina, telling me that the sea level would rise by 8,000 meters in 24 hours and that a deep-sea mutated tide would submerge the world.
To survive, I must get 10 people to each transfer $ 5,000 to me before the countdown ends , and I will receive an asylum spot for each transfer I receive.

For four years, I tolerated Grayson’s blatant favoritism. He spoiled my roommate Mia with exquisite breakfasts every day, while leaving me with plain biscuits and bitter black coffee. I swallowed every unfair slight, hoping for true love. Yet he finally humiliated me thoroughly by choosing Mia over me for the elite corporate event, sneering that I was unworthy of high society. Hiding my identity as the university’s secret heiress, I stopped my father from ruining his career on impulse. I will let them attend the glamorous party—not out of mercy, but to deliver my quiet, devastating revenge. Now I only need time to decide my next move, and whether to accept my arranged engagement.

"Baby, lend me Stella for the movie."
When my fiancé Damon said this, I thought it was the most romantic thing ever. My guide dog starring in his Oscar-worthy film—what a perfect love story.
I'm Aria Sinclair, 26-year-old blind film producer with perfect pitch and endless money, but no eyes. So when he said "The press will go crazy for our story," I stupidly agreed.
Three weeks later, in the editing room:
01:47:23—Dull impact.
01:47:31—Familiar whimper.
01:47:35—Silence.
My perfect pitch never lies. That wasn't CGI—that was real impact. Worse, I knew that whimper. That was Stella, my guide dog, my eyes, my most loyal companion.
They killed her. For a goddamn trophy.
On premiere night, when Damon walked the red carpet with a strange German Shepherd, when I touched her paw and found no white star-shaped mark—
"This is not my dog!"
I broke down in front of hundreds of reporters.
"Honey, you're under too much stress," Damon said gently. "Maybe you need rest."
Whispers from the audience: "Poor blind girl..." "She really needs help..."
Just like that, I became the crazy one.
Abandoned by the world.
Betrayed by the man I loved most.
But they made one fatal mistake—they thought stealing my eyes would silence me.
Now it's time to let them hear what despair sounds like...
[Click to watch me destroy them both...]

I bought a handsome, aloof incubus from a clearance sale online to be my live-in maid.
For a week, he was perfect. Then he started fainting, his skin burning with a fever no amount of rest could fix. Panicked that I’d somehow overworked my best employee, I called the 24/7 Aphrodisiac (companyI bought him from) helpline.

Ma’am, our incubus models have a demonic lineage and you have got a high-output model. They have near-infinite stamina. They don't get 'feverish' from vacuuming. But... why did you have him doing 'housework'?"
"Because the house was dirty?"
The agent suddenly chuckled. "Ah, I see. Everyone has their own fantasies and kinks. Roleplay is very popular. But tell me, according to the log, when was the last time Xanthos received physical intimacy?"
"Huh?"
"Physical intimacy," the agent repeated. "Love, spoiling, skin-to-skin contact. If a male incubus doesn't get intimacy, his internal energy stagnates. They fall sick. Male models are much higher maintenance than females; they need constant affection to stay healthy."
My blood ran cold. "Affection? I bought him to mop the floors!"
"Ma'am," the agent's voice dropped. "You are on Aphrodisiac. We are the world's leading provider of supernatural escorts. Did you... did you not read the site description?"

Turns out, I hadn’t bought a demonic domestic servant.
I’d accidentally purchased a high-maintenance supernatural escort.
And apparently, if I didn’t start showing my “maid” some affection soon, he would die and I would be jailed for abusing my maid.

"Riccardo, please! I beg you!"
My water broke ten minutes ago. Warm liquid streamed down my legs and slowly froze into ice on the ground beneath me.
He stood on the other side of the bulletproof glass. In his eyes, there was not a trace left of the man I had once loved with all my heart.
In the Bellanona Mafia family, bloodline surpasses everything, and the hierarchy of age is an unyielding iron rule: the firstborn son shall inherit the entire underworld empire.
My sister-in-law Sofia and I were both pregnant, our due dates merely one day apart.
To make sure his elder brother’s child seized the succession right first, my husband coldly chose to sacrifice our own flesh and blood.
"My brother’s child must be born first." Riccardo’s voice came over the intercom, colder and more piercing than bitter winter wind. "This is what you owe them."
He had not only locked me inside this icy cellar. Just moments ago, his men pinned me down ruthlessly and injected a dose of medicine into my vein, solely to forcefully halt my labor.
Writhing in agony, I hugged my heavily pregnant belly tightly with both arms.
I could distinctly feel the little life inside me, once kicking and struggling relentlessly, growing fainter and fainter.
I’m sorry, my baby… Mommy is so sorry for you.

My husband's first love was in trouble.
When the news came, I was lying on the operating table.
Dr. Miller put down his scalpel and said to Dr. Johnson, "I'll leave my wife's surgery to you."

"If I don’t go now, I might regret it for the rest of my life."

With that, he turned and walked away.
Watching my husband's retreating figure, I couldn't hold back—tears fell.
The next second, the cold blade of a scalpel touched my skin.

Dr. Johnson spoke calmly, "Why the tears? With me here, you'll be fine."

"Do I want a taste?" his voice deeper than he had ever spoken. His eyes pinned on me like I was the only thing that fascinated him.

"What do I do? I thought to myself as he moved closer to me, I wanted to run away, to resist him but I was pinned to the wall by him. "Gosh I hate this man so much" his scent, his body, his beautiful green eyes, he was driving me crazy.
I know this is wrong, he has a fiancee and all but that makes me want him even mo re. "Get on the bed and spread your legs" his cold voice woke m e up and then I remembered I was just a maid to him. "Yes master".

"Psalm is a good friend. He is nice to me, he didn't do anything to me." Finally. I didn't stutter. I saw how his eyebrows shot up.

"Oh, really? Humans are never nice to anyone Klea. You know that, they just come and go. Meet you and hurt you. Just like what your mother did." He said sternly.

"No

My name is Athena, and my twin sister Vanessa and I are the great-granddaughters of the moon goddess. Growing up life was hard. I felt like an outcast, constantly getting into trouble just to get noticed but nothing worked, and eventually depression set in. My life wasn't the same until my grandfather's annual masquerade ball at the Royal Kingdom. When he grabbed my hand, I felt the sparks and instantly knew he was my mate. I finally thought I would be accepted by someone until my heart shattered when I saw him kissing my sister. That night when the clock struck twelve all bets were off, I turned eighteen and got my wolf. Now Venus and I will stop at nothing to take back what is ours. He is my mate!

Millie’s world is small and safe. It revolves around her parents and her two childhood best friends, Daxton and Sammy. They are her constant, her comfort, her definition of home. To her, that’s all she’ll ever need.
Or at least, that’s what she tells herself. Because deep down, she has always believed she would never be enough to be chosen.
Then Alan moves in next door. Raised by a single mother, Alan has spent his life earning everything the hard way. He has ambition, discipline, and a future built with his own hands.
But there’s one thing he’s never had…a real childhood... and someone who stays. And when he sees Millie, surrounded by laughter and warmth, he knows he’s found what he’s been missing.
He doesn’t just want to be part of her world. He wants her. Slowly, patiently, he begins to break through her walls.
For the first time, Millie feels something unfamiliar, something terrifying—Love.
But just when she starts to explore these newly felt feelings, everything changes.
Daxton, her protector, her closest friend, the one who has always stood by her, confesses his deep-seated feelings for her.
Now Millie stands at a crossroads she was never prepared for.
The boy who feels like home…Or the one who makes her want more.

"You will be married to the King of Grok on the fourth night, and that's final!"

I fell to my knees, the cold marble digging into my skin. I had studied for years in the flickering candlelight, memorizing every herb and poison to pass the healer's exam. I wanted freedom. I wanted to save my mother from the servant's quarters. I placed second. I thought I had won my life back.

But the King didn't give me a badge of honor. He gave me a death sentence.

"Raven Thorne shall be wed to the King of Grok," he announced, his voice echoing in the silent hall. Princess Ellie, the woman who had tormented me for years, slapped her hands over her mouth to hide her cruel laughter. She was supposed to marry the Beast. Now, I was the lamb being sent to the slaughter in her place.

They say King Liam drinks the blood of his enemies. They say he is more monster than man. And now, I have to walk into his bedroom, wearing the Princess's silk gown, and pray he doesn't tear me apart.

I looked at the King, tears streaming down my face. "I'll do it," I whispered, my voice trembling. "But my mother must be safe."

I sold my body and soul to a monster to save her. But when the carriage door opened and I finally looked into the Beast's golden eyes, I realized the terrifying truth...

He wasn't a stranger. He was the man I met in the woods.