2801 Book(s) Related to my wish lyrics

A Secretive Deal with My Billionaire Boss

A Secretive Deal with My Billionaire Boss

365.3k Views · Ongoing · Gregory Ellington
Madison Harper knows all too well the chaos Alexander Knight leaves in his wake. As the billionaire CEO’s personal assistant, she’s cleaned up after countless scandals, soothed ex-lovers, and kept his messy private life from spilling into the boardroom. But when one fateful night lands her in Alexander’s bed, the dynamics shift dramatically.
What begins as a moment of uncontrollable spirals into a neither can resist: Madison needs financial help for her mother’s mounting medical bills, and Alexander offers the resources—on the condition she becomes his girlfriend for a year. No strings, no emotions, just business.
But as the lines between their professional and private lives blur, Madison’s resolve to keep her heart guarded begins to waver. Beneath Alexander’s reckless charm lies a magnetic that draws her closer than she ever intended. Just as she starts to believe she might be more than his latest “arrangement,” the ghost of Alexander’s long-lost first love, Katherine, reappears, threatening to unravel everything they’ve built.
Can Madison protect her heart while navigating this high-stakes game of desire and deception? Or will this with her infamously reckless boss cost her more than she’s prepared to lose?
REVENGE MARRIAGE WITH MY EX’S POSSESSIVE UNCLE.

REVENGE MARRIAGE WITH MY EX’S POSSESSIVE UNCLE.

2.1k Views · Ongoing · Zohaa
“Marry me, Damien Hale.”
The words hung in the air like a gunshot.
For a moment, Damien didn’t move.
The faint smirk he’d worn vanished, replaced by something unreadable.
“What?” he said.
“I know how this sounds and I—”
“Tell me,” he interrupted, voice flat. “How does it sound?”
I swallowed. “I’m asking my ex-fiancé’s uncle to marry me. Do you need me to spell it out?”

I thought I had it all. Four years of love, loyalty, and dreams of forever with the man I trusted most. But one devastating secret shatters my world. The man I planned to marry has a family he’s hidden from me. A wife, a kid, and another one on the way.
The lies cut deep. The betrayal, deeper.
I didn’t cry, neither did I beg.
Instead, I will make him regret ever thinking I’d be the fool who stays.
My revenge? Bold and Scandalous.
I proposed marriage to the last man my ex would ever want me near. His wealthy, powerful, and dangerously captivating uncle.
To my shock, the uncle accepts.
But, not without his own terms.
What is it?
“You won’t just be my wife on paper, Serena. You’ll be mine in every sense that matters. Publicly. Privately. Behind closed doors, there won’t be an act. You’ll wear my name, my ring, and you’ll play the part until it becomes your reality.”
“No one… Not even you, forget who you belong to once you walk into my world. You asked a dangerous man to be your husband. Now you’ll live with what that means.”

The more time I spend with him, the more I realize he isn’t just a weapon for revenge, he’s a man who can set my body and soul ablaze.

Oh, Damn.
Revenge should never feel this intoxicating.
Dirty Affairs With My Daddy's Best Friend

Dirty Affairs With My Daddy's Best Friend

4.2k Views · Ongoing · Elysian Goddess
I was arrived at RavenHills Pack Estate, innocent and eager for college.
But my guardian, Alpha Zavian, has other plans. His hungry eyes follow me, awakening desires I never knew existed.
The first time he touches me, I melt. His strong hands caress my body, igniting flames between my legs. I crave his cock like a drug.
Zavian tries to fight it. "You're my best friend's daughter," he growls. But his rock hard erection tells a different story. He wants me.
When I bring home a boy, Zavian explodes with jealousy. "No other male will touch you in my territory," he snarls.
He pins me against the wall and claims my mouth in a searing kiss.
I whimper as his fingers find my dripping pussy. I get into heat and Daddy offers to take me on free sex lessons.
Ones that will disfigure my walking style before the morning. Zavian's cock has become my obsession.
I ride him, savoring each inch of his massive cock. His teeth mark my neck as he pounds me into intense bliss. But danger lurks.
The pack elders want Zavian to take a Luna. Scandals from his past threaten to tear us apart.
I discovered Zavian is the one who begged my father to send me here.
Now we have a choice: obey the pack or fight for our forbidden love. As enemies circle, I brace for the final showdown.
Will Zavian claim me as his mate...or will our passions burn us alive?
The truth will be revealed...right after one last earth-shattering climax.
My One Night Stand with Mr. Arrogant

My One Night Stand with Mr. Arrogant

1.1k Views · Ongoing · Blue_Hisbiscus
After getting drugged by her best friend at a party, Amelia ends up having a one night stand with a stranger.
That stranger turned out to be Liam Grayson the ruthless, arrogant, and most successful CEO in their country.
"It was just a stand think of it as a gift from me to you" Liam pointed out and in the next second Amelia grabbed his index finger that was pointing at her.
"It might be a stand but not all girls are dying to be on your bed especially not me" Amelia replied through gritted teeth.
Liam caught hold of her neck "I can be scary, don't try to act special, I will compensate you for your loss" he muttered as he stared at the red stain on the bed sheet.
Amelia met his eyes "Well I'm not scared of you Mr. arrogant" She pulled his hand off her neck and left the room.
Liam narrowed his eyes at her retreating, no one ever spoke back to him instead they cowered back in fear...
One Night Stand With My Husband's Cousin

One Night Stand With My Husband's Cousin

623 Views · Ongoing · Diana Abi
Ava Grayson and Luke Carter get thrown together by a marriage of convenience schemed by their parents.

What happens when Ava finds out that her one night stand is her soon to be husband's cousin and Luke's Ex showing up with twin babies on his wedding day?

Find out in the book...
In Bed With My Ex-husband’s Uncle

In Bed With My Ex-husband’s Uncle

1.4k Views · Ongoing · michelleshavinsky2016
Verena decides to give her marriage another chance only for her husband to bring in another woman, suggesting an open marriage. To make it fair, he tells her that she can date anyone as well and the idea of an open marriage was to make things work between them.

Done with Kian’s lack of respect for her, she takes his advice and gets into a one-night stand with someone who shakes up her world, who looks at her with the same affection she searched for in Kian’s eyes but never found.

The catch?— He is Daxton, Kian’s uncle.
Now, Daxton refuses to let her go. And Kian? He isn’t willing to lose her either.
Once Upon a Night With My Stepdad

Once Upon a Night With My Stepdad

1.6k Views · Ongoing · Marvey_pearl
"We can even make it a one-time thing." She said, "We almost did this before..." But she quickly held herself and instead said, "My mom won't even know a thing, I promise." She said, sounding really desperate.
"There's no way you won't ask for more, Scarlett," Adrian argued weakly.
"Then I wouldn't be in the wrong for doing that." She maintained spiritedly.
"I mean, why can't you just leave my mom and date your age? Or do you think she's dating only you? She's got numerous men at her beck and call, and at the end of it all, she's going to dump you. I am actually the one with the money."
"I don't care about the money." Adrian continued stubbornly.
"I know this has nothing to do with true love. What exactly do you want from my mom? What do you have on her?"


Scarlet Davenport, a billionaire heiress and the only surviving daughter of a widow and men-loving cougar; Vivian Davenport, wakes up to find Adrian Hartfield, the man whom she had an instant crush on after meeting at the club being introduced to her as her potential stepdad.
She realizes for the first time in her young life that she might have to go against all odds to fight for her prince charming even if it means employing the art of seduction to get Adrian to her bed.
When hateful and numerous vile forces notice these weak spots in the family and decide to exploit them to their advantage, will Adrian and Scarlett realize their combined strength early enough? Would they overcome the odds?
One Lustful Night With My Alpha Professor

One Lustful Night With My Alpha Professor

1.2k Views · Ongoing · M.E Julie
"Your pusy is such a slut, little one." His deep baritone echoes as he trace a wet line through my clt.
"Yes, yes." I let out, my hips squirming as I cling to him. My professor.
"So…slmy with juices. My fngers ain't even inside yet." I swallow hard at his words, my face flushing red as my hunger grows. "Tell me, little one. How many fngers do you want inside you?"
"Two. Please give me…two, professor." Is all I manage to say as he thust two f*ngers inside me and immediately his eyes changed.


One minute Rain was nursing her heartbreak with several shots. The next she finds herself in an alley with a hot stranger. It was a long night of moans, thrust and need.
The morning Rain finds out the hot stranger from the previous night is her new professor. He's larger than life. One look at him shows he's power personified but there's this disturbing secret about him. Yet Rain is so much attracted she can't resist.
How long will it take her to figure out she's just a bait in a plot for revenge?
Shameless With My Father's Mafia Best Friend

Shameless With My Father's Mafia Best Friend

3.3k Views · Ongoing · Lessybrie
"Daddy Please," He looked up from between her thighs and gave her a warning glare "Careful little flower, you don’t want to sleep with an aching pussy, do you?"
Lilliana Barnette is your typical timid teenage girl who finds herself falling more and more in love with the handsome Damon Michaelson....her father's best friend, a man much older than her and one she's to refer to as her uncle.
Damon Arnold Michaelson, a multi-billionaire business tycoon, bachelor in his prime known for his irresistible charm amongst the ladies. He finds himself falling for his niece Lilliana, but.....being his best friend’s daughter meant she was forbidden to him but his desire for her only grew with each passing day....even when he was being intimate with other women, she took over all of his thoughts without even trying. He knew he had to keep his distance from her but instead, found himself wanting to touch her every chance he got....his mind wanted to own his best friend’s daughter in ways no one had ever done not even her boyfriend, and all the while she innocently kept thinking he's not affected by her or her body unaware of his filthy need to claim her as his for everyone to see.
Everything changes when his said best friend has to leave the city for a business trip, entrusting him with the responsibility of taking care of his only daughter.
Now leaving under the same roof the two find themselves in a love/lust infested dilemma, with each passing day it got even harder for them to conceal their feelings for each other....though they tried at first and eventually their forbidden desire wins....they start meeting up secretly as often as possible, away from prying eyes....most importantly away from Lilliana's father's eyes.
I fell in love with my kidnapper

I fell in love with my kidnapper

19.2k Views · Ongoing · Azu
"Spread your legs. If you don't do as I say, I'll open your pussy with my whole hand. Understand?" His voice was calm and firm.

I whimpered loudly but nodded.

"Good baby, now let's get started on what I want. Will you be a good girl?" His voice was once again filled with coldness.

"Yes." I whispered as I clenched my teeth and managed to place my hands in his. His hands were big and held me firmly.

"Good girl." He replied sarcastically. But before he let go of my poor nipples, he rubbed his palms over the sensitive and delicate pussy...

Alan Hillman is a man with a singular interest in revenge. Kidnapped as a young boy and sold into slavery by a power-hungry mobster, he has thought of nothing but vengeance.

For twelve years he has immersed himself in the world of pleasure slaves searching for the one man he holds ultimately responsible.

Finally, the architect of his suffering has emerged with a new identity, but not a new nature. If Alan is to get close enough to strike, he must become the very thing he abhors and kidnap a beautiful girl to train her to be all that he once was.

But what if he falls in love with the girl he kidnapped?
In War with My Mother-in-Law

In War with My Mother-in-Law

961 Views · Ongoing · Ayomiposi Damola
Twenty-four-year-old Susan Stone, a quiet Grade 2 teacher, never imagined her life would collide with power, passion, and betrayal. But everything changes when she meets Joseph Hudson—the soon-to-be governor of California. Towering at 6'7" with the chiseled body of an athlete, piercing blue eyes, and a beard as commanding as a Viking warrior's, Joseph exudes confidence and authority wherever he goes. Their paths cross when he returns to his old elementary school with plans to give back—and Susan is caught in his magnetic pull.

What begins as a chance encounter soon ignites into a whirlwind romance that’s raw, intense, and irresistible. In a matter of weeks, Susan finds herself swept into a fairytale marriage with one of the most powerful men in the state. But beneath the glamorous facade of Governor Joseph Hudson lies a harrowing secret—one that shatters everything Susan believed about love.

Just one week after their honeymoon, Susan uncovers the unthinkable: Joseph is entangled in a twisted, passionate affair with his own stepmother, Maggie Anderson. And the most terrifying part? Neither of them shows an ounce of guilt. Instead, they issue a chilling threat—if Susan dares expose the truth, her life will be the price.

Pregnant and betrayed, Susan is left broken and terrified. With the weight of a deadly secret pressing on her and a child growing within her, how will she fight back against the most powerful man in California? Can she survive the storm—or will the truth destroy her before she has a chance to escape?
I Fell In Love with my Bully

I Fell In Love with my Bully

860 Views · Ongoing · Egua Jennifer
Kimberly Smith thought winning a scholarship to Greywood Academy would be her way out. Straight A’s. A fresh start. A future that her mom could finally be proud of.
Instead, Greywood takes one look at her thrift shoes and homemade lunch—and decides she’s entertainment.
They call her Scumbag of the Week.
They film her, mock her, and turn every mistake into a headline.
And the worst part? The boy who started it is the one person she can’t avoid.
Xavier Grey is the heir everyone fears, the boyfriend every girl worships, and the bully who knows exactly how to break people with a smirk. Kimberly swears she’ll survive him, not fall for him.
Then the lines blur.
A “dare kiss” goes viral. Someone pushes her into a pool. Her scholarship is suddenly under review—with “evidence” that makes her look guilty. Her only friend turns against her. Even her mother starts to doubt her.
And Xavier—cold, controlled Xavier—starts showing up when it matters. Warning her away from traps. Paying to erase posts. Touching her tears like he hates that they exist.
Greywood is built to crush girls like Kimberly.
So why does its most dangerous boy look like he might burn it down for her?
Reunion With His Child: My CEO Boss Is Obsessed With Me

Reunion With His Child: My CEO Boss Is Obsessed With Me

479 Views · Ongoing · Irene Vale
To pay for her daughter’s leukemia treatment, Nora takes every job she can find. But the wedding she’s hired to plan belongs to the one man she never expected to see again.
Five years ago, Xie Yanchen was her first love. Now he’s a powerful CEO… and about to marry another woman. Worse, she must plan their wedding herself.
What he doesn’t know is that she secretly gave birth to his child.
What she doesn’t know is that this reunion will change both their lives forever.
As the truth slowly comes to light, he realizes the woman he once lost has spent five desperate years raising his daughter alone.
Rejected By My Best Friend & Alpha

Rejected By My Best Friend & Alpha

2.1k Views · Ongoing · Lyris Opal
Zeke and I always said we’d be best friends forever since we were pups. Everyone always assumed we’d end up as mates but we laughed it off. So when we both turned 18 and the string of destiny snapped into place tying us together, I was over the moon. But why is Zeke looking at me like I have two heads? Why is he telling me he’d never mate with a mutt like me? What happened…to best friends forever?
The Granted Wish

The Granted Wish

16.6k Views · Ongoing · inue windwalker
Paige was a homebody college student with a big imagination. Every weekend, like clockwork, she would write for hours on end, about none other than the Dragon King himself. She never thought in a million years that one night, while writing that her wish to be with the King would be granted by the very notebook she wrote in.
The Mechanic Who Bought My Ruined Wedding

The Mechanic Who Bought My Ruined Wedding

496 Views · Ongoing · Lyric Ross
Mara Vale knew how to save ruined things.

Rotten silk. Smoke-stained lace. Wedding gowns torn by jealous hands or careless lovers. In the old brick shop her mother had left her, Mara could lift a century of dirt from a veil and make every hidden stitch disappear.

But on the night of her own wedding, there was nothing she could save.

Her fiance was in the hotel bridal suite with her stepsister. Her father called her ungrateful when she refused to smile through the betrayal. By midnight, Mara had lost her groom, her family, and the deed to the shop that carried her mother's name.

Then rain drove her into a garage on the wrong side of downtown, where a dangerous young mechanic caught her before she hit the concrete.

Dante Cross smelled like motor oil, wore a dirty white tank under his coveralls, and looked at Mara as if he had been waiting eight years to find her.

Everyone thought he was poor.

Everyone was wrong.

And when Mara's enemies dragged her onto a livestream and called her a thief in front of fifty thousand strangers, the man from the garage stepped between her and the slap meant to break her.

He did not ask permission.

He simply said, "Touch her again, and find out who owns this street."
I fell inlove with my brother not knowing he is my brother

I fell inlove with my brother not knowing he is my brother

456 Views · Ongoing · mphokhensi69
"I fell in love with a stranger. I didn't know he was my brother."
When I first saw Victor, I didn't see a sibling. I saw a man who set my skin on fire. I saw a pair of dark eyes that reflected my own soul. Our attraction wasn't just a choice—it was a gravity I couldn't escape. For weeks, we existed in a fever dream of late nights and whispered promises, building a future on a foundation I never knew was forbidden.
Then the truth came out. One old photograph, a single name, and my world shattered.
Now, the touch that felt like heaven feels like a sin. But how do you stop your heart from beating for the one person you were never supposed to touch?
Cyber Pursuit: Betrayed by My Wife, I Join Hands With My Rival

Cyber Pursuit: Betrayed by My Wife, I Join Hands With My Rival

426 Views · Ongoing · Ryu
In my past life, I signed a marriage agreement, served as a live-in son-in-law for five years, and died in a hospital. Meanwhile, my "wife," Grace, was on the moon, embracing her lover and watching the star rings.
Given a second chance, she threw the agreement in my face at the marriage summit: "Sign it. After the wedding, I'll go find Karl. You'd better act like the legal wife."
I didn't refuse; I just tossed the agreement to my emotional nemesis .
The whole city laughed at my madness.
Until Grace flaunted her "pure-blood heir" at the 100-day celebration, I publicly projected her sterilization report—
the bastard in her arms was the product of her lover and a downtown prostitute.
And her lover was being mutilated in the downtown area.
In this life, I'm not a live-in son-in-law; I'm her gravedigger.
Reborn, I Joined Forces With My Nemesis to Destroy My Ex’s Regret

Reborn, I Joined Forces With My Nemesis to Destroy My Ex’s Regret

1.2k Views · Ongoing · R0b0t
My name is Damian Lemaître.

In my past life, I was Serafina Camarilla's lapdog for ten years, being drained of my life, used, and squeezed dry of my last bit of value.

I opened my eyes and found myself back at the scene of the blood pact ceremony. She sat on the high seat, waiting for me to kneel down and swear the oath with the same excitement as in my previous life.

"Damian Flamel, are you willing?"

"No."
A Dirty Secret With My Best Friend's Dad

A Dirty Secret With My Best Friend's Dad

1.8k Views · Ongoing · Amy Butterfly
"Si... Sienna, you're drunk..." he rasps.
"Nope." I smile. "I know exactly what I'm doing. And... I've always wanted this."
"I've had a crush on you since forever... so I can never be wrong."
I never expected that crashing at my best friend's family lake house while her parents were away would lead to something forbidden. Her father—the man I'd known all my life—became the center of a night I couldn't resist. The attraction between us ignited into a dangerous, consuming connection that left me trembling until dawn. I slipped away quietly in the morning, hoping to forget and avoid him entirely.
But fate had other plans. Soon, I found him sitting across from me as my new boss. Every glance, every word carried an unspoken tension, a power struggle I couldn't escape. I tried to resist, but the pull between us was irresistible. In the privacy of my office, I indulged in the memory of that night, testing boundaries, surrendering to desire while he watched and controlled, reminding me who held the power.
Eventually, the line between defiance and submission, punishment and reward, blurred. And just when I thought our secret was safe... his daughter walked in, shattering everything.
Faking It With My Worst Enemy On Ice

Faking It With My Worst Enemy On Ice

961 Views · Ongoing · Cherry Cynthia
Clare Voss has spent five years loving her stepbrother Zane in silence, cooking his breakfast, cheering at every match, and dreaming of the day he would finally see her.

But on his birthday, everything falls apart when his girlfriend exposes Clare's most humiliating secret in front of the entire team.

Just when Clare is ready to disappear, Rhys Calloway, her worst enemy and the team's arrogant captain, pulls her into his arms and tells everyone she is his girlfriend.

She should have pushed him away, but she kissed him back instead.

Now Clare is locked into a two-month fake relationship with the most infuriating man she has ever met, trying to get over a stepbrother who never cared and survive a captain who makes her forget why she was supposed to hate him.

The problem is that Rhys kisses like he means every single second of it, and just when Clare starts to move on, Zane decides he wants her back.

One girl, two hockey players, and a heart that was never supposed to feel this much. Will she choose the stepbrother who broke her or the enemy who caught her when she fell?
OFF-LIMITS: Rooming With My Best Friend's Brother

OFF-LIMITS: Rooming With My Best Friend's Brother

3.7k Views · Ongoing · miraclemaicibi
I moved into my sister’s house to escape my ruined divorce, but I never expected her aggressively cheerful best friend to become my darkest, dirtiest obsession. Lila and I hated each other on sight. But everything changed the day I walked through the front door……

She was right in the middle of our shared living room on a pink yoga mat. She was in the downward dog position, her hips arched in the air, wearing nothing but extremely short black yoga shorts that clung to her tight ass, and a minimal top that left her heavy cleavage spilling out.

I completely froze. Unwanted, utterly unexpected images flashed through my mind—me standing directly behind her, my hands gripping those firm hips, ripping those tiny shorts down, and thrusting into her wet heat right there on the laminate floor while she screamed my name. I dropped my groceries in shock.

But the real torture came at 4 AM. I woke up sweating, my cock throbbing and painfully hard against my plaid pajama pants from a wet dream where I was kneading her breasts and burying my tongue down her throat while I fucked her over the arm of the couch. I jumped out of bed for a cold shower to kill my raging boner. Instead, I slammed right into her in the pitch-black hallway.

Her soft, warm stomach pressed flush against my bare chest, and worse—my rock-hard cock twitched and pressed directly against her bare thighs. I flew backward like her skin had seared my flesh. We stood there in the dark, breathing heavily. Her eyes drifted down my torso, landing directly on the heavy bulge in my pants. She stepped closer, her sweet strawberry scent filling my lungs, and whispered seductively, "What, you can check me out but I can’t check you out?" She bit her bottom lip, her gaze full of pure, wicked lust, before slipping into her room. I stood there gripping the doorframe,my dick aching for release. I’m a grown LAPD officer, and she’s my sister’s best friend. If I touch her, it will ruin everything. But God, I am going to tear her apart...
Accidentally In Love With My Best Friend's Brother

Accidentally In Love With My Best Friend's Brother

26.7k Views · Ongoing · Destiny Williams
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.
One Night with the CEO Before My Divorce

One Night with the CEO Before My Divorce

939 Views · Ongoing · MIFA
In the early morning hotel room, Jocelyn awakens from the bed after passion, with scattered clothing on the floor bearing witness to last night's madness. The man behind her asks in a low voice: "One more time?" She coldly refuses: "No, I need to go find my husband." This seemingly absurd one-night stand is actually her carefully orchestrated revenge—hiring a male escort to get back at her cheating husband, yet mistaking the immensely powerful Herman Thorne for a bar worker.

Jocelyn Richter was originally a wealthy heiress whose marriage to childhood sweetheart Ashton Rowland seemed perfect but was built on lies. When her parents died in a suspicious car crash, she discovered her husband's affair with pregnant college student Lillian, shattering the illusion of a perfect marriage. Transforming from naive wife to strategic mastermind, she learned to weaponize her beauty, manipulate public opinion, and navigate corporate politics, evolving step by step from victim to controller.

Ashton Rowland is a hypocrite beneath his perfect husband facade. After conveniently developing amnesia, he oscillates between devoted lover and shrewd businessman, embodying the dangerous charm of mistaking possession for love, using emotional manipulation and corporate threats to maintain control over his wife.

Herman Thorne is the head of the nation's top-tier family, yet finds himself deeply attracted to a woman who dares to see him as an equal. Unlike Ashton's conditional love, he expresses care through actions—making breakfast, tending wounds, clearing misunderstandings, hiding a complex heart unaccustomed to vulnerability beneath his powerful exterior.

Jocelyn fights for substantial divorce compensation, investigates the truth behind her parents' death, and navigates dangerous feelings for Herman. She moves with ease through corporate boardroom battles, creates media storms by live-streaming her husband's infidelity exposure, while discovering the connection between her parents' car crash and the Rowland family's dark secrets. In this multi-layered game of business warfare, romantic entanglements, and truth-seeking, she gradually unveils the hypocritical facade of this elite world.

In the final café confrontation, Ashton signs the divorce agreement after receiving a mysterious phone call from his father. Just as he desperately grips Jocelyn's wrist with bloodshot eyes, pleading for another chance to pursue her, a familiar voice rings out: "Let her go." Herman appears at the crucial moment, but the real suspense lies in—what explosive secret was hidden in that phone call? How will the truth about her parents' death reshape everything? As her revenge plan concludes, Jocelyn stands at life's crossroads, facing not only freedom but also increasingly passionate feelings for this man once mistaken as "hired help," and these feelings may be the most dangerous truth of all.
[R18+] Shameless With My Father's Mafia Best Friend

[R18+] Shameless With My Father's Mafia Best Friend

1.8k Views · Ongoing · Lessybri
"Please don't stop," she moaned, tugging at her restraints. The two cold metal rings dug into the soft skin around her wrists.
"Careful little flower, you don't want to sleep with an aching pussy do you??"
●●●
Lilliana Barnette is your typical timid teenage girl who finds herself falling more and more in love with the handsome Damon Michaelson....her father's bestfriend, a man much older than her and one she's to refer to as her uncle.
Damon Arnold Michaelson, a multi-billionare business tycoon, bachelor in his prime known for his irresistible charm amongst the ladies. He finds himself falling for his neice Lilliana, but.....being his bestfriend's daughter meant she was forbidden to him but his desire for her only grew with each passing day....even when he was being intimate with other women, she took over all of his thoughts without even trying. He knew he had to keep his distance from her but instead, found himself wanting to touch her every chance he got....his mind wanted to own his bestfriend's daughter in ways no one had ever done not even her boyfriend, and all the while she innocently kept thinking he's not affected by her or her body unaware of his filthy need to claim her as his for everyone to see.
Everything changes when his said bestfriend has to leave the city for a business trip, entrusting him with the responsibility of taking care of his only daughter.
Now leaving under the same roof the two find themselves in a love/lust infested dilemma, with each passing day it got even harder for them to conceal their feelings for each other....though they tried at first and eventually their forbidden desire wins....they start meeting up secretly as often as possible, away from prying eyes....most importantly away from Lilliana's father's eyes.
I’m In Love With My Older Karate Instructor

I’m In Love With My Older Karate Instructor

224 Views · Ongoing · Beatrice Putnam
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.
IN LOVE WITH MY BEST FRIEND'S OLDER SISTER

IN LOVE WITH MY BEST FRIEND'S OLDER SISTER

877 Views · Ongoing · Wyatt
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.
My Stepbrother Set Me Up With His Friend

My Stepbrother Set Me Up With His Friend

1.1k Views · Ongoing · Alice Ellan
After my mother remarried, my stepbrother Logan bullied me nonstop every day. I lived in constant agony, isolated and helpless, forced to endure all the abuse alone.
When I was close to giving up, Logan’s best friend Noah reached out to me. He was sweet and caring, bringing me much-needed warmth. I latched onto him blindly, believing he was my only savior and my last ray of hope.
Yet his kindness was all a lie, a cruel trap planned by him and Logan. He gained my trust just to betray and hurt me. My last hope crumbled completely. Broken and devastated by their deception, I cut off all ties and left this painful place for good.
CUFFED WITH MY 3 HOT MAFIA ALPHA STEPBROTHERS

CUFFED WITH MY 3 HOT MAFIA ALPHA STEPBROTHERS

65.2k Views · Ongoing · Universeleap
"Spread your legs for us, baby," Khuraan growled, voice rough and commanding. "We want to see what’s ours."

My breath caught.

Zarkhan leaned down, his breath hot against my throat. "You said you could handle all three of us. Prove it."

"And don’t even think about faking it," Hakkan added, his tone a silky threat. "I’ll know. I always know."

Their eyes bore into me—three alphas, three predators circling their prey. The air crackled with dominance, with a heat that drenched me from the inside out.

Khuraan's fingers grazed my cheek, tilting my chin upward. "Touch yourself, baby. Show us how badly you need to be claimed."

My heart thundered in my chest. Every inch of my skin burned, every nerve tuned to the weight of their stares. I was trembling—part fear, part hunger.

"Say it," Zarkhan hissed. "Say you want us watching. Say you want to fall apart for your alphas."

A moan escaped me before I could stop it.

"I want..." My voice shook. "I want you to watch me."

"Good girl," Hakkan murmured. "Now don’t stop until we tell you to."

Giselle Blanco thought she’d escaped the claws of a possessive Alpha when she fled Omaha. But running straight into the arms of three dominant, dangerously intoxicating stepbrothers? That wasn’t part of the plan.

Khuraan—the bold, ruthless mafia Alpha of the East—wants to see how far she’ll bend before she breaks.
Zarkhan—the silent storm ruling the West—wants to bury himself in her until she forgets her own name.
And Hakkan—the seductive doctor with lethal instincts—knows just how to read her every secret desire... even the ones she’s too ashamed to whisper.

They want her to kneel. To beg. To surrender.
But Giselle has no intention of being claimed... until her own body betrays her.
In Bed With My Ex's Brother-in-Law

In Bed With My Ex's Brother-in-Law

46.1k Views · Ongoing · Ady Daniels
He left her on the streets. His brother-in-law picked her up… and made her his wife.
On the day her ex, Mark, married the wealthy socialite Bella, Elena was thrown out with nothing but the clothes on her back—humiliated, broken, and utterly alone.
Until Eric Thompson appeared.
Bella’s older brother. Mark’s powerful brother-in-law. And the most feared Alpha in the city.
He offered her a hand when no one else would. Then, he offered her a deal:
A marriage in name only. A shield against her past. A chance to rebuild.
Elena accepted, expecting a cold arrangement between strangers. But behind closed doors, Eric’s carefully guarded control unraveled—and so did hers. Their chemistry was explosive, their nights intense, and the lines between business and pleasure blurred beyond recognition.
He was the one man she could never have… and the only one she couldn’t resist.
But when Mark realizes what he truly lost, and Bella discovers the secret behind her brother’s bride, Elena must decide:
Is this just a contract?
Or is this the love she was always meant to fight for?
Wild Nights With My Brother's Ex-Best Friend

Wild Nights With My Brother's Ex-Best Friend

28.5k Views · Ongoing · Bella Silva
“My brother would kill you, Roman. Hell, I shouldn’t even be here!”

He moves closer, blocking the exit. “He’s not here, and you’re not telling me to stop, Nikki. So, why don’t we stop lying to each other and admit the truth?"

I glare at him. My heart’s slamming against my chest. “Which is what exactly?”

A wicked smirk curves his lips. “That we want each other. Always have. No matter how badly we shouldn’t.”


Ten years ago, I almost kissed the one guy I should’ve stayed away from, my brother’s best friend, Roman Hayes. But then he vanished from our lives and has somehow become the person my brother hates the most. I haven’t seen him in years.

The last place I expect to find him is at a high-end gala where I’m meeting potential sponsors for my charity, dressed in a ridiculously expensive suit and reeking of sin—and somehow, he might be the answer to all my prayers. But there’s a catch:

I’m not supposed to be anywhere near him, and the moment our eyes lock, I know I’ve made the biggest mistake of my entire life.

He’s my brother’s ex-best friend, after all, and there’s a spark between us that’s never been extinguished, and a truth neither of us wants to admit.

But some truths are darker than I could have possibly imagined, and some games are too wicked and wild to be entertained. This man might just destroy my life in ways I never saw coming…

And the worst part?

I’ll enjoy every second of it.
Another Chance With My Broken And Rejected Mate

Another Chance With My Broken And Rejected Mate

1.1k Views · Ongoing · rtc14
"So, you're asking me to sacrifice my life, mother?"
"And what of it? Are you so proud of your pitiful and disgraceful life? You are a blight and a curse! This is the only way you can redeem yourself!"
"By dying?" Winona asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
"Yes, by dying and performing a noble act to cleanse your sins and curses. Perhaps you might be blessed with good karma in your next life," her mother retorted harshly.
Winona knew her mother would never wish her well. What good karma? Her mother would likely wish she had never been born in the first place!
Winona cast a fleeting glance at her supposed mate, but his eyes were filled with hatred and... threat. It was as if he would rip her to shreds if she dared refuse to comply.
Did he despise her that much?
That was the moment when she began to accept the harsh reality that she was alone in this world. She had nothing and no one. She was despised by her own mother. Rejected by her mate. Mocked by her sister.
Perhaps, she wasn't meant to be alive.
My Fiancée Is in Love with Another Me

My Fiancée Is in Love with Another Me

309 Views · Ongoing · Hassan Mackenzie
My fiancée hates me.

She thinks I'm a criminal.

A man who spent three years behind bars.

A mistake her family forced upon her.

But every day, she tells me about another man.

A hero.

A legend.

A ghost from her past.

The man who once saved her life.

The man she still loves.

The funny thing?

That man is me.

I could tell her the truth.

I could reveal who I really am.

But after everything I've lost, I'm no longer sure I want her love.

Not until she learns to see the man standing in front of her.

Not the legend she built in her dreams.
The Dating Game With My Brother's Best Friend

The Dating Game With My Brother's Best Friend

860 Views · Ongoing · Scarlett Orion
The fake love Enzo and Mia started with was all becoming too real, and Mia has to ask if this is what she really wants?
When I moved to Paris, it was supposed to be a fresh start. A new city, a fashion dream ahead of me, and my stalker ex firmly in the past.
But then my new boss turns out to be Enzo Renault, my brother's best friend, the man who rejected me ten years ago. And now he wants me to fake-date him to keep his meddling mother out of his love life.
So here I am, pretending to be the girlfriend of the cold, infuriatingly handsome man I once swore I'd never forgive.
I've never really dated, and Enzo swears he'll never fall in love. Perfect match, right? Soon, we're practicing it all in secret: dates, kisses, even sharing a bed. The only rule? My brother can never find out.
But Enzo buys me dresses, praises my designs, and looks at me like I'm not just his friend's little sister anymore. And when he touches me, I can't tell what's pretend… and what's not.
Because the more we practice being in love, the more it feels dangerously real.
After One Night Stand With My Hockey Alpha

After One Night Stand With My Hockey Alpha

405 Views · Ongoing · Victoria Thorne
Lydia, a aspiring journalist, admired the hockey captain of Puck Predators, Jose Bailey, to the depths! He was her idol, her everything until the point he actually invited her on a date!

But things have taken quite a turn when she had a one night stand with the man.

In fact, this man is Levi, Lydia's idol's top rival and her new neighbor!

As Lydia delves deeper into the competitive world of hockey for her coveted interview, her initial bias against Levi and his team begins to melt away. The more she uncovers about Levi's life both on and off the rink, the more she finds herself drawn to the man behind the mask of rivalry. Just when Lydia's heart aligns with her true feelings, ready to take the leap and confess her love, Levi vanishes without a trace.

Will Lydia unravel the mystery of Levi's disappearance? Can Lydia reconcile the man she's come to love with the secrets he's kept hidden?
I Fell in Love with My Best Friend

I Fell in Love with My Best Friend

1.3k Views · Ongoing · mekayla pridget
"Aspen" I hear someone whisper from faraway. I ignore it and just pass it off as the wind since I left my window open last night.

"Aspen" I hear again except it's louder this time. I ignore it again.

A couple of minutes later a sweet smell fills my nostrils. It reminds me of pineapples and vanilla.

"If you don't wake up, I'm going to burn your favorite book" I hear a familiar voice say which causes my eyes to snap open as I jolt up in bed so that I'm facing my best friend
The Love Of My Life

The Love Of My Life

259 Views · Ongoing · Mufasa My Hero
"What...are ...you doing Mr. Professor?" She asked stuttering.

"I know what I'm doing Ms. Khanna," He smirked to her. He took hold of her hands and placed them above her head.

"Leave me," She said and struggled from his tight grip but alas no use. He stood there like a rock.

"I won't leave you. What will you do Miss?" He queried.

"I will complain to principal," She emphasised. With that he came close to her and crashed his lips with her.

She was shocked for a moment. She stood like a statue in that place and shivered from his touch which affected her so much.

"What will you do Ms. Khanna?" He prompted and went from there with a smirk playing on his lips.

"I hate you professor," She screamed making his smirk grew wider.


Naina Kapoor. A beautiful, cute, intelligent, ambitious and lovely person. She loves her
parents and her sister Meera. She wants to become successful in her career but one decision of her parents changes her life completely. Arranged marriage, selected by her parents and he is her sister's brother-in-law. Let's see what happens to her life.

Shourya Khanna. A handsome, intelligent, caring and arrogant person. He loves his family so much. He is the CEO of Khanna Industries. He has a brother who loves him so much and his sister-in-law who treats him like her own brother. She wants him to get married to her sister. She thinks he is perfect for her.

Will Shourya support her dreams or not?
In Bed With My Hot Billionaire Boss (+18)

In Bed With My Hot Billionaire Boss (+18)

1k Views · Ongoing · Anak Kost
“Five million dollars!” A deep voice silenced the entire auction hall. Anastasya stood on the stage, chained and drugged, her body burning with a strange heat, waiting to be sold to the highest bidder. Suddenly, an explosion rocked the cruise ship! Through the smoke and chaos, a man walked calmly towards her, shooting anyone in his way. “Bang! Bang!” Alexander De Graham killed the enemies without blinking. He aimed his gun at her chains, shattering them. “You dared to sell yourself to other men?” he growled, wrapping his coat around her trembling, half-naked body. “You are mine, Anastasya. Now, let’s go home so I can punish you properly.”


On her 20th birthday, Anastasya witnesses the ultimate betrayal—the man she loves in her own bed with her stepsister. Raised to believe she is nothing but a curse, she walks into the night broken and humiliated… only to fall into the hands of someone far more dangerous. Alexander De Graham, 28, a ruthless mafia boss feared by all. When he sees her trembling and shattered, something awakens inside him—a desire he has never known before.“While the world calls you a curse,” he murmurs, “you are my luck.” But being chosen by a monster is never a blessing. When she asks, “Will you leave me once I can no longer satisfy you?” He only smiles coldly. That is when Anastasya understands—She was never chosen. She was claimed.
A Second Chance With My Tribrid Alpha King

A Second Chance With My Tribrid Alpha King

9.5k Views · Ongoing · Ghlowreeeh
"I, King Logan, rejects you;Audrey Chadwick, as my mate, Luna to the Royal Moon pack, and Queen to the werewolf race."

No no no!

The Chadwick Lineage have had a generation of powerful werewolves, but so far, Audrey was the most powerful of them all. She possessed insane abilities and strength, that went hand in hand with her arrogance and great beauty. Fueled by the wrong kind of parenting, Audrey would do anything for power. Audrey sets her sights on becoming the next Queen of the werewolf kingdom, but she can only achieve that if she marries Prince Sebastian, and helps him steal the throne from his weak and wolfless older brother; Logan.

Very determined to get the mission done, Audrey sojourns to the palace, only to meet the shock of her life!! Prince Logan is her fated mate! The very same weak and wolfless Prince she planned on ousting.Unbeknownst to Audrey, Logan is going to be the greatest creature to ever grace the supernatural world.

This is a story of betrayal, redemption, and true love. Follow Audrey on her story, as Logan rapidly changes the course of her life, and leaves her fighting for a second chance with him.
Sweet Love:365 Days with My Disabled Husband

Sweet Love:365 Days with My Disabled Husband

3k Views · Ongoing · Ruby
"Who would want a woman like Hazel?"
On the night before our wedding, my fiancé Randy said this in front of everyone.
I stood outside, listening silently before walking away.
Sure enough, at the wedding, he abandoned me to save my sister who was jumping from a building.
"The wedding continues!"
I said with a smile, turning to embrace my disabled husband.
Afterward, I did exactly as they wished, ensuring they would never be apart.
Half a month later, I looked at my ex-fiancé with contempt.
"Compared to my husband, are you even worth mentioning?"
My husband Cheated On Me With His Cousin

My husband Cheated On Me With His Cousin

19.9k Views · Ongoing · benhomachi
My Husband Cheated on Me with His Cousin, So I Married His Boss.

Kalyssa always believed her marriage could survive anything. She trusted James until he started slipping away. Late-night calls. Locked doors. Half-truths dressed up as excuses.
When she finally follows him, she discovers the kind of betrayal that breaks something inside you forever…her husband in the arms of his cousin, Melissa. What should have ended in tears turns into something far worse. In one night, Kalyssa loses her company, her home, and nearly her life.
But someone saves her. A man she doesn’t know, or couldn’t remember. He’s powerful. Controlled. Dangerous in ways that make her pulse quicken. And he isn’t a man who lets go of what he wants.
As Kalyssa rebuilds her life, her husband and his cousin suddenly want her back.
How was she going to get back what he stole from her? What would she do when the man who saved her proposes a contract marriage?
Crossing the lines ( Sleeping with my Best friends)

Crossing the lines ( Sleeping with my Best friends)

686.2k Views · Ongoing · Nia Kas
Layla's POV :Little did I think my world would be turned upside down. Dean and Aleck my best friends who who protected me ever since kindergarten and had always remained by my side, truly were nothing like I remembered. Ever since I was eighteen I knew and I kept it hidden, I hid it so well until it wasn't. Falling in love with your Best friends isn't something you should do especially when they're twin brothers. Our friendship was good until I ditched them for my Own sanity. Disappearing did the trick however a spur of the moment
get together with the rest of our college friends,led me to reveal some of my secrets. And some of theirs. From being accused by friends I gave up. Little did I know the get together was just a ruse for them to get back into my life and they were playing the long game, making sure I belonged to them and them only.
Dean's POV : The minute we I opened the door and saw her ,so beautiful, I knew it was either going to go our way or she ran. We fell in love with her at Eighteen,she was seventeen and off limits,she saw us as brother so we waited, when she disappeared we let her ,she thought we had no idea where she was ,she as absolutely fucking wrong. We watch her every move and knew how to make her cave to our wishes.
Aleck's POV : Little Layla had become so fucking beautiful, Dean and I decided she would be ours. She walked around the island unaware if what was coming her way.one way or the other Our best friend would end up under us in our bed and she would ask for it too.
Falling in Love with My Brother's Best Friend

Falling in Love with My Brother's Best Friend

1.2k Views · Ongoing · Unique
I hate Lucas very much, even though he is my brother's best friend.

Everyone else looked at Lucas and saw a righteous gentleman. But all I looked at him and saw a malicious, self-righteous jerk.

I had proposed my feelings to him whom I had fallen in love with the moment I set my eyes on him.

However, he had crushed my feelings and went abroad the next day.

Now, he's back and undeniably, I couldn't believe that my heart still beats for the man who had crushed me so hard after several years.

Can I let go of the love I had for him or it seems like it has come to stay?
The Billionaire I Slept With Was My Husband

The Billionaire I Slept With Was My Husband

534 Views · Ongoing · Alice Moore
"Mommy, I don't need a daddy. Having you is enough."

When I heard my daughter say those words, I nearly broke down in tears.

Five years ago, an accident left me pregnant with twins. My father seized everything my mother had left behind and threw me out of the house. After I gave birth, he told me my son had died, leaving only my daughter Luna by my side.

For Luna's sake, I was forced to marry a man I'd never met—a husband in a vegetative state—and spent three years in France.

Three years later, I returned to Bay Harbor, only to be betrayed by my own father once again. While fleeing, I stumbled by mistake into the penthouse suite of a luxury hotel, where I spent the night with a mysterious man confined to a wheelchair.

The next morning, I left in a panic, convinced it was just another accident in my chaotic life.

Until later, when I took a job with the wealthy Stone family and met a quiet, withdrawn little boy named Cal—a child who seemed forgotten by the entire world.

I don't know why, but the moment I saw him, my heart ached inexplicably.

And at the same time, the man I had "taken advantage of" that night began closing in on the truth, determined to find me...
Entangled With My Ex-convict Father-in-law

Entangled With My Ex-convict Father-in-law

670 Views · Ongoing · Precious Onyinye
She lost her child, her womb, and the man she thought was her forever.

After years of miscarriages, Elara finally agrees to let her best friend carry her baby, only to discover that her husband has been sleeping with the surrogate and plotting her death. The final betrayal shatters her, until she uncovers one thing that changes everything: he only married her for her wealth, and now plans to steal it all.

But Elara isn’t as helpless as he thinks. Beneath her gentle exterior lies the secret identity of a powerful heiress, and when her husband’s disgraced father returns from prison seeking revenge of his own, their fates collide.

Two broken souls. One shared enemy.
And a burning desire for vengeance that might just turn into something far more dangerous.
Hospitalized, While My Husband Partied with His Secretary

Hospitalized, While My Husband Partied with His Secretary

614 Views · Ongoing · Joy Brown
I gave five years to my husband's ambition—and got betrayal in return.

Forty-three days without a break on the Imperial City project. I collapsed from exhaustion and woke up in the hospital. He never picked up the phone.

He was too busy celebrating his mistress's birthday.

The blonde hair wrapped around his jacket was like a slap to the face. I'd cut my own hair short years ago because he said long hair wasn't "professional." He just meant it wasn't professional on me.

He promised we'd move to Imperial City together once he succeeded. But he was always too busy—except when it came to touring my project sites with her.

I'd had enough.

I froze the accounts. Pulled the funding. Took back everything I'd built.

He tried to push me out of my own position, so I reclaimed the patents and withdrew my support.

He called a press conference to save face. I attended—as an executive at his largest competitor.

I watched him crumble.

For five years, I held him up. And for five years, he treated me like something disposable.

He forgot that the empire he thought he built was never his.

It was always mine.
They Signed My Name. I Signed Their Confession.

They Signed My Name. I Signed Their Confession.

381 Views · Ongoing · Lyric Ross
For six years I kept the books nobody wanted to touch.
They called me the help. My husband signed my name to a loan I never saw. His mother told the whole family I was the reason there were no grandchildren.
At the anniversary gala, they planned to retire me quietly — and hand my desk to the woman my husband had been paying out of company accounts.
They forgot one thing.
Before I married into this family, I spent six years catching men who move money the way they do. I never stopped keeping a second set of books.
I let them think the game was already over.
It was — for them.
The Alpha’s Last Wish

The Alpha’s Last Wish

589 Views · Ongoing · stelok19
He rejected his mate to be with a human woman. He believes Marie is the only woman that has ever loved him and fights against every barrier go be with her. The truth is Marie is not human and rejecting his mate to be with her might be his gravest mistake when her true identity is revealed. Who will save the last surviving alpha from this terrible fate that is about to befall him? His rejected Luna can save him but will she consider it after being rejected?
My Psycho Husband, Pregnant with the Mad Tycoon’s Heir

My Psycho Husband, Pregnant with the Mad Tycoon’s Heir

3.4k Views · Ongoing · Luna
“Sign the contract. Be my incubator. And I will let you live.”
That was the deal I made with the tyrant named Damon Lexton.
I was his medicine. His prisoner. He did not love me—only the rare blood in my veins that kept him alive. When I died in the fire, he did not mourn his wife. He mourned the loss of his cure.
Five years later, I returned from the dead with a new face and a heart of stone, ready to watch him suffer.
Then my five-year-old son walked into his office.
“Hey, Old Man. Are you the one who made my mom cry?”
Damon stared at the child—the son he once called a bastard. For the first time, the tyrant fell to his knees.
He cornered me against the wall, his eyes burning with madness and obsession.
“You can run, Anna. But you and our son belong to me. I used to need your blood to live. Now I need your heartbeat to breathe.”