8177 Book(s) Related to that was then this is now book

Ethan Blake never thought that his best friend — the charming, fearless, openly gay Adrian Cross — had a secret bigger than anyone could have ever dreamed of. Adrian was not just the star player of the school. he was a werewolf Alpha, destined to lead a pack torn between allegiance and insurrection.

When Adrian reveals his concealed love for Ethan, all that Ethan has believed in love, friendship, and himself crumbles. The love becomes stronger, but danger erupts at once. Another Alpha, Marcus Hale, is interested in Ethan — not because he loves him, but to make him a pawn to overthrow Adrian's grip on power.

Now Ethan is in a realm of claws, blood, and fate where passion slays and love may be the price of life. Secrets are revealed, and he has to confront the toughest reality: his gay best friend is not only an Alpha… he's the Alpha, and their destinies are sealed forever.
Will Ethan embrace the love that scares him, or will pack traditions tear them apart?

“My husband is back. We’re breaking up.”

I slid a bank card loaded with one million dollars across the table to Leon, convinced it was nothing more than the end of a simple arrangement.

Three years ago, my husband, William Grant, disappeared on our wedding day, leaving me to become the laughingstock of Oakland. While everyone believed he was dead, I sacrificed everything to save the collapsing Grant family and keep their empire alive. Then he returned—with a pregnant mistress on his arm—and had the audacity to demand that I take care of the woman carrying his child.

That was the moment I decided our marriage was over.

What I never expected was that the male escort I had been keeping for the past three years wasn't an escort at all.

Leon was actually Roderick Harris—the mysterious billionaire behind the Harris Group, the most powerful and untouchable business empire in Oakland.

And just hours before discovering the truth, I had handed this ruthless business tycoon a one-million-dollar breakup fee... and told him never to contact me again.

While my cheating husband believed I would lose everything without him, and everyone waited to watch me fall, the man I had cast aside stepped back into my life, his dark eyes locking onto mine with dangerous intensity.

“Violette... what makes you think you're the one who gets to decide when this is over?”

It was hard for Charlotte to let go of her best friend, Dalton, the boy she fell in love with since she was nine years old, to make way for her sister, Caroline, who happens to be in love with him too. It was hard for her but in order to make someone happy, even if it meant sacrificing her own, she was willing to let go.

It all happened around her senior year, where she let go of the only thing that mattered to her and after graduation, she moved away with no intention of going back.

Four years later, on her college graduation day, her parents rather demanded her to come home with a reason that shocked her senseless.

This year, out of nowhere, my mate Dominic told me to take two months off and go to Ashvale with our son, Finn. Eight years, and he'd never once given me a single day off.
I thought he'd finally noticed how tired I was.
Then Maren found a letter in his study. It was from his Beta, laying out the whole plan. Move his old flame Camille and her daughter into the main house. Hold a mating ceremony the moment I was gone.
I don't know how long I stood there holding that letter before I could think straight again.
If my mate wanted to bring her home and pick up where they left off, that was his business.
I packed our son's things for Ashvale.
I just wasn't planning on coming back.

The day I closed another major deal, my fiancé, the CEO, smiles and tells me the credit and the bonus are going to the new intern.

I watch him lean in close to her, laughing, and something in me just stops caring enough to fight for it.

I sign the transfer request and ship myself off to the most useless department in the company.

What I don't expect is that a few days later, the same man who never looked twice at anyone beneath him is going to be on his knees begging me to come back.

My sister ran away the night before her wedding, so I had to take her place and marry Damian Kovac, the city's most feared don.
I figured he'd throw me in the harbor out of pure rage. Instead, the man wouldn't even touch me.
A month in, still sleeping in the guest room.
I wasn't my sister's level of charming, but I wasn't hard to look at either. And this man couldn't spare me a single glance?
The more I thought about it, the angrier I got. I grabbed the divorce papers I'd already drawn up and stormed toward his study.
Right as I raised my hand to knock, I caught his childhood friend's voice through the door.
"You moved heaven and earth to get the woman you've been hung up on, and now you're icing her out? Didn't think I'd live to see the day."
My hand froze.
The woman he'd been hung up on?

I can't believe My dad will kick me out of my family to be a rouge. The werewolf world is very competitive but I never expected it to be this brutal from the moment I left my old pack border, it felt like deaths would befall me if I were a Rouge. It continued until I was half alive in the territory of another pack. Since I am a rouge trespassing is punishable by death but what if the alpha of this pack it's my mate .....?
Angus, Alpha of the crosswood pack. He is ruthless, cruel fierce, and a dominant wolf whose name strikes fear in the heart of other alphas because of his incredible strength and undeniable courage. When Angus found his mate in his territory, he was excited until he found out that she was a Rouge.

Charlotte Hayes never dreamed of becoming Mrs. Hawthorne.
After a life-changing night left her pregnant, Ethan Hawthorne was forced to marry her to take responsibility for their unborn child and protect the Hawthorne family's reputation. But the marriage Charlotte believed would be the beginning of a happy family became the beginning of her nightmare.
Inside the Hawthorne Mansion, she was treated not as a wife, but as a servant. Every day, she was humiliated, overworked, and starved by the Hawthorne family. To make matters worse, her former best friend, Vanessa Caldwell—the woman the Hawthorne family had always wanted Ethan to marry—slowly took her place and stole her husband's heart.
When Charlotte uncovered the secrets of the Shadow Circle, a powerful organization controlling the country's biggest corporations, she became a threat they couldn't afford to leave alive. Before she could expose the truth, she was murdered in a staged accident.
But death was not the end.
Charlotte opened her eyes in the body of Olivia Whitmore, the sole heiress of Whitmore Enterprises, who had also died under mysterious circumstances on the very same night.
This time, she won't return to fight for love. She'll return to uncover the truth, destroy the people who ruined her life, and seek justice for both herself and Olivia.
But what happens when the man who once abandoned her falls in love with her all over again... without realizing that the woman he's desperately trying to win back is the very wife he once failed to protect?
When Ethan finally learns the truth, will regret be enough to win Charlotte back... or has he already lost her forever?

That admissions season, Lily — a poor student who couldn't even clear the state university cutoff — insisted on dragging my two childhood friends off to the worst community college in the state, just so she wouldn't have to go alone.

Ethan held an offer from Yale. Ryan had been accepted to Stanford. Yet the two of them, as if under a spell, were ready to throw away those schools just to follow her.

I wore myself out trying to talk them down. All I got back was: You look down on Lily. You're just jealous.

Behind their backs, I contacted counselors, admissions offices, and their parents, and clawed their spots back one by one just before the deadline.

Lily went to that community college alone. Six months later, she jumped from the roof of her dorm.

Ethan and Ryan handled her funeral, then came back and tied me to the roof of a thirty-six-story building.

"If you hadn't stopped us from going with Lily, she never would have been bullied there."

"You're so capable, aren't you? Then go down and keep her company."

They pushed me over the edge without a flicker of hesitation.

When I opened my eyes, I was back at the start of college application season.

This time, I won't save them.

I thought I knew Sunny Hayes.
The mysterious transfer student with ocean-blue eyes who saved me from my bullies. The hottest guy I'd ever met. The one who made my heart race with a single glance.
I was wrong.
On his nineteenth birthday, everything changed.
We were in my bedroom. Moonlight spilled across his bare chest as he hovered over me, eyes dark with hunger. When I whispered he could do whatever he wanted, desire crashed across his face like a wave. His kisses trailed down my neck. His hand slid under my bra, thumb brushing my nipple. Heat exploded through me. Then his mouth closed over my breast, hot and wet and—
Pain.
Sharp, sudden pain.
His grip had changed. I felt points—claws—digging into my skin. My eyes flew open.
Golden eyes stared back. Not ocean-blue. These glowed like an animal's in the dark.

Fangs pressed against his lower lip.
"Sunny?" I breathed, frozen.
He jerked away, staring at his own hands in horror. Actual claws where his fingernails should be. Claws that had left thin red scratches across my breast.
That's when I understood: my boyfriend—the boy I'd trusted with everything—wasn't human.
He was a werewolf.


WARNING: Mature Readers Only.

After living in the countryside for eighteen years, Laura's real father came to her. For a moment, the upper class knew that the Taylors had an additional illegitimate daughter of a bumpkin. When she got back to her real family, everyone mocked her for not being as versatile, gentle, and considerate as her older sister.

Her father looked down upon her and warned her to keep her nose clean.

Marcus was the son of the first wife of Mr. Brown. His brothers were all hostile to him, so his aunt want to connect with the Taylors through marriage to crack Marcus down. Laura was forced to marry the sick and unfaithful man, and everyone said that they are a "perfect match".

It didn't take long for Laura's various alias to be dug out, and the members of the Taylors felt regret. All young talents were crazy about her. However, Marcus just laughed out of court and unhesitatingly declared their relationship.

A seventeen years old Sera Calix was never meant to set a foot in Virelade Academy, the country's most prestigious elite all boys school. But a paperwork error gave her a chance to escape a life of serving the masters and she'll do anything to hold onto it. Even if it means disguising herself as a boy!.

The plan was to keep her head down, graduate and disappear but the problem was Kael Ashbourne, her new roommate, her worst nightmare and on top of that he's the son of the president, the same man where her mom works for.

As secrets build, Sera struggles to survive a world that was built to shut her out. But the biggest danger wasn't being caught but it's the way Kael looks at her like he already knows she's lying.

She's living a lie...
And only one person can expose her... Kael Ashbourne!

The car crash six months ago destroyed my body. I survive the agony only through the painkillers prescribed by my brother, Fletcher.
While shopping for my wedding dress, I simply swallowed a pill on schedule. My mother responded with a slap that made me spit blood. My father stormed in and kicked my ribs in without asking a single question.
I fled crying to my brother, only for him to grab me in disgust: "You are a disgrace to this family."
I called my fiancé. He rushed to the scene, took one look at the pill, and called the cops without hesitation: "The engagement is off. She makes me sick."
In just a few hours, I went from a bride-to-be to a death row inmate.
But as the gavel fell, I saw our family maid calmly swallow the exact same pill from the gallery…
I lunged at the railing, screaming at the judge. He leaned down, a chilling smile spreading across his face: "Linnea, this is all because…"

“A MASTERPIECE OF THRILLER AND MYSTERY. Blake Pierce did a magnificent job developing characters with a psychological side so well described that we feel inside their minds, follow their fears and cheer for their success. Full of twists, this book will keep you awake until the turn of the last page.” --Books and Movie Reviews, Roberto Mattos (re Once Gone) ALMOST GONE is book #1 in a new psychological thriller series by USA Today bestselling author Blake Pierce, whose #1 bestseller Once Gone (Book #1) (a free download) has received over 1,000 five star reviews. When 23 year old Cassandra Vale accepts her first job as an au pair, she finds herself placed with a wealthy family in a rural estate outside of Paris, and all seems too good to be true. But she soon discovers that behind the gilded gates lies a dysfunctional family, a twisted marriage, troubled children, and secrets too dark to air. Cassandra is convinced she’s finally found a fresh start when she takes a job as an au pair in the idyllic French countryside. Just beyond the Paris city limits, the Dubois manor is a grand relic of the past, the family its picture-perfect occupants. It’s the escape Cassandra needs—until she uncovers dark secrets that prove things aren’t as glamorous as they seem.Beneath the opulence lies a dark web of malice, one Cassandra finds all too familiar, triggering dreams from her own violent and tortured past, one from which she desperately runs. And when a grisly murder tears the house apart, it threatens to take down her own fragile psyche with it. A riveting mystery replete with complex characters, layers of secrets, dramatic twists and turns and heart-pounding suspense, ALMOST GONE is book #1 in a psychological suspense series that will have you turning pages late into the night. Book #2 and #3--ALMOST LOST and ALMOST DEAD—are also available!

"A book to rival TWILIGHT and VAMPIRE DIARIES, and one that will have you wanting to keep reading until the very last page! If you are into adventure, love and vampires this book is the one for you!" --Vampirebooksite.com (Turned)DESTINED is book #4 in the #1 Bestselling series THE VAMPIRE JOURNALS, which begins with TURNED (Book #1). In DESTINED (Book #4 in the Vampire Journals), Caitlin Paine wakes to discover herself back in time. She finds herself in a cemetery, on the run from a mob of villagers, and seeks refuge in the ancient cloisters of Assisi, in the countryside of Umbria, Italy. There, she learns of her destiny and her mission: to find her father and the ancient vampire Shield needed to save mankind. But Caitlin’s heart still pines for her lost love: Caleb. She desperately needs to know if he has survived their trip back in time. She learns that her mission requires her to go to Florence, but if she wants to pursue matters of the heart, she must go to Venice. She chooses Venice. Caitlin is overwhelmed at what she finds. Venice of the eighteenth century is a surreal place, men and women dressed in elaborate costumes and masks, celebrating an endless, lavish party. She is thrilled to discover and reunite with some of her close friends, and to be welcomed back into their coven. And she is excited to join them in Venice’s Grand Ball, the most important costume dance of the year, where she hopes, once again, to find Caleb. But Caitlin is not the only one who can travel back in time: Kyle soon arrives, too, and is determined to hunt her down and kill her once and for all. Sam, too, arrives, determined to save his sister before it is too late. At the Ball, Caitlin searches everywhere, and finds no sign of Caleb. That is, until the very last dance. She dances with a masked man who takes her heart away, and she feels certain that it is him. But as the partners change, she loses him again. Or does she? Caitlin soon finds herself torn between the two loves of her life, and discovers that she has to be careful what she wishes for. Her joy at finding what she wants might just come mixed with tragedy and heartbreak. In a climactic, action-packed ending, Caitlin finds herself up against true evil, Rome’s ancient vampire coven, and the most powerful vampire coven that ever existed. Surviving will demand all her skills, as she finds herself battling for her very life. She will have to sacrifice more than ever, if she is to save the one she loves…. “DESTINED is fast paced with enough action and twist and turns to keep you engaged until the end. There are so many twists and exciting developments throughout the story that it keeps your attention!” --The Romance Reviews “ I just turned 30 and there are a few YA series that I just love and this one is definitely on that list! READ IT! READ IT! READ IT! Don’t forget READ IT!” --werevampsromance.org

"A book to rival TWILIGHT and VAMPIRE DIARIES, and one that will have you wanting to keep reading until the very last page! If you are into adventure, love and vampires this book is the one for you!" --Vampirebooksite.com (Turned)VOWED is Book #7 in the #1 Bestselling series THE VAMPIRE JOURNALS, which begins with TURNED (Book #1)! In VOWED (Book #7 of the Vampire Journals), Caitlin and Caleb find themselves in medieval Scotland, in 1350, a time of knights and shining armor, of castles and warriors, of the quest for the Holy Grail said to contain the key to true vampire immortality. Landing on the shores of the ancient Isle of Skye, a remote island off the Western coast of Scotland where only the most elite warriors live and train, they are ecstatic to reunite with Sam and Polly, Scarlet and Ruth, a human king and his warriors, and with all of Aiden’s coven. Before they can continue their mission for the fourth and final key, the time has come for Caleb and Caitlin to wed. Against the most amazing backdrop Caitlin could ever hope for, an elaborate vampire wedding is planned, including all of the ancient rituals and ceremonies that accompany it. It is the wedding of a lifetime, meticulously planned by Polly and the others, and Caitlin and Caleb are happier than they’ve ever been. Simultaneously, Sam and Polly, to their own surprise, are each falling deeply in love with one another. As their relationship accelerates, Sam surprises Polly with a vow of his own. And Polly surprises him with her own shocking news. But all is not well beneath the surface. Blake has appeared again, and his deep love for Caitlin might just threaten her union, on the day before her wedding. Sera has appeared again, too, and vows to break apart what she cannot have. Scarlet, too, finds herself in danger, as the source of her deep powers are revealed—along with the revelation of who are her true parents. Worst of all, Kyle has landed back in time, and has tracked down his old protégé, Rynd, to force him to use his shapeshifting skill to trick and kill Caitlin and her people. As they fall into his elaborate trap, Caitlin and the others find themselves in deeper danger than ever before. It will be a race to find the final key, before everyone Caitlin holds dear is wiped out for good. This time, she will have to make the hardest choices and sacrifices of her life.

"A book to rival TWILIGHT and VAMPIRE DIARIES, and one that will have you wanting to keep reading until the very last page! If you are into adventure, love and vampires this book is the one for you!" --Vampirebooksite.com (Turned)FATED is Book #11 in the #1 Bestselling series THE VAMPIRE JOURNALS, which begins with TURNED (Book #1)! In FATED, 16 year old Scarlet Paine struggles to understand what’s happening to her, as she wakes and realizes she’s becoming a vampire. Alienated from her parents and her friends, the only person she has left to turn to is Sage, the mysterious boy who has quickly become the love of her life. Yet Sage, whose house she finds boarded up, is nowhere to be found. Scarlet, alone in the world, with nowhere left to turn, seeks out her friends and tries to reconcile with them. All seems to be patched up when they invite her to join them on a trip to an abandoned island in the Hudson—but as things get out of hand and Scarlet’s true powers are revealed, who her friends and enemies are becomes more confusing than ever. Blake, still interested in her, tries to make amends. He seems sincere, and Scarlet is confused as she has to grapple with whether to be with Blake or to wait for Sage, who is nowhere to be found. When Scarlet finally finds Sage, they have the most romantic time of her life; yet it is tinged with tragedy, as Sage is dying, with but a few days left to live. Kyle, meanwhile, turned into the only other vampire left in the world, is on a murderous rampage, seeking Scarlet; Caitlin and Caleb consult with Aiden, and they each embark on different missions—Caleb to stop and kill Kyle, and Caitlin, to the famed Yale University library, to research the ancient relic rumored to both cure and kill vampires for all time. It is a race against time, and it may be too late. Scarlet is changing rapidly, barely able to control what she’s becoming, and Sage is dying with each passing moment. As the book culminates in an action-packed, shocking twist, Scarlet will be left with a monumental choice—one that will change the world forever. Will Scarlet make the ultimate sacrifice to save Sage’s life? Will she risk everything she has for love?

Rachel Wood wakes in a castle to find herself turned into a vampire. She longs for home, for a normal life. But she is changing too fast. When she learns Benji is in danger, she realizes she has to find him. She will stop at nothing to be with him—even if it means having to choose between life and death.

In RISEN (Book #6 of the Vampire Legends), Rachel Wood embarks on a mission to find her grandmother in New Orleans, and to learn the secret of who she really is. Her travels take her deep into mysterious territory, as she searches for her roots, and for an explanation of all that is happening to her. Benji will not give up on her, even though she can’t remember who he is. He is still in love with her, and more determined than ever to find her and rescue her—before it is too late. Rachel’s brother struggles to keep from giving in to his dark side, as he grapples to come to terms with his new power. Her sister, Sarah, tries to come to grip with her new life at Syracuse, while learning what it means to be a vampire herself. Rob, driven by his love for Rachel, fights to shake off the influence of the dark coven. He will have to fight for Rachel’s love, hoping her loss of memory will also mean she has forgotten her love for Benji. It will be a race to save Rachel’s life as all these forces converge in an ancient cemetery in New Orleans. But there comes a shocking twist, and by then, it may all even be too late… Will Rachel finally remember her true love? And will she be willing to sacrifice it all for him? RISEN is book #6 of the Bestselling Vampire Legends series (following SWORN, TAKEN, BITTEN, CHOSEN and AWAKENED).

In AWAKENED (Book #5 of the Vampire Legends), Rachel Wood wakes in Benji’s arms—except there is one problem: she cannot remember who Benji is. Heartbroken, Benji lets her go, as she insists on leaving him and returning home.Rachel arrives back in her home in Pennsylvania, and her dad and brother Mark are shocked to see her. She is even more surprised at their reaction: she can’t remember what happened exactly, but she feels sure that she was only away for a single night. Why is everyone acting so crazy, so surprised to see her?Rachel, not remembering anything else, insists on resuming her normal life. She insists on returning to her old high school in Pennsylvania, where she runs into all of her old friends, who are equally startled to see her. A new love interest arrives in her life, while she tries to shake dreams of strange omens, and of Benji, who she still doesn’t remember. She also tries to fight these strange hunger pangs that are overtaking her.In the meantime, Rob is as set as ever on finding Rachel, and he crosses the world, wreaking destruction, to get her. Benji, too, is determined to save her, to make her remember their love—while Hunter and Penelope and Matilda are on a mission to find the Waverly Tablet and prevent Violet from conquering the world.It will be a race to the end while all these forces try to converge on Rachel. But by the time they reach her, she may even be gone herself…Will Rachel remember her true love? What choice will she make?AWAKENED is book #5 of the Vampire Legends series (following SWORN, TAKEN, BITTEN and CHOSEN), and is also a standalone novel.

My husband pushed me down the stairs when I was three months pregnant.

I thought it was his bipolar disorder acting up again. The doctors said he couldn't control himself. So I forgave him—just like I'd forgiven the cigarette burns, the broken ribs, and all those nights he choked me unconscious.

Then I lost our baby.

And overheard him on the phone: "The bitch deserved it. If she hadn't stopped me three years ago, Elena would be mine."

That's when I realized—he was never sick. He'd been torturing me on purpose for three years.

Punishing me because I "made him lose" the woman he loved.

So I signed the divorce papers and walked away without looking back.

Presley Duval had a nickname for me all through high school. Two-Twenty.
Because at sixteen I weighed 220 pounds.
Thirteen years later she rented out a private beach in Cabo for our class reunion. One rule. Every woman had to show up in a bikini.
She made a point of sending me one.
By the time I got there her phone was already up on a tripod, live. 370,000 people watching.
"She's actually gonna show?" someone asked.
"Why wouldn't she?" Presley smiled into the camera. "I had the hotel set aside an extra-large changing tent just for her. Wouldn't want her scaring the other guests when she takes her clothes off."
Everyone around her cracked up.
"I got her a gift, too."
She lifted a pink bag off her chair and pulled out a neon pink bikini. It took two people, one on each end, just to hold it stretched out.
"3XL. I called the company. That's the biggest they make. If it still snaps, that's not on me."
A row of phones went up.
"Don't laugh." She hung the bikini over the back of the chair. "Two-Twenty's had it rough. If I hadn't stayed on her about her weight back then, who knows if she'd even be able to walk through that door today."
"Oh, and I invited someone from Meridian." She lifted her chin. "So certain people can see what a real body looks like. Instead of copying models online and embarrassing themselves."
What she didn't know was that the big shot she kept name-dropping worked for me.
I walked down the boardwalk and stopped right in front of her.
"Where's the tent?"

The Plan: Travel back in time to high school, identify my insanely intimidating future billionaire boss before he gets rich, and suck up to him so hard I secure a six-figure job for life.
The Execution: Perfect. I brought him coffee, cheered at his games, and basically operated as his unpaid teenage executive assistant. He’s totally buying it.
The Problem: I was trying to network my way into the C-suite. I think I just networked my way into his bed.

Seventeen-year-old Nora thought her biggest problem was surviving senior year—until she fell for Leo, her brother’s best friend and the one boy she was never supposed to want.

Leo is everything she shouldn’t touch: older, dangerous, and hiding something behind those icy blue eyes. When Nora discovers his secret—that he’s a vampire—her world shatters. But instead of running, she lets him in… and one bite binds their souls together forever.

As Nora struggles to balance love, loyalty, and the darkness that now lives inside her, a new person emerges: Killian, a powerful mafia king who sees her not as prey, but as an equal. His offer could change her fate—or end it.

Caught between two worlds and two loves, Nora must decide who she really is…
and what she’s willing to become.

Because the way they look at her—
might be the thing that saves her… or destroys her.

"Help! Somebody help me! Julian is trying to kill my baby!" I scream at the top of my lungs, bursting into my gender reveal party.

Just minutes ago, Julian was my perfect, doting husband. Then he opens my unborn baby's genetic screening report. The unadulterated ferocity and revulsion simmering in his eyes makes my entire body shake. He grips my arm, demanding I terminate the pregnancy.

I already died once because of that piece of paper. In my past life, they dragged me to a freezing lab, pumped me full of drugs, and murdered my child before locking me in an asylum.

This time, I hide behind the guests. But my parents storm in. After seeing the report, instead of saving me, Dad kicks me squarely in the stomach.

"You shameless little whore," he spits.

They are about to drag me out the back door when two police officers step through the glass doors. The cop hands me the confiscated report.

I look down at the printed words... and finally understand.

I was married to Vera for three years.

In those three years, every time we fought, I was the one who backed down first. She got used to being indulged, and she got used to using the silent treatment to make me fold.

Then a blizzard grounded my flight. I didn’t make it back for her birthday. She filed for divorce out of spite and left the country.

Three years ended without dignity.

A year after the divorce, Vera returned with a new jewelry brand and a high-profile comeback. Everyone assumed I was still waiting for her—she assumed it too.

At dinners, she hinted at reconciliation, using our old story to build hype for her brand. The circle started whispering that I’d end up back by her side.

I corrected it, again and again. She ignored every word.

What she didn’t know was that I already had someone new—and we were preparing to get engaged.

When she saw the engagement planning booklet, she convinced herself it was my signal to take her back.

I explained. She insisted.

Until the day of the engagement, when she stormed into the venue…

⚠MATURE READERS ONLY
I hated him with every fibre of my being. I wanted to take a steak knife and carve his smug, handsome face off. But what I hated most — what made me want to scream into the pillows — was that my body still remembered him.
And God help me, I was so fucking angry that I wanted him to walk through that door right now, just so I could tear him apart with my bare hands.
❖ ❖ ❖
I ran from the monster who sold me to the highest bidder. I didn’t know I was running straight into the arms of another.
For eight months, I buried my past in the quiet suburbs, pretending to be an ordinary innocent, untouched woman. I believed I had escaped the blood-soaked empire I was born into. Then Kaelith Vespero, the ruthless Don of the Vespero Syndicate and my father's deadliest enemy, who saw me as a bargaining chip, dragged me back into the underworld.
I realized my freedom was just a borrowed illusion.
But wars don't always go according to plan.
⚠IMPORTANT — PLEASE READ BEFORE YOU BEGIN ⚠
Before you begin this story, there are a few things I want you to know about what you are about to read. This is a dark romance, and some of the themes and situations in this book may not be for everyone. Please read with an open mind and at your own discretion.
I. This is a dark mafia romance recommended for readers 18 and older. If dark romance is not your cup of tea, please do not force yourself to read it. You have been warned.
II. Expect slow-burn sexual tension throughout the story. The romance is meant to build gradually, so patience will definitely be required.
III. The story contains strong language and carries a gritty, intense, and unapologetic atmosphere.
IV. Reader discretion is advised. This story explores kidnapping, captivity, coercion, family betrayal, emotional abuse, and other difficult situations. If any of these themes are a hard limit for you, please protect your peace and skip this one. There is absolutely no shame in knowing what you can and cannot handle.
One last thing before you continue: I am always open to constructive criticism, however, personal attacks, hateful comments, insults toward me or other readers, and disrespectful comments will not be tolerated.
So, if you're ready for everything waiting inside these pages...
Buckle up.
You've been warned.

The Plan: Travel back in time to high school, identify my insanely intimidating future billionaire boss before he gets rich, and suck up to him so hard I secure a six-figure job for life.
The Execution: Perfect. I brought him coffee, cheered at his games, and basically operated as his unpaid teenage executive assistant. He’s totally buying it.
The Problem: I was trying to network my way into the C-suite. I think I just networked my way into his bed.

The idea came from Cora.
She ran into the kitchen while I was making dinner, wrapped both arms around my waist, and looked up at me.
"Mommy, can we go to Grandma Ellen's? Just us two? Just us girls?"
"Why?" I asked.
She thought about it, very serious. "Because every time I wake up and you're not home, I miss you. Even when Daddy's there, it's different." A pause. "Grandma Ellen probably misses you just as much as I do."
Reid was leaning in the doorway. He smiled at me—that easy, certain smile—and said, "She's not wrong. You've been running on empty for months. Take the trip. I've got everything covered."
The flights were booked before I finished washing the dishes.
I should have noticed how fast that was.
The call I made the night before we flew home changed everything. I thought I'd hung up.
I hadn't.

“Daddy…” I mindlinked my father.
I haven’t spoken to him in the 3 years I’ve been married.
“Evelyn? What’s wrong?” My father asked, his voice was soft and yet was so superior.
“I’m divorced” I told him solemnly.
“Return home to the palace, my princess” my father ordered.

"And where the hell is the supposed assistant?"" He angrily asked.
"I'm here."" A soft voice answered shyly. There was something about the voice that was oddly familiar.
He was ready to fire the person until he turned around to find no one other than Shayan West, a woman he heavily despised.
Her heart was pounding in her chest loudly as she stared at him, it was him, standing in front of her after five years.
Everything was going great for Shayan until her new boss arrived. What happens when her new boss turns out to be no one other than Kel Adrios, the man who caused so much drama in her life. Would she continue working or quit? Will they overcome their misunderstanding and start a new or loose their love to revenge? After all it takes two to tango and the more you hate, the more you fall in love.
Read to find out. You will experience a surge of emotions and your heart strings will be played like a guitar chord."

Six years ago, Adeline lost everything…her mate, her clan, and the life growing inside her.The fire took her home. The betrayal took her heart.Now, under a false name, she lives quietly as a doctor in the human world, hiding her wolf and her past behind calm hands and a steady smile.Until the day fate decides to test her silence.In the middle of the palace square, a little girl tugged at her sleeve.Her small hands were cold, her eyes too pale for someone so young. “I don’t feel good,” she whispered.Adeline knelt and gave her a piece of candy from her satchel. “Eat it slowly, sweetheart. It’ll make the hurting stop.”The girl smiled, soft and trusting…and Adeline never imagined that moment would change everything.Because the child she comforted that day wasn’t just anyone.She was the Alpha King’s daughter.When their eyes meet again, time stops. The bond they thought dead stirs back to life.The little girl clings to Adeline’s coat and calls her “Pretty Aunt.”And Vincent, the Alpha King who buried her six years ago, can only stare at the woman fate refused to erase.Two boys who look like him.One daughter who smells like her.A secret that can’t stay hidden forever.Because love may break, wolves may fall…but the bond between mates and blood always finds its way home.

"Why the hell are you here?" Logan's voice was dangerously low as his nails dug into my arms. "You're the gold-digger's daughter?"
A soundless protest escaped my lips, my brain freezing; I believed I had bad luck, but the worst one of them all was when Logan Ashford became my stepbrother.
The one person I’ve been desperately trying to avoid.
His lips curled into a slow, merciless smirk that made my blood turn ice.
"You better start praying." He leaned in, his hot breath tickling my ears. "Because I’m going to make your life a living hell."


Dawn Kingsley is the scholarship freak everyone bullies in school; she planned to excel as the sports committee president and keep a low profile until she was done.
In order to survive, she had one 'RULE,' and that is to avoid Logan Ashton as much as she can, even though it’s not entirely possible since he is the captain of the best hockey team in the school.
What happens when the man her mother is hung up on marrying was the father of the same boy that threatened her sanity?
One thing was certain: the devil might be dangerous, but he is fucking pretty, and rules were made to be broken.

I have never been good at keeping my mouth shut. So when the school’s star hockey captain tried to intimidate me on my first day, I didn’t flinch. I bit back.
Nobody stands up to Felix "The bully" Knox. They call him that because he completely ruins anyone who gets in his way—on the ice, and in real life. He’s cold, cruel, and completely heartless. Every girl who tries to get close to him ends up broken.
But he doesn’t scare me. To break my heart, I’d have to give it to him first, and that is never going to happen. He thinks he can growl and make me submit? Good luck.
FELIX KNOX
I gave her the rules. She broke them. I told her to stay away. She didn't listen.
She thinks I’m just an aggressive hockey player with a bad attitude. She has no idea what I really am, or that my family rules this entire Pack. I've tried to keep my distance to protect her from the beast inside me, but she keeps pushing my limits. She wants to play games with me? Let her. But she won't like what happens when I finally lose control.
Tonight, the moon is full, we are trapped in the empty ice rink together, and my wolf just realized something that changes everything...
She isn't just the new girl. She's my mate.

"Don’t... stop...” she implored before she moaned again.

“I must say, this interview didn't go quite how I expected it.” He admitted. His featherlight finger dragged across her boobs as his face hovers over hers.

“Are you ready to work hard for me? I don’t promise to go easy on you.” He whispered in her ear.

“Oh... Yes....” She moaned out, “Anything you need,” she whispered.

Isabella walked into the busy halls of Grayson’s Enterprise with the full intention of getting hired as the Supervisor of Ethan Grayson, The CEO of the company.

It was time for her interview with the CEO, their eyes met.

He had the kind of face that stopped you in your tracks.

And from that day after Isabella had gotten the job, she knew something hot was going to happen between them although he was engaged already."

His hands pinned me against the cold obsidian wall before I could even breathe. Draven’s golden eyes burned with raw hunger as he growled, “You belong to us now, little goddess.” Zale’s cool fingers traced my throat from behind, his voice like silk and sin. “Try to run and we’ll chase you forever.”

I came to Mythos Academy as a powerless D-Rank human. One collision with the two most dangerous S-Rank boys shattered everything. Now their fated bond consumes me. They hate each other, yet both crave me with violent obsession. While I fight bullies by day, I melt under their possessive touches by night.

But my blank slate soul is waking up. Ancient powers stir. A forgotten prophecy whispers that I will either save the mythical world… or destroy it.

Two apex monsters share my bed.
A war is coming for my blood.
And I’m starting to like how much they ruin me for anyone else.

The five of us were dragged into a twisted nightmare.
The game rules were absolute: Kill the Boss. All members survive. Total escape.
Luckily, we each spawned into the game with a supernatural perk.
Relying on our powers and our bond, we spent six grueling hours tearing the massive, horrific beast apart.
All we had to do was step into the extraction portal to wake up in Oregon.
My friends were screaming in victory, already planning our celebration at Voodoo Doughnuts.
Instead, I was frozen. My heart wasn't racing with adrenaline anymore; it was cold. Absolute zero.
Because my real perk tracked the Boss status.
Floating in the center of my vision, cutting through the shadows, were two lines of text that only I could see:BOSS STATUS: ALIVE.DISGUISED. The monster wasn't dead. It was standing right here, wearing the face of one of my best friends!

I never knew I was adopted until it was almost my 18th birthday. I'm my pack every wolf is celebrated on their 18th birthday it didn't matter if you were an Omega or Alpha. I am an Omega or that is what I thought. I found out all in the same week I was a special wolf The Golden Wolf and an Alpha Heir, I am Mated to the strongest Alpha of the Werewolf world. After years of abuse from my adopted father I finally got the nerve up to tell my Alpha what had been happening. I will admit I couldn't have done it if it weren't for my best friend. In a short amount of time I went from finding out that I was not an Omega I am an Alpha heir, I am Mated to the Brooding Alpha, I am a special wolf and I am part of a prophecy. After fulfilling the prophecy I find out that my mate and I are destined to become Alpha King and Queen Luna of the werewolf universe. Come find out how this interesting story comes together.Gomon a journey with Sydney and how her life has become the way it is.

She rejected her fated mate to protect her pack. He vowed to claim her, no matter the cost.

For seven years, Princess Elsher has worn a mask, ruling the strongest Starry Pack as her deceased father to shield it from vampire wars and rival packs. The last thing she needs is a mate, especially not Verlice Mintz, the formidable Alpha King known for his ruthlessness and relentless ambition.

Terrified that his proximity and scrutiny will expose her secrets and destroy her pack, Elsher rejects their bond. But Verlice isn't a man who accepts rejection. He believes in conquest, and he's determined to uncover the truth and claim what is his.

As lies unravel and enemies close in, can Elsher protect her pack and her heart? Or will the very mate she cast aside become her greatest salvation or her ultimate ruin?

Zara wanted a new beginning. A place to forget the betrayal, the lies, the grief. The mate who broke her, and the best friend who ruined her.

But Blackwood Academy isn’t salvation, it’s a nightmare and it’s definitely not what she expected…

The moment she steps through those gates, every Alpha notices her. Their hungry eyes follow her. Their possessive stares burn into her skin. But it’s him, Atlas Black, the one they call the top boy, the untouchable Alpha who makes her blood run cold.

He claims to hate her….So why do his eyes darken every time she’s near? Why does her wolf ache for the one who wants her gone?

Amanda was only six years old when her world shattered. Her parents-an Alpha and Luna whose love ruled with strength and compassion-were ripped away in a night of blood and betrayal. Alone and terrified, she was found by Mr. and Mrs. Sebastian, who promised safety but delivered cruelty. Under their roof, Amanda's life became one of endless suffering, forced to endure humiliation at the hands of their spoiled daughter Angela and treated as nothing more than a servant in the home that was supposed to protect her.

Years passed, and Amanda's only wish was to escape. But fate was not so kind. The Sebastians arranged to sell her into marriage to a wealthy old man, sealing her future in chains she could no longer bear. Desperate and afraid, Amanda fled into the dark woods-straight into the path of a stranger who would change her life forever.

Andrew, the ruthless Alpha of the strongest pack in the region, never believed in destiny until the moment he saw her. His wolf recognized her instantly. She was not just any woman. She was his mate. His Luna. The one fate had been hiding all along.

But claiming Amanda is only the beginning. Dark secrets from her past resurface, and enemies who destroyed her family now threaten to finish what they started. Angela's jealousy sharpens into betrayal, and the weight of leadership presses down on Amanda's fragile shoulders. She must rise from the ashes of her suffering, embrace the power buried deep .

When hot-headed rogue Alpha: Reid Hades gets accepted into Northlands Crest University, Lyra Durin, the Vice Chancellor’s daughter, is far from thrilled.

Not just because he once coldly rejected her on the same night she failed to shift, but because he’s now living under her family’s roof.

When Lyra’s world shatters after catching her chosen mate in bed with her foster sister, she tries to punish the two betrayers using a revenge spell. But that spell backfires, restoring her mate bond with Reid instead. The only way out? Their hatred for each other has to overpower the strength of the bond.

The only question is… do they truly hate each other like they claim to do? Or is it all a facade?

A good girl like Lyra has no business getting involved with a bad boy like Reid, especially one with a past as dark as his. Reid is cursed and banished from his pack by his father, after murdering his own mother and attempting to kill his father’s second Luna again.

But secrets don’t stay buried for long, and the harder Lyra tries to hate him, the closer fate pulls them together.

He’s the last guy she should ever fall for.

She’s the only girl he can’t stay away from.

And in a house full of lies, rules, and deceit, love becomes the most dangerous rebellion of all.

How much of Reid’s darkness can Lyra handle before it finally consumes her? Can they really spare themselves from each other before the bond turns permanent?

She is Lara, the epitome of evil, the sign of destruction. She is worst than the devil. She is the wind that can destroy you or the wind that can keep you chilly.
She has been attached to her since birth, she is connected to her. She is her savior.
The devil is my savior

Kruz has always been strong, disciplined, controlled, and unbreakable. Nothing prepares him for losing his mother… or what comes after.
Pulled into a hidden world he never knew existed, Kruz is forced to face the truth—he isn’t just different.
He’s a vampire.
The transformation is only the beginning. Thrust from a life of survival into one of power, wealth, and expectation, Kruz is given a position no one his age should hold: District Elder.
With it comes authority. Responsibility. And enemies he doesn’t yet understand.
And then there’s the bond.
Forced into a connection he didn’t choose, Kruz is tied to a girl—whether he wants it or not. She’s a complication. A problem. A constant reminder that his life is no longer his own.
Because the one person he wants… is the one he can’t have.
As pressure builds and danger closes in, Kruz is forced to walk a line few survive—between duty and desire, control and instinct, the life he had and the one being forced upon him.
Because in this world, power isn’t earned slowly.
It’s given.
And if you’re not ready for it—
It will destroy you.

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.

When the bridal bouquet landed directly in my arms, the entire reception erupted.
All eyes shifted to Elias, the man I had loved for seven years.
"Propose! Put a ring on it!" the crowd chanted, pushing him toward me.
My heart raced. I thought my endless waiting was finally over.
Instead, Elias stepped up, smiled... and pulled the flowers right out of my hands.
He turned around and shoved them into the arms of his twenty-five-year-old assistant.
"Don't be greedy, Kalinda. Let Mia have the luck today," he chuckled, patting my hair like a pet. "We've got plenty of time. Next time, I promise."
I watched his assistant bury her face in the white peonies, shooting me a triumphant smirk.
I just smiled back.
There isn't going to be a "next time."
My wedding is coming. And he isn't the groom.

James Brooke owner of Brooks and Co. company limited goes bankrupt.

In desperation, he accepts the offer of a merger with rock industries.

He thinks the merger is a simple one until he meets Missus rock and she tells him that's in order to save his company he must guarantee the rock family that Brooks and Co.

Mining Company Will be under their full control and that is by engaging his daughter, heiress to his company to her eldest son Jonathan rock.

Wealthy, Cold And well known for his indifferent behavior, CEO Jonathan rock is the man.

James Brooke signs the contract selling his young 20 year old daughter, Kayla, in exchange for money and for his bankruptcy scraped from the books.