111 Book(s) Related to hades voice

Michael Angelo, the man Aurora loved with all her heart, was also her worst bully and her short-tempered boss.
It wasn't her fault she was fat, but he sang how fat she was to her ear every day at the slightest provocation. She withstood the insult just to be close to the man she loves. When her boss accidentally heard heartfelt confession of love, he rejected and humiliated her in the most embarrassing way possible.
She quitted her job to save her face from further embarrassment, with a broken heart.
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Months after making her fat ugly secretary quit the job, Michael Angelo met someone who looks just like her, but hotter and sexier. And worst still, she was working for his worst enemy.
One goal was fixated in his mind; he must have her back, but Aurora was a woman on a mission.

Qiara Stone died once—long enough to watch the Clayborne family mourn her like a performance and celebrate their glittering “songbird” like she was born to shine. Then Qiara wakes up a week earlier in her twenty-year-old body, memories intact, heart blazing with one truth: she was never meant to be background noise in someone else’s masterpiece.

Raised by loving adoptive parents until a hospital mix-up rewrote her fate, Qiara was reclaimed by the powerful Claybornes—only to have her talent suppressed, her future bartered, and her voice stolen to protect the family’s lie. This time, she’s done obeying. With the Garden East Musical Competition as her battlefield, Qiara risks everything to step into the spotlight and claim the career that was always hers.

But the Claybornes don’t lose gracefully—and freedom comes with a price. When ruthless tech heir Julius Pierre offers Qiara protection, power, and a partnership no one can ignore, she must decide whether his deal is a lifeline… or just another gilded cage.

In a world where reputations are bought and voices are stolen, Qiara’s second life may be her only chance to sing—and make them pay.

My mother stared at my body, fused to the sofa, and waited forty minutes before calling 911.
She cheerfully told my father the news, deciding they should celebrate with a nice dinner.
Of course.
After all, they could finally be rid of the burden I’d become—no more tormenting me, no more keeping me locked away.
They could go back to being the respectable parents everyone thought they were.
But—
Someone was bound to see the truth.

I had a crush on the dominant CEO, Credence Scott, for ten years.
And I finally got married to him!
I was supposed to be a happy woman who married the one she loved.
However, Credence hated me.
In our four-year marriage, he rarely slept with me and blamed me for killing his dad.
I never did that. It was my sis, Rosalie, who had framed me!
The most heartbroken part was that Credence never believed in me.
Fine, I'd better end my life. But that's when Credence revealed his tenderness to me...

MATURE CONTENT!

“Fuck,” I moan as strong arms wrap themselves around me, holding me steady. So much for no one being able to touch me besides my mate.
“Are you okay?” The deep timber of masculinity in a single sentence settles awareness within me, and instantly, all my senses become heightened and awakened.
The rich scent of wood and rain hits me so hard that it makes me dizzy, and the electric zaps I feel set my insides in sweet discord, while my body tingles with an intensity that makes me moan again, this time not in pain.


Derek Steel didn’t expect a mate from the spirit pack, especially from a family that he’s at enmity with, one that caused him so much pain in the past. He is resolved to never accept Amber Snow as his mate.
But being unable to resist the pull of fate, he is faced with no choice but to keep her beside him, but this doesn’t quell his hatred for her and her family.
Amber Snow questions the personality of her mate, doubting that Derek, with his cold soul, is who she’s destined to be with.
She has to endure his wrath and brutal vengeance for a sin she didn’t commit, but with endurance comes more winds of torment.
In her journey to own her fate, she realizes that who she is far supersedes being defined by a mate.
As the goddess would have it, she holds the power to destroy or uphold Valhalla in all its glory; its fate rests solely on who wins her trust, her Cruel mate or her vengeful father.

Ten years ago, eight-year-old him nearly died under wolf claws trying to save me. Ten years later, when I gathered the courage to return to this town, that little hero had become a dangerous man.

"We're strangers, remember?" The eyes that used to be gentle only for me now looked at me with cold indifference.

But why does he hold me tight every time I'm in trouble? Why is his skin burning hot and his muscles hard like iron? Why do I tremble when his breath hits my neck?

When blood scented the rainy night and red-eyed beasts showed their fangs, I discovered the truth—my childhood sweetheart Logan was no longer human.

"STRIP".. ,, HADES said in his bold , authoritative and demanding tone.His eyes held anger and temper which send fears to her. Every Fibres of her body was shaking under his powerful and dominance gaze. She stood at her Place and didn't know how to react on his words.

"I said Strip My wife".. ,, This time his voice made her trembled and with Shaking hands she started to open her wedding dress.

She removed her veil and looked at him. He was staring back at her with his intense pitch black orbs.

"Remove Your Ornaments Too"..,, He spoke when she stopped removing her Wedding dress. She removed her jewellery but left Golden Nuptials Chain Which he tied around her neck. Her glossy eyes were locked with his blazing eyes

"I don't have the whole Night" ... ,, Hades voice echoed in the room. Her breathing was low and sweats started to appear on her body.

She opened the strings of her wedding skirt and in a flow it fall down on the floor. With trembling hands she again pulled the strings of her blouse and opened the hooks. Now she was in her red lacy lingerie. However ,Not even for a second His eyes moved down and wandered at her curvy body.

His eyes were fixed on her eyes and she was gazing back at his beautiful deep black eyes. He stood up from the bed and came near her. She took a few steps back but the wall stopped and supported her body to stand properly. He bent and tilted his head and whispered in her ear. His husky deep voice and hot breath released thousands of butterflies in her stomach.

"You're not up to my standard".. ,, He said and left her in the room all alone on their wedding night. His words pierced her heart and a hurtful Chuckled came out of her mouth.

Tears were flowing through her eyes but she smiled sadly and said, "My name is DURGASHAKTI, husband and I'm not weak like you thought of me"

Story Of HADES and His PERSEPHONE

"Say it again," His hand travelled down to my belly, deliberate and sinful, threatening to touch places he shouldn't. "Tell me you still hate me."

"I hate you," my voice turned out weak, drowning by the desire that only him can give. "After tonight, I'll drag you to hell with me."

A sexy chuckle escaped from him as his tongue ran through my jaw. "Hell will be heaven as long as I'm with you."

Maeve Bloodmoon’s life was perfect—until a brutal purge under the Alpha King’s order turned her life upside down. With her family and whole pack dead by the hands of the man she trusted the most-—the King’s son—Maeve’s heart was crushed into pieces until it was nothing but speck of dust.

Years later, she returned. With a heart as hard as steel and a mind filled with revenge, Maeve infiltrated the palace. Hidden under a false name and an armor of a knight, she swore that every sword she yields will bring her to her goal: to avenge her pack, destroy everyone who ruined her bloodline, and usurp the throne.

But fate is never merciful. With her old lover and traitor being the high commander she needs to bow to, Maeve needs to make sure her mask won’t crack. Not when the strong bond that connects him to her refuses to die and threatens to shatter everything she has built.

For seven years of marriage, I don't dare make a sound around my husband.
All because he can hear everyone's voices—everyone's except mine. He says he's allergic to mine.
I've tried everything to change my voice—even had vocal cord surgery.
But no matter how hard I tried—every time he'd just cover his ears like I was hurting him.
I've cried myself to sleep so many times, feeling guilty.
Until our son's birthday.
Standing by our front door, our little boy grinned up at his dad and asked, "Dad, can I pretend to be allergic to mom's voice too? Just like you?"

The three alpha wolves who bullied me
never knew the truth.

I wasn't the quiet boy they tormented.

I was the girl hiding behind my dead brother's name.

And I was their fated mate.


For a year, I lived under my dead brother’s name, hiding my identity and my power.

But on my eighteenth birthday, everything changed.

My disguise shattered.
My power awakened.

And the broken boy they mocked became a legendary Lunar Shadow Wolf.

Now the three alphas who once humiliated me feel every scar they caused.

They want forgiveness.

Too bad.

Because the wolves who once bullied me?

They belong to me now.

And this time—

they’re the ones who will kneel.

"Do you feel that, Wren? That pull between us?"
His eyes darken, flicking to my mouth.
"It's wrong. Your brother would slit my throat for just standing this close. But tell me, little bird" his breath ghosts my skin, "are you trembling because you hate me… or because you've wanted this just as much as I have?"
Wren thought she'd buried the chaos of New Orleans for good—the clubs, the blood-soaked loyalties, the men who lived and died by their kuttes. Seattle gave her everything she ever wanted: freedom, love, a future.
But one betrayal shatters it all.
Dragged home by tragedy, Wren finds herself under the watchful eye of Ezra Jax—the Raven Reapers MC's vice president and her brother's best friend. He's infuriating, dangerous, and far too tempting for a man she should never touch.
And the deeper Wren is pulled back into his world, the more she realizes nothing about her past—or about Ezra—is what she believed.
In the chaos of gang wars, mounting debts, and old betrayals, he becomes the one constant. The more she fights him, the harder she falls. And the more he pushes her away, the more lethal his pull becomes.
Because in this world, love isn't sweet.
It's brutal. Bloody.
And it's bound to break them both.
When loyalty is everything and love can cost your life, will Wren risk her heart on the one man she was never meant to love?

“A dynamic story line that grips from the first chapter and doesn't let go.”--Midwest Book Review, Diane Donovan (regarding Once Gone)From #1 bestselling mystery author Blake Pierce comes a new masterpiece of psychological suspense.In A TRACE OF VICE (Book #3 in the Keri Locke mystery series), Keri Locke, Missing Persons Detective in the Homicide division of the LAPD, follows a fresh lead for her abducted daughter. It leads to a violent confrontation with The Collector—which, in turn, offers more clues that may, after all this time, reunite her with her daughter.Yet at the same time, Keri is assigned a new case, one with a frantic ticking clock. A teenage girl has gone missing in Los Angeles, a girl from a good family was who duped into drugs and abducted into a sex trafficking ring. Keri is hot on her trail—but the trail is moving fast, with the girl being constantly moved and with her abductors’ single, nefarious goal: to cross her over the border with Mexico.In an epic, breathtaking, cat and mouse chase that takes them through the seedy underworld of trafficking, Keri and Ray will be pushed to their limits to save the girl—and her own daughter—before it is all too late.A dark psychological thriller with heart-pounding suspense, A TRACE OF VICE is book #3 in a riveting new series—and a beloved new character—that will leave you turning pages late into the night.“A masterpiece of thriller and mystery! The author did a magnificent job developing characters with a psychological side that is so well described that we feel inside their minds, follow their fears and cheer for their success. The plot is very intelligent and will keep you entertained throughout the book. 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)Book #4 in the Keri Locke series will be available soon.

An epic cold snap struck, causing temperatures to plummet to minus eighty degrees Celsius.
My fiancée and best friend occupied my hillside villa, laughing hysterically as they watched a video of me nearly freezing to death.
In their eyes, once I turned into a solid block of ice, they could rightfully inherit my vast fortune and live in this warm, doomsday Noah's Ark.
But what they didn't know was that the video was n't real at all .
I stood in the temperature-controlled bunker twenty meters below them and cut off their main power.
The hunt was about to begin.

My fiancée and best friend, whom I risked my life to protect, sold me to the brutal "Blood Blade Gang . "
They laughed as they watched me being kicked into a pool of radioactive waste like a dog, waiting for me to turn into a pile of bones.
But they didn't know that the deadly radiation not only failed to melt me, but also forcibly ruptured my genetic lock, awakening the [Nuclear Fury].
I rode back to the old camp in her heavily armored vehicle.
Those two scoundrels were still arrogantly bullying me: "I have the Blood Blade Gang backing me! The big shots are coming soon, you're dead!"
I sneered and slapped them away.
Idiots, look back! Your so-called powerful backer is kneeling in the vehicle, lighting my cigarette.

I thought I was the luckiest person in the apocalypse.
My brother, a former special forces soldier, brought me supplies so I wouldn't have to face the horrors above ground.
My girlfriend comforted me over the radio, saying she'd cry in my arms once we could finally get out.
I lived underground for three years, grateful like a domesticated dog.
Until that day, when I pushed open the door, smelled fresh grass, and saw the swimming pool in the sunlight—that's when I understood that the so-called apocalypse was never outside, but behind the door they had locked me in.

In the extreme cold of the apocalypse, I was bound to the Seraphim's Flame, gaining access to the tycoon's bunker.
My good brother Luke was so jealous he went mad and killed me with a single blow.
Reborn, Luke stole the "Seraphic Flame" and, like throwing away trash, kicked another dark, ugly stone to my feet.
He didn't know—Redstone was a blood-sucking evil, while Blackstone was the true god-level talent.
When the deathly gale of minus seventy degrees swept across the world, I activated the [Dimensional Fortress] of infinite space.
Tons of munitions, mountains of supplies, overwhelming heavy firepower…
I will stand on the frozen wasteland and watch that bastard, step by step, become the human battery I need.

In my previous life, I gave away all my resources to save people, but my godfather broke my legs and fed me to the zombies.
Reincarnated 30 days before the apocalypse, I borrowed millions to build a nuclear-proof bunker and bought twelve retired, violent, and rabid dogs.
Extreme cold descends. With nowhere else to turn and in a desperate attempt to survive, the priest forces a space-age ability user to pinpoint the coordinates of the area inside the bunker with the "highest concentration of heat," and then forcibly teleports to steal the bunker.
He landed laughing wildly, feeling the scorching heat wave hitting him, thinking he had taken over my generator room and greenhouse.
I sneered and remained silent through the bulletproof glass.
This idiot has no idea that the hottest place in my shelter... has never been the generator.

In my previous life, an endless polar night and frost-laden corpse tide swept through the entire city.
My wife and I took in her mother and younger brother out of familial obligation,
But when monsters attacked, they locked us outside the shelter and we were torn apart alive.
Opening my eyes again, there are only seven days until doomsday arrives.
My wife and I have reached a consensus—to hell with blood being thicker than water!
This time, we will build an icy tomb for them with our own hands at the highest point of this city.

In my previous life, my wife was addicted to black market gambling on football, which caused us to lose everything.
To make matters worse, a zombie horde then broke out.
We had no shelter and were quickly torn apart by a horde of frenzied zombies.
After being reborn, she planned to run off with all the money, then dump me and elope with her lover.
What she didn't know was that I had awakened the ability to read minds and knew all her plans.

My fiancée's father called me a stray dog, worse than trash.
My rival forced me to crawl between his legs and trampled me into the mud.
They all thought I was just a piece of trash to be trampled on at will.
But they didn't know that I endured humiliation and hardship for a shocking secret order.

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

Victoria discovered that I hadn't submitted any supplemental medical expense claims for two weeks.
She assumed I had finally been disciplined and had given up what she called "the exploitative nature of the lower class."
Little did she know, my backpack held the signed divorce papers and my mother's death certificate.
As I turned to leave, I was still wearing the discounted trench coat she'd casually given me three years ago when we got married.
What she didn't know was that I, a deep-sea geology genius from MIT, willingly endured three years of her humiliation and ridiculous rules, just so my mother could stay in her conglomerate's private hospital to prolong her life.
Now, my mother has died because of unpaid bills , and even her ashes are carried by me in a cheap canvas bag.
Now that my loved one is dead, there's no need for me to continue being her obstructive dog on Wall Street. The lives she owed with those approval forms, I will settle with the collapse of her entire conglomerate empire.

Betrayed by my wife on the eve of the apocalypse, they stole the shelter keys and locked me in the heart of the zombie outbreak to die.
I felt no anger.
Three minutes to blast open the blast door, ten minutes to drain the billions from that despicable couple's overseas accounts,
and then I'd buy machine guns and artillery from the black market! The couple speeding down the highway had no idea that the "top-secret key" they were protecting was actually a bomb designed to detonate the defense system.
The real wasteland survival game had only just begun.

He buried her once, but the blood King resurrected the woman he could never forget.

When Lyra Kael rises from death—half-wolf, half-vampire—she burns for revenge against her best friend who drowned her and the Alpha who betrayed her.

Ryder Kael was her cheating husband, her lover, and now her obsession. The Ironfang MC had been Lyra’s home until her best friend drowned her on the night her husband left her for another wolf.

Now back as a hybrid, every glance drags her back to the night he betrayed her, every touch awakens the beast she swore to bury. Torn between vengeance and desire, Lyra hunts him down for her new master, the Blood King, in exchange for her freedom. But has her desire truly died? And will Ryker let go of her once again?

Bianca McIntyre once had it all—wealth, power, and the promise of a fairytale life. But when tragedy struck and her family died, she made the mistake of trusting Marcus Steele, the charming heir who became her husband. For three years, he betrayed her, drained her inheritance, and shattered her heart. On their anniversary, she caught him in bed with her best friend—and walked away from everything.

On a flight to Spain, broken and desperate, Bianca met a mysterious older man who offered her three nights of freedom. Three nights of passion, escape, and raw desire. She never asked his name… until fate revealed the shocking truth.

Her stranger wasn’t just any man—he was Leon Steele. Marcus’s father. The ruthless patriarch of the Steele empire.

Drawn into a forbidden affair, Bianca finds herself caught in a dangerous game of lust, power, and betrayal. Marcus wants to destroy her, Leon wants to protect her, and secrets threaten to tear everything apart.

Now Bianca must fight for her legacy, her heart, and the child who could change everything. But will she survive her father-in-law's forbidden passion?

Mate?
A human girl from a small town, Apple grew up knowing that werewolves and other supernaturals are dangerous. When she leaves her abusive family to move to Crescent City, the biggest supernatural city in the West, a place where monsters mingle with the common population, and a weak human like her is easy prey. During an eventful job search, a twist of fate has Apple unknowingly arriving at Sterling Incorporated, the biggest werewolf pack on the West Coast. Hoping to get an internship or entry-level job, she is mistaken to be the Alpha's new Rental Luna, a temporary contract Luna paid to serve his every need.
The problem is--she isn't his contract Luna! She isn't even a wolf!
But Sylvester Sterling doesn't care. He's decided that only Apple can do this job--and he'll go to any lengths to convince her.
Will Apple fall for the Alpha's seduction? Or will this human girl from a small town prove to be his biggest challenge yet?

This is a reverse-harem, coming-of-age story about a girl who discovers her true power when she escapes heartbreak and moves far away from everything she knew in the bustling city of LA, to the wild redwoods of Northern California.

A modern twist on “Little Red Riding Hood,” Rosalynd Reid will need to choose who to love and trust--her hunky werewolf, the reclusive artist billionaire/secret leprechaun, or the wise professor/Coven Leader sent to guide her in the ways of magic.

She will find some parts of magic are beautiful, and others dark. She will learn to love the trees from the local werewolf pack as their future luna, and the ways of earth magic and sexual energy from the witches. Her leprechaun lover will teach her about all the hidden riches in the community and will open her eyes to the exciting lifestyle of a country billionaire.

In the end, after many trials, adventures, and flirtations, she will discover her power and find true happiness with the men of her dreams.

This is the story of Millicent Walker, a mysterious orphan who arrived in the small coastal town of Crimson mute, nameless, and with no memory of her life before. Hired out by the orphanage to pay for her room and board, her strange appearance and mannerisms lead her to be seen as a freak. To many, she was seen as having less value than the rags she used to clean the floors.
When a blight comes to Crimson, the dragon demands a virgin "of marriageable age" as a sacrifice in exchange for his assistance.
Seen as strange, even cursed, Millicent was an easy choice for the sacrifice. Loved and wanted by no one, there was nobody to fight for her when they chained her to the cart and left her at the base of the hill to be defiled or devoured.
Little did they know, her sacrifice would be their biggest mistake.

Three years ago, Ye Chen was the unrivaled genius of the Azure Cloud Sect—until the woman he loved betrayed him, shattered his dantian, and stole his Spiritual Bone to climb higher. Cast into the Spirit Beast Stables as a cripple, he is beaten, starved, and forgotten.

But when his blood awakens an ancient ring, everything changes.

The Supreme Overlord System binds to his soul, repairing his body and granting him heaven-defying power. In mere breaths, he reclaims lost cultivation. In a single night, he crushes his first enemy.

The sect believes he is trash.

They are about to witness the birth of a god.

And Ye Chen has a debt to collect.

All her life, Caroline used to believe werewolves are fantasy creatures. Not until her 18th birthday was Caroline told that she was adopted and to make her feel worse, she was adopted into a werewolf family. More importantly, she was her stepbrother's Mate and her stepbrother is an Alpha. Just when Caroline was blending into the situation, she was found by a man who told her he is her real cousin.
She was also told her identity as a Lycan- werewolf's most hated enemy and the only way to live is to escape.
What happens after Cara found out that her mate's grandfather is the one that murdered her parents? Although her mate is one of the leaders in the academy, what if other leaders did not accept Lycans? Will Caroline run from the academy or will she fight against them to be with her mate?

"The contract marriage has expired. You're no longer useful to me," Lucas's cold voice pierced my heart. After three years of devotion, I was nothing but a disposable tool.

Then, he brought her home. Amelia, his cherished true love—and the daughter of the mafia family that slaughtered my parents. She sneered at me, flaunting my mother's stolen sapphire necklace, while Lucas ruthlessly kicked me out, calling me a mere "housekeeper."

My heart shattered entirely, but the tears finally stopped. I signed the divorce papers and walked out into the night.

He thought I was a penniless nobody who would crumble without his wealth. He didn't know my real name was Isabella Sorelli.

When I appeared at a top-tier banquet, flanked by my three wildly protective, billionaire brothers, Lucas's eyes widened in sheer shock. I am the heiress to the city's greatest empire now. You threw me away for a snake, Lucas? Watch me crush her. And when you finally realize what you lost, begging on your knees won't be enough.

On the night of my rebirth, fueled by alcohol and rage, I stumbled into the room of my fiancé’s sworn enemy—and kissed him.

Everyone thinks Atlas is a heartless playboy who toys with women.

Only I know how submissive he can be, and the filthy, dirty things he whispers when he calls me "Baby."

Outside the door, my scumbag ex-fiancé, Knox, was screaming, begging for a second chance.

Inside the door, Atlas’s wandering hands were exploring every inch of my body.

"Be a good girl," he rasped against my ear. "Moan loud enough for him to hear."

The next day, Knox pinned me against the wall, his eyes red with jealousy. "I can do better than him. Choose me, okay?"

I shoved him away coldly. "Too late."

From the moment I was reborn, my goal was to make Knox pay. Why simp for a cheater when I can make him lose his fortune, his reputation, and force him to kneel at my feet?

Atlas smirked, pulling me into his arms. "Choose me. I'll help you destroy him."

My name used to be whispered in fear by dictators. Now, it’s mocked by cheerleaders.

I am—or I was—Phantom. I killed for a living, and I was the best. But my retirement plan was cut short by a sudden darkness I never saw coming.

Fate, it seems, has a twisted sense of humor. I’ve been reincarnated into the body of Raven Martinez, a high school girl with a life so tragic it makes my old job look like a vacation.

Now I have to deal with pop quizzes, teenage hormones, and a hierarchy of bullies who think they run the world.

They pushed the old Raven to her death. But they’re about to learn a very painful lesson: You don't corner a viper unless you're ready to get bitten.

High school is hell. Lucky for me, I'm the devil.

After Alpha King Kaius publicly rejected Elowen, she left his kingdom and never looked back. She had to start over completely - no pack, no family, no one to help her. She built a new life on her own and thought she was safe. But on what should have been a peaceful birthday, she found herself captured by the King's guards and thrown into the castle dungeons. Now they think she's some kind of enemy spy, and she needs to escape before Kaius figures out who she really is and discovers all the secrets she's been hiding. The problem is, she's not the same broken girl who left four years ago, and he's not exactly the same cold bastard who rejected her either. With lives on the line and nowhere left to run, can she get out before everything falls apart?

To save my dying sister, I provoked James Smith, the city's most dangerous Mafia Don.

I thought it was a simple transaction, but he pinned me against the wall, his fingers tracing my lips as he whispered dangerously, "Sweetie, since you call me your sugar daddy, then fulfill your obligations. Remember, your first time was mine, and you’ll never escape me in this lifetime."

I believed he was a heartless monster until, facing death, he shoved his only gun into my hands and placed his ring around my neck. "Ella, run! Hide and wait for me..."

As his black SUV drifted into the gunfire to draw them away, I was left trembling. Would he make it back alive to claim me again?

I thought ten years of childhood sweethearts could weather any storm.

Until that night when Charles rushed out after her call, leaving me alone in bed with his child growing inside me, not knowing how to tell him.

Seraphina Blackwood, tech dynasty heiress, threatened Charles with her father's billion-dollar empire to marry her. And me? Just an orphan girl who seemed to mean nothing in Silicon Valley's power games.

When I watched him remove our wedding ring, when I saw their sweet photos at the hospital, when I lay bleeding on the floor and he chose her... I finally understood that maybe love really can't survive against money.

But what I didn't know was that while I started my new life in Switzerland, there was a man secretly protecting me with his kidney, his heart, his everything...

Until his assistant appeared at my little bakery, desperation in his eyes: "Ms. Thorne, please, you have to save him!"

At the board meeting, he voted to dilute my equity.

"This is business, Elena. Not personal."

Three years of hidden marriage. I thought we were partners. But in that moment, I finally understood—I was just his technical supplier on the road to success.

What Ryan didn't know: that Technology Contribution Agreement he signed three years ago contained one clause. 70% of NexTech's core algorithm IP belongs to me. Personally.

Product launch day. Two hundred investors watching. I took the microphone.

He thought I'd present the tech specs like always.

He was wrong.

Dante Ashford is my stepbrother, and the one person I should never have fallen in love with.

When I was ten, my parents died saving his family. The Ashfords took me in. He was good to me back then. Somewhere along the way, I fell for him.

When I was eighteen, he nearly died in an ambush. I donated blood, then a kidney to save him. I was unconscious for three days. When I woke up, Vivian Ross sat by his bed—and he believed she was his savior.

After that, he pushed me away. Vivian became his fiancée.

In my past life, Vivian's crimes brought disaster to our family. Dante got on his knees and begged me to take her punishment. I refused. She died anyway. Then he pretended to love me, planned our wedding—and on that day, his assistant announced to everyone: "This wedding was a lesson to show Miss Elena Hayes what it feels like to be abandoned by the whole world."

I jumped from the church balcony.

When I opened my eyes, I was back at that moment—him on his knees, begging.

This time, I said yes.

Dante, from now on, we're done.

My father died owing the Callahan family a blood debt. His payment? Me and my sister—married off to their sons.

I woke up reborn on the night they buried him.

Standing in that funeral chamber, watching the lawyer crack open the sealed will, I discovered I could suddenly hear thoughts. My sister Vivienne's voice ripped through my head: Not marrying that butcher. No way in hell.

She lunged forward and grabbed Adrian—the refined bastard son who looked like a lawyer instead of a mobster. The same "perfect gentleman" I married in my past life.

Which left me with Dominic Callahan. The scarred heir. The Executioner.

Last time around, Vivienne married Dominic and got beaten down for years. I married Adrian and lived like a queen.

I almost laughed out loud.

Because she has no idea—this time, she's the one who grabbed the monster.

Everyone in this city knows that the king of the underworld, my husband Vincent, is crazy about me.

Three years ago, when that bullet tore through my abdomen, it took away my chance of ever being a mother. He held my blood-soaked body and swore to God he'd make the shooter's entire family pay. A month later, that family was wiped off the map in this city. No one dares speak their name anymore.

He sat by my hospital bed, holding my hand. "I don't need kids. I only need you."

I believed him.

Until six months ago, when his brother died in an accident, leaving behind his wife Serena. The family pressure came like a tidal wave. An heir. A bloodline. That's all they cared about. And that woman became everyone's golden ticket to keeping the Caruso name alive.

That's when my husband stopped coming home at night. Every night, I hear them through the wall. Sounds that used to be mine.

But today, the doctor told me my body is healing. The chances are slim, but there's hope.

I clutch the medical report and rush home, imagining Vincent's face when he sees the results. Maybe everything can go back to how it was. Maybe he'll realize he doesn't need her.

Until I stand outside our mansion and hear laughter pouring out.

"Serena's pregnant! Can you believe it? The family finally has an heir!"

"Finally. The family's saved."

The day I died in a foreign country, my boyfriend was in the spotlight with another woman.

He's the man I built from nothing. Five years ago, I saved a broke orphan fresh out of college from the gutter. He said he wanted to be famous, wanted to make it to the top of the hockey world. In exchange, he became my boyfriend for five years.

I gave him the best coaching staff money could buy. Bought an entire hockey franchise and made him the centerpiece. Called in every favor I had to make him MVP.

But while he enjoyed everything I gave him, he refused to make our relationship public. Said it would "hurt his brand." He could make headlines with reporters and models, but nobody could know I existed.

He even said on national TV: "Those owners who just throw money around are pretty boring. Hockey is about skill, not money."

So why did he lose his mind when he found out I was dead?

The alliance between the Human Empire and the Wolf Empire has stood for centuries. The treaty requires the Human Empire to send a princess to the Wolf Empire every so often, to become the Wolf King's mate and strengthen the bond between our kingdoms. Now, it's time to honor that pact again.

Father is old now, ready to step down. My sister and I have to choose.

In my past life, Adelaide chose the throne. She thought power meant she could do whatever she wanted. Within three years, the Human Empire crumbled in her hands. At home, she bled the people dry, filling her own coffers while they starved. Abroad, her arrogance drove away our allies. The Dwarven Empire, the Serpent Empire, they all cut ties. In the end, the surrounding kingdoms banded together and attacked. The Human Empire fell in the war. Our parents died by enemy blades, and Adelaide had to flee.

And me? I went to the Wolf Empire, just like the treaty said.

On the surface, I was the Wolf Queen, worshipped by every wolf, living in the grand Wolf Court, attending state banquets. In reality, I was his prisoner. Forced to run as prey in the hunting ritual, slapped to the ground in front of the council, shoved forward as a hostage when conflicts arose.

At one banquet, Adelaide appeared in front of me, gripping a dagger, madness burning in her eyes. "This is your fault! If you hadn't been so useless in the Wolf Empire, we wouldn't have lost everything!"

The blade sank into my chest. I collapsed in a pool of blood.

When I open my eyes again, I'm back in the throne room with Father watching us.

Adelaide barely hesitates before speaking up. "I'll go to the Wolf Empire. Let Brynn take the throne."

I smile.

Foolish Adelaide. She has no idea that beneath the Queen's crown lies nothing but chains and blood.

Ryan loves me deeply—at least that's what everyone says. Seven years together, we look like the perfect couple to outsiders. But only I know he's betrayed me three times.

The first time was three years ago. His brother died saving him, leaving behind his widow Sophia—Ryan's unforgettable first love. He married her behind my back. When I found out, I completely fell apart. I have dignity. I refuse to be the other woman. I wanted to leave, but he begged on his knees. "This is just to take care of my sister-in-law. Once I find the truth about my brother's death, I'll divorce her. Then we can get married."

I believed him. I forgot that a man never lets go of a lost love he's gotten back.

The second time was at last year's company anniversary. In front of everyone, he introduced Sophia as his wife. I watched them on stage, a knife through my heart. That night he explained, "It's just for show. Once everything's over, we can be together."

I believed him again.

The third time was two weeks ago. Surveillance footage showed Ryan with Sophia entering a hotel room. I rushed to confront him, but heard her voice outside his office. "Ryan, I'm pregnant. It's your baby."

Through the crack in the door, I see him hesitate. In that instant I understand.

He's going to keep her.

He spots me and rushes out in a panic. "It was an accident! Let me explain! After she has the baby, I'll give her money and make her leave. She won't be in our lives anymore!"

In that moment, I finally wake up. There will be no future for us.

The mafia boss chose me as his decoy—a body double for the woman he loves.

Eight years. Three bullets, one car crash, one explosion. The doctor said ten more minutes and I would've died on that operating table when they took my kidney. I gave him a son. He let me play "the boss's wife" in public.

Until he cleared every obstacle for her and decided to marry her.

Her wedding photos replaced mine in the master bedroom. He has her initials tattooed on his arm. When I questioned him, he had his men slap me at a charity gala, forced me to admit "I'm just a stand-in." When I touched her, he took away my custody, declared she was "the true lady of this house."

The punishments got worse. When he threatened to cancel my mother's insurance, I finally learned to shut up.

He pulls me close, whispers in my ear: "She gave up everything for me. Not like you—you were born to take bullets for me."

"Deal with it. She's not replacing you. This is her house now."

Even my son took her side.

"Stop being dramatic! Natalie actually loves us! You're nothing!"

But their pure, innocent Natalie? She unplugged my mother's ventilator while I was locked in the basement. Let his enemies slip poison into my drink during the last job.

When Grayson found me, all he said was: "She's pregnant and emotional. Go rearrange the flowers at the wedding venue."

I wipe the black blood from my lips. Look at him quietly.

"I'm dying."

Everyone in our circle knows I'm Adrian's caged bird, and the "bad woman" his son Miles hates most.

For Miles, I gave up my fellowship in Zurich and spent seven years playing housewife.

What did I get in return? Adrian took Sophie to gallery openings on our anniversary. Miles smashed cake in my face in front of everyone, calling me a frumpy housewife.

Adrian was certain I couldn't leave him. Certain I couldn't leave our son.

He threw the divorce papers on the table with a cold smile. "Sign this, and you lose everything. Including Miles."

He expected me to beg on my knees.

I didn't.

I picked up the pen and signed without hesitation.

"Fine, Adrian. You keep Miles. And I get to keep myself."

For just a moment, I saw shock flash in his eyes.

I heard later that Adrian searched for me like a madman, and the son he doted on cried and screamed for his mommy.

Too bad. I'd already burned it all down myself.

I've been secretly married to him for five years, but he's never treated me as his wife. Our six-year-old daughter has never called him Dad in public.

One drunken night, I got pregnant. He gave me a marriage contract that came with one condition: secrecy.

I thought time would change everything. I stood by him through the company's darkest days. When I was hospitalized with a bleeding ulcer, he didn't come. When our daughter was born, he was in a meeting. Every moment that mattered, he wasn't there.

Then that clumsy intern showed up.

From that point on, he gave her all his attention and patience. He broke his own rules for her again and again. That's when I finally understood: when someone doesn't love you, they just don't.

So I took my daughter and disappeared from his world completely.

But why did that calm, controlled man lose his mind?

I helped him claw his way up from nothing—from the family's bastard to king of the underworld.

I saved him when he got jumped in the streets. Took bullets for him when his father beat him half dead. We fought our way up from nothing, survived assassination attempts, built an empire that made people fear our name.

I thought we'd always stand together.

Until the day I nearly died giving birth, and all I found in the bassinet was a stack of cash.

I asked him where our baby was. He couldn't look me in the eye. His stepmother walked out holding my son. Smiled and said she deserved this, a child of her own, since she couldn't have one herself. He'd given my baby to another woman.

Turns out he'd been sleeping with her the whole time.

I threw the money in his face. I spent the next six years trying to get my son back.

Last week, when some small-time gang grabbed him, I went in alone with a gun. Bullets flew past my ears, kicked up concrete dust. I fought my way to the back and pulled him out. At the hospital, he pushed me away, crying, "Why'd you have to come?! We could've been a real family by now! Just leave! Leave me alone!"

I stared at his small face for a long time.

Finally, I said, "Call me mom one last time. Then I'll let you go."

Our engagement has gone unfulfilled for ten years.

My parents saved his family in that yacht accident. With their dying breath, they asked his family to look after me. In return, we go to city hall every year, trying to fulfill this obligation.

Ten attempts. Ten failures.

Elevator malfunctions, food poisoning, home invasions, car crashes... Every single time, I get hurt at the worst possible moment while he walks away without a scratch.

This makes ten. A truck slams into the passenger side, my head smashes against the window, and he's already running across the street, pulling that woman into his arms.

On my way to find him after they stitch me up, I hear his assistant's voice in the hospital corridor:

"Mr. Ashford, the truck driver's been taken care of. Money'll hit his account like we agreed... but is this really fair to Miss Bennett? It's been ten years, every single year—"

William's voice comes out low and tired. "I don't have a choice. Her parents saved me, but I'm in love with Emma."

I look down at the diagnosis. ALS. Late stage.

Turns out I've been trying to marry a lie this whole time.

Landon Rhodes and I grew up together, both dreaming of becoming top chefs. But I knew he was the one with a palate kissed by God.

So when Rowan Stone, this street-rat punk, got her claws into him, I took the drinks, the smoke, the slaps for him. When he wanted to skip the National Young Chefs Competition to stay with her drunk ass, I dragged him back to the culinary lab.

He won the championship, got recruited by a three-star Michelin restaurant, graduated and made millions. I became the most invisible prep cook in his kitchen.

Until Rowan wrapped her car around a pole during one of her episodes, and he lured me into a basement.

"This is all your fault! If you'd minded your own damn business, she'd still be alive!"

His foot came down on my right hand. Bones cracking. My fingers ground to pulp.

All those 5 AM trips to the fish market for him. All those nights watching stock simmer for forty-eight hours straight. All the praise he soaked up at final practicals. My sacrifices, and all I got in return was his hatred.

"These worthless hands that can only cut vegetables deserve to rot in the ground with her."

The pain swallowed me whole.

When I wake up again, I'm back to that afternoon when he said he was going to the bar to find her.

This time, I won't stop him.