What really lurks in the dark? Emma Walker is a young girl who lives a normal life, attending college just like every other girl in her age bracket. However, she is tagged weird because of her fear of the dark and as a result, she battles with her social life as it earns her a place with the unpopular cadre of students in college. On the other hand, Ryan Gray is a guy who embraces the night. Being a Vampire of 105 years old who was changed and now looks 22, he struggles to keep his true identity a secret. No one has to know about it. Unlike Emma, Ryan is among the popular students that dominate the unpopular ones. Emma goes ahead to ruin Ryan's reputation which threatens Ryan's social life and popularity. Ryan is bent on finding out who ruined his reputation while earnestly struggling to hide his true identity. Emma and Ryan's paths cross when Emma goes out at night to change everyone's perception of her and the Vampire is out for a brief adventure. Ryan is worried about this and he is surprised that he can't hurt her. He begs her to keep his secret. Ryan is even more surprised that Emma attends the same college with him and he decides to carry out thorough investigation on her. He finds out that the more he knows her, the more he falls in love with this human. He tries to stop himself but he can't stop his feelings. The Vampire has fallen. He finds Emma's reticence, innocence, shyness, gentleness and fear of the dark alluring. However, he is in rage when he finds out that Emma is the one that ruined his reputation and he is very confused. He tries to make Emma promise to keep his identity a secret. Emma assures him of loyalty, something Ryan doesn't see in anybody. He is convinced when Emma confesses her feelings of love for him. Emma is on the verge of regaining her social life and she knows that if she exposes Ryan, she would also gain popularity but she is in love with this Vampire. It is a forbidden love, she knows that and that is why she will do whatever it takes to kill it.
What lurks in the dark?
Something about the night seems so strange to Emma Walker. Probably that explains why she is always within the confinement of her room when the darkness becomes thick.
'Gloomy', that is the only adjective that seems to repeat in her head as she stares through her window at the sight of black.
She dares not step out.
Anna and Chloe were out doing the usual. 'Those two,' she thought,as she lifted her head to the bulb light that held so much pleasantness and beauty. She sighed.
Will she continue this way? Hiding behind the beams of light always and never daring to let the hands of the dark touch her. For goodness sake, she was twenty. What type of phobia was this?
Her friends were out sometimes,partying and they came back, unharmed, alive. Now, everyone thought she was weird, they even admit it to her face. That's worse enough.
"Whatever," she said as the trembling hands of fear held her back.
She was the only one at home. She didn't care as long as she was in the warm embrace of safety with the eyes of light staring directly at her,watching her. This was safety indeed.
She closed her eyes, giving in to sleep.
Even as she closed her eyes, there was darkness everywhere. She couldn't see a thing. It was....it was gloomy!
All of a sudden, it seemed like something was coming for her, something ugly, monstrous, something she was too afraid to behold. It was coming closer.
She gasped.
It was coming closer and closer. It's shadows closing in on her. She screamed "No! Stay back!"
Hot tears rolled down her cheeks. She screamed and screamed and amidst her screams,she remembered that she had closed her eyes.
She opened her eyes quickly,blinking frantically.
Oh no! The darkness was still there. There was no light! She blinked harder as her breathing became heavy. It was as if she was sinking in a deep black ocean. She tried to keep steady but no, the darkness was still there.
It was then, she realized that the electricity had been interrupted.
Damn!
She was all alone. No one with her. No light. Helpless. Darkness wrapped around her like a big black cloth. She couldn't see herself. She could only feel herself.
"No no no no no no....," she shouted as she felt two strong hands on her legs. A force pulled her and kept pulling her. She screamed in fear.
She tried reaching for her torch lights. She couldn't make out what she was touching but she knew it wasn't any of her torch lights. "Damn!" she screamed.
Her phone! She tried to reach for her phone. She felt something flat. She gasped with sudden joy.
She felt the sides for the on button. There were no buttons! She gasped. The hands pulled her and dragged her away from her bed. She would have thought she was dreaming but when she hit the tiled floor of her room so hard, it dawned on her that it was real.
"Nooooooooooooooooooooo," she screamed as the darkness swallowed her up.
They don't know I'm a girl. They all look at me and see a boy. A prince. Their kind purchase humans like me for their lustful desires. And, when they stormed into our kingdom to buy my sister, I intervened to protect her. I made them take me too. The plan was to escape with my sister whenever we found a chance. How was I to know our prison would be the most fortified place in their kingdom? I was supposed to be on the sidelines. The one they had no real use for. The one they never meant to buy. But then, the most important person in their savage land-their ruthless beast king-took an interest in the "pretty little prince." How do we survive in this brutal kingdom, where everyone hates our kind and shows us no mercy? And how does someone, with a secret like mine, become a lust slave? . AUTHOR'S NOTE. This is a dark romance-dark, mature content. Highly rated 18+ Expect triggers, expect hardcore. If you're a seasoned reader of this genre, looking for something different, prepared to go in blindly not knowing what to expect at every turn, but eager to know more anyway, then dive in! . From the author of the international bestselling book: "The Alpha King's Hated Slave."
In her previous life, Kimberly endured the betrayal of her husband, the cruel machinations of an evil woman, and the endless tyranny of her in-laws. It culminated in the bankruptcy of her family, and ultimately, her death. After being reborn, she resolved to seek retribution against those who had wronged her, and ensure her family's prosperity. To her shock, the most unattainable man from her past suddenly set his sights on her. "You may have overlooked me before, but I shall capture your heart this time around."
"There will be no falling in love, we will only act as a loving couple when we are in public, we will share a room to make it believable, but no intimacy, touching is off-limits. We'll only have sex once a month, and that's solely to produce an heir. You won't interfere in my business, and I won't interfere in yours. You will be my wife in every sense and you will not be involved with any other man," he said, arrogance seeping from every word. I watch his mouth move, I'm not ready to fall in love with any man, especially not one as arrogant and egoistic as him. I can handle acting as a loving couple, and as for intimacy once a month. I can agree to that just to satisfy my sexual cravings with no strings attached. "Where can I sign?" I asked since I had nothing to lose. *** Nadine's wedding dreams turned to nightmares when she caught her sister and fiancé cheating! With a secret recording, she's ready for revenge. But then mysterious billionaire Logan West offers a deal: A Contract Marriage to take down her ex's empire. But what Nadine doesn't know is her life is getting complicated as she takes her chance to get revenge or risks everything for a chance at love?"
After hiding her true identity throughout her three-year marriage to Colton, Allison had committed wholeheartedly, only to find herself neglected and pushed toward divorce. Disheartened, she set out to rediscover her true self-a talented perfumer, the mastermind of a famous intelligence agency, and the heir to a secret hacker network. Realizing his mistakes, Colton expressed his regret. "I know I messed up. Please, give me another chance." Yet, Kellan, a once-disabled tycoon, stood up from his wheelchair, took Allison's hand, and scoffed dismissively, "You think she'll take you back? Dream on."
After three secretive years of marriage, Eliana never met her enigmatic husband until she was served with divorce papers and learned of his extravagant pursuit of another. She snapped back to reality and secured a divorce. Thereafter, Eliana unveiled her various personas: an esteemed doctor, legendary secret agent, master hacker, celebrated designer, adept race car driver, and distinguished scientist. As her diverse talents became known, her ex-husband was consumed by remorse. Desperately, he pleaded, "Eliana, give me another chance! All my properties, even my life, are yours."
Natalie used to think she could melt Connor’s icy heart, but she was sorely mistaken. When at last she decided to leave, she discovered that she was pregnant. Even so, she chose to quietly leave his world, prompting Connor to mobilize all of his resources and expand his business to a global scale—all in a bid to find her. But there was no trace of Natalie. Connor slowly spiraled into madness, turning the city upside down and leaving chaos in his wake. Natalie finally surfaced years later, with wealth and power of her own, only to find herself entangled with Connor once again.