When they touch me
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His Unwanted Wife, The Hidden Genius
I flew back to New York on my twenty-fifth birthday, carrying vintage gold cufflinks I spent weeks finding for my billionaire husband, Declan. But when I walked into our townhouse, I found him throwing a massive victory party with Sloane, a glamorous socialite, standing by his side as the proud hostess. "Don't cause a scene. Go upstairs." Declan coldly dismissed me in front of his guests. Even Poppy, the rookie player whose shattered ankle I had painstakingly rebuilt, rolled her eyes and ignored me to suck up to Sloane. Hiding in the shadows, I heard the maids gossiping that everyone thought Sloane was the future Mrs. Hartford. To make matters worse, I discovered Sloane had stolen my anonymous, groundbreaking medical algorithm and was planning to present it as her own. First my husband, then the girl I mentored like family, and now the scientific foundation I had built with my own hands. Declan even texted me to cancel our birthday breakfast without a single apology, treating me like an annoying afterthought. My tears vanished, replaced by a freezing clarity. I signed the divorce papers, leaving them on his desk with zero demands for his money. Then I packed my bags, booked a one-way ticket to Boston, and prepared to destroy them on the global stage.
Chapter 1
Aurelia Vance POV:
I had been married to Declan Hartford for three years.
Today was my twenty-fifth birthday, and I had flown back from Boston in secret, hoping for one quiet evening with my husband.
I'd spent a week carefully picking out a pair of gold cufflinks as a gift for my husband.
But the laughter spilling from the front door told me I was already too late: the woman who had taken my place at his side was already inside.
The heavy oak door swung open before I reached the porch. Three young players from the New York Titans, Declan's NHL franchise, stumbled out with crystal tumblers of scotch, laughing loudly. They barely glanced at me as they passed.
I stepped into the grand foyer. The heat hit me instantly,expensive champagne, roasted tenderloin, cigar smoke.
Dozens of people filled the double parlor: executives, scouts, wives in designer dresses.
In the center stood Declan, tall and broad in a bespoke charcoal suit. Beside him, laughing into his ear, was Sloane Whitfield, her backless silver dress catching the chandelier light. Her hand rested on his forearm like she belonged there.
Before I could take another breath, a blur of blonde hair darted past my elbow.
"Sloane!" Poppy Delacroix cried, throwing her arms around Sloane's slender waist. "You were completely right about the catering! This is literally the best victory party the team has ever had!"
Poppy is fourteen, a junior elite forward prospect.
I scouted her two years ago from a crumbling youth league, back when she was at her lowest.
Her parents had once shown me great kindness, and I knew they had already passed away, leaving her all alone in the world.
Declan and I adopted her together.
I rebuilt her shattered ankle with a custom rehabilitation plan.
I had always loved and cared for her as both a mother and a sister.
Now, she did not even glance in my direction.
Declan turned his head, his gaze sweeping over the crowd until his eyes locked onto mine. The easy grin on his sharp jaw vanished instantly. His brows drew together in a hard, irritated line.
He excused himself from Sloane, cutting through the throng of players with long, impatient strides.
"Aurelia," Declan said, stopping two feet in front of me. His voice carried zero warmth. "What are you doing here?"
My throat felt like sandpaper.
"I took the four o'clock flight from Boston," I whispered, clutching the strap of my bag until my knuckles turned white. "It is my birthday, Declan. I thought we could—"
"We are celebrating the division win," he cut in, his tone sharp enough to draw blood. "The board is here. The sponsors are here. Sloane spent four consecutive days coordinating this event so the organization could project stability."
He did not look at me. His gaze slid past my shoulder to the bar, like I was a waitress who had wandered into the wrong room.
"Don't cause a scene," he added quietly. "Go upstairs."
A soft, mocking murmur rippled through a cluster of players' wives standing near the grand staircase. Two women with platinum blowouts exchanged knowing glances over their flutes of Dom Pérignon.
"I didn't know," I said, my voice barely audible over the swelling music. "I am sorry."
I turned toward the staircase, my legs trembling beneath my wool trousers.
Near the landing, Poppy was adjusting her designer jacket in the hallway mirror.
"Poppy," I said softly, pausing beside her. "How is your ankle feeling after Thursday's third period? Did you complete the isometric sequence I sent?"
Poppy rolled her eyes, sighing loudly as she pulled out her phone.
"Aurelia, please, not right now," she muttered without looking at me. "Sloane is introducing me to a marketing director from one of our partners. I don't have time for your spreadsheets."
The dismissive edge in her voice hit me harder than Declan's coldness. I had stayed up until three in the morning reviewing her biomechanical scans while she was recovering from surgery, and now I was just an annoyance in the way of her social ascent.
I walked up the rest of the stairs and entered the primary suite—the massive, sterile bedroom allocated to me under our prenuptial agreement.
I sat on the edge of the mattress and pulled out the velvet box. The gold cufflinks gleamed under the bedside lamp, cold and useless.
Downstairs, cheers erupted. The sound vibrated through the floorboards.
I walked to the French doors overlooking the rear garden. Down on the illuminated patio, Sloane was directing two servers by an ice sculpture. Declan stood beside her, his head bent down as he listened to her speak, his hand casually brushing the small of her back.
They looked like the couple the city expected them to be.
My phone buzzed in my coat pocket. I pulled it out, hoping against hope.
It was an email notification.
"Happy Birthday, Aurelia. Remember that true science requires patience and solitude. You are meant for greater arenas than New York boardrooms. -Dr. Edmund Sterling."
My mentor at Harvard was the only person in the world who had remembered.
I typed a brief "Thank you, Professor" and shut off the screen.
Hours passed. The bass eventually quieted, replaced by the occasional clatter of glassware and slamming car doors. My throat burned with thirst.
At two in the morning, I padded downstairs in my stocking feet to fetch a glass of water from the butler's pantry.
As I rounded the corner near the service hallway, the voices of two newly hired catering maids stopped me dead in my tracks.
"Miss Whitfield is stunning," the first girl whispered, scraping dessert plates into a bin. "Mr. Hartford's girlfriend carries herself like royalty."
"A girlfriend?" the other asked, pausing. "But isn't Mr. Hartford rumored to be married? Is it inappropriate to be this close with Whitfield?"
"Married?Where did that come from? Even if there was one, they must have split long ago. I've worked three events here this month, and Miss Whitfield is the only woman hosting by his side. Everyone knows she's the future Mrs. Hartford."
I shrank back into the cold shadow of the archway, my blood turning to ice.
In the home where I held a legal marriage certificate, my presence had already been wiped clean.
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When they touch me
"I, Riccardo Saviano, future Alpha of the Grey Shadow Moon Pack, reject you, Artemisia Guerrieri, Daughter of Alpha Franco of the Blood Moon Pack, as my mate and future Luna." One single sentence. One stupid single sentence was all it took to disintegrate my life. And the day of my birthday, on w
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FATED MATES: When They Touch Me
She could only run away from her destiny so far. Her past always finds her in the end. However, the past had sent her three obnoxious werewolf warriors to return her to their realm. But she needed to keep her secrets hidden for a little longer. How hard could it be? She only needs to pretend to assi
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When They Met
Tarini Verma- 25- year old architect working for one of the best architecture firms in Mumbai. She moved to Mumbai for college and has been living in the city since then. She is passionate about her work and painting. Her vibrant passion for design and art mirrors her infectious energy. Ruhaan Sin
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Touch me or Destroy me
"You look lonely," Mia said, looking down drowsily at the stranger who had his legs crossed, staring at her blankly. "Here, why don't you drink this? Let's have fun. It will be great I promise. I am all for fun, after all. Don't worry, it won't kill you. It'll just make the night better," She g
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Touch me now
Majid, a talented artist, never believed in love at first sight until he met Maria. Maria was everything he had ever wanted in a woman - beautiful, charming, and witty. Soon enough, they began a passionate relationship that seemed to be headed towards forever. However, things took a turn for the wo
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Touch Me Dear Husband
Gavin Hugh is the son of George and Samantha Hugh. He practically runs his father's company. In other to become the CEO of the company, he agrees to marry Arianna, a model whose marriage has been arranged with him. He hates her and shares no intimacy with her. Five years later, years of loneliness,
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Touch Me, Daddy
I fucked the daughter of my best buddy. Now I have to safeguard her. Skye needs to learn how to swim in my infinity pool. That sounds like a great deal. And I know precisely what my malicious purpose is. Take her in the water with my hands on her curves. I know it's terrible, but she's as despera
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Touch me, Sandoval
Will you imagine that a high-class lady, Intelligent and glamorous woman will be a mistress? She loathes a cheater and a prevaricator but there's barely one man who captured her attention. A man that she encountered when she's employing a secretary, She's biting her lip while glimpsing at the man.
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Touch Me, Daddies
Keep your legs open, baby. That's it... eyes on me." One had his hand around my throat. Another had his mouth between my thighs. The third... God help me, he was the one who whispered the filth that made me forget my name. Three of them. All at once. Tearing me apart like I belonged to them. And
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They Broke Me, Now They Beg
For ten years, Eleonora devoted herself to Julian Sterling, waiting for the day she would finally become his wife. But at the grand ball, just three months before their wedding, Julian walked in with her cousin Isabella on his arm. In front of the entire high society, he publicly broke their engag
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They broke me first
They called her worthless. They called her weak. For three years, Damien, Griffin, and Reid Colton - the most powerful triplets in the Ashford Pack - made Nova Hayes's life a living nightmare. Every corridor she walked, they owned. Every room she entered, they poisoned. Every small dignity she bui
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They Never Saw Me
Ethan Miller always felt like a ghost, invisible in his own home. He yearned for his biological parents' love, but their affection, their very sight, was reserved for his adopted brother, Kyle – the golden boy who perfectly filled the void Ethan had left. Then, terror struck. He was kidnapped, brut
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Forbidden Love: Touch Me Honey
Warning: This novel has mature content meant for adults who likes smut, raw and unfiltered words. if you're a lover of romance, forbidden love and dark secrets this is for you. ******* "Brother, I'm pregnant with our child" "Get rid of it it would be too shameful for people to hear, how could you
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They Both Wanted Me
My name is Lena, and until last week, my biggest worry was the late return fees at the library where I work. I was ordinary, invisible, and I liked it that way. Then a pack of rogue werewolves attacked me in a dark alley, and two monsters saved my life-or so I thought. The first was Caspian, a vampi
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Touch me, Ruin me: Daddy's pet
"Lock the door." Isla hesitated, her pulse racing. "Alaric-" "Now." His voice was pure dominance. Her fingers fumbled with the lock just as he spun her around, pressing her back against the cold mahogany desk. His hands skimmed her thighs, pushing up her skirt, his eyes dark with hunger. "You'
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Touch me gently, break me slow
Eva had never imagined attending a blind date in place of her rich friend Jasmine. Jasmine, ambitious and wary of the man she was supposed to meet, refused to go-convinced he would be far too old. So Eva went in her place-and found herself staring at Alexander Thorne, London's youngest billionaire,
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When Love Erased Me!
I stood outside our bedroom door, the cool wood pressed to my forehead. My wife, Victoria, was inside, her voice low and urgent. "Liam, stop it. He could be home any minute." Liam. My paralegal. I froze when I heard his next words: "He needs to know you're not some broodmare, Vicky. That pregnancy s
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When He Found Me
Haunted by the shadows of love and the twists of destiny, Olivia found herself at the heart of New York City, determined to embark on a new chapter. Embracing a fresh start, she stepped into the role of Lucas Adams's assistant, a man whose tall stature, youth, and brooding demeanor captured attentio
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WHEN HE BROKE ME
BLURB: Violet basks in the warmth of her husband, Gregory’s love and attention but has repeated failed to provide him with the one thing his mother, Patricia pressures for, a child so she devices a risky plan to provide him with one. Will things go her way or will they fall down on her?
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The Monster They Made Me
My life was perfect. I was Sarah, a loving mom, taking my sweet six-year-old Lily to Kids' Kraft Korner, all smiles and glitter castles. In an instant, my world shattered. A bloodcurdling scream. I raced back inside to find Lily' s lifeless body, her head gone, crafting shears beside her. My heart
