In ancient Rome, whispers filled the palace corridors. The future Empress, once a notorious Mafia Princess from another time, was now seen as nothing more than a simpleton. But they were in for a surprise. "Don't mistake my silence for weakness. I may have traded my modern-day empire for this ancient one, but I won't be trifled with. After all, I'm still your Empress, and my reign will be nothing short of legendary." With the cunning of a mafia boss and the wit of a queen, she vowed to bring chaos to the Roman court, proving that even in ancient times, a Mafia Princess never forgets how to rule.
In the tenth year of Emperor Augustus's reign over the Roman Empire, on a clear mid-July morning, the sun's rays bathed an opulent palace known as the "Temple of Juno" in golden light.
A sharp, crisp slap echoed from within, causing the servants and slaves outside to shudder involuntarily.
Two young slaves crouched by the door, ears pressed against it to eavesdrop. After a moment, they whispered to each other furtively.
Inside, a pretty young handmaiden of about fifteen knelt before a gilded bed. Tears streamed down her face, but she desperately blocked the path of a woman in a deep purple robe.
This woman's face was strikingly beautiful, with an alluring smile that could captivate anyone. But now, that enchanting smile seemed demonic and terrifying.
On the bed lay a woman in tattered clothes, her face haggard. Her eyes were tightly shut, lips pale, brow furrowed in pain.
Suddenly, as if startled by the commotion, the woman on the bed stirred. Her eyelashes fluttered and slowly opened. Sharp, eagle-like eyes quickly surveyed the surroundings, and her brow furrowed in confusion.
Julia gazed at the lavish room - the gilded ceiling, jewel-encrusted walls, exquisite sculptures and frescoes, and the two women in Roman robes grappling before her. She felt bewildered - what was happening?
Half an hour ago, she had been attending a grand wedding when gunshots rang out. Shouldn't she be dead? Why was she still conscious? Had she been saved? But she'd been shot in the heart - even the most skilled doctor couldn't have saved her. Though her family had some Roman-style rooms, this place was entirely different!
Was she truly dead? Was this the underworld or heaven? Did such places really exist? As the daughter of a gang leader, she surely couldn't have gone to heaven! But if this was the underworld, wasn't this treatment too good?
"Get out of my way!" The woman in the purple robe shoved the young handmaiden forcefully.
The handmaiden pleaded through her tears, "Lady Cassia, please spare Her Majesty the Empress! She's been unconscious for two days. Please don't harm her anymore."
Another resounding slap rang out. The woman called Cassia glared at the handmaiden, furiously saying, "You insolent slave, how dare you accuse me of harming this madwoman! You must be tired of living. Get out of my way!" She kicked the handmaiden in the stomach, knocking her to the ground.
But the loyal handmaiden, seeing Cassia approach her mistress, rolled over and clung to Cassia's ankle, preventing her from reaching the bed.
"Lady Cassia, I beg you, spare Her Majesty!" she cried, gripping Cassia's ankle tightly.
Cassia tried to wrench her foot free, stomping on the handmaiden's fair hand with her other foot, leaving it red and swollen.
"Please, Lady Cassia, spare the Empress! Livia begs you!" The girl on the ground, Livia, refused to let go, even as her hand began to bleed. She started banging her head on the floor forcefully. The harsh sound made even Julia, accustomed to the criminal underworld, wince.
What shocked Julia even more was the phrase "Her Majesty the Empress."
Was this a movie set? But who would dare cast her, a gang princess, in a film? Who would be bold enough to challenge her father's authority? Had her father gone bankrupt? Had her so-called "groom" taken down her father's criminal empire? Were they forcing her to work for survival?
That couldn't be right. They weren't capable of that. Unless - Julia's eyes widened as two gleaming words slowly formed in her mind: "time travel."
Julia was startled, nearly sitting up, but remembering the chaotic scene, she remained calm. She pinched herself discreetly - it hurt, so she wasn't dead. That gunshot should have been fatal, so the only explanation was that her soul had traveled through time, inhabiting another body.
Heavens! Had she really died? She wouldn't even have a chance for revenge against the man who killed her.
Love, marriage, sweet words, solemn vows - all tricks. Those things were poison, but how could one know their power without tasting them? Yet once tasted, they proved fatal.
Julia, you thought yourself clever, but in the end, you fell into someone else's trap and died. You truly failed.
But if heaven hadn't let her die, giving her a chance at rebirth, then - she would live on here! Life was precious; she should cherish it. People say great misfortune is followed by great fortune; she wondered what fate had in store for her.
Julia turned her attention back to the drama unfolding in the room. From her brief observation, she concluded that the young handmaiden was fiercely loyal and protective of her mistress. Lady Cassia, on the other hand, was the type to kick someone when they were down - the kind of person Julia despised most.
"Get out of my way! Hmph! When your mistress dies, I'll send you to accompany her in death." Cassia kicked with all her might, grinding her foot into the handmaiden. Finally, unable to bear the pain any longer, the young girl let go.
Once free, Cassia rushed to the bedside, grabbed a silver needle, and moved to stab the seemingly unconscious woman, snarling, "You're in a coma, are you? Let me help you with that today."
As she spoke, she viciously jabbed the needle towards Julia's shoulder. The pain nearly made Julia sit up and kick the venomous beauty flying. But not wanting to act rashly before understanding the situation, she endured it.
One needle wasn't enough to satisfy Cassia's anger. She immediately produced a second, glaring at the weakened woman and hissing, "You think you can truly secure your position as Empress? Hah! You foolish woman, don't dream! Today, I'll send you to hell." With that, she aimed the needle at Julia's head.
Seeing this, the handmaiden, ignoring her own pain, leapt up and threw herself over Julia, using her frail back to shield her mistress from the needle.
Enraged by this, Cassia shouted at two maidservants behind her, "What are you standing there for? Quickly, drag this wretched slave away and slap her face hard!"
Hearing this, the two maidservants rushed forward, dragged the handmaiden away, and began striking her face viciously.
Heart Thief She is one of the most infamous thieves of the 21st century. In the underworld, she’s a legendary wheelman, an icon of the black market. A woman as swift as the wind, living life on her own terms. He is one of the top crime lords, a kingpin with a reputation for ruthlessness and a heart of stone. But when someone dared to steal from him, they crossed a line. They took what was his, and now he’s coming for her. In a world where loyalty is fleeting and love is a dangerous game, will their story be one of passion or betrayal, love or vengeance?
"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?"
Anabel found out she was pregnant and dialed her husband's number to share the good news to him. They have been married for two years without a child. Desmond's mother had been accusing her of being barren and unproductive. When the call was picked, she was flabbergasted and broken. She was hearing a loud moan of feminine voice. "Ohh! Yeah! Don't stop fucking me! Fuck me harder baby!" accompanied with sound of skins slapping against the other. She went home to confront her husband and end up receiving a divorce paper. Desmond divorced him for a lady his mother was rooting. Few months later when he found out that his ex-wife is a billionaire heiress and she is pregnant with twins, he went crazy!
On the day of their wedding anniversary, Joshua's mistress drugged Alicia, and she ended up in a stranger's bed. In one night, Alicia lost her innocence, while Joshua's mistress carried his child in her womb. Heartbroken and humiliated, Alicia demanded a divorce, but Joshua saw it as yet another tantrum. When they finally parted ways, she went on to become a renowned artist, sought out and admired by everyone. Consumed by regret, Joshua darkened her doorstep in hopes of reconciliation, only to find her in the arms of a powerful tycoon. "Say hello to your sister-in-law."
Trigger warning!!! Intended for mature readers who enjoy morally complex, slow-burn, poseesive, forbidden, dark romance that pushes boundaries. ***EXCERPT*** Blood everywhere. Trembling hands. "No!" My eyes blurred. His lifeless eyes stared back at me, his blood pooling at my feet. The man I loved-dead. Killed by the one person I could never escape - my stepbrother. *** Kasmine's life was never hers to begin with. Kester, her stepbrother, controlled and monitored her every move. At first, it was all sweet and brotherly until it began to turn into an obsession. Kester was the Alpha, and his word was law. No close friends. No boyfriends. No freedom. The only consolation Kasmine had was her twenty-first birthday, which was supposed to change everything. She dreamt of finding her mate, escaping the sickening control of Kester, and finally claiming her own life. But fate had other plans for her. On the night of her birthday, not only was she disappointed that she wasn't mated to the love of her life, but she found out that her mate was none other than him - Her tormentor. Her stepbrother. She'd rather die than be mated to a man whom she had known as her big brother all her life. A man who would do just anything to make sure she was his. But when love turns to obsession, and obsession turns to blood, how far can one girl run before she realizes there is nowhere else to run to?
Once upon a time, there were two kingdoms once at peace. The kingdom of Salem and the kingdom of Mombana... Until the day, the king of Mombana passed away and a new monarch took over, Prince Cone. Prince Cone, has always been hungry for more power and more and more. After his coronation, he attacked Salem. The attack was so unexpected, Salem never prepared for it. They were caught off guard. The king and Queen was killed, the prince was taken into slavery. The people of Salem that survived the war was enslaved, their land taken from them. Their women were made sex slaves. They lost everything, including their land. Evil befall the land of Salem in form of Prince Cone, and the prince of Salem in his slavery was filled with so much rage. The prince of Salem, Prince Lucien swore revenge. 🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳 Ten years later, thirty-years old Lucien and his people raided a coup and escaped slavery. They went into hiding and recuperated. They trained day and night under the leadership of the fearless and cold Lucien who was driven with everything in him to get back their land, and take Mombana land too. It took them five years before they ambushed and attacked Mombana. They killed Prince Cone and reclaimed everything. As they screamed out their victory, Lucien's eyes found and pinned the proud princess of Mombana. Princess Danika. The daughter of Prince Cone. As Lucien stared at her with the coldest eyes anyone can ever possess, he felt victory for the first time. He walked to the princess with the slave collar he'd won for ten years rattling in his hand as he walked. He reached close to her and with a swift movement, he collared her neck. Then, he tilted her chin up, staring into the bluest eyes and the most beautiful face ever created, he gave her a cold smile. "You are my acquisition. My slave. My sex slave. My property. I will pay you in spades, everything you and your father ever did to me and my people." He stated curtly. Pure hatred, coldness and victory was the only emotion on his face. .
The day Raina gave birth should have been the happiest of her life. Instead, it became her worst nightmare. Moments after delivering their twins, Alexander shattered her heart-divorcing her and forcing her to sign away custody of their son, Liam. With nothing but betrayal and heartbreak to her name, Raina disappeared, raising their daughter, Ava, on her own.Years later, fate comes knocking when Liam falls gravely ill. Desperate to save his son, Alexander is forced to seek out the one person he once cast aside. Alexander finds himself face to face with the woman he underestimated, pleading for a second chance-not just for himself, but for their son. But Raina is no longer the same broken woman who once loved him.No longer the woman he left behind. She has carved out a new life-one built on strength, wealth, and a long-buried legacy she expected to uncover.Raina has spent years learning to live without him.The question is... Will she risk reopening old wounds to save the son she never got to love? or has Alexander lost her forever?