Anna McClain, the daughter of Jacob McClain-one of the most ruthless Mafia lords-wanted nothing more than a life away from the ruthlessness and bloodshed that came with her family name. In a desperate bid to see this wish fulfilled, she ran away from home. This turned out to be the best decision of her life, as she met the love of her life, Aiden Smith. But the joy was short-lived, as disaster struck on the fifth year of her escape-the night Aiden proposed to her. Her brother, Liam, resurfaced, dragging her back into the life she so desperately sought to avoid. Faced with two choices: to marry into another Mafia, or risk losing her life and Aiden's, what will Anna decide?
Anna's POV.
Wake up stupid, Wake up stupid!
I groaned, raising a heavy hand, as I searched blindly for my phone. My eyes were still tightly shut, as my hands rummaged through the confines of my bedside table. Finally, my fingertips felt cold metal and grabbed it. I held the phone in front of my face, and finally opened my eyes. 6am.
I groaned again, slamming my head into the pillow. I could have sworn that I had slept only thirty minutes earlier. There was no greater evidence of the love-hate relationship between Sunday nights and Monday mornings. I turned off the annoying alarm, and swung my legs off the bed. I released a deep breath and summoned enough energy to get off the bed. I looked at the sticky note on my wall and read it out loud: You have to keep working hard until you marry a billionaire.
My phone chimed, and I was reminded that I was never going to marry a billionaire, but I didn't care. I picked up the phone and read the text from Aiden Smith, my boyfriend.
Wakey, wakey, pumpkin.
He had done this everyday for the past five years. He was easily the sweetest thing that's ever happened to me. My phone chimed again, and a new text appeared.
Don't make me come get you.
I'm up. I replied
I smiled, and dumped the phone on the bed. He might not be a billionaire, but he's the sweetest thing that's ever happened to me. I said that before. I got ready for what I knew would be another hectic day at work. After eight hours of having to listen to my boss nag about the silliest things, I got off work-tired as usual.
Routine. I got a cab back home and dragged my tired feet up the stairs wishing Aiden was around to give me a massage. I stopped dead in my tracks as I reached my door. My blood immediately ran cold and my hair stood on end. Something was terribly wrong.
I had hung a tiny piece of thread on the door hinges when I left, but now, it was gone. What was strange wasn't the fact that it was gone, it was the fact that someone took the time to return the thread after entering my house. It was, however, positioned wrongly. My mind raced a series of possibilities: had my past finally caught up with me? Who could it be? Dad? Liam?
It certainly wasn't Aiden, he had my keys, but didn't have the patience to return the thread. For fuck sake, he hadn't even noticed the thread after dating me for five years. I dug my hands into my bag and brought out the only weapon I was allowed to carry as a law abiding citizen: pepper spray. Whoever it was was going to get it!
I opened the door as gently as I could, then shut it as quietly as possible. The light suddenly went on, but so did my knees into the groin of the closest man and the pepper spray into his eyes.
"Sur-prise..." Everyone's shout died out like a man falling off a cliff, as I realized what I had just done.
"Oh my God, Aiden. I'm so sorry," I said, as I dropped to one knee.
"I'm good, I'm good," he groaned, raising his thumb. He was still in a crouching position and it was obvious that he was anything but good. He finally summoned enough strength to stand straight. His face had gone red and the veins on his neck still popped. "Happy birthday, love," he managed to say.
Shit, I forgot my birthday-again. Five years, and I still wasn't used to my fake birthday.
I feigned a gasp. "I thought you forgot," I said, hitting him gently on the shoulder.
"How could I? You mean the world to me."
I struggled to contain the butterflies that suddenly sprung up in my belly, hoping my intestinal acids snuffed out the life from them. "Thank you, thank you, thank you," I blurted out, wrapping my arms around him. Guilt stung at my conscience, but I shoved it aside. It hurt me that I needed to lie to him, but I had no choice.
"And who are all these people? I've never seen them before."
"Um, random people...um..."
"You don't know them either do you?" If there was anything I knew about Aiden, it was his inability to socialize, which I found really strange for a human resource manager.
"Um...no, you don't have any friends, I don't have any friends. I had to rent some-just for the night. I promise they'll be out in a few minutes."
True to his words, after a couple of minutes, the guests all left one after the other and now it was just the two of us. What next!? What would someone who was actually celebrating her birthday do?
Aiden flopped on the chair beside me and for a moment simply gazed into empty space. His hands found mine and he gave it a gentle squeeze.
"You know, when I first got here, I never thought I'd find love..."
I braced myself for the story of how his ex had shattered his heart and left him thinking he'd never be able to love again. I had heard that story a thousand times, and every sign that I showed to tell him I hated hearing about his story just flew over his head.
Suddenly, he dropped to one knee. His gaze remained glued to mine-unwavering.
What was he doing?
I felt my heartbeat quicken at the possibilities. Slowly, he dipped his hand into his pocket. Oh my God! It's happening.
He brought out a small box and held it in front of me. A smile tugged at the edges of his lips, while my mind ran riot. He opened the box, revealing an expensive diamond ring.
Do they pay human resource managers that high?
"This was given to me by my mother and now, I'm giving it to you because I can't imagine life with anyone else but you. Will you do me the honor of being my wife?"
"Yes!" I said, trying desperately to contain my joy. I had told my dad that I'd have a normal life and now I did. What could possibly go wrong?
I had barely completed the thought when three masked men burst in through the door.
Shit! I jinxed it.
Sometimes, love comes to us in the most unexpected ways, but what happens when a one-night stand threatens to shred that love to bits? Diahanne's world took a quick turn when she discovered that she had been promised to Marcel, the CEO of an Entertainment company, due to a long time promise between their parents. She quickly came to term with her fate, but decided to go on a one-night escapade. Little did she know that the handsome stranger she spent the night with would be someone she wished she never met; and his obsession with her would threaten to rip apart the bonds of her marriage. And though she dreads it, soon she'd have to pick between the desperate father of her unborn child, or his brother-her lawful husband.
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."
As a simple assistant, messaging the CEO in the dead of night to request shares of adult films was a bold move. Bethany, unsurprisingly, didn't receive any films. However, the CEO responded that, while he had no films to share, he could offer a live demonstration. After a night filled with passion, Bethany was certain she'd lose her job. But instead, her boss proposed, "Marry me. Please consider it." "Mr. Bates, you're kidding me, right?"
What happens when an all business Alpha planning his chosen's mating ceremony, smells the most wonderful fruity scent that belonged to his curvy mating ceremony planner. Confident plus size Ji'lahni, her two cousins, and friend owns a successful Wedding planning company along with a dance, and self defense workout studio, get hired by their new friend who is like a mother to them to plan her sons wedding I mean mating ceremony? What will happen when the sassy plus size women step into the world of werewolves? Read to find out.
COALESCENCE OF THE FIVE SERIES BOOK ONE: THE 5-TIME REJECTED GAMMA & THE LYCAN KING BOOK TWO: THE ROGUES WHO WENT ROGUE BOOK THREE: THE INDOMITABLE HUNTRESS & THE HARDENED DUKE *** BOOK ONE: After being rejected by 5 mates, Gamma Lucianne pleaded with the Moon Goddess to spare her from any further mate-bonds. To her dismay, she is being bonded for the sixth time. What’s worse is that her sixth-chance mate is the most powerful creature ruling over all werewolves and Lycans - the Lycan King himself. She is certain, dead certain, that a rejection would come sooner or later, though she hopes for it to be sooner. King Alexandar was ecstatic to meet his bonded mate, and couldn’t thank their Goddess enough for gifting him someone so perfect. However, he soon realizes that this gift is reluctant to accept him, and more than willing to sever their bond. He tries to connect with her but she seems so far away. He is desperate to get intimate with her but she seems reluctant to open up to him. He tries to tell her that he is willing to commit to her for the rest of his life but she doesn’t seem to believe him. He is pleading for a chance: a chance to get to know her; a chance to show her that he’s different; and a chance to love her. But when not-so-subtle crushes, jealous suitors, self-entitled Queen-wannabes, an old flame, a silent protector and a past wedding engagement threaten to jeopardize their relationship, will Lucianne and Xandar still choose to be together? Is their love strong enough to overcome everything and everyone? Or will Lucianne resort to enduring a sixth rejection from the one person she thought she could entrust her heart with?
P-please, I beg you. Come let's go tell Christian I had no hand in whatever happened, p-please." I clutched the lapel of his jacket desperately. "Let's go. You need to tell my husband you were paid." "Young lady, you're harassing me." His tone was cold and his stare granite. But I could care less. "You harassed me first! You had sex with me without my consent, my husband knows and now I'm pregnant with this child he doesn't want. You ruined my marriage! I-I hate you!" ************************************ Caught by her husband with another man on their matrimonial bed the morning after her birthday, Hailey Codza could not defend herself. As though it's not enough, she gets pregnant. Her enraged husband decides to pay her back for her infidelity by having an affair with his ex-girlfriend - Denise Kellers, the family Hailey never knew she had. Losing her family's wealth and company to her husband and his ex (now girlfriend), she is devastated, homeless and penniless as all her credit cards are blocked by her husband. She sees the man who is responsible for her pregnancy. The man she has no idea how he'd found his way to her matrimonial bed - Jared Johnson. Jared is annoyed when this strange woman disrupts his meeting and accuses him of ruining her life, marriage and impregnating her. It affects his business deals and having no choice, he marries her to calm the public whilst engaged to someone else. But he loathes her and allows his family treats her badly. Hailey who has fallen in love with Jared is broken when she can no longer take the humiliation. She signs the divorce papers and leaves, only to arrive six years later to the country as a self-made, secret billionaire and a mother of twins. Now her two ex-husbands are begging to have her back...