Immediately after graduating from college, high school sweethearts Valerie and Daniel decided to tie the knot and get married, but that marriage changed Valerie's relationship. All of a sudden, the sweet relationship turned sour, Daniel never had time for his wife and Valerie was becoming lonelier by the second. Determined to bring the spark into their relationship, Valerie indulges several tactics but instead of reigniting the fire in their relationship, she finds something else, something that makes her wonder if truly she knew the man she got married to.
"I'm getting fed up on this matter," I sent my reply and sighed, staring at my sad self in the mirror.
Everything was going well before our marriage so what went wrong? Did I become ugly to him? Have I become boring and irritating in his eyes? Did I somehow do something to offend him? Is that what caused all of these awful treatments?
A chime from my phone brought me out of my reoccurring thoughts.
"I've told you to find yourself another man, V. You can't continue living like a nun for crying out loud. Aren't you tired of being celibate despite having a husband?"
"How can you advise me to cheat on my husband?" I sent my response and hers came almost immediately.
"How are you sure your seemingly busy husband isn't cheating?"
I shook my head, typing and reminding her of what his father or the Alpha would put him through if they heard about him cheating. He just wouldn't try it.
"You know some parents publicly act like they hate it but support it in private right?" She replied again and I let out a hot breath.
"I know, I know," I typed back, frustration evident in my words. "But I just don't think it'll happen. He just wouldn't risk it."
My friend's response popped up almost instantly. "Then you need to take matters into your own hands. Show him what he's missing. Bring the spark back into your marriage."
"Like I haven't been trying to do that already," I wanted to type as I read her words. It wasn't the first time she had suggested something like this, but this time, it seemed different. Desperate times call for desperate measures, right?
"I don't know," I hesitated, my fingers hovering over the keyboard. "Do you really think that'll work despite all I've done in the past?"
"Trust me," she replied confidently. "Men are simple creatures. Appeal to his primal instincts. Give him something he can't resist."
Her words echoed in my mind as I stared at my reflection. Maybe she was right. Maybe this was exactly what our marriage needed. A jolt of excitement, a reminder of the passion we once shared. Something out of the ordinary. Something different from what I've been doing. But what?
With a newfound determination, I made up my mind. "Okay." I typed back, my heart racing with anticipation. "But what do you suggest we do now? All our past plans failed woefully..."
"Hmm," she said and I could hear her sigh from across the screen. "He has an office, right? And you still have the aphrodisiac I asked you to buy two weeks ago. It's simple. Go to his office unannounced. Surprise him with a little gift-yourself. Give him a little something to boost his desires. Then, seduce him. Make him forget about everything else."
"What if he's in a meeting? Or stuck till nighttime?"
"Then that's perfect. Get in, prepare something to ease his mind, and add the aphrodisiac to it. Once that's ready, walk-in seductively, give it to him with a peck, and wait for the magic to happen. Trust me when I say he'd take a break just to have a piece of his wife."
It sounded risky, but at this point, I was willing to try anything. "Alright," I agreed, feeling a surge of adrenaline coursing through my veins. "I'll do it."
I logged off from the chat site and set my phone aside. This was it. This was my chance to reignite the passion in my marriage of two years.
But as I began to prepare myself for the task ahead, doubts crept into my mind. What if it didn't work? What if I made a fool of myself? What if...?
"Valerie," my wolf called and I shook my head. No. I couldn't afford to entertain those thoughts. I had made my decision, and I was going to see it through.
With a deep breath and a few words of encouragement from my wolf, I turned away from the mirror and headed for the door. It was time to make my move.
My heart raced as I stepped out of the private elevator onto the top floor of my husband's office building. The familiar sight of his workspace greeted me, but to my surprise, it was deserted. The quiet hum of the air conditioning was the only sound echoing through the empty corridor. I went out too and it was the same thing. Empty.
Panic began to creep into my mind as I went back to his office. Where could he be? Had he left for the day already? Or worse, had he caught wind of my plan and deliberately avoided me? What if...?
I quickly pulled out my phone and dialed his personal assistant's number, my fingers trembling slightly as I waited for him to pick up.
"Hello?" came the voice on the other end, professional and composed as always.
"It's Valerie," I said, trying to keep my voice steady. "I am trying to reach my husband but it's not connecting. Neither is the office line. Do you know where he went?"
There was a brief pause before his assistant spoke again. "Oh, Mrs. Allen, I'm sorry I didn't inform you earlier. Me, the Boss and the rest of the staff went to our branch office for an emergency meeting. We should be back soon."
My heart sank at the news. So much for my well-planned surprise. "Do you know when you'll be done?" I asked, trying to keep the disappointment out of my voice.
"We should be back within the hour. Hopefully, before then the boss will be able to return your call" his assistant replied. "Is there anything I can help you with in the meantime?"
I hesitated for a moment, considering my options. I could leave and come back later, but that would mean wasting precious time. No, I had come here with a purpose, and I wasn't going to leave empty-handed.
"No, that's okay," I said finally, mustering up a smile. "I'll just wait."
"Alright, just let me know if you need anything," his assistant said before hanging up.
I sighed and pocketed my phone, glancing around the empty corridor. It seemed like I had no choice but to wait. But as I settled into one of the nearby chairs, determination flickered in my eyes. I may have hit a roadblock, but I wasn't about to give up. This was just a minor setback, a delay in my plans, nothing more.
With a deep breath, I leaned back in the chair and waited for my husband to return, ready to execute my plan as soon as he walked through that door.
As I sat behind my husband's desk, waiting for his return, my mind raced with thoughts of what I would say and do when he walked through that door. But as the minutes ticked by, impatience gnawed at me, urging me to take action.
With a shaky breath, I reached into my purse and retrieved the small bottle of aphrodisiac I ordered. The brown liquid inside shimmered faintly in the soft glow of the office lights, and I couldn't help but wonder if today was the day he'd finally unleashed his beast.
Carefully, I uncorked the bottle and poured a few drops into a glass of orange juice and the rest into a cold juice in the freezer. As the liquid dissolved, a heady aroma filled the air, sending a shiver of anticipation down my spine.
But before I could second-guess myself, I downed my portion of the drink in one swift gulp. I didn't expect the feeling to come almost immediately and to dull it a bit, I rose from the desk and began to pace around the office, the click of my heels echoing in the empty space.
I began to feel hot and as I made my way towards the window, my foot caught on something. A loose floorboard perhaps, and I stumbled forward, reaching out to steady myself.
To my surprise, the force of my fall triggered a hidden mechanism in the floor, causing a section of the wall to slide open with a soft hiss.
Curiosity piqued, I stepped cautiously into whatever it was, my heart pounding in my chest. The insides were dark and the air was filled with mixed scents. As my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I gasped in shock at what I saw before me. Rows of neatly hung clothing lined the walls, clothes that I washed, spread, and ironed with my own two hands.
My husband's clothes! I knew he had a room where he spent most of his nights, so I wasn't surprised at that. What surprised me was the lingerie, the pajamas, the sex toys charging in the corner, the used condom pack lying on the floor, and everything a lady who's been denied her husband's touch shouldn't see in his office room.
And at the center of it all stood a small table, upon which lay a framed photograph. No doubt it was my husband, Daniel, but he was locked in an embrace with someone else, another woman.
My breath caught in my throat as I reached out to touch the image, my fingers trembling with shock, fear, and a lot more.
But before I could reach the picture to see who my husband was cheating on me with, a deafening explosion rocked the building, causing me to scream and tremble in fear. I dashed out of the room to find the whole building disintegrating, brick by brick.
"Oh no," I immediately yelled, rushing towards the exit, and the last thing I remembered was trying to leave the building in one piece.
Recovering from her most recent rejection the night before, back at her ushering work, Vivian is framed for serving a contaminated drink to a famous billionaire and this causes her to lose her job and salary, then the same night Vivian is told her family has been kicked out of their house. To her surprise, the man they accused her of poisoning, Axel Brown, called her, wanting to talk to her, but did he really want to talk, or punish her for her mistake?
Sophia's life takes a tragic turn after her parent's death and her stepfather's rise to power. Rejected by her first mate, and sold by the men ordered to kill her, Sophia's hope for a better life diminishes. Just when she meets the man who treats her right and she thinks she'd found a chance at freedom and love he disappears without a trace and she is on the run again because people want her dead by all means. How will she navigate the harsh world when she has no training and is with child?
It was supposed to be a marriage of convenience, but Carrie made the mistake of falling in love with Kristopher. When the time came that she needed him the most, her husband was in the company of another woman. Enough was enough. Carrie chose to divorce Kristopher and move on with her life. Only when she left did Kristopher realize how important she was to him. In the face of his ex-wife’s countless admirers, Kristopher offered her 20 million dollars and proposed a new deal. “Let’s get married again.”
In order to fulfill her grandfather's last wish, Stella entered into a hasty marriage with an ordinary man she had never met before. However, even after becoming husband and wife on paper, they each led separate lives, barely crossing paths. A year later, Stella returned to Seamarsh City, hoping to finally meet her mysterious husband. To her astonishment, he sent her a text message, unexpectedly pleading for a divorce without ever having met her in person. Gritting her teeth, Stella replied, "So be it. Let’s get a divorce!" Following that, Stella made a bold move and joined the Prosperity Group, where she became a public relations officer that worked directly for the company’s CEO, Matthew. The handsome and enigmatic CEO was already bound in matrimony, and was known to be unwaveringly devoted to his wife in private. Unbeknownst to Stella, her mysterious husband was actually her boss, in his alternate identity! Determined to focus on her career, Stella deliberately kept her distance from the CEO, although she couldn't help but notice his deliberate attempts to get close to her. As time went on, her elusive husband had a change of heart. He suddenly refused to proceed with the divorce. When would his alternate identity be uncovered? Amidst a tumultuous blend of deception and profound love, what destiny awaited them?
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?
After two years of marriage, Sadie was finally pregnant. Filled with hope and joy, she was blindsided when Noah asked for a divorce. During a failed attempt on her life, Sadie found herself lying in a pool of blood, desperately calling Noah to ask him to save her and the baby. But her calls went unanswered. Shattered by his betrayal, she left the country. Time passed, and Sadie was about to be wed for a second time. Noah appeared in a frenzy and fell to his knees. "How dare you marry someone else after bearing my child?"
For ten years, Daniela showered her ex-husband with unwavering devotion, only to discover she was just his biggest joke. Feeling humiliated yet determined, she finally divorced him. Three months later, Daniela returned in grand style. She was now the hidden CEO of a leading brand, a sought-after designer, and a wealthy mining mogul—her success unveiled at her triumphant comeback. Her ex-husband’s entire family rushed over, desperate to beg for forgiveness and plead for another chance. Yet Daniela, now cherished by the famed Mr. Phillips, regarded them with icy disdain. "I’m out of your league."
"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?"