"It won't be a straight death from where you're standing." I blink, turning around. "What?" But he doesn't give me a reply. At least not yet. Instead, he takes hold of my arms in his large, gloved hands, and pulls me to him so that we are standing toe to toe. "What are you doing?" I whisper. This new position has brought us closer. So close that if I stand on my toes, and he dips his head down a bit, I'd probably have the best kiss... "If you fall from here, the possibility of you dying immediately is 98% at the very least," He begins as I stare at him with my mouth slightly agape. "Falling from where you stood before is about 35% lesser. You'd die eventually, maybe after a night or two of trying to revive your shattered bones, but not immediately." Having made his point, he steps back from me and climbs down the somewhat elevated platform. "Did you just make way for me to kill myself?" I murmur, feeling like I'm losing my mind all over again. What kind of a man is this? *** Sonia's life is going great one minute and then takes a spin for the worse when she is betrayed, gets pregnant and worse, is told that she will be getting married to Italian mafia heir, Anthony Romero, who doesn't mind raising another man's child. She abhors the idea, but having also recently been disowned by her father, she has no choice but to accept the marriage proposal if she wants protection for herself and her child. But she has questions. Why would a sane man from her world want to raise a child that isn't his? Surely they're ulterior motives in play. *** Anthony Romano gave up on love a very long time ago and swore never to let another woman in. Then in comes this one woman he calls 'wife', breaking down walls he spent years building. But he's not about to let some flimsy feelings get in the way of his one need.
SONIA'S POV
"I don't know how I feel about your boyfriend, Sonia," Jessica, my best friend says from inside the apartment while I work on my laptop in the balcony of Shaun's apartment.
I playfully roll my eyes, "Yeah?" I say, encouraging my friend to go on without looking away from my laptop screen. It isn't news anymore that Jessica hates, and that's using capital letters to emphasize it, my boyfriend, Shaun. It has been evident in the way she always schools me about him. In her words, I wasn't supposed to end up with someone like Shaun after years of being single.
"It's just that I think he's a sketchy human being. Who leaves their girlfriend in their apartment for days while they go away to another city? Who knows what he's doing as we speak. Who knows who he's with?!"
I sigh and get up on my feet, going back inside. "Don't put images in my head, Jess. He's away on a business trip." I say to her for the umpteenth time in three days.
"That's what you keep saying, my friend." Jess walks up to me and guides me to the couch so we're now sitting on it. "You know I love you and I only want the best for you, right?"
I nod while keeping my face neutral.
"Leave Shaun. He will break your heart and leave you ruined for your soul mate. I don't want that. You're way too good for him. You know I know a guy who knows a guy, I could hook you up with someone better. And richer too."
"Jessica?" I stare intently at my best friend who is as beautiful as they come, her Brunette curly hair a perfect contrast to my ginger, wavy one.
"Yes, honey?"
"I'm not interested." I deadpan and with that, we both start laughing. The conversation switches to something lighter from there.
In all honesty, Jessica's comments about Shaun hasn't escaped the rational part of me. Each time she fly's in from the UK, she always tries to change my mind about him and when that is done not once or twice but past five times, it only leaves me to wonder if Jessica is seeing something in Shaun that I'm not.
Whereas Shaun isn't necessarily my first boyfriend ever, Jessica has had so many experiences in the dating field so if she says Shaun isn't genuine, then maybe she could most definitely be speaking from experience.
My mind immediately goes to that night two weeks ago when I saw that small black box in the jacket of his suit after our dinner. Sitting pretty and all shiny inside the box was a diamond ring. I had thought he didn't find the perfect time during our date to pop the question but up until now, he hasn't either.
Long after Jessica leaves to catch her evening flight back to the UK, I lay in Shaun's bedroom, enveloped in the warmth of his bed that emanates his oud perfumed scent. Like a bee drawn to honey, I pick up my phone from beside me and break the one promise I made to myself when I had installed a tracker into Shaun's phone. I know I initially said it would be only for emergencies but in case you haven't noticed, there's an internal crisis going on inside me which is in fact an emergency.
Finding the tracking app connected to my phone, I input Shaun's phone's IP address and hold my breath as a green circle rolls on the screen, indicating that it's loading. By the time it's done loading, my breath still remains hitched in my throat and a million thoughts races through my head.
Maybe, Jess was right after all.
I can hear my consciousness say, but I push her voice far away. Now's not the time.
The red dot on my screen indicates that Shaun is here in New Orleans. Specifically at the New Orientals Hotel, the largest hotel chain in North America.
He's supposed to be in Japan on a research trip with his colleagues. Just this morning he said he wouldn't be back until Friday night and today was just... Wednesday.
Before I can think better of it, I grab my jacket and car keys and in two minutes, I'm driving down to Shaun's location. There's no doubt he's cheating, exactly as Jessica had suspected.
Less than twenty minutes later, I'm parked in the hotel's parking lot and despite my inner turmoil, I will myself to look unbothered as I walk into the hotel, clad in a black satin skirt and matching bodysuit. Colors that match how I feel inside.
I don't stop to speak with any of the receptionists, neither do I use the elevator. I climb the stairs one at a time, until my green dot is directly aligned with Shaun's red dot. I look up and find myself in front of Room 213.
My heart begins to thunder. Not from my walk on the stairs but from what lays behind the doors. Today I have decided to make peace with myself. The life I live isn't truly the one which has been destined for me since birth and Shaun's actions has just given me a reality check, reminding me that we were probably never meant to be.
Probably?
Oh, who am I kidding? My family's affiliation with the mafia world would always be a barrier stopping me from having or creating anything meaningful with the real world.
My knuckles connect with the cold surface of the door, sending two series of raps against it. I can hear muffled sounds behind the door but because I've had years of experience in overhearing conversations that I shouldn't have been listening to outside the doors of my father's office, I'm able to make out the words.
"Who is there?" I know for sure that that is Shaun's voice.
Clearing my voice to make it sound as unrecognizable as I can muster, I reply, "Room Service."
"Babe, I think your meal is here."
"Finally! I'm famished."
That voice... If my listening wasn't as skilled as it was, I would have missed it. But...
The door flies open and I'm not the only one who stands frozen in their stance. My mouth is slightly agape and it's not from the shock of seeing Shaun's equally shocked and shirtless form behind the brunette that answered the door.
I'm shocked because the woman holding the door open and looking at me with a flustered face while wearing a thin material of nightwear that leaves nothing to the imagination ... is Jessica.
Lucia I'm thrown into a world of chaos when I hear that my family is part of the Italian mafia. No, scratch that - my family is the Italian mafia - and as tradition states, I'll be getting married to the bratva head. My world is in shambles when I see how cold and ruthless my husband is. Despite how handsome and attractive he is, I give myself one assignment; stay as far away from him as possible. But as neither my body nor my heart gets the message, I have to think of a way to conceal my emotions from him. Ivan My life's purpose has always been to take over from my father as the head of the bratva. That's practically what I was born for; to kill and destroy. But for that to happen, I must get married, which isn't a problem since an arranged marriage to the Italian mafia princess has long been formed for us. What becomes a problem is the strange feelings that begin to steer within me the moment I'm married to my wife. Now I have another purpose added to the list; kill, destroy and love.
"Ahh!" She was in a moaning mess. She did not want to feel anything for this man. She hated him. His hands began to move all over her body. She gasped when he pulled down the back chain of her dress. The chain stopped at her lower waist, so when he zipped it off, her upper back and waist were exposed. "D-Don't touch m-ummm!" His fingers rolled around her bare back, and she pressed her head against the pillow. His touches were giving her goosebumps all over her body. With a deep angry voice, he whispered in her ear, "I am going to make you forget his touches, kisses, and everything. Every time you touch another man, you will only think of me." - - - Ava Adler was a nerdy omega. People bullied her because they thought she was ugly and unattractive. But Ava secretly loved the bad boy, Ian Dawson. He was the future Alpha of the Mystic Shadow Pack. However, he doesn't give a damn about rules and laws, as he only likes to play around with girls. Ava was unaware of Ian's arrogance until her fate intertwined with his. He neglected her and hurt her deeply. What would happen when Ava turned out to be a beautiful girl who could win over any boy, and Ian looked back and regretted his decisions? What if she had a secret identity that she had yet to discover? What if the tables turned and Ian begged her not to leave him?
Linsey was stood up by her groom to run off with another woman. Furious, she grabbed a random stranger and declared, "Let's get married!" She had acted on impulse, realizing too late that her new husband was the notorious rascal, Collin. The public laughed at her, and even her runaway ex offered to reconcile. But Linsey scoffed at him. "My husband and I are very much in love!" Everyone thought she was delusional. Then Collin was revealed to be the richest man in the world. In front of everyone, he got down on one knee and held up a stunning diamond ring. "I look forward to our forever, honey."
"Is it considered betrayal to develop feelings for your best friend's boyfriend? What about when fate intervenes, and he turns out to be your destined mate? You might think it's luck and thank the moon goddess for such a twist of fate. That's what I believed until the love of my life uttered those dreaded words: 'I want a divorce!' As I stared at the pregnancy test in my hands, I realized it was better to keep my secret to myself. My name is Violet, and this is my story."
Yelena discovered that she wasn't her parents' biological child. After seeing through their ploy to trade her as a pawn in a business deal, she was sent away to her barren birthplace. There, she stumbled upon her true origins—a lineage of historic opulence. Her real family showered her with love and adoration. In the face of her so-called sister's envy, Yelena conquered every adversity and took her revenge, all while showcasing her talents. She soon caught the attention of the city's most eligible bachelor. He cornered Yelena and pinned her against the wall. “It's time to reveal your true identity, darling.”
Sawyer, the world's top arms dealer, stunned everyone by falling for Maren—the worthless girl no one respected. People scoffed. Why chase a useless pretty face? But when powerful elites began gathering around her, jaws dropped. "She's not even married to him yet—already cashing in on his power?" they assumed. Curious eyes dug into Maren's past... only to find she was a scientific genius, a world-renowned medical expert, and heiress to a mafia empire. Later, Sawyer posted online. "My wife treats me like the enemy. Any advice?"
She was hurt. She was bullied and made fun of. And the only hope that kept her going was finding her mate. She has always been weak. Weak to the world. Why? Because she was a lantern. She didn't have a wolf. That's what everyone thought about her. When she found her mate, he wanted her to be his slut and not a wife. She might be an omega, but it doesn't mean she will take disloyalty and betrayal lightly. So she did something that no one in history ever did. She rejected an Alpha. "I, Alexis Clark, reject Brandon Sterling, the alpha of Black mist pack, and consider myself a free soul until I decide so."; Were her last words before she left that torturous place and became a rogue. A rogue that everyone was fearing and finding. Why? Because she was the rogue that has become one of the biggest problems of almost all the packs in the country. She was Alexis Clark. A rogue that rejected an Alpha, stealth food, kill other rogues, and more than that was living with humans and studying with them. What will happen when her case is given to the world's most dangerous alpha, Sebastian Sinclair, who has taken it upon himself to punish this rogue. The one who hated rogues and omega to a level that was beyond understanding. Why? Because his mate was an omega, who betrayed him with a rogue before dying. How will Alexis tackle this alpha, in whose College she was studying and living under hiding for almost a year? What will Sebastian do when he finds out the new girl he had been talking to is none other than the rogue omega that he had decided to kill? "To love you with all my might was my only wish, but you were the only one who gave me endless suffering. So today, I promise myself to not fall for anyone."; A simple saying that both Alexis and Sebastian had vowed upon. Will they be able to find their love amidst all these problems?