"He became the Pirate King at nineteen. But the only woman he desired... was his stepmother." In a world ruled by swords and secrets, Kael Blackthorne must choose between the throne of the sea or the woman he was never meant to love. Dark. Forbidden. Addictive. Dive into a twisted romance full of betrayal, obsession, and mystery on the high seas.
The storm didn't wait for him to reach the shore.
It came like a curse-wild winds tearing through the sails, waves slamming the ship like fists, thunder roaring like ghosts mourning their king. The Crimson Tide groaned under the weight of it all, her red flags drenched and snapping in protest.
Lucien stood at the helm, soaked to the bone, but he didn't flinch.
"Push her harder!" he shouted over the howl. "We don't stop for the sea. It stops for me."
His voice cut through the chaos like a blade. Nineteen and already a legend. The youngest Dreadmour to ever command a ship. But tonight... he wasn't a commander. He was a son returning to his father's grave.
Behind him, his crew obeyed without question. Not because they loved him. But because they feared what he might become if they didn't.
And maybe... they were right to fear.
His fingers curled tighter around the soaked rail. Somewhere beyond the mist, the jagged cliffs of Dreadmour Keep were rising like black teeth from the sea. Home. Or what was left of it.
His father was dead.
Murdered, they said. Slain in his sleep like a coward. The great Pirate King Aldric Dreadmour-the man who ruled half the sea with blood and steel-reduced to whispers and ashes.
And now the crown was his.
Lucien's jaw clenched. Not from grief. Not yet. There was no time for grief. Only questions.
Who slit the throat of a king?
And why did every road to the answer lead back... to her?
"Land ahead!" the crow's nest called.
Lucien didn't look. He didn't need to. He could feel it.
The closer they got, the tighter the noose around his ribs pulled.
Because waiting at Dreadmour Keep...
...was Isolde.
His father's queen.
His stepmother.
The woman who haunted his dreams with every cursed breath.
The long, cracked docks of Dreadmour Keep stretched into the sea like broken bones.
Lucien stepped off the ship without waiting for anyone to throw down the royal plank. His boots landed hard on the soaked wood, thunder still cracking behind him. Lightning lit up the jagged stone fortress ahead-his father's home, and now, his.
And there she stood.
Like the storm had summoned her.
Isolde.
Dressed in black velvet soaked by the rain. A veil covered half her face, but not the sharpness of her eyes-those cold, moonlit things that never aged. She hadn't changed. Not in the ten years he'd been gone. Not in the hundred lifetimes it felt like since she last spoke his name.
She didn't move. Didn't greet him. Just watched.
As if daring the sea itself to touch her.
Lucien's breath hitched. Not from the cold. Not from fear.
But from the burn in his chest.
How could one woman look like grief and royalty and sin-all at once?
Behind him, his crew fell silent. Even the sea held its breath.
He walked toward her, each step echoing louder than the storm.
She didn't flinch.
Didn't speak.
Didn't look at him like a boy she once raised.
She looked at him like a man she should kill.
Or kiss.
"Isolde," Lucien said, his voice low, heavy with years and want and rage.
She pulled back her veil slowly.
"My king," she replied-voice like honey laced with poison.
And something inside him snapped.
The long, cracked docks of Dreadmour Keep stretched into the sea like broken bones.
Lucien stepped off the ship without waiting for anyone to throw down the royal plank. His boots landed hard on the soaked wood, thunder still cracking behind him. Lightning lit up the jagged stone fortress ahead-his father's home, and now, his.
And there she stood.
Like the storm had summoned her.
Isolde.
Dressed in black velvet soaked by the rain. A veil covered half her face, but not the sharpness of her eyes-those cold, moonlit things that never aged. She hadn't changed. Not in the ten years he'd been gone. Not in the hundred lifetimes it felt like since she last spoke his name.
She didn't move. Didn't greet him. Just watched.
As if daring the sea itself to touch her.
Lucien's breath hitched. Not from the cold. Not from fear.
But from the burn in his chest.
How could one woman look like grief and royalty and sin-all at once?
Behind him, his crew fell silent. Even the sea held its breath.
He walked toward her, each step echoing louder than the storm.
She didn't flinch.
Didn't speak.
Didn't look at him like a boy she once raised.
She looked at him like a man she should kill.
Or kiss.
"Isolde," Lucien said, his voice low, heavy with years and want and rage.
She pulled back her veil slowly.
"My king," she replied-voice like honey laced with poison.
And something inside him snapped.
Cliffhanger-
Lucien reached his chamber-and froze.
The fire was already lit.
On the table sat a single goblet, still warm. His father's crest etched into the rim.
Beside it... a black feather.
He stepped closer-then saw the message scratched into the stone beneath:
"She lies. The crown is not hers to give."
A cold breath touched the back of his neck.
He turned.
No one.
Just the open door-swinging.
And wet footprints leading out.
Not his.
Not hers.
Someone else was already inside the Keep.
Watching.
Waiting.
And they weren't done.
Not yet.
Charlee was left at the altar and became a laughingstock. She tried to keep her head high, but ultimately lost it when she received a sex tape of her fiance and her half-sister. Devastated, she ended up spending a wild night with a hot stranger. It was supposed to be one-time thing, but he kept popping up, helping her with projects and revenge, all while flirting with her constantly. Charlee soon realized that it was nice having him around, until her ex suddenly appeared at her door, begging for another chance. Her tycoon lover asked, “Who will you choose? Think carefully before you answer.”
Allison fell in love with Ethan Iversen, the soon-to-be Alpha of the Moonlight Crown pack. She always wanted him to notice her. Meanwhile, Ethan was an arrogant Alpha who thought a weak Omega could not be his companion. Ethan's cousin, Ryan Iversen, who came back from abroad and was the actual heir of the pack, never tried to get the position nor did he show any interest in it. He was a popular playboy Alpha but when he came back to the pack, one thing captured his eyes and that was Allison.
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."
Lindsey's fiancé was the devil's first son. Not only did he lie to her but he also slept with her stepmother, conspired to take away her family fortune, and then set her up to have sex with a total stranger. To get her lick back, Lindsey decided to find a man to disrupt her engagement party and humiliate the cheating bastard. Never did she imagine that she would bump into a strikingly handsome stranger who was all that she was currently looking for. At the engagement party, he boldly declared that she was his woman. Lindsey thought he was just a broke man who wanted to leech off her. But once they began their fake relationship, she realized that good luck kept coming her way. She thought they would part ways after the engagement party, but this man kept to her side. "We gotta stick together, Lindsey. Remember, I'm now your fiancé. " "Domenic, you're with me because of my money, aren't you?" Lindsey asked, narrowing her eyes at him. Domenic was taken aback by that accusation. How could he, the heir of the Walsh family and CEO of Vitality Group, be with her for money? He controlled more than half of the city's economy. Money wasn't a problem for him! The two got closer and closer. One day, Lindsey finally realized that Domenic was actually the stranger she had slept with months ago. Would this realization change things between them? For the better or worse?
They don't know I'm a girl. They all look at me and see a boy. A prince. Their kind purchase humans like me for their lustful desires. And, when they stormed into our kingdom to buy my sister, I intervened to protect her. I made them take me too. The plan was to escape with my sister whenever we found a chance. How was I to know our prison would be the most fortified place in their kingdom? I was supposed to be on the sidelines. The one they had no real use for. The one they never meant to buy. But then, the most important person in their savage land-their ruthless beast king-took an interest in the "pretty little prince." How do we survive in this brutal kingdom, where everyone hates our kind and shows us no mercy? And how does someone, with a secret like mine, become a lust slave? . AUTHOR'S NOTE. This is a dark romance-dark, mature content. Highly rated 18+ Expect triggers, expect hardcore. If you're a seasoned reader of this genre, looking for something different, prepared to go in blindly not knowing what to expect at every turn, but eager to know more anyway, then dive in! . From the author of the international bestselling book: "The Alpha King's Hated Slave."
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?