The North Star
/1/129726/coverbig.jpg?v=d952b45e9b05aae9f5803a8b2c8d4fc6)
The Hockey Prince's Secret Ice Queen
All I wanted was to find a computer genius to process the non-linear dynamic equations for my ecological model. Instead, I found myself cornered by Julian Andrews, the university's hockey prince, trading a public, staged kiss for his academic support. To finalize our "deal," I was dragged to the campus ice rink. The cheerleaders and puck bunnies immediately swarmed him, mocking my plain clothes and treating me like a pathetic joke. Brooke, the head cheerleader, even set up a figure skating competition with a date with Julian as the grand prize. She performed a basic spin, blew him a kiss, and smugly waited for me to fall flat on my face and humiliate myself. His hockey teammates laughed from the sidelines, watching me try to support Julian as he stumbled around the ice like a newborn giraffe. But as I held his warm hand to keep him from falling, I couldn't help but feel something was terribly wrong. Why was a top-tier athlete faking such awful balance? And why did his ice-blue eyes stare at me with such knowing anticipation, as if he already knew about the professional figure skating past I had spent years trying to bury? "Just let go and skate." He whispered, slowly releasing my hand. I took a deep breath, glided to the center of the rink, and landed a flawless double Axel. As the entire rink fell into a dead, shocked silence, I realized I had just exposed not only my own hidden past, but also the biggest secret of the campus god.
Chapter 1 No.1
Sage POV:
"Let me kiss you."
The request was a low, hurried murmur—warm, quiet, and laced with the faintest edge of mortification.
Stunned, I snapped my head up toward the sound.
Julian Andrews filled my vision. He easily towered a head over me, his lean, athletic frame silhouetted against the bright morning glare, casting a long shadow across the cobblestones. Briar University's star forward. Team captain. The athletic department's untouchable golden boy.
Campus rumor had it that Julian was notoriously indifferent, never sparing anyone a second glance.
Behind him, a solid wall of navy-and-gold varsity jackets blocked the brick path. His teammates were whistling, shoving each other, and effectively cutting off my only exit.
The sudden commotion immediately bottlenecked the morning foot traffic. Whispers rippled through the crowd, and within seconds, a dozen students reached into their pockets out of sheer muscle memory, black camera lenses catching the light as they aimed squarely at us.
Julian's sharp eyes tracked the movement, his jaw tightening into a hard, irritated line.
Before I could take a single defensive step back, he closed the distance between us. Leaning down into my space, his broad shoulders shifted in a subtle, fluid maneuver—throwing up an impenetrable physical wall that completely shielded my face from the intrusive glare of the cameras.
His sharp, striking face hovered breathtakingly close. His deep baritone brushed against my ear, lost to the autumn wind, meant for me alone:
"Sorry to drop this on you," he whispered, his pale blue eyes disarmingly earnest, holding a quiet heat that sent a tremor straight down my spine. "The guys backed me into a locker-room dare... but I'm not here to use you as a joke. We can fake it. Angle it so it looks real—whatever you're comfortable with. Just help me get them off my back, and I owe you one."
It was only then that my brain finally rebooted.
What on earth? He's actually trying to kiss me?
A sharp flare of pure absurdity hit me, and my gaze dropped to my reflection in the dark glass door of the adjacent building: an oversized, faded gray hoodie that swallowed my frame whole, soft, thin jeans worn at the knees, bare-faced dark circles carved beneath my eyes from forty-eight hours of non-stop coding, my dark hair hastily twisted into a cheap plastic claw clip, and a pair of oversized, thick black-rimmed glasses sitting heavy on the bridge of my nose, completely hiding my face.
I looked like a refugee from an all-night disaster. How had Briar's golden prince ended up in front of me?
When I looked back up, my breath trapped in my throat anyway. He was too close, his clean scent of winter mint and cedar wrapping around my senses. Having those pale blue eyes staring straight down at me made my chest tighten in a way I really didn't want to acknowledge.
"Clock's ticking, Cap!" Landon howled from the sidelines, hands cupped around his mouth as the rest of the players lost their minds laughing. "Plant one on her, or enjoy the five-AM bag skate!"
A raucous chorus of barks and chest-thumping went up from the team.
A few yards away, two girls heading toward the dining hall froze in their tracks, pointing their phones.
"Wait, who the hell is that?" one of them laughed loudly, zooming her camera in on my face. "She looks like she just crawled out of a dumpster. There's no way Julian's actually kissing her. Post it on Sidechat right now—this is going straight to number one."
The cruel words hit like a splash of ice water, snapping me out of my daze and instantly killing the stupid flutter in my chest.
I hated the attention.
Four years ago, after my family and my former training partner framed me and destroyed my competitive skating career, I swore I would never be public entertainment again. I buried my name, switched majors, and hid behind oversized fleece and thick glasses just to live an invisible life. If I ended up on the campus forums with Julian Andrews, the internet vultures would dox me before noon—and drag up the toxic scandal I had bled to walk away from.
My research was already on the verge of falling apart. I didn't have time for this circus.
I locked my grip around my heavy binders, my knuckles straining white.
"Find someone else for your dare, Andrews," I said coldly, taking a step back to put distance between us, my voice tight with adrenaline. "I'm not interested in being part of your game. Move."
I kept my head down, attempting to brush past him.
"You're Sage Kelley, right?"
The sound of my name brought my boots to an immediate halt.
I blinked up at him, caught completely off guard.
"Professor Beaumont's senior research student," Julian straightened up slightly, his cadence measured and even, carrying an intellectual sharpness that seemed impossible beneath a varsity jacket. "I saw your Havenwood Creek senior capstone proposal sitting on his desk over Sunday dinner."
My heart gave a hard, hollow thud. Professor Beaumont was my academic advisor—and the guardian of the final research endowment my late father had left behind.
Julian leaned in slightly, his voice dropping to a near-whisper against the whistle of the wind. "I spent an hour going over your codebase."
My lips parted. "You... read my proposal?"
"Your simulation keeps crashing because your core fluid algorithm strategy is flawed," Julian murmured, his pale blue eyes deadly sharp. "And Uncle Des mentioned that if you don't deliver a working version by this Friday, the department is pulling your grant—which means you don't clear your senior thesis, and you don't graduate in May."
The hair on the back of my neck stood on end.
Friday was the deadline. If the funding was pulled, the project died, my senior capstone failed, and I would be forced to stay another semester without my degree. Worse, my father's final ecological legacy would be reduced to scrap paper.
I had been panicking over that exact deadline for two days straight, and Julian had just laid it out like it was nothing.
Worse, I couldn't even brush him off. I had heard the rumors about Beaumont's nephew—the CS prodigy everyone in the department talked about. I just had never realized it was him.
"I know how to fix your algorithm," Julian stated plainly, laying his cards on the table, his gaze locking onto mine with an unshakeable, quiet certainty. "Help me get through this bet. In return, I'll rewrite your boundary calculations tonight. Deal?"
/0/84441/coverbig.jpg?v=c689b5b3cabee2b2484b7d8396a4b936)
Too Late For Their Love: The North Star Shines Bright
My biological parents were tech billionaires, yet for me, Sarah Miller, every penny was a battleground. They preached "character" and "tough love," while lavishing everything on Ashley, their "perfect" adopted daughter, who got whatever she wanted. On SAT day, a torrential storm hit. I desperat
/0/1660/coverbig.jpg?v=20171122145808)
The Lady of North Star
THERE was a smell of burning spruce in the sharp air, and Corporal Bracknell, of the North-west Mounted Police, threw back his head and sniffed it gratefully. His team of dogs had been conscious of it for some time, and now, quickening the pace, they broke into joyous yelps as they turned inward tow
/0/83118/coverbig.jpg?v=61e72d0e0fe93220ed7f983f0b9c029c)
My North Star Rising
My dream of studying at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris was finally within reach, a Golden Whisk nomination sparkling on my laptop screen. My life as a rising pastry chef was just beginning. And then, my phone buzzed. It was Ethan, my charming boyfriend, the heir to the prestigious Vance Family Vineyard. H
/0/13106/coverbig.jpg?v=a4aa97d7a9580de569ff33b41e267c21)
/0/23879/coverbig.jpg?v=092acede050d4091d865cca8aee804d3)
The Moon & The Star
Avalon Carmichael is a normal college student. After a normal girls night goes horribly wrong Avalon learns she isn't as normal as she thought. She learns there are dark forces after her and her family. Avalon is thrust into chaos and danger. She joins an ancient organization called The Moon that
/0/15208/coverbig.jpg?v=e50fb226bbf50603e9f7ec21cd2a6339)
/0/4950/coverbig.jpg?v=7661dc3553c7656d409224c67dfab703)
/1/112322/coverbig.jpg?v=acec8f9a284cc9602724b0764c01d034)
Luna Of The North
I've never been lucky. I lost my parents at a young age to false treason claims against the Redwood Pack. My cruel uncle Storm assumed my father's role of Alpha in the Pack, and ever since he became Alpha, my life has been a living hell. When he brings news of the Northern Alpha King hosting a bal
/0/4954/coverbig.jpg?v=211b31f1bd1fe0a650bfa3fc48154c2f)
/0/16538/coverbig.jpg?v=f0ee9dde9b27c595e68af1b39d8bf317)
The North Pacific
This book, from the series Primary Sources: Historical Books of the World (Asia and Far East Collection), represents an important historical artifact on Asian history and culture. Its contents come from the legions of academic literature and research on the subject produced over the last several hu
/1/118936/coverbig.jpg?v=18338baf782a621a577affc2e16b2a01)
BEAST OF THE NORTH
He bought her like meat. She became his Alpha. Selena was born wolf-less. A defect. For 18 years she survived chains, rejection, and a father who called her "trash". Until the night Damien-Alpha of the North, warlord they call Beast-claimed her as his mate. He wanted a weapon. She gave him war
/0/90275/coverbig.jpg?v=f1e836abf7867d0083307264e4e8da60)
The Hockey Star Regret
Coleen Maine hated Hayden Michaels with her entire heart. After high school graduation, she thought she had escaped the hell that being a classmate to Hayden was. Being his academic rival was enough to put her, Coleen, at the top of his shit list. To make matters worse, he's the hot, popular jock wi
/0/20170/coverbig.jpg?v=edb61f0f67335609c225fe6031f876c5)
The Fallen Star
I can breathe freely even though I bury embers in my body and soul. My wound is happiness for you Where will my fate end? I'm alone without the hands that will grab me when darkness swallow me His name is engraved in your heart, all your body traces are left behind In your memory, he reigns. I love
/0/16928/coverbig.jpg?v=e76803c476582fa1dbad6757e3e6daaf)
/0/32888/coverbig.jpg?v=aa490707a420faa5e0b1ddb6fde541f6)
The Golden Star
Alex is born in a continent where power is respected. His mother dies during his birth. His father then marries another wife with whom he gets two sons. Alex fails to awaken his powers thus his mother treats him badly while his father turns a blind eye to his son's predicament. Alex is fed up with
/0/20187/coverbig.jpg?v=2afff128d298bf5afd6441c4b05a8ec7)
When The Star Falls
Several days after Celine graduated in Law school, she found out that she's already pregnant. And the father of her child is the famous medical student, the smart, cold, and drop dead handsome first born of the most prominent family on his town, La Cuevas. But Celine knew very well that she wouldn't
/0/84402/coverbig.jpg?v=1ffaac19c639a3df0f20afa1df7d40eb)
The Star Maker's Revenge
I watched the man I loved, the star I' d built from scratch, standing on a stadium stage. My heart hammered, knowing he was about to call me up, to begin our dreamed-of life together. But then he smiled, a brilliant, camera-ready smile that didn' t reach his eyes. "I' d like to welcome to the st
/0/4602/coverbig.jpg?v=663830f2b8c3847c93a21b5cfc6af364)
/0/73374/coverbig.jpg?v=915913c3dc027d676f4d15b65b101a63)
THE LAST SHOOTING STAR
Irene Lancaster is not just beautiful she is otherworldly. Her presence alone can silence a room, leaving men mesmerized and women insecure. With her striking features and ethereal elegance, she is untouchable, unreachable. But beneath her breathtaking beauty lies an icy heart. Irene does not smile.
/0/15490/coverbig.jpg?v=4fe7faf98313a1a02dce8c6ff776d68b)
