Rake disappeared from Ava's life the day of their anniversary celebration, and after years had passed, he resurfaced at her door asking for her help with a bullet wound on his side. He then left early the next morning and Ava thought he was gone for good, until an incident got her caught up in the other side of Rake's life that he had tried so hard to keep her out of, and now it was Rake's duty to protect Ava from the danger that she got involved in because of him.
The rain was pouring intensely that night when Ava heard a loud knock on her door. She rested her book right next to her cup of tea on the coffee table and got up from her rocking chair.
Ava hurriedly put on her robe as the knock got louder and more aggressive. She then rushed to her front door and peeped into the spy hole. At that moment, tears fell from her eyes as her hands trembled to get the door open.
"Rake, what are you doing here?" Ava softly said, yet there was anger in her tone.
She stood at the opened door, staring at a man that had left her broken for so many years, and finally, when she came to accept the fact that he was never coming back, here he is, standing in front of her house soaking wet in the rain.
"I need your help. Your house will be the last place that they will ever think about looking for me at, so please help me." Rake said with his hand pressed against his side.
"Who's they? What have you gotten yourself into, Rake?" Ava worriedly asked.
But when she looked at his side, and her eyes caught a red liquid dripping on the ground, Ava decided to keep the questions for later.
"Come in." She softly said as she folded her arms and stepped to the side.
Rake gave her a soft smile before walking into the house. Ava then took a deep breath and shut the door.
"Wow, this place still looks the same." Rake mumbled as he stared around the living room.
"You don't get to do that!" Ava coldly said with wet eyes.
Rake did not reply as he stared at Ava's angry expression since he knew that whatever he said would only make the matter worse.
"Is that a bullet wound?" Ava asked out of concern as she stared at Rake's side.
"It's just a wound. I will be fine." Rake said.
Ava frowned at Rake's remark. She could not believe how clueless and heartless he could be.
"That's good then! Because not everyone is fine after badly getting wounded." Ava stated.
"Ava, listen. I am..." Rake tried to say, but his words got cut short.
"No, you listen here! You don't get to walk back into my life after years have passed and pretend as if nothing had happened between us."
"I understand that. But there's so much that you don't know."
Ava was in a state of rage at this point. She did not want to pretend as though she was fine and happy in the way she had been doing with her friends and family over the years. All Ava wanted to do was yell out all the rage and hurt she felt inside her heart.
"Haha! What could that be then? Was it so important for you to leave me on the day of our engagement party and vanish without a trace!" Ava screamed.
"Yes, it was." Rake said as he stared at the ring on Ava's finger.
The living room was quiet for a while, and only the melody of the rushing rain could get heard throughout the house.
"I will get the First Aid kit." Ava mumbled while fighting back her tears.
Without looking back, she walked out of the living room and headed upstairs to her room.
"I am sorry, Ava. But my life is too dangerous for you to be a part of. I was naĂŻve back then to think I could keep you with all the danger surrounding my life. It's best that you hate me then to get hurt because of me." Rake mumbled as he removed the bloody shirt from his body.
Ava angrily opened her drawer and took out the first aid kit. She turned around to leave the room, but then dropped to her knees and bitterly sobbed.
"How can he still have this much effect on me? It's been so many years already. I should be over him by now. But why isn't it so?" Ava mumbled with an aching heart.
After some minutes had passed, Rake got worried that Ava was not down with the kit yet. Therefore, he went upstairs to check on her.
When Rake arrived at Ava's room door and overheard her soft cry, he rested his hand against the wooden frame and listened as his heart hurt.
"Ava, are you okay?" Rake called when he could not hear her sobbing anymore.
"No, I'm not." Ava harshly said.
"Can I come in?"
"If you want to do so."
Rake pushed the door open and entered the room. At that moment, he saw Ava on the floor with her head bent against her knee. With his eyes fixed on her, Rake slowly walked over to Ava and squatted in front of her.
"I am sorry. I know saying this does not make up for what I did to you or the pain I have caused, but I really am sorry." Rake softly said.
"Then why did you leave if you knew that it was going to hurt me?" Ava asked as she lifted her head and gazed at him.
"I can't say." Rake honestly answered while staring deep into her eyes.
Ava knew that he wasn't lying to her, and that caused her to be more curious about the reason he left her.
"Did you even love me?" Ava asked with concern in her eyes.
"I am bleeding. I don't think this is the right time for childish questions." Rake said.
He grabbed the first aid kit and headed into the bathroom, leaving Ava speechless and more hurt.
A minute later, after Rake had patched up his wound and bandaged it, he came out of the bathroom.
"Here your pillow and comforter. You can sleep on the couch for tonight, then I want you out of my house by tomorrow morning." Ava coldly said.
"Are you being serious right now?" Rake asked out of shock.
"Yes, I am."
"Fine."
Rake took the pillow and comforter from Ava's hands. He then walked out of the room and shut the door behind him.
"It's okay, Av. You have been doing great without him, and you don't need him now." Ava mumbled to herself, yet she was not confident about her words.
The moment Rake threw the stuff on the sofa, his phone started ringing in his trouser's pocket.
"Hello, boss." Rake said after he answered the call.
"Did you get the target?" A rough and cold manly voice harshly flowed into Rake's ears.
"No, boss. The mission was a bust. Someone tipped off the target, and he got prepared for my attack. I was lucky to get out of there with only a bullet wound?."
"Excuses! I need the job done tomorrow, or else a bullet wound will be the last thing you have to worry about."
"Yes, boss."
After the call ended, Rake tossed his phone onto the couch. He then sat down and covered his face with both his hands.
"By tomorrow, I will be gone, and you won't have to see or experience the other side of my double life." Rake mumbled out of frustration as he relaxed on the couch.
Born as the only wolfless person in her pack, Blake's life had been nothing but misery and humiliation, and she never expected things to change. But one innocent accident would change the course of her life forever when she met an Alpha in the male bathroom of her school. Now that her path had crossed with his, her life as a wolfless hybrid would now become the life of a powerful rogue wolf, and when she thought her fate with Nero couldn't get any more twisted, she is faced with the dilemma of choosing or killing him. *I always knew Blake and I were an impossible force from the moment we met again, and I don't get why fate keeps trying to merge us… Only chaos can blossom from what we are, and I want to shield her from all of it. But after everything that has happened so far, I realized that the universe wouldn't allow that to happen, so I will give in to its intention until everything burns into ash for us.
She could get none of the boys she had liked in high school to fall in love with her. But when she became a multi-billionaire in another country, a high school reunion brought her back home and face to face with all the guys that she never had a chance to be with back in her highschool days. Now, it was Xena who was getting chased by her crushes.
Everyone who should have been there for Li Na betrayed her. After she died, a soul transferred from the twenty-first century and sowed revenge on her behalf.
Carmen was in one-sided love, and she didn't know that until she got married to Liam, her high school crush. After getting married to him, his attitude towards her changed. But Carmen stayed in the marriage and endured his inappropriate behavior towards her. However, everything changed when she met Dax, and she later found out that he was her husband's best friend. When Liam realized that there was more to Carmen and Dax's friendship, he knew for sure that he wanted Carmen all to himself.
She fell deeply in love with him, and later found out that he might be the monster who murdered her parents in cold blood. However, a vow she made to him stopped her from killing him the first time, but what will she do when she meets him again?
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."
"You're a creepy bastard." His eyes smolder me and his answering grin is nothing short of beautiful. Deadly. "Yet you hunger for me. Tell me, this appetite of yours, does it always tend toward 'creepy bastards'?" **** Widower and ex-boss to the Mafia, Zefiro Della Rocca, has an unhealthy fixation on the woman nextdoor. It began as a coincidence, growing into mere curiosity, and soon, it was an itch he couldn't ignore, like a quick fix of crack for an addict. He didn't know her name, but he knew every inch of her skin, how it flushed when she climaxed, her favourite novel and that every night she contemplated suicide. He didn't want to care, despising his rapt fascination of the woman. She was in love with her abusive husband. She was married, bound by a contract to the Bratva's hitman. She was off-limits. But when Zefiro wanted something, it was with an intensity that bordered on madness. He obsessed, possessed, owned. There'd be bloodshed if he touched her, but the sight of blood always did fascinate him. * When Susanna flees from her husband, she stumbles right into the arms of her devilishly handsome neighbour with a brooding glare. He couldn't stand her, but she needed him, if she was ever going to escape her husband who now wanted her dead. Better the devil you know than the angel you don't. She should have recalled that before hopping into Zefiro's car and letting him whisk her away to Italy. Maybe then, she wouldn't have started an affair with him. He was the only man who touched her right, and the crazy man took no small pains in ensuring he would be the last.
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?"
Madison had always believed that she would marry Colten. She spent her youth admiring him from afar, dreaming of their future life together. But Colten was always indifferent to her, and when he abandoned her at a time when she needed him most, she finally realized that he never loved her. With renewed resolve and a thirst for revenge, Madison left. Endless possibilities lay ahead, but Colten was no longer part of her plans. Colten rushed to her place in a panic. "Madison, please come back to me. I’ll give you everything!" It was his powerful uncle who answered the door. "She's my woman now."
In her previous life, Kimberly endured the betrayal of her husband, the cruel machinations of an evil woman, and the endless tyranny of her in-laws. It culminated in the bankruptcy of her family, and ultimately, her death. After being reborn, she resolved to seek retribution against those who had wronged her, and ensure her family's prosperity. To her shock, the most unattainable man from her past suddenly set his sights on her. "You may have overlooked me before, but I shall capture your heart this time around."
Rumors said that Lucas married an unattractive woman with no background. In the three years they were together, he remained cold and distant to Belinda, who endured in silence. Her love for him forced her to sacrifice her self-worth and her dreams. When Lucas' true love reappeared, Belinda realized that their marriage was a sham from the start, a ploy to save another woman's life. She signed the divorce papers and left. Three years later, Belinda returned as a surgical prodigy and a maestro of the piano. Lost in regret, Lucas chased her in the rain and held her tightly. "You are mine, Belinda."