Raphaël Sauvage had resigned himself to his misery and to his darkness. Work was all he lived to do anyway and he had no plans to change anything. Nothing was worth changing for. Until she appeared. WARNING: May contain scenes of explicit romance, extreme violence, physical abuse, also may contain mention of demonic existence. BEWARE. With her loud mouth and her audacity to challenge him, Isabelle Fourie blew into his house as loudly and chaotically as a tornado. And she didn't give a damn either. For the first time in his life, Raphaël found himself losing control over his tightly reigned heart. He hated it, hated how she, his maid, could have such power over him. She drew him in with a force that was insanely strong, making Raphaël want to send her back where she came from. But with his orphaned nephew whom he must take care of, a child who responded only to Isabelle, Raphaël must ignore the protests of his darkest demons and their complaints over the light Isabelle brought into his life, to hesitantly find a way out of his darkness. Even if it killed him.
The wind blew wildly outside. The rain and grey skies perfectly matched his mood.
Raphaël Sauvage sat in his home office, listening to the rumble of the thunder. The power of the sky was evident in the deep, rolls of thunder and the flashing lightning.
He found it exceptionally beautiful.
He swiveled his brandy in its glass, his jaw clenching.
Her eyes flashed in his memory.
The blue-green sparkling as she threw her head back in laughter.
His dear sister.
Fresh anger burned through him as he remembered her death, with deep sadness following hot on its heels.
His dearest sister. Dead.
There was a knock at the door.
Raphaël looked up as Rosa, his housekeeper, entered.
"Raphaël," she said.
"Hm," was his answer.
Reaching over with a sigh, Rosa took the glass of brandy out of his hand.
He let her. Rosa had been around for as long as Raphaël could remember.
She was there even before his parents died. Her presence replaced theirs and he was grateful.
He looked up at her, his eyes a strong steel grey.
"Raphaël, you must not think of it," she said quietly, her Italian accent slight. "It will only hurt you."
He nodded, silent.
Rosa sighed. "I will be gone this week, you know this. My niece will be here, however, to take over my duties."
Raphaël frowned. "I don't want a stranger here, Rosa." His husky voice resonated through the office.
"Oh, I assure you, she will not get in your way. Besides, she's been here before. Many times, when you both were little... but you were younger, you may not recall."
He nodded, silently picturing the red-cheeked little face he remembered from when he was little. Rosa sighed again, reaching over to pat his hand as she turned to leave.
"Rosa."
She stopped and turned back to him.
"Yes, Raphaël?"
He hesitated. "How... how is he?"
Rosa nodded. "He is peaceful. I have put him to bed now."
Having gotten his answer, Raphaël nodded and turned in his chair, facing the glass behind him as the sky cracked up with light.
"It's been weeks since he arrived here now and you continue to avoid him," Rosa said sadly. "You must speak to the little one, Raphaël, you're his Uncle. He must know you. He needs much help."
Raphaël dragged a hand through his hair.
"J'en sais pas, Rosa. How... what do I say to him?"
"One step at a time. You, like your father, are very wise. You will find a way, Raphaël. "
He scoffed, nearly spitting out a curse at the mention of his father. "Wise, my ass."
"Raphaël-"
"The child," he said before she could tell him to mind his manners and all such. "...he still hasn't spoken?"
"Not one word," said Rosa.
Rosa watched Raphaël turn to her and the anguish in his eyes tore at her heart.
The sky was lit up for a moment, casting a flash of light over his face. To Rosa, it was like seeing a ghost. From birth, he resembled his father. The dark looks, thick brown hair. That intimidating height and those wide, large shoulders, his stubborn chin and hard, grey eyes. Many trembled in the presence of Raphaël Sauvage.
How proud she was of him.
"Isabelle will be here tomorrow morning," Rosa said softly and left, closing the door quietly.
Raphaël leaned back in his chair, consumed by his own darkness. His own pain was dragging him down and drowning him, mercilessly. So, how in the hell would he help this child?
He closed his eyes, his mind running wild with thoughts as he silently wished and prayed, willing his demons not to visit him tonight.
Having been a villain for over six centuries, you'd think Rogan was used to the sad endings to his every story. But he wasn't. He was bitter, angry and frankly, bloody tired of it. Living in a new kingdom, Rogan goes about trying every method to break the spell that keeps him alive so he could embrace the peace of death but, to Rogan's annoyance, even death evades him! But that wasn't all fate had to throw at him. After handing him an ugly path in life, saddling him with a life he didn't want, fate suddenly decided it wanted to throw a wild-haired, infuriatingly clueless forest girl into Rogan's path. However, despite annoying him, the girl proves useful, and according to the Villain Book of Evil Laws, it was only right for a villain to use others, so Rogan decides to keep her. When Rogan realizes that the girl's life was being threatened by enemies far greater than her, he finds himself stuck between going ahead with his plans of self-destruction and destroying his excellent Villain reputation by saving her. Maia wanted only one thing. To survive. If a short-tempered, sharp-tongued Vampire Sorcerer was her only way to do that, then so be it! Maia would stick to him like glue, no matter how many times he glared at her with his swirling dark eyes and spat out curse words like a snake did venom! Sadly, her safe little spot besides the Sorcerer darts back and forth between chilly cold and steaming hot, making Maia suddenly realize that perhaps being besides him wasn't as safe as she'd thought.
"You're mine, little puppy," Kylan growled against my neck. A soft gasp escaped my lips as his lips brushed my skin. My mind screamed at me to push him away-the Lycan Prince who had humiliated me again and again, but my body betrayed me, leaning into him before I could stop myself. He pressed his lips against mine, and his kiss grew more aggressive, more possessive as I felt my legs weaken. What was I doing? In a split-second, I pulled away and slapped him hard across the face. Kylan's eyes darkened, but the smirk on his lips exposed his amusement. "You and I both know we can't fight this, Violet," he said, gripping my wrist. "You're my mate." "And yet you don't want me," I replied. "You told me you were ashamed of me, that l'd never be your queen, that you'd never love me. So please, accept my rejection and let me go." "Never," he whispered, his grip tightening as he pulled me closer. "Soon enough, you'll be begging for me. and when you do-I'll use you as I see fit and then I'll reject you."
Due to the plight of her family, Phoebe had no choice but to embark on the path of selling herself. In an accident, she had a tangled night with Alexander. Everything began to derail, and even if she fled to the ends of the earth, she would still be found by him and entangled... *** Phoebe screamed in frustration, "What do you want from me?" What was this supposed to be? He raised an eyebrow wickedly. "What do I want? You'll find out soon enough." With that, he hoisted her up and carried her back into the office. The door slammed shut with a kick, and he cleared the desk with a sweep of his arm before laying her down on it, his body pinning hers in place, completely trapping her in his grasp. Every cell in his body was telling him he wanted her. He wanted to claim her again. This time, there would be no escape for her-he wouldn't let her slip away. Never again. If he had suffered for five years, then this woman wouldn't get off easily either!
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."
"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?
Kara Martin was known as Miss Perfect. She was a beauty with good personality and successful career. Unfortunately, her life changed at one night. She was accused of adultery, losing her job, and abandoned by her fiance. The arrogant man who slept with her did not want to take responsibility. He even threatened to kill her if they met again. What's worse, Kara was pregnant with twins and she chose to give birth to them. Four and a half years later, Kara returned to work at a large company. As the secretary, she would frequently face their notorious CEO. Kara thought it wouldn't be a problem, but as it turned out ... the CEO was the father of the twins!
After hiding her true identity throughout her three-year marriage to Colton, Allison had committed wholeheartedly, only to find herself neglected and pushed toward divorce. Disheartened, she set out to rediscover her true self-a talented perfumer, the mastermind of a famous intelligence agency, and the heir to a secret hacker network. Realizing his mistakes, Colton expressed his regret. "I know I messed up. Please, give me another chance." Yet, Kellan, a once-disabled tycoon, stood up from his wheelchair, took Allison's hand, and scoffed dismissively, "You think she'll take you back? Dream on."