Jo lives in her fictitious world until it crashes right in front of her. Her successful private plane pilot boyfriend of two years, Oscar, breaks up with her in the exotic land of the Bahamas. His reason? She is too materialistic. With the reality brutally rebuked at her, a broken heart and stolen luggage, she tries to return to her home but luck wasn't really with her when the storm strikes the island - causing her to stay with her recently ex-boyfriend and a guy she once humiliated and rejected in high school for being too dorky, named Keith, who is now a successful lawyer working for a law firm in Houston. Stuck in an expensive resort owned by Keith, with him, Oscar, and she at the same place is a formula of disaster, or will it be something else?
"Do you know whom you are talking to? I am Josephine Scott and I can ruin you in a matter of seconds! How can you misplace my luggage?! How irresponsible of you to say that – don't you have any sense of responsibility?!" Oscar sighed as he hears his girlfriend yelling at somebody from the customs. "I don't care what you say. I am not going to submit a written claim for something you people lost!" Her voice rumbled in the room. Oscar walks out to the balcony – he could take any more of her mindlessly yelling at somebody.
He would have told her that's how it works – she has to claim but he knows that she will turn deaf ears on him. Oscar tried to explain to her whenever she would embarrass herself with her thoughtless claims, but when it started to turn out in huge fights and yelling at him – he stopped.
Oscar looked up at the sky and sighed – the weather was getting dull and gloomy. His flight was canceled for two days due to the storm that was approaching Nassau. He had to fly in and out a client to and from the Bahamas. When they came here three days ago – the weather was ideal for flying but now it has been delayed due to the predicted storm. He was peacefully looking up at the sky when Jo angrily walked out with her phone clenched in her fist. Oscar glanced behind him before blowing his cheek out and looking at the sky as she started yelling at him – again. "I can't believe it!" She said. Oscar boringly turned his head around and asked, "What is it now?" He asked. Jo narrowed her eyes, "Don't be such an ass, Oscar. They can't find my luggage. It was entirely your fault from the beginning." Jo snapped at him.
Oscar knitted his eyebrows together and asked as he folded his arms on his chest, "How is it my fault?" He asked. Jo always does this – she never accepts her mistake and always puts all the blame on others. She shifted from one leg to another, "Why didn't you bring me here on your private plane? No, you had to make me travel through an airline. If only you would have allowed me to travel with you – this wouldn't have happened. We could have been having fun by now but no – you had to say no." Jo expressed her anger.
Oscar couldn't help but chuckled – not because he found the situation funny but how stupid Jo was being. Oscar has always been short-tempered and Jo's idiocy wasn't helping him either. He was already stressed about the weather – which doesn't look good and now he was stuck with his girlfriend, who doesn't make any sense and was being a complete airhead. "You know Jo, we have been together for two years and I still can't figure out how stupid sometimes you can be." He spoke calmly while the anger within him was speaking. He had enough – he couldn't deal with such insanity anymore.
Jo couldn't believe what Oscar just said. He might not be raising his voice but his words hurt Jo. She narrowed her eyes, "What did you just say?" She asked implausibly. Oscar clenched his jaws and replied, "I said exactly what you heard. Jo, you are ignorant and stupid. You don't realize how things work. This world doesn't revolve around you! There are ways for things to be done, but how would you know – you always make others do stuff for you." He said. Jo was consternated. She couldn't utter a word – she was shocked by what Oscar was saying to him.
Oscar paused and rubbed his face before he pressed his lips together and pointed towards her cellphone which was in her hand, "That person is right! You have to submit a written claim – you have to fill out a form! You can't just walk out of the airport knowing your luggage was missing and thinking my boyfriend or any other shit would take care of it for me! That's not how it is done!" He yelled at her while she stood – completely shocked by the intensity of his words. She gulped as she could feel a lump in her throat – her eyes welled up but it didn't stop Oscar from spilling the truth for her. "In the same way, you cannot demand me to take you with me in someone else's plane! I don't own the plane – my client does. I am only flying them from one place to another. That's my job! I cannot bring my girlfriend with me on other people's plane because she forces herself on me whenever I go to someplace that sounds fun to her!" He yelled once again, "Can't you think? I am at my job – this is not a vacation for me." He added.
"I mean, okay – I get it. You are not so educated. You didn't complete your high school but that doesn't give you any right to be so damn stupid." Oscar spoke. It was a low blow from Oscar – he knew it but he was so angry and tired of her behavior – he lost control of what he was saying.
She couldn't believe the words that were coming out of his mouth for her. "There is a place outside the social media, Jo and it is called real life and it sucks! Come out of your damn world and live in the real world. Posting a perfect selfie doesn't make you perfect!" He snapped. "If you have even a tiny bit of dignity left in you – be a responsible person, work and pay up for the luxurious you show off on your social media accounts and stop expecting me to pay for them." He said while pointing his finger at her. By the time he was done – he was breathing heavily, while Jo felt like someone knocked out all the air from her lungs. She couldn't move or think – she was thunderbolt by everything that came out of Oscar's mouth.
Oscar sighed and rubbed his eyes, "I can't do this anymore," He spoke softly this time. Tears freely flowing from Jo's eyes as she looked directly at him, "We are completely different from each other. You want one thing and I want another. We are like fire and ice and we don't go together. It is better if we end things," Oscar proposed. He waited for her to speak, but from her expressions he could tell it wasn't going to happen any time soon so, he continued. "I will buy you the ticket to get back to New York. I will also claim for your lost luggage, but that's it – after this, we should part our ways. We are not suitable for each other." He added.
Jo stopped still as the sky above them rumbled. Oscar knew he said too much, but he couldn't take any of those words back. He looked at Jo – standing silently for the first time in forever. She didn't argue back. She didn't fight. She didn't yell. She just stood there – completely humiliated by him. The sky was covered up with dark grey clouds as the thunderstorm echoed. Oscar ran his fingers through his hair and mashed his lips. He was realizing how brutal he was being – he shouldn't have said most of the things that he did. "Listen, I am sorry. I was angry and I said things I shouldn't have." He apologized to a very still Jo. Jo let out a shaky breath as Oscar tried to get her hand, "Come in, it is going to rain soon." He tried to bring her in but she pulled her hand away and pushed him hard. Oscar shuddered and looked at Jo with his eyebrows brought together. "Don't touch me," She let out of a whisper. She was finally coming back to her senses. Her heartbeat accelerated as she glared at the man she thought she was falling in love with.
She sniffed and looked up at the sky – it started to drizzle. "I am materialistic." She repeated what Oscar said to her hardly two minutes ago. Oscar closed his eyes briefly and mashed his lips before he stepped closer, "Listen, I am extremely sorry for –" Jo wasn't ready to let him insult her any more. She took a step back and put her hand in front of him to stop him, "Don't – you don't have to say anything." She said to him. She nodded her head, "You are right. I am materialistic. I am uneducated. I couldn't complete high school because my circumstances were different from any normal teenager. I am stupid because I don't think before I react. I know everything. Each morning, I wake up with this burden of being so worthless." She paused. She wasn't going to ramble about how she feels in front of a guy who just affronted her.
She gulped and tried to stop her tears, "You don't have any right to insult me as you did. You don't have any right to degrade me – I do enough harm by telling myself that every day. You don't have to do it for me!" She pointed her finger at him. "You want to end things with me – fine. I don't want anything to do with you either. Let's end this here and now." She yelled at him. This time he stayed silent when she spoke. "You don't have to book my flight back home or help me find my luggage. I don't need your charity anymore, Oscar. Have an awful life. Fuck you." She cursed at him before she walked into the suite.
She was collecting her handbag and putting in her belongings when she realized that everything including the handbag was given to her by him. She snorted and threw the bag on the floor just at the time when Oscar walked back into the room. "Think carefully, Jo. You don't know anyone here. Let me help you one more time." He insisted. She shook her head. "No, thank you – I can take care of myself." She waved her phone at him, "I have to take this with me. I need this to find my way back. I will give it back to you once I get back to New York. As for that bag and everything that I have in it – they belong to you. You paid for it. I will also move out of your penthouse. See you back in New York." She said and turned around.
She walked to the door and put her hand on the doorknob but stopped. She turned her head to look at him, "By the way, happy fucking second anniversary, you jackass." She said to him before she walked out with nothing but clothes on and her cellphone. With no money in her hand – she wasn't sure what she was going to do, but she had to get away from Oscar. She was feeling more embarrassed and humiliated with each second passed with him.
Oscar blows his cheeks out. He has always been a guy who keeps it all to himself. He is not a man of many words, but today she got the worst of him. He just couldn't contain himself. Oscar's gaze averted at her unzipped bag to see her wallet resting in it. She doesn't have any money – she can't possibly get anywhere without the money. With the certainty she wouldn't be gone for long and will come back – Oscar sat on the edge of the bed and pulled his phone out to call Jo. He glanced out at the open to see it has started pouring. He tsk when she doesn't answer his phone so he texts her – apologizing for the words he used. He knows he wasn't getting any reply from her but he still tried. "The weather is going to get worse – she better doesn't get out of the hotel." He mumbled.
Jo walked out of the hotel with no umbrella with pouring rain. She tried to put her phone in his jean's pocket but it refused to fit. She groaned lowly and hid it under her denim jacket. She can't afford to get it soaked – she has to return it to Oscar. She walked and walked until she was lost. She didn't have any money, she was hungry, she was angry more at herself than Oscar and she was completely soaked. Her legs were aching from walking and she badly waited to pee. It has been almost an hour since she has been walking and this time the rain only increased. She cursed under her breath and looked around to see if someone could help her. She let out a sob – she has never been this helpless. Oscar was right – she has been depending on others for too long – she completely forgot who she is and where she belongs from. She sniffed and knocked on the window of a closed coffee shop – just to try her luck but of course, no one was there.
She walked a little further and saw a dumpster at the corner. She looked around to see if anyone was around – she had to pee or else she would pee her pants and she couldn't afford that so, completely desperate Jo – leaped behind the dumpster and peed in the open air as the rain poured on her. She couldn't help but cry out loud as she was going – it was the first time when she had to pee at the roadside. Till this morning she never thought she would end like this at a foreign place – where she knows nobody and nobody knows her.
After she was down – she pulled her pants up and zipped her jeans before she came from behind the dumpster. She sniffed and stood under the shade – she didn't where she was and how to get back to the hotel. She was humiliated by her now ex-boyfriend, but she was miserable without any help in such weather. As much as it was killing her to even think about it, but she decided to go back to the hotel and let help her – one last time. She was about to ask around to help her get a ride to take her back to the hotel when she felt like she has been shaken. She knitted her eyebrows and put her hand on the wall near. She must be feeling dizzy from walking in rain, but she was proved wrong when she once again felt the tremor. She looked around to see few people coming out from various buildings while panicking – just when she felt another jolt and fell on the ground as the ground started to shake violently.
"Earthquake! Earthquake! Everyone, get down!" She heard a man cry. She could hear people screaming and running towards the street as the earth shook. She could hear various things landing on the ground. She could hear the windows trembling and people crying. Jo stayed on the ground while she had her ear covered and her head bowed. The rain was pouring hard while the earth was shaking – she didn't think she would survive. She sobbed and sobbed and after a few seconds the tremor stopped but she couldn't stop shaking herself – she was frightened and just when she heard a familiar voice calling her name, "Jo!" She lifted her head to see Oscar running towards her – drenched in rain while she stayed on the ground. "Jo, thank God – you are okay!" He said as he kneed down and hugged her. At that moment she forgot what he had said to her just a couple of hours ago – she was just thankful he was here.
Oscar was thankful he went out to see Jo when she returned after a few minutes – he just had his instinct that she will be in trouble if he doesn't go out for her. With every minute passing – he was being eaten by guilt for everything he had said to Jo. When he got to the lobby and she was nowhere to be seen – he panicked and asked some employees of the hotel if they have seen her and he was told that she was seen walking out of the hotel. Luckily the guard told him that she walked to the left and with a hope that he will find her nearby – he walked while asking people around and calling out her name. The rain was pouring heavily and with each minute he was getting concerned. After almost an hour – he felt the tremor. It didn't take him long before he realizes that it was the earthquake. He looked around as the people rush out of the building. He could see the locals and the tourist panicking as they tried to get out to the open.
"Oh no," He whispered as he fists his hair while his eyes wandered around to see if he could find Jo. His heart was accelerating as he walked forward while the earth kept shaking – he could feel a little dizzy from walking while the ground was shaking but he didn't care and kept going forward. He had to find Jo. "Jo!" he called out her name and just at the time his eyes fell on the ground where Jo was sitting with her head down and her hand on her ears. The tremor soon died but she was still visibly shaking. Oscar felt his heart clenched as he rushed towards her. He felt awful to see her vulnerable – especially when he knows it was his fault.
Harper is trapped in unrequited love. Orphaned, she finds refuge with Mr. Cooper and his children, Atlas and Amanda. However, as Harper's affection for Atlas grows, he only sees her as a sister. Mr. Cooper's passing leaves her under Atlas's reluctant care. Now, she must confront the painful reality of longing for what she cannot have. To complicate things, Atlas's girlfriend moves in with him in the same house as Harper—additionally, a mysterious professor of Harper, whose closeness to Harper might not sit well with Atlas. Will Harper find the strength to let go, or will she cling to a love that may never be returned?
"Does it ever happen to you that you are attracted to someone you shouldn’t be attracted to? Or someone you don’t even like? Like, it is just like an urge. Although they make you go crazy, still you want to be around them. You don't like them, but you want to touch them. Everything about them irritates you, but you want to feel them. Their presence annoys you, but their absences ache.” .... Oscar Monet is a young and famous model/actor. He is insanely good-looking and talented. He has a huge fan following, mainly consisting of girls. He is hardworking, but he is hard to work with. Many people have trouble working with him, but his popularity always forces everyone to make peace with his rudeness. But no one knows what trouble Oscar. No one ever tries to find out what makes him so rude and hurtful. No one knows about Oscar’s troubles. Enters Jasper Seong, presumably a straight man, who cannot stand Oscar, but slowly and surely he learns more about the troubled man and soon line starts to get blurred for him. He never found a man attractive. He never had feelings for a man before. He doesn’t think he still feels for any other man, but Oscar. There is something about him that pulls Jasper towards him.
Luisa Perry lives a boring life. Her life is directed by her parents. After living eighteen years as an obedient child, she wants to break through the cage. She has been suppressing herself for most of her teenage life, but now it was her time to live as she likes. What does she want to do? All the bad things. That's where Aiden Harlow enters. A cold and rebellious college freshman - who also happens to be Luisa's ex-crush. For the brief summer break, he is back in the town, he introduces her to all the bad things and she enjoys them more than she believed she would. What if Luisa catches feelings for him again? Aiden doesn't care for feelings. What if Aiden's best friend enters the picture as well? What if Aiden feels a pull towards the nerdy Luisa? All boundaries must be broken. There is no right or wrong. Luisa jumps into it, thinking about the dreading outcome of being so rebellious all of the sudden - but what if in all the bad, she finds something good? Perhaps love?
"What's fucking wrong with the name I gave you? You don't like it, Miss Goody Goody Pipsqueak?" He smirked. "No, I don't and I'd appreciate if you'd stop cursing in front of me," I replied impudently. He moved closer to me - so close that I could feel his breath on my face, "Does it make you uncomfortable?" He mumbled while looking straight into my eyes. "Yes." His lips curled into a slow smirk, "Too fucking bad." ........ Emma Goldberg lives a boring and dull life - there isn't any excitement in her life whatsoever. She works as an assistant at a small firm in Cleveland. Where else, her brother, Adam, knows how to enjoy his life - he's a music photographer and works with his best-friend/emerging-pop star - Cole Fitzgerald. They have a group of seven who mostly travels around together. When Emma accepts to work as Cole's assistant - she meets the most chaotic and recalcitrant people ever. Everyone was pretty good with her except for Roy Clarke, Cole's manager, who thinks that it was unnecessary to hire her. He makes her uncomfortable. He might be the most foul-mouthed, intolerant and discourteous man she ever met. And to make things more difficult for her, he calls her Miss Goody Goody Pipsqueak. They are like Harmony and Discord. Fire and Ice. Living and Dead. In short, they are completely opposite to each other. Where Emma needs a little excitement in her life - The group of seven needs discipline. In short, they need each other. What will happen when Emma and 'Pain in the ass' Roy meet? Will they able to help each other? Or will they make each other's life hell?
Emmett, Austin, Reuben, and Milo. Four inseparable friends. But everything changes one horrendous night. It was supposed to be Emmett's birthday party, but it all turned into a bloody rumpus. Thirteen died that night, many were injured and all that survived were left with tainted memories of the day they were shot at by a guy they all thought was normal, funny and a decent young person. They lost friends and their lives were also affected permanently. That was also the end of a great friendship, Emmett left with his girlfriend for New York shortly after the incident and didn't return until recently - after five long years. Everything changed in the last five years. People changed. Some moved on - many didn't. After returning he comes face to face with his best friend, Austin, and his best friend's sister that was madly in love with Emmett since she was a kid, Leah, but he had never felt anything for her. Leah was one of the injured by the shooting and like many others, her life was completely changed by the horrifying incident that is still fresh on her mind.
To the public, she was the CEO's executive secretary. Behind closed doors, she was the wife he never officially acknowledged. Jenessa was elated when she learned that she was pregnant. But that joy was replaced with dread as her husband, Ryan, showered his affections on his first love. With a heavy heart, she chose to set him free and leave. When they met again, Ryan's attention was caught by Jenessa's protruding belly. "Whose child are you carrying?!" he demanded. But she only scoffed. "It's none of your business, my dear ex-husband!"
After Martina Martinez and Benjamin Walker's breakup, paparazzi captured photos of the business tycoon entering the Walker family mansion with a mysterious woman late at night. This caused a stir, and this wealthy family was bombarded by various media outlets. During a phone interview, the gossip reporter asked, "Miss Martinez, how do you feel now that Mr. Walker has a new girlfriend?" Martina held her painful forehead and looked towards Benjamin, who was adjusting his suit by the floor-to-ceiling window. He gestured for her to come over and help him with his tie. Holding her phone, Martina responded, "It's... complicated!" The reporter's heart leaped with joy and asked, "Is it heartbroken?!" Martina was about to nod, but Benjamin raised his eyebrows and took her phone away. His deep and alluring voice was heard on the other end of the line, "New girlfriend? Whose?"
**This book contains a trigger warning. Mention about rape and torture in this book. Please read with caution** "Our marriage is nothing but a deal," he said looking at the girl, her green eyes met his cold silver eye, and both of them glared at each other. "For any rules you break, I will claim any part of your body," his gaze grew dangerously darker at his word. Ashley Harlow was at the top of the world, living the perfect and luxurious lifestyle as the legitimate daughter of the well-known Daniel Harlow. But sadly, a one-night stand put an end to that and brought her life upside down and that of her family's name to the ground. To restore his family's reputation, she was forced into marrying Damien Albrecht, a young, ruthless, obnoxious, brutal billionaire and the head of a mafia gang in exchange for her father's company.
"I, Sophia Addison, of the Crescent Moon Pack, deny your rejection, Jacob Carter." I smiled triumphantly at him and he just glared at me. I can hear loud gasps and whispers throughout the place. They cannot believe that their goody-two-shoes of a senior year president is rejecting me in front of everybody. What goody-two-shoes? More like a two faced jerk! That is why, here I am, denying his rejection. Oh well, I refuse to suffer alone. So...let us both suffer together my dear mate.
Eliana was framed by her best friend and her fiance into sleeping with a boy toy in the club and getting impregnated by him. Five years after she had given birth to twins, she returned home and worked under the Moran Group, where she met the CEO-- Maurice. Maurice was a brilliant businessman who did his job well. But in order to stay under the radar, he lived a double life. One as Maurice, and one as Preston. Fate brought the two together again, roping them in on an exciting love story. It all became more complicated when Eliana faced Preston, the man she had slept with before, once again. Now that she was being pursued by two men, how could she ever choose? When would Eliana uncover the secret of Maurice's identity? When was Maurice going to know that he already had two children of his own? How would Eliana face this man when the truth came to light one day? Come and find out.
In their three years of marriage, Chelsea had been a dutiful wife to Edmund. She used to think that her love and care would someday melt Edmund's cold heart, but she was wrong. Finally, she couldn't take the disappointment any longer and chose to end the marriage. Edmund had always thought that his wife was just boring and dull. So it was shocking when Chelsea suddenly threw divorce papers at his face in front of everyone at the Nelson Group's anniversary party. How humiliating! After that, everyone thought that the formerly-married couple would never see each other again, even Chelsea. Once again, she thought wrong. Sometime later, at an award ceremony, Chelsea went onstage to accept the award for best screenplay. Her ex-husband, Edmund, was the one presenting the award to her. As he handed her the trophy, he suddenly reached for her hand and pleaded humbly in front of the audience, "Chelsea, I'm sorry I didn't cherish you before. Could you please give me another chance?" Chelsea looked at him indifferently. "I'm sorry, Mr. Nelson. My only concern now is my business." Edmund's heart was shattered into a million pieces. "Chelsea, I really can't live without you." But his ex-wife just walked away. Wasn't it better for her to just concentrate on her career? Men would only distract her—especially her ex-husband.