Working as a live-in nanny for four hot hockey star Alphas? That's got to be every Beta's dream. Except... it's not quite that simple. After losing my job and my apartment in the same day, I feel like I've hit rock bottom. But when Cruz Ashford, captain of the Titans NHL team, finds out I have nowhere to live, he makes me an offer that could help us both: Move in with him and his three pack mates and work as a nanny for the adorable little boy they've adopted. As crazy as it sounds, I say yes. It's a chance to turn my life around after the loss of my grandmother left me buried in a mountain of medical debt, so there's no way I can turn him down. The only problem is, living with four gorgeous Alphas is harder than I thought it would be. Almost from the first moment I arrive at their house, the tension between us is off the charts. I don't know why I'm so drawn to Cruz, Knox, Lawson, and Miles. Why I can barely control my body around them. Why their delicious scents affect me so much... or why I seem to affect them too. Until the day I start perfuming, and I finally realize the truth that's been staring me in the face. I've been wrong my whole life. I'm not a Beta. I'm an Omega. And everything is about to change.
My hands shake as I pack up my things from my.
I can feel eyes on me, but every time I look up, nobody's glancing my way. I swallow and keep my head down. I'm sure everyone's gossiping about why I've quit, but I won't share. Not because I think the jerk who harassed me deserves to have his behavior swept under the rug, but because I don't want any more trouble. HR wasn't on my side, so I don't know that anyone else would be either.
Once my box with my meager belongings is packed, I head out the door. There are a few confused glances as I leave, and a couple of people stare openly. I ignore all of them.
I can't afford to leave this job. I desperately need the money. But I also need my sanity and my safety, and neither of those is guaranteed here anymore. I'll just have to find something new. It's not like I was saving lives or anything. I was answering customer service calls for a local delivery truck company. I can find another job like that easily.
the door. I tuck my hair behind my ears-great, my hair clip fell out at some point and now I have no idea where it is-and try to project confidence and maybe a bit of a 'fuck you' attitude as I walk out.
These people don't deserve to know that I'm upset. I don't want any of them thinking that I'm leaving with my tail between my legs. I'm leaving in protest, and I'm going to find a better job, one that actually pays me enough to make rent and has a human relationships department that takes care of it's employees.
I get on the bus and head home. I have my car, which is a beat-up old Corolla, but it's seen me through a lot of tough times, but I try to use public transport as much as I can to save money on gas. It means that it takes me twice as long to get to or from work sometimes, but when I'm struggling to buy groceries, a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do. I'm a little worried about my car, actually. It feels like it's barely starting these days.
I really hope the old girl doesn't crap out on me. I need my car.
The universe loves to laugh at me, though, so as I get to my apartment and I juggle the box in one hand and my keys in the other, who should grab the door for me, but none other than my landlord, Jerry.
"Hi, Jerry, thank you!" I put a smile on my face and pray internally that he won't mention the rent.
"You're welcome." Jerry smiles. "I don't suppose you've got an envelope of cash with my name on it in that box, do you?"
He mentioned the rent. I don't know why I hoped for anything else.
"Not today, no." I try to keep my tone light even as my heart rate skyrockets. Jerry's been after me with rent for a couple of weeks now and I know that he has a point, I am late on my payments, but I also just want him to leave me alone and let me figure out what I'm going to do now that I don't have any income.
Jerry frowns. "It's past due, Lily. You know I like you, you're a nice girl, but I've gotta put food on the table, same as everyone else."
"Of course, Jerry, I know."
"And I can't do that when you're late on rent. Again. How many times do we have to do this?"
"There's always something. Look, I can stop by later if..."
"Now's really not a good time."
"Well, when will it be a good time?"
I juggle my box and my purse as I try to head up the stairs. "Maybe on a day when I haven't just lost my job?" I say desperately, annoyed and not thinking.
The moment the words slip out, I want to bang my head against the wall.
Jerry's eyebrows shoot up. "Did you just say you lost your job?"
"I... yeah." I don't know what else to say. I definitely don't want my landlord knowing the whole sordid story.
"What did you do?"
"I didn't do anything!"
"Then how did you lose it?"
"I wasn't fired," I insist, as if the distinction will matter to him. "I quit!"
"Oh my god," Jerry mutters.
I want the floor to swallow me up whole. "Look, it was a bad work environment, but it's not like I was doing open heart surgery. I'll get another job in a few days and get you the money. You don't have to worry about a thing, Jerry, I promise."
Jerry doesn't look all that convinced. "That's what you say every time, and every time, you're late on the rent."
"But I get it to you!" I point out, trying to be cheerful, then I dash up the stairs before he can say anything more.
I get up the three flights of narrow, rundown stairs to my tiny apartment, unlock the door, and get inside, sagging against the wall.
What a day.
It's tempting to just sit here, maybe even cry a little, but I force myself to get up. There's no use crying. Everything is going to be fine. I take deep breaths and lug the box into the apartment properly so I can unpack, wincing as I take in my run-down, tiny apartment.
This really isn't a place worth pestering your tenants about rent over. It's the size of a shoebox, there's a leaky faucet, no air conditioning or heating, the floor is technically hardwood but only because it's worn-down to bits, there's plaster flaking off everywhere, and there are stains in the bathroom and kitchen that no amount of scrubbing and bleach can fix.
It's beat up to hell, which is about how I feel right now, honestly. But it's not like I can afford anywhere better right now. Especially now that I'm unemployed.
A Family without boundaries, A boy caught in the throes of forbidden pleasures.
Madisyn was stunned to discover that she was not her parents' biological child. Due to the real daughter's scheming, she was kicked out and became a laughingstock. Thought to be born to peasants, Madisyn was shocked to find that her real father was the richest man in the city, and her brothers were renowned figures in their respective fields. They showered her with love, only to learn that Madisyn had a thriving business of her own. "Stop pestering me!" said her ex-boyfriend. "My heart only belongs to Jenna." "How dare you think that my woman has feelings for you?" claimed a mysterious bigwig.
“You need a bride, I need a groom. Why don’t we get married?” Both abandoned at the altar, Elyse decided to tie the knot with the disabled stranger from the venue next door. Pitying his state, she vowed to spoil him once they were married. Little did she know that he was actually a powerful tycoon. Jayden thought Elyse only married him for his money, and planned to divorce her when she was no longer of use to him. But after becoming her husband, he was faced with a new dilemma. “She keeps asking for a divorce, but I don’t want that! What should I do?”
Corinne devoted three years of her life to her boyfriend, only for it to all go to waste. He saw her as nothing more than a country bumpkin and left her at the altar to be with his true love. After getting jilted, Corinne reclaimed her identity as the granddaughter of the town’s richest man, inherited a billion-dollar fortune, and ultimately rose to the top. But her success attracted the envy of others, and people constantly tried to bring her down. As she dealt with these troublemakers one by one, Mr. Hopkins, notorious for his ruthlessness, stood by and cheered her on. “Way to go, honey!”
As a simple assistant, messaging the CEO in the dead of night to request shares of adult films was a bold move. Bethany, unsurprisingly, didn't receive any films. However, the CEO responded that, while he had no films to share, he could offer a live demonstration. After a night filled with passion, Bethany was certain she'd lose her job. But instead, her boss proposed, "Marry me. Please consider it." "Mr. Bates, you're kidding me, right?"
Janet was adopted when she was a kid -- a dream come true for orphans. However, her life was anything but happy. Her adoptive mother taunted and bullied her all her life. Janet got the love and affection of a parent from the old maid who raised her. Unfortunately, the old woman fell ill, and Janet had to marry a worthless man in place of her parents' biological daughter to meet the maid's medical expenses. Could this be a Cinderella's tale? But the man was far from a prince, except for his handsome appearance. Ethan was the illegitimate son of a wealthy family who lived a reckless life and barely made ends meet. He got married to fulfill his mother's last wish. However, on his wedding night, he had an inkling that his wife was different from what he had heard about her. Fate had united the two people with deep secrets. Was Ethan truly the man we thought he was? Surprisingly, he bore an uncanny resemblance to the impenetrable wealthiest man in the city. Would he find out that Janet married him in place of her sister? Would their marriage be a romantic tale or an utter disaster? Read on to unravel Janet and Ethan's journey.
"I've warned you from the beginning. Don't marry him, but you won't listen." She stood close to me and smiled with concern. "You are not a woman worthy of a man as handsome, rich, smart, and virile as Blaze." My whole body trembled at her words. "Have you no shame?" I asked in a quivering voice. "Take a good look at yourself, Heather." She looked at me in the mirror. "You can't even look at your ugly face. Do you think Blaze can endure a lifetime of looking at that face?" Heather Bailey had a surprise from her husband that night: a divorce agreement. After a year of marriage and facing ups and downs, she couldn't believe Blaze intended to divorce her. But she was devastated when she saw him gazing lovingly at another woman because that person was closest to her. Shortly after she put her signature on their divorce papers, shock waves caught her up. Her flower shop was severely burnt, beyond repair. Her father's company collapsed, and her parents blamed her. She struggled to rebuild her life from the ground up and became more successful than ever. Having many customers who came from influential families, she started her action against Blaze. She won the very thing he wanted. But that was just the beginning.