I don't remember how long it had been since I wrenched myself from the arms of the only woman I had loved as a mother. She didn't remember me at all. A little more speculation revealed that none of them did. My mother, my father, my brother,.. they'd all forgotten about my existence! That was the icing on the cake of my woeful and weird day. I had been so disoriented while fleeing the garden. All I had in mind was my incessant need to get away although I didn't completely understand what I was running from. It all happened in rapid succession I began to race toward the garden exit and a portal consumed me, spitting me out in the middle of a forest. Panic set in so I kept it up running in and out of portals and ending up in different places. The last place had been a crowded market square, my breathing hitched I never knew I had a bit of claustrophobia before then, I jumped again. I didn't know what I was running from but I knew what I was looking for. Peace, quiet and somewhere I could belong.. blend in or whatever. Baseline of my story, I don't know where I am but it sure is peaceful.
Chapter 1 - Somewhere in a small town in Seattle
1975
Lucas POV
I'd not had an easy life, at least not me. To onlookers, I was the perfect Lucas Stockhelm. I looked like the stereotype of a runway model, raven black hair, green eyes, a perfect jawline, a gorgeous smile, and a stunning physique. I was the Lucas who championed the soccer team of my local high school in every competition but somehow still aced all my tests. Sure I was on the honour roll, and the girls loved me ... even some guys although I decided never to venture into that. I was even the perfect gentleman, so how wasn't my life easy?
My mother had raised me all on her own. She'd made some bad choices in college and had to drop out to have me. My father? He was never part of the picture. So from a young age, I had to watch my mother crack under pressure. She was rarely home, having to run several shifts to support us. Whenever she finally came home she was always stressed out but still made time to find out how my day went. When we were done talking she'd creep away to her room to cry. Sometimes throughout the night. She had a friend who owned a modeling agency, Miss Hilda was very nice she always checked on us and ensured my mum was okay. Mum found it hard to open up to her about our problems though.
I was 5 when I first found out I was a little hotshot. My mum had just dropped me off at school that morning and my friend's mum saw me and fussed over me. Inviting me to their kids' birthday parties and hangouts that weren't coming up for weeks. After that, I asked Miss Hilda for a job and she granted me on the spot. It helped ease up the stress on Mum and all I had to do was smile and put on a couple of clothes and products for the money to come rolling in.
I am now 18 and a high school graduate. My mum was even more happy about this than me.... I should think. My friends were having the traditional "night in the woods" which every high school graduating set in our town had ever since high school came about. I didn't feel like going, so I opted for lying half-naked in my room flipping through old comics. Besides Mum was making a cake for me, I didn't want to leave her alone tonight, something felt wrong about going to the woods.
"Lu! Peter's here!", my mum's voice made its way upstairs to alert me of the impending doom.
I rolled over onto the floor in an attempt to hide under my bed. My room door flew open before my task was half completed and the calloused hands of my best friend wrapped round my ankles and tugged me out of my haven. "Not cool Luc!" he snapped at me, fighting the grin on his face as I raised my hands to plead innocent. "Get dressed and come downstairs you have five minutes."
"I was honestly about to come you know? I didn't just know what to wear." I called after his exiting figure in self-defense.
He stuck his head back ."Yeah I'm sure that's true you were only looking for your shoes under there!", sarcasm dripped from his tone. Wear whatever no one cares enough."
I pulled on tennis shoes and a plain black shirt to go with my khaki shorts and trudged downstairs. Peter was already in the kitchen making my mum laugh as she worked on the island. He was easy to be with like that.
"I'm ready!" I said and walked over to hug my mother after Peter called out goodbye and headed for the door. I pulled her against me muttering a quick I love you and placing a kiss on her temple.
"I'm so proud of you Lu. Go have fun" she said relinquishing her hold on me. I now had a fully funded sports scholarship that to study any course at any university of my choice. I sauntered lazily to the front door. Peter play-punched me in the arm and made a teasing comment about my outfit choice.
"You told me you'd be there you asshole" Peter began his assault on my ears without giving me a chance to speak. "They threw me out of the party to find you less than thirty minutes after I arrived."
I winced a bit "I'm sorry Pete, it's just... something doesn't feel right about this "night in the woods"."
"Doesn't feel right? Dude this is the most right thing that has happened since we began high school but if you want to start your career as a psychic, good luck!" he chuckled
I smiled a little at his enthusiasm and let the comfortable silence take over as we walked to the party site. This was one of the many reasons Pete was my best friend, he didn't feel the incessant need to feel each moment of the day with mindless chattering. Just our presence was enough comfort to each other.
The music began permeating the eerie silence before Pete spoke again. "Becky is looking nice tonight," he said. I frowned at him
"You of all people know such details aren't important" I sighed. Becky was one of my many admirers. I never had time to settle down and get into a serious relationship between school, soccer, and modeling although I messed around occasionally.
"Becky isn't like the others, buddy. She's one of the real deal girls. You better start using your brain instead of testosterone to think and make decisions!" He said before leaving me and heading into the party.
An A* student with a promising future, Kahlani Summer. Being extraordinarily smart came without effort. Since she began school she noticed she didn't just have to try as hard as anyone else. Despite her parents being rich and famous, she was capable of paving her way. She was destined to take the world by storm and she knew it. Her parents knew as well. Kahlani's wild side needed to be tamed before it got out of hand. In a desperate attempt, they sent her across the world to school in Europe. They believed that making her stand on her own feet would enable her to grow up before responsibility overwhelmed her. However, Lani found a brand new tune to dance to. A new taboo to indulge. She was messing with fire and she didn't care if she would be burnt.
"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.
The day Raina gave birth should have been the happiest of her life. Instead, it became her worst nightmare. Moments after delivering their twins, Alexander shattered her heart-divorcing her and forcing her to sign away custody of their son, Liam. With nothing but betrayal and heartbreak to her name, Raina disappeared, raising their daughter, Ava, on her own.Years later, fate comes knocking when Liam falls gravely ill. Desperate to save his son, Alexander is forced to seek out the one person he once cast aside. Alexander finds himself face to face with the woman he underestimated, pleading for a second chance-not just for himself, but for their son. But Raina is no longer the same broken woman who once loved him.No longer the woman he left behind. She has carved out a new life-one built on strength, wealth, and a long-buried legacy she expected to uncover.Raina has spent years learning to live without him.The question is... Will she risk reopening old wounds to save the son she never got to love? or has Alexander lost her forever?
"I, Riccardo Saviano, future Alpha of the Grey Shadow Moon Pack, reject you, Artemisia Guerrieri, Daughter of Alpha Franco of the Blood Moon Pack, as my mate and future Luna." One single sentence. One stupid single sentence was all it took to disintegrate my life. And the day of my birthday, on which this sentence was audaciously uttered to me, I lost the love of my life, my future mate, and my wolf, all at once. As I'm still assembling the pieces of my shattered heart years later, there they come. Like lightning out of a crystal blue sky. My Mates. But wait... If I am mated to triplets, how come I'm about to be mated to 5 gorgeous men? *** TW: explicit and foul language; spicy content; explicit sex scenes ***
⚠️ WARNING ⚠️ This Book Contains Matured Contents, reader's discretion is advised. *** "Do you have any idea how much I want to be inside you right now?" he asked as he stood to his feet. "Then why aren't you?" I responded, loving the feel of him pressed so close, my back to the mirror, my front to him. But even still, in some far corner of my lust-fogged mind, I realized that we were still in a bathroom. Anyone could walk in and see us. The thought of getting discovered was scary and erotic at the same time. "Oh, we're not done. Spread your legs a bit for me, Kitten." He commanded. When I did as he instructed, he settled between my legs again. "Now close your eyes. And try not to move." Dominic Rutherford murmured. I drew in a sharp breath as his fingers slipped into me with a silky, wet ease. First one. Then another. A feverish tide rose inside me, and I groaned. I jerked in response, causing me to unconsciously move my hips towards his teasing, clever hand, seeking more. "Ohh-" My body trembled under his touch. "Please..." *** Ruby escapes a stifling marriage filled with betrayal, eager to reclaim her freedom. At a masquerade ball, she meets Dominic, a mysterious older man always wearing a mask and has a complex past. Their intense attraction ignites a passionate and dangerous affair. Dominic, who was tasked by Ruby's unknown brother to find her, is captivated by her defiant spirit. As Ruby gets entangled in Dominic's dark world and faces threats from her vengeful former husband and an enemy within, she struggles with her fear of love. Will Ruby and Dominic overcome their pasts and the secrets that threaten to tear them apart? Can Ruby submit to love even after the truth is revealed?
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.
The whispers said that out of bitter jealousy, Hadley shoved Eric's beloved down the stairs, robbing the unborn child of life. To avenge, Eric forced Hadley abroad and completely cut her off. Years later, she reemerged, and they felt like strangers. When they met again, she was the nightclub's star, with men ready to pay fortunes just to glimpse her elusive performance. Unable to contain himself, Eric blocked her path, asking, "Is this truly how you earn a living now? Why not come back to me?" Hadley's lips curved faintly. "If you’re eager to see me, you’d better join the queue, darling."