Jackson steps in front of me, his strong hands cupping my face as he brings his forehead to mine. "I want to replace it. I want to take all your nightmares and turn them into something beautiful, the way you've done for me. I just need you to trust me. You think you can do that?" I was only looking at how he gently held me with his huge hands. Considering his bulk frame, I was like a fragile glass he was holding. I don't know why but my heart did skip a beat, but I had to swallow it up and pretend that I didn't feel it.
Hayden Landon felt great, and he had every reason to. This September, he would begin his final year of college, and he already had a full-time job in his area. There weren't many jobs available in his specialty (American History, Museum Studies), but he found one with respectable beginning pay and opportunities for promotion. His baseball season was going well. Even though he wasn't going anywhere professionally, he enjoyed doing well in the summer league. Aside from after college, it's most likely the beer and pretzel softball league. Hayden smiled as he drove along the interstate.
Yes, everything was going fine.
One other thing: Hayden was in love. Not that brief moment of intense feeling or that line used by every guy who wanted to get laid. No, this was the real thing. On this hot July 4th weekend, he was going to make his feelings known.
Hayden had met Abigail during their sophomore year. They were taking the same US history course. As an education major, she had to, and he did because it was his major. He wasn't sure what it was about her-whatever it was, they hit it off-her auburn hair, her green eyes, her smile, or what. Whatever it was, they hit it off right away. They had a lot in common. He played baseball; honor student, she, who did too. Abigail was an honour student, and he was a student. At first, they never had an "official" date but met for meals, study groups, or just to talk. They enjoyed each other's company. Hayden dated several girls, but they never seemed right. Even the ones he had sex with left him with something missing. Abigail also dated but had no steady guy. She claimed they all wanted to get into her pants, and she wasn't going to give in to just anyone. Her first time would be with the man she loved.
By the end of their junior year, it was just the two of them. No one else. Though things got hot and heavy between them, Abigail was true to her word. Oh sure, there was some pretty serious petting, and a couple times Hayden thought this night was the night, but Abigail wouldn't let go. Hayden left some nights with some pretty blue balls.
As he turned up the long driveway to her house, he had already decided he was going to tell her this weekend.
Hayden had been invited to Abigail's family's traditional July 4th picnic. It was a big deal. Abigail's father, Jayson, was a big wheel in the state's leading political party, and this was his chance to mix business with family. A lot of big wigs would be there. Hayden had met Abigail's folks when they came to visit her at school. Hayden and Jayson didn't hit it off too well. Afterwards, her dad told Abigail that she was too good for Hayden, and besides, he was going nowhere with that career choice of his.
Abigail's mom, Emelyn, was a pure delight. She and Hayden hit it right off, and he could tell she approved of him. He knew where Abigail got her auburn hair and smile from. They say to look at the mother to find out what the daughter will look like in ten years. What Hayden saw pleased him. Emelyn was full figured. Not fat but curvy with just the right amount of weight. Abigail complained that her boobs were too small and her butt was too big, but her mom told her to wait; things would change as she was a late bloomer herself. Abigail's family owned a vast farm, and as Hayden drove near the house, he noticed that there were already a number of people there. He had a moment of doubt about why he was even here, but he reminded himself that he had faced harsher conditions on the field. So he parked the truck, turned off the key, and closed the door. After meeting Abigail, he realized why he came.
As Abigail reached Hayden, she put her arms around him and gave him a deep, long kiss. She broke it long enough to say, "I missed you so!" and then kissed him again. This time, after grinding her pelvis into him so hard, Hayden staggered back into the side of his truck.
"Wow! Where did that come from? I could feel that all the way down to my toes!" Hayden laughed.
Abigail stepped back and gave him a sly grin. Taking his hand, she said, "Come on, you need to meet the rest of my family." With that, they headed off towards the crowd.
Hayden was impressed with the number of people attending a "family" picnic, but then he remembered that Abigail's dad was a politician, so it wasn't all family. As Abigail pulled him through the mass, Hayden could definitely tell who was with which group.
The first family member Abigail introduced Hayden to was her older sister, Jessica. Jessica was 3 years older than Abigail and was married to a contractor. She had a two-year-old daughter and was trying to corral her as Hayden was introduced. Jessica had blonde hair, blue eyes, and a figure like her mom with full breasts and hips. What struck Hayden was her smile. Abigail, her mom, and now Jessica had that same smile and a sparkle in their eyes.
"I am pleased to meet you. I have heard a lot of good things about you," Jessica said. "I hope to see more of you around here." With that, she went off after her daughter.
"Only one more to go, my brother, Joey. You too should hit it off well. He plays baseball for our high school. Pretty good. He's over there."
Joey was standing off casually, sipping on a beer, and watching the goings-on. He flashed that same winning smile as Abigail introduced him. After the usual small talk, Abigail said that she had to help her mom and needed to go. She gave Hayden a kiss and did something unusual for her. As she kissed him, she slid her hand under his shirt and rubbed his stomach. Hayden was totally surprised. As she walked away, she gave him a wink.
Grace Lim was a woman well on her way to making her dreams come true, but she soon learned that she may be out of job. To make matters worse, a tragic misunderstanding lands her on the wrong side of her soon-to-be boss. As a business prodigy, CEO, James Gregori Grayson wasn't afraid to make hard decisions. After all, he was the world's last pure-bred vampire and had a deadly score to settle with the hunters who killed his family centuries ago. But when one of his friends was killed, leaving an orphaned half-breed daughter with no awareness of her heritage and origin, he was forced to guide his now gorgeous secretary into the world of the undead. Racked by confusion and changes in her body that weren't there before, Grace found herself irresistibly drawn to her seductive boss as passion ignited and threatened to consume them both. However, she was unprepared for the reason he had sought her out and the danger that lay ahead. Regardless, sharing a love of conquering their goals, this unlikely pair began to form an unexpected bond that led them to a place neither of them ever expected to be.
Chase Johnson was successful and a billionaire for a reason, yet he was lured by Amaya's smile. Remembering the moment when he'd walked into the living room and she'd flung her bra at him and he'd gotten a look at her bare bounty. Amaya caught his eye, all right, in a way no other woman ever had before. Then she'd argued with him and challenged him, and he'd found he liked it. Women usually become sweetly submissive around him. But she had been so different. Forget danger. Challenge could have been Amaya's middle name. Six years later, she ran into him again, and this time Chase became her boss, and he made her life a living hell, but she couldn't give up. She needed a job for her five-year-old son. Will she be able to reveal her secret to him before it's too late?
Lindsey's fiancé was the devil's first son. Not only did he lie to her but he also slept with her stepmother, conspired to take away her family fortune, and then set her up to have sex with a total stranger. To get her lick back, Lindsey decided to find a man to disrupt her engagement party and humiliate the cheating bastard. Never did she imagine that she would bump into a strikingly handsome stranger who was all that she was currently looking for. At the engagement party, he boldly declared that she was his woman. Lindsey thought he was just a broke man who wanted to leech off her. But once they began their fake relationship, she realized that good luck kept coming her way. She thought they would part ways after the engagement party, but this man kept to her side. "We gotta stick together, Lindsey. Remember, I'm now your fiancé. " "Domenic, you're with me because of my money, aren't you?" Lindsey asked, narrowing her eyes at him. Domenic was taken aback by that accusation. How could he, the heir of the Walsh family and CEO of Vitality Group, be with her for money? He controlled more than half of the city's economy. Money wasn't a problem for him! The two got closer and closer. One day, Lindsey finally realized that Domenic was actually the stranger she had slept with months ago. Would this realization change things between them? For the better or worse?
“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?”
Rejected by her mate, who had been her long-time crush, Jasmine felt utterly humiliated. Seeking solace, she headed to a party to drown her sorrows. But things took a turn for the worse when her friends issued a cruel dare: kiss a stranger or beg her mate for forgiveness. With no other choice, Jasmine approached a stranger and kissed him, thinking that would be the end of it. However, the stranger unexpectedly wrapped his arms around her waist and whispered in her ear, "You're mine!" He growled, his words sending shivers down her spine. And then, he offered her a solution that would change everything...
The dream of everyone with regards to marriage is to be able to find that special someone and settle down with them. Even arranged marriages grant you an opportunity to meet your partner briefly before the wedding. How will you feel about waking up in the morning with someone sleeping next to you who is not just anyone but your legally married partner yet with no memory of how that had happened in just a few hours of going out the previous day? This is the story of Jason Haward and Julia Harrison, two strangers trapped in a marriage they never planned. The quest to find out why led to the unfolding of a mystery which made them realize they are both living a lie. To find out more, read this amazing story of love, betrayal, revenge and murder.
When they were kids, Derek saved Norah's life. Years later, after Derek ended up in a vegetative state from a car crash, Norah married him without a second thought and even used her medical knowledge to heal him. For two years, Norah was devoted, seeking his affection and looking to settle her life-saving debt. But when Derek's first love returned, Norah, faced with divorce, didn't hesitate to sign. Despite being labeled as forsaken, few knew of her true talents. She was a race car driver, a famed designer, a genius hacker, and a renowned doctor. Regretting his decision, Derek begged for her forgiveness. Just then, a charming CEO intervened, embracing Norah and declaring, "Back off! She's my wife!" Taken aback, Norah blurted out, "What did you say?"
Kallie, a mute who had been ignored by her husband for five years since their wedding, also suffered the loss of her pregnancy due to her cruel mother-in-law. After the divorce, she learned that her ex-husband had quickly gotten engaged to the woman he truly loved. Holding her slightly rounded belly, she realized that he had never really cared for her. Determined, she left him behind, treating him as a stranger. Yet, after she left, he scoured the globe in search of her. When their paths crossed once more, Kallie had already found new happiness. For the first time, he pleaded humbly, "Please don't leave me..."Â But Kallie's response was firm and dismissive, cutting through any lingering ties. "Get lost!"