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?
Iris grew from an orphaned child to the adopted daughter of the Stewart family at age ten, finding warmth in her nominal uncle Vincent's kindness. Seven years later, she became his secret lover. When Vincent's engagement was announced, gossip spread about the notorious playboy CEO finally settling down. But only Iris knew the extent of his cold, two-faced nature. Iris fell for Vincent and, through tears, begged, "Marry me," only to be met with his frosty refusal. Defeated, she accepted a lawyer's proposal, sparking public excitement. Then, on her wedding day, Vincent pleaded desperately, "Don't marry him…"
Rachel used to think that her devotion would win Brian over one day, but she was proven wrong when his true love returned. Rachel had endured it all—from standing alone at the altar to dragging herself to the hospital for an emergency treatment. Everyone thought she was crazy to give up so much of herself for someone who didn’t return her feelings. But when Brian received news of Rachel’s terminal illness and realized she didn’t have long to live, he completely broke down. "I forbid you to die!" Rachel just smiled. She no longer needed him. "I will finally be free."
For three years, Shane and Yvonne were wed, sharing heated nights, while his devotion clung to his ex. Yvonne strove to be a dutiful wife, yet their marriage felt hollow, built on desire rather than real warmth. All changed when she became pregnant, only for Shane to thrust her onto the operating table, warning, “Either you or the baby survives!” Broken by his cruelty, she vanished in grief and later returned, radiantly accomplished, leaving everyone awestruck. Haunted by remorse, Shane begged for another chance, but Yvonne only smiled and replied, “I’m sorry, men no longer interest me.”
"There will be no falling in love, we will only act as a loving couple when we are in public, we will share a room to make it believable, but no intimacy, touching is off-limits. We'll only have sex once a month, and that's solely to produce an heir. You won't interfere in my business, and I won't interfere in yours. You will be my wife in every sense and you will not be involved with any other man," he said, arrogance seeping from every word. I watch his mouth move, I'm not ready to fall in love with any man, especially not one as arrogant and egoistic as him. I can handle acting as a loving couple, and as for intimacy once a month. I can agree to that just to satisfy my sexual cravings with no strings attached. "Where can I sign?" I asked since I had nothing to lose. *** Nadine's wedding dreams turned to nightmares when she caught her sister and fiancé cheating! With a secret recording, she's ready for revenge. But then mysterious billionaire Logan West offers a deal: A Contract Marriage to take down her ex's empire. But what Nadine doesn't know is her life is getting complicated as she takes her chance to get revenge or risks everything for a chance at love?"
June Rivera was divorced by her husband after three years of marriage because he wanted to be with her sister who was pregnant for him. Kicked to the curb with a divorce and rejected by her parents,she struggles to make ends meet and get a job until she saves Luis Ambrose from an accident - the only child of Rafael Ambrose, a widowed man and the CEO of Ambrose Corporation. When little Luis asks to have her as a nanny, and Rafael's mother pressures him to get married, they draw a contract. To be Luis's nanny and his fake wife for one year in exchange for 50 million dollars!
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?"