Abigail Winter has always lived a shy, secluded life, until she meets and falls in love with bad boy Lucas Westmore. While hanging out with her best friend, Emily Collins on her twenty-sixth birthday, Abigail is directed to Lucas' path and she soon finds out that there is more to him than there is on the surface. Events quickly roll into one another and they find out that they are connected to each other in various, unexpected ways. As events unfold, Abigail is left with a very hard choice to make, a choice that could possibly change her life forever. But, will it be in a good way or a bad way?
"Come on Abby! Just do this for me! It's my birthday are you really going to be such a killjoy on my day?" Emily pouts, showing her googly eyes in front of me. "Pretty please?"
"You're already drunk, Emily. God, why are you so weak in alcohol?"
We're currently inside a famous bar in the city. Since she pleaded to take me with her to celebrate her birthday, how could I say no?
I let out a sigh in disbelief.
It's only been a few drinks yet I still can't seem to believe how my best friend always gets drunk so fast. It's not that I didn't want to do her dare, but my best friend of 20 years is basically trying to dare me to seduce an impossible man at the bar table right in front of us. Multiple women already tried to flirt with the dude but all of them ended up getting humiliated and ended up running for their lives in tears. We didn't know the guy but he looked powerful enough to send a few ladies out of the bar with just a raise of a hand.
I sighed, why am I still surprised at this point? Emily Zhang never fails to create a memory whenever she gets drunk, and if you don't go with her wishes, she turns crazy and we somehow end up in the police station. Yes, it's true. It has happened, not once, not twice! But plenty of times already that I'm not even scared to hang around the police station anymore. Most of the time I'd play along with her, but if the dare was too hard, I end up faking the deed to calm her down.
I glanced at the guy facing away from us.
He had a sad back for some reason and it was easy to tell that he was going through something by the way he was chugging the alcohol like water.
That my friend... is a Red Flag.
"Right!" She jolts up, "Didn't you say that you wanted a child on your own at this age? I remember you said that when we were in high school! We're already 26 years old Abby, might as well get the good genes of a stranger that you always fantasized about! I mean look at the guy!"
Ha... here she goes again.
"You don't even see his face, his back is literally facing us, Emily."
"Whatever! He has a sexy back and I'm here for all of it! Sexy back means handsome guy! I bet a hundred dollars that he's hotter than any celebrity that you've seen in your life!"
"You said that with every guy you try to hook me up with."
"And you always say no whenever I hook you up with a hot guy! It's my birthday. Come on, the last thing I'd want is my best friend turning into a 30-years-old virgin." She embraces me, playfully shaking my body while pleading. "Think about it, you get the baby with good genes and also get to experience great sex on your first night! How great is that!"
"I don't know..."
"Come on Abby! This is the last time I'd ask this for you!"
She was wriggling my body a bit too much that I had to stop her at some point. I raised my hand in surrender to her persistence and stood hastily from our table. I wasn't going to win against her whims anyway, so might as well just let her have her fun on her birthday... right?
Can I really trust a drunk person? Well, it's not like I was being forced to do this, when in the first place, Emily just knew how I wanted to be a single mother even before senior year. I vividly remember how she laughed at me when I said that. Who'd believe a woman to say so anyway?
In my case, I don't really believe in marriage or the love that everyone speaks about. For me, love is filled with lies and unhealthy devotion. One way or another, it's always going to be more painful than it was ever so blissful. Thinking back, I learned those things the hard way. I had to watch my mother believe in the lies of my cheating father with her whole heart.
She was simply blinded. That's why I'm not.
going to be married in this life, nor I'm going to be like my mother. In the end, seducing a guy isn't much of a big deal. After all, it's not serious and it's just a one-night stand to get what I want in life.
"Fine!" I sighed in frustration. "But if he's not as hot as I think, I step out, okay?"
"Deal!" She shouts, raising her glass in the air in excitement. "Don't worry bitch, I've always been good at distinguishing handsome men even in a baseball stadium! I'm sure you'll like this one!"
As I walked toward the bartender's table, my heart started to pace faster. There's this weird air of cold-heartedness around the guy that it makes it hard for anyone to approach him after all the scenes he just made earlier. At that moment, no one else but me was on the way to approach him. The women dispersed on time that I had the space to sit beside him.
Yet I don't plan to do that since I don't want to get my ass dragged out of the nightclub so I had to be careful. I slowly made my way to a nearby seat close to him, with a chair between us, I ordered a martini and waited. It was then I had a sudden realization as I sat there dumbfounded.
Oh no, being single all my life... how could I forget that I suck at flirting?
I cursed under my breath. How do I even dare forget? The reason I also keep rejecting the blind dates my best friend sets me up with was that I suck at pretending to be nice! I was praying that he would not be my type and I could just run back to my best friend. However, for some shitty reason, my jaw almost dropped when I saw how he looked.
He had blue eyes, a perfectly chiseled
nose from my view, even his jawline looked like it came right out of a magazine. I blatantly stared at him in disbelief as he continued to drown himself in alcohol. I simply couldn't believe that my drunk best friend's prediction would come true. But... this is beyond my expectation! This guy's out of my league! Maybe he's a celebrity or model? But wouldn't he be famous if he was?
Without knowing, I didn't know I was already blurting out some nonsense that I thought was all in my head.
"How could a guy like you exist? God, you're perfect!"
In the quiet town of Silver Peak, Luna Blackwood, a werewolf is hoping to abandon her life and start a new one altogether but her past quickly catches up to her when a string of murders happen in the town just a few days after her arrival. A local detective named Alex Carter quickly jumps on the case and his path eventually crosses with Luna's own. Two of them are immediately attracted to each other but they have to confront their pasts if they want to have a future together. And for that to happen, Luna has to embrace a side of her that she has been trying to run from while going against an enemy far more ruthless than anything she has ever faced.........
Linsey was stood up by her groom to run off with another woman. Furious, she grabbed a random stranger and declared, "Let's get married!" She had acted on impulse, realizing too late that her new husband was the notorious rascal, Collin. The public laughed at her, and even her runaway ex offered to reconcile. But Linsey scoffed at him. "My husband and I are very much in love!" Everyone thought she was delusional. Then Collin was revealed to be the richest man in the world. In front of everyone, he got down on one knee and held up a stunning diamond ring. "I look forward to our forever, honey."
When Zora was sick during the early days of her pregnancy, Ezrah was with his first love, Piper. When Zora got into an accident and called Ezrah, he said he was busy, when in actual fact, he was buying shoes for Piper. Zora lost her baby because of the accident, and throughout her stay at the hospital, Ezrah never showed up. She already knew that he didn't love her, but that was the last straw for the camel's back, and her fragile heart could not take it anymore. When Ezrah arrived home a few days after Zora was discharged from the hospital, he no longer met the woman who always greeted him with a smile and cared for him. Zora stood at the top of the stairs and yelled with a cold expression, "Good news, Ezrah! Our baby died in a car accident. There is nothing between us anymore, so let's get a divorce." The man who claimed not to have any feelings for Zora, being cold and distant towards her, and having asked her for a divorce twice, instantly panicked.
Betrayed by her mate and sister on the eve of her wedding, Makenna was handed to the ruthless Lycan Princes as a lover, her indifferent father ignoring her plight. Determined to escape and seek revenge, she captured the interest of the three Lycan princes, who desired her exclusively amid many admirers. This complicated her plans, trapping her and making her a rival to the future Lycan queen. Entwined in jealousy and vindictiveness, could Makenna achieve her vengeance in the intricate dance with the three princes?
Janice, the long-forgotten legitimate heiress, made her way back to her family, pouring her heart into winning their hearts. Yet, she had to relinquish her very identity, her academic credentials, and her creative works to her foster sister. In return for her sacrifices, she found no warmth, only deeper neglect. Resolute, Janice vowed to cut off all emotional bonds. Transformed, she now stood as a master of martial arts, adept in eight languages, an esteemed medical expert, and a celebrated designer. With newfound resolve, she declared, "From this day forward, no one in this family shall cross me."
She was a world-renowned divine doctor, the CEO of a publicly traded company, the most formidable female mercenary, and a top-tier tech genius. Marissa, a titan with a plethora of secret identities, had hidden her true stature to marry a seemingly impoverished young man. However, on the eve of their wedding, her fiance, who was actually the lost heir to a wealthy dynasty, called off the engagement and subjected her to degradation and mockery. Upon the revelation of her concealed identities, her ex-fiance was left stunned and desperately pleaded for her forgiveness. Standing protectively before Marissa, an incredibly influential and fearsome magnate declared, "This is my wife. Who would dare try to claim her?"
Two years ago, Ricky found himself coerced into marrying Emma to protect the woman he cherished. From Ricky's perspective, Emma was despicable, resorting to underhanded schemes to ensure their marriage. He maintained a distant and cold attitude toward her, reserving his warmth for another. Yet, Emma remained wholeheartedly dedicated to Ricky for more than ten years. As she grew weary and considered relinquishing her efforts, Ricky was seized by a sudden fear. Only when Emma's life teetered on the edge, pregnant with Ricky's child, did he recognize-the love of his life had always been Emma.