/0/66954/coverbig.jpg?v=b308da869710cb4d8e6b8850ab72ddd6)
"Even if you are engaged to another man, even if you have his child, I don't care because you are mine baby girl, you would always be mine" he said his eyes blazing with anger, the kind i had never seen before. **** Lyra would give everything up to be with Adrian Sterling, to be noticed by him, to be loved by him. Including giving her organs and blood away for the love of his life, Nina. And what did he do? He sold her for one million dollars making her go to jail for two years. But what happens when she met Adrian again after a few years but this time with a baby boy in his arms? Will Adrian have a change of heart towards Lyra or would he be too late as she may have found someone else?
Lyra's POV
I hated the hospital.
The sterile smell of disinfectant clung to everything, sharp and suffocating, mixing with the endless beeping of machines. It felt like the walls of the intensive care unit were closing in on me, suffocating my thoughts.
In my hand was the bill, six figures. Just for the consultancy.
My chest tightened, and I stared at the numbers again as if they'd magically change. How was I supposed to come up with that kind of money? Not in a year, not in two.
Not even if I worked myself to death.
I turned my gaze to the frail figure lying on the bed. My grandmother, the strongest woman I knew, looked so small beneath the layers of blankets.
I bit my lips as I felt reality press down on my shoulders as her faint smile greeted me.
"You're back from the accounts section," she said weakly, her voice barely above a whisper. "How did it go?"
I forced a smile, swallowing the panic threatening to spill out. "Nothing to worry about, Grandma," I lied, trying to sound cheerful. "I'll ask my boss for overtime. We'll figure it out."
She studied me, her knowing eyes seeing through the facade. I could feel my resolve cracking, but I couldn't let her see the despair lurking beneath the surface.
"Did the doctor tell you?" she asked suddenly.
I shook my head, nervous about the answer. "No, not yet."
Her frail hand reached for mine, her touch light but grounding. "Lupus," she said softly.
The word hung in the air, foreign and heavy. "Lupus?" I repeated, my brows furrowing. "What is that?"
Her lips twitched into a weak smile. "It's what I call a rich man's sickness."
"Grandma, this is not the time for jokes," I said, my voice wavering between sternness and concern.
She chuckled softly, a sound that somehow felt both comforting and heartbreaking. "What do you expect me to do, darling? Cry about it? We have to find humor somewhere, or I might just add stress to my list of ailments."
Her attempt at lightening the mood didn't soothe me. The reality of the situation was sinking in too fast. Before I could respond, a nurse entered the room, breaking the moment. She smiled politely before glancing at me.
"How's everything going in here?" the nurse asked gently.
I hesitated. "Could you... could you explain what lupus is?" My voice felt small, uncertain.
The nurse nodded, pulling up a chair beside me. "Lupus is an autoimmune disease," she began. "It means the body's immune system attacks its own tissues and organs."
I blinked, trying to keep up. "Wait, so... it's like her body is fighting itself?"
"Exactly," the nurse replied. "It can affect many parts of the body-joints, skin, kidneys, even the lungs. That's why her breathing has been a concern."
"And it's... serious?"
She hesitated, her eyes softening. "It's manageable with the right treatment. But without it..." She trailed off, letting the unspoken words hang between us.
I swallowed hard. "And how much will the treatment cost?"
The nurse handed me another paper. "This includes everything she'll need."
I glanced at the numbers and felt the air leave my lungs. "This can't be real," I muttered, shaking my head.
"I'm sorry," she said quietly, "You'll need to settle this with the accounts section," she said. "Your grandmother's lungs are failing. We are afraid it may start moving to other parts as well."
She didn't finish, but she didn't have to. The urgency in her voice said enough. When she left, the silence felt heavier.
Grandma's frail voice broke it. "You're so young, Lyra. Let this old woman go, alright? Don't ruin your life for me."
"Don't say that," I whispered, tears blurring my vision. "I can't lose you."
Her fingers brushed away my tears, her smile unwavering despite everything. "You're stronger than you think, darling. You'll handle this."
Her words were meant to reassure, but they only deepened the ache in my chest. I left her room, the sterile hospital corridor stretching endlessly before me. Each step to the accounts section felt heavier than the last.
The staff offered me a payment plan, but even the first installment seemed impossible. Desperation clawed at me. As I walked away, an unsettling thought crossed my mind-selling my body. The idea churned my stomach, but the fear of losing Grandma was stronger.
"No," I muttered to myself. "I can't do that."
I pulled out my phone, scrolling through the darker corners of the web. Odd jobs sometimes appeared there. Maybe I'd get lucky. That's when I saw it: a request for blood donation. The pay was astonishing-enough to cover Grandma's medication and more. The only catch? The recipient needed a rare blood type, B-.
Lucky me, it was exactly my blood type.
I hesitated, rereading the post for the third time. "This has to be a scam," I muttered under my breath, my finger hovering over the apply button. But what choice did I have? Grandma needed me to act, and I was out of options.
With trembling fingers, I filled out the application form, my thoughts racing. "This is crazy," I whispered, hitting submit and half-expecting nothing to happen.
Minutes ticked by
I paced the room, my phone clutched in my hand, when a sudden buzz made me jump. A notification popped up with an address and a time.
"Already?" I stared at the screen, my stomach flipping. "This is happening too fast."
Still, I grabbed my coat and left. The cab ride to the outskirts of the city felt like an eternity. When we finally pulled up to the address, I froze.
The house was enormous, its sleek, glass facade glowing faintly under the streetlights. "This can't be it," I murmured, double-checking the address on my phone.
"You getting out or what?" the cab driver called, breaking my trance.
"Uh, yeah," I said, fumbling with the door handle. My heart pounded as I approached the entrance, the faint hum of a security system making the silence even heavier.
"Relax," I whispered to myself, forcing my legs to keep moving. "You're doing this for Grandma."
A man stood by the door, his emerald eyes studying me with quiet intensity. His features were sharp-a chiseled jawline, a neatly trimmed mustache, and a perfectly styled head of dark hair.
He radiated a calm authority that unnerved me.
"You must be Miss Quinn," he said smoothly, his voice like silk.
"I knew he was trouble the moment I walked into our shared house. The way his hands gripped my waist when no one was looking, the way his voice dipped when he said my name, it wasn't just wrong, it was dangerous. He wasn't just my stepbrother, he was my undoing." **** All Evie Hayes wanted was to finish her college degree in peace, far from the chaos of her past. But when she moves into her stepfather's house near Ravencrest University, she finds herself stuck with Ryder Kingsley, her stepbrother and the school's golden boy. Ryder is everything she's sworn to avoid, arrogant, infuriatingly handsome, and completely off-limits. When late-night arguments turn into stolen touches, their forbidden connection becomes impossible to ignore. But in a world where secrets don't stay hidden, someone's bound to uncover the truth. And when they do, Ryder and Evie will have to decide if the risk is worth the ruin.
For ten years, Daniela showered her ex-husband with unwavering devotion, only to discover she was just his biggest joke. Feeling humiliated yet determined, she finally divorced him. Three months later, Daniela returned in grand style. She was now the hidden CEO of a leading brand, a sought-after designer, and a wealthy mining mogul—her success unveiled at her triumphant comeback. Her ex-husband’s entire family rushed over, desperate to beg for forgiveness and plead for another chance. Yet Daniela, now cherished by the famed Mr. Phillips, regarded them with icy disdain. "I’m out of your league."
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!”
Darya spent three years loving Micah, worshipping the ground he walked on. Until his neglect and his family's abuse finally woke her up to the ugly truth-he doesn't love her. Never did, never will. To her, he is a hero, her knight in shining armour. To him, she is an opportunist, a gold digger who schemed her way into his life. Darya accepts the harsh reality, gathers the shattered pieces of her dignity, divorces him, takes back her real name, reclaims her title as the country's youngest billionaire heiress. Their paths cross again at a party. Micah watches his ex-wife sing like an angel, tear up the dance floor, then thwart a lecher with a roundhouse kick. He realises, belatedly, that she's exactly the kind of woman he'd want to marry, if only he had taken the trouble to get to know her. Micah acts promptly to win her back, but discovers she's now surrounded by eligible bachelors: high-powered CEO, genius biochemist, award-winning singer, reformed playboy. Worse, she makes it pretty clear that she's done with him. Micah gears up for an uphill battle. He must prove to her he's still worthy of her love before she falls for someone else. And time is running out.
They don't know I'm a girl. They all look at me and see a boy. A prince. Their kind purchase humans like me for their lustful desires. And, when they stormed into our kingdom to buy my sister, I intervened to protect her. I made them take me too. The plan was to escape with my sister whenever we found a chance. How was I to know our prison would be the most fortified place in their kingdom? I was supposed to be on the sidelines. The one they had no real use for. The one they never meant to buy. But then, the most important person in their savage land-their ruthless beast king-took an interest in the "pretty little prince." How do we survive in this brutal kingdom, where everyone hates our kind and shows us no mercy? And how does someone, with a secret like mine, become a lust slave? . AUTHOR'S NOTE. This is a dark romance-dark, mature content. Highly rated 18+ Expect triggers, expect hardcore. If you're a seasoned reader of this genre, looking for something different, prepared to go in blindly not knowing what to expect at every turn, but eager to know more anyway, then dive in! . From the author of the international bestselling book: "The Alpha King's Hated Slave."
After hiding her true identity throughout her three-year marriage to Colton, Allison had committed wholeheartedly, only to find herself neglected and pushed toward divorce. Disheartened, she set out to rediscover her true self-a talented perfumer, the mastermind of a famous intelligence agency, and the heir to a secret hacker network. Realizing his mistakes, Colton expressed his regret. "I know I messed up. Please, give me another chance." Yet, Kellan, a once-disabled tycoon, stood up from his wheelchair, took Allison's hand, and scoffed dismissively, "You think she'll take you back? Dream on."
After being kicked out of her home, Harlee learned she wasn't the biological daughter of her family. Rumors had it that her impoverished biological family favored sons and planned to profit from her return. Unexpectedly, her real father was a zillionaire, catapulting her into immense wealth and making her the most cherished member of the family. While they anticipated her disgrace, Harlee secretly held design patents worth billions. Celebrated for her brilliance, she was invited to mentor in a national astronomy group, drew interest from wealthy suitors, and caught the eye of a mysterious figure, ascending to legendary status.