Joanna never imagined that a desperate job interview would lead to a whirlwind of unexpected opportunities-and complications. Hired as a personal assistant to the enigmatic billionaire Zac Cross, she quickly learns that working for him means navigating not just high-stakes business but also undeniable chemistry. But Zac isn't looking for help, and Joanna isn't looking for trouble. As their worlds collide, will they be each other's downfall-or their greatest chance at something real?
CHAPTER 1
THE INTERVIEW
JOANNA
OKAY. YOU CAN DO THIS. You can totally do this. It's going to be an interview, just like all the others, okay? You've nothing to worry about. Just keep your shit together, and you'll get through and actually have a chance at this job.
As I walked down the street to the building where my latest interview was taking place, I felt that rush of panic consume me once more and tried my best to calm it down before it got the better of me. I needed to play it cool.
I knew I had been way too enthusiastic in my last few interviews over the past couple of weeks. I thought it would be a good thing to come out swinging with such enthusiasm, but I had swiftly discovered that no company seemed to want to hire someone who was almost down on their knees begging for a chance at a job.
Which was why I was going into this next interview totally calm. As calm as they came. If there was a calmer person in this city right now, I would like to meet them. Mainly so I could ask for tips on how not to freak out right now. Ugh. Why couldn't I ever keep myself together when things got tough?
I came to a halt outside the building that was my destination, and I lifted my gaze to look up at the place that stood before me. Tall. Lots of floors. That was a good sign, right? Floors meant upward mobility, and upward mobility meant that I had a chance to work my way up. I didn't care if I had to start at the bottom if there was a hope in hell of me ever getting to the top.
Not stopping to let myself get distracted, I pushed the door open and tried to stride over to the reception area with some confidence. I wasn't sure I was selling it. I certainly didn't feel like I was.
I could feel my heart pounding in my chest, even as I tried to soothe myself. I needed a job, something that told me I wasn't a total waste of space. My heart couldn't take another rejection, and my thighs couldn't take any more of the commiseration sundaes Violet made for me every time I got turned down.
"Hello," I said to the woman behind the desk, my voice sounding way squeakier than it ever had before. "I-I'm Joanna I'm here for the-"
"For the interview." A voice caught my attention, and I glanced around to see a woman striding toward me. She looked to be in her sixties, with a short coif of no-nonsense grey hair and bright grey eyes that seemed to pierce straight through me. My heart twisted in my chest. This must be the woman I was interviewing with.
"Yes, that's right," I replied with a smile.
She extended her hand to me. "Melanie," she said and jerked her head beyond the desk. "Come with me, will you? I want to get started on this so we can get to know each other."
"Sure," I replied, and I realized she was still holding her hand out to me expectantly. I took it.
"And I'm Joanna," I blurted out quickly as I shook her hand with a little too much enthusiasm. "Nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you, too," she replied, and she led me to a room beyond the reception desk which must have been her office. She opened the door and ushered me inside, and I hoped that I hadn't already done something to make a fool of myself.
I took a seat at the desk in the middle of the room, and she planted herself down on the other side of it, clasped her hands in front of her, and just eyed me for a moment as though she was trying to get a read on me.
I shifted back and forth on the spot, not sure how to react or if I was even remotely comfortable with this.
"Thank you for inviting me to the interview," I finally managed to say, figuring that it was up to me to break the silence one way or another.
She nodded, pressed her fingers together, and finally began to speak. "So, can I ask about your relevant work experience?"
I blinked. What position was I interviewing for again? I had thrown in so many applications that I had forgotten the specifics of this one, even though I had checked the messages before I left. Shit. Well, I would just have to give her everything and hope that it would be enough to save my ass.
"I worked at an art gallery," I said finally. "A couple of years ago. That was the longest I ever worked in one place. I helped organize exhibitions there and contacted new artists and stuff, uh, so I would say I have good communication skills, and if you ever need someone to put together a staff party, I definitely know what I'm doing there and-"
"And why did you leave that job?"
The panic had started to get the better of me, and I bit my lip. There was a thrumming need at the back of my head to just tell her the truth, even though I knew she probably didn't want to hear a word of this.
"My boyfriend got me the job," I confessed. "My boyfriend at the time, I mean. His family owned the gallery. Then it came out that they were involved in some shady stuff, and the business was investigated as part of that, eventually shut down, and-"
I caught my breath."And I lost my job," I finished up finally. She didn't need to hear all of it. She had just asked for work experience, not for my whole damn life story. I really didn't enjoy reopening or even thinking about that period of my life. There was one word for it. Darkness. That was what I felt.
In a world where the supernatural has stepped out of the shadows, Clara is one of the few who stand between humankind and the deadly creatures lurking in plain sight. As an enforcer for the Guild, she's trained to keep Otherworld beings in check-but when she's assigned to steal the Dark Prince of the Fae's crown, she knows she's walking into a death trap. With secrets buried deep in her past and a thirst for vengeance against the Fae who murdered her family, Clara is prepared for danger-but nothing can prepare her for Ryan, the Dark Prince himself. Deadly, seductive, and impossibly powerful, he sees through her deception with a single touch. Now, bound by magic and caught in a web of betrayal, Clara must play a dangerous game of survival. As forbidden desires ignite and the lines between enemy and ally blur, Clara faces an impossible choice: betray the Guild, or surrender to the darkness calling her name. But in a world where power is everything, can she afford to lose herself to the most dangerous Fae of all?
Adrianna Banner doesn't do love-at least, not anymore. After a string of heartbreaks, she's sworn off relationships, opting for uncomplicated fun instead. But when a weekend getaway at Ransom Canyon throws her back into the orbit of Jackson Dune-the one man who burned her the most-Adrianna is forced to face the fire she thought she'd extinguished. Jackson has never been the settling-down type. A whiskey-fueled bad boy with a past as reckless as his charm, he's always lived life on the edge. But seeing Adrianna again reminds him of everything he lost...and everything he still craves. Between old wounds, undeniable chemistry, and a family drama that could shake them both, Adrianna and Jackson are playing with fire. And this time, one of them might get burned for good.
A runaway with nothing to lose. A powerful man with everything at stake. A fate neither saw coming. Sheila'Lning has spent her life running-from her past, from her captors, from the cruel hands that sought to claim her. But when a desperate escape lands her in the arms of Dean'Changli, a brooding businessman with a mysterious past and a baby in his care, her world takes an unexpected turn. Mistaken for a nanny, she seizes the chance for safety-only to realize she's stepped into a dangerous game of power, deception, and hidden enemies. Dean has no patience for complications, especially not ones wrapped in lies and defiance. But when an attempt on his life forces him and Sheila into the unknown, their survival depends on trust-something neither of them can afford. As secrets unravel and passions ignite, they find themselves bound by more than just circumstance. But danger is never far behind, and Sheila's past isn't the only one with unfinished business. In a world where loyalty is a rare commodity and betrayal lurks in the shadows, can they protect what truly matters before it's too late? Love. Power. Survival. Some bonds are written in starlight... and forged in fire
She thought she was the love of his life, and he became the love of her life that fateful day she had seen him at the pack's party. Selene Grace was only a replica of Alpha Leo's real mate, and when he spotted her, Leo immediately claimed her as his Luna in order to suppress the rumors of him being mateless. Being unable to conceive turns Selene's marriage into a nightmare, and as if that wasn't enough, Alpha Leo finally reunites with his long time lover and mate, rejecting a pregnant Selene as a result. 5 years later, Selene, a now successful doctor, receives an invitation to the moon shadow pack in order to rid the pack of a deadly disease which has struck it. Will Selene return back to the pack which had caused her so much pain, and what would she do when she realizes that she is mated to the Alpha who had betrayed her in the past?
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!”
There was only one man in Raegan's heart, and it was Mitchel. In the second year of her marriage to him, she got pregnant. Raegan's joy knew no bounds. But before she could break the news to her husband, he served her divorce papers because he wanted to marry his first love. After an accident, Raegan lay in the pool of her own blood and called out to Mitchel for help. Unfortunately, he left with his first love in his arms. Raegan escaped death by the whiskers. Afterward, she decided to get her life back on track. Her name was everywhere years later. Mitchel became very uncomfortable. For some reason, he began to miss her. His heart ached when he saw her all smiles with another man. He crashed her wedding and fell to his knees while she was at the altar. With bloodshot eyes, he queried, "I thought you said your love for me is unbreakable? How come you are getting married to someone else? Come back to me!"
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."
Rosalynn's marriage to Brian wasn't what she envisioned it to be. Her husband, Brian, barely came home. He avoided her like a plague. Worse still, he was always in the news for dating numerous celebrities. Rosalynn persevered until she couldn't take it anymore. She upped and left after filing for a divorce. Everything changed days later. Brian took interest in a designer that worked for his company anonymously. From her profile, he could tell that she was brilliant and dazzling. He pulled the stops to find out her true identity. Little did he know that he was going to receive the greatest shocker of his life. Brian bit his finger with regret when he recalled his past actions and the woman he foolishly let go.
Elena, once a pampered heiress, suddenly lost everything when the real daughter framed her, her fiancé ridiculed her, and her adoptive parents threw her out. They all wanted to see her fall. But Elena unveiled her true identity: the heiress of a massive fortune, famed hacker, top jewelry designer, secret author, and gifted doctor. Horrified by her glorious comeback, her adoptive parents demanded half her newfound wealth. Elena exposed their cruelty and refused. Her ex pleaded for a second chance, but she scoffed, “Do you think you deserve it?” Then a powerful magnate gently proposed, “Marry me?”