"Why do you hate me so much?" Amara asked, her voice shaking. "I've never done anything to you." Where power, passion, and painful memories collide, Amara Denz never imagined the same man who made her life a living hell at Lyons College would be her ruthless, charismatic boss. Now CEO of a thriving tech empire, CEO Leo reigns with cool efficiency-but beneath his shining exterior blazes an undeniable, forbidden desire for the very woman he once tormented. Amara Denz is desperate. Desperate to find employment to pay for the mounting bills, desperate to bury the pain of her abused past, and desperate to preserve her shattered pride in a company where every glance from Leo sends unspoken tension her way. Torn between old wounds and an incendiary attraction that she cannot deny or manage, Amara must navigate a landscape of office politics and personal demons. "Work hard, be loyal, and maybe you'll earn my respect," Leo declares with a provocative smile during their first meeting. But as the day unfolds, every accidental brush, every lingering look, transforms the mundane into a battlefield of raw emotion and sensual challenge. Set against the high-stakes halls of Baze, this scorching dual-perspective story of redemption and revenge tracks two individuals whose entwined destinies compel them to confront a past defined by brutality-and a present filled with desire. Can Leo demonstrate that he's reformed, or will the wounds of their past continue to keep them apart? And will Amara's need to transcend her past enable her to gamble everything on a second chance at love?
Leo
I rub the back of my neck, trying to ease the tension winding its way through my muscles as I stare unseeing at my computer screen. My personal assistant three days ago because her boyfriend had dumped her. Hell, she was so distraught she didn't even finish working out her notice period. It irritated me, but there's nothing you can do. Women. Can't live with them, can't live without them.
I am pulled out of my daydreaming by a tap on the door of my office.
"Come in," I call.
One of the general secretaries, Precious, enters with a thick stack of resumes in her hand.
I inwardly groan at the sight of them. What now?
I have the applications for the personal assistant position, Mr. Joe," she says, getting straight to the point. "I've already eliminated the absolute no-goes. These are the ones I think are worth considering. If you can review and approve, I'll send them on to HR to set up interviews.".
I consider saying let HR handle it period, but I hold back. I don't need another bad fit. And I have control issues. I built this company from the ground up, and while it is now a multi-million-dollar business, I still like to have my finger in every pie. Old habits die hard.
"Thank you, Precious." I gesture toward the corner of my desk. "Leave them there. I'll review and get back to you."
She puts down the papers, flashes a brief smile, and leaves the office.
If I get through these earlier than later, HR can schedule interviews by week's end. With a bit of luck, I'll have a new PA by Monday.
I pick up the first resume. Mary Jackson. Good qualifications, solid experience. No red flags. I placed it in a maybe stack as a possibility. The next three? No good. Two have young kids, and the third lacks the experience that I need. The next two are solid candidates. Puma Luka has had experience in fast-paced environments with success, and White Queens has over five years of experience in an industry like ours. White Queens is now the front-runner. A man did not fall to pieces because his girlfriend dumped him.
I am still sorting. White Queens are still ahead of the game. Then I stretched out for the last file and looked at the name.
Amara Denz.
My heart is racing. It cannot be. The probability is insane. I leaned back in my chair as the past rushed forward stark and uncensored.
Amara stood before me, her white face rebellious.
All that cash and you purchased those pants?" I scorned.
There was laughter surrounding me as I walked away, smug-faced on the outside, but inside? I was crap.
Amara Denz and I attended the same high school, but we didn't live in the same universe. Her family was old money, the type that her father greeted presidents with a handshake. My family? The exact opposite. Dirt poor. My father took off when I was two and never came back. My mother held down three jobs to keep us going. The only reason I was able to go to Lyons College, a college filled with Amaras, was due to a scholarship for talented students.
My mother made sure my clothes were clean and ironed but secondhand, donated by charities or kindly mothers of older pupils. I hated it. I was the poor child, the charity case. I knew that I would never be accepted, so I gave up trying. I became the rebel instead. That made me popular, and for some time I was completely blind to how different I was.
I embraced my image, ripping my clothes, stitching skulls and skeletons onto them. It was a success, and suddenly everyone was copying my style. I was on top of the world. That's when Amara's family moved into town, and she started at Lyons College.
The first time I saw her, I was done for. Green eyes, blonde hair that fell like liquid gold. She was stunning. But she was also unattainable. A girl like Amara Denz would never date a guy like me.
Date? Hell, she did not even notice me. My spiked hair, skull-covered shirts, and tattoos were nothing to impress her. She may not have even heard of my name. I tried to brush her off, but the more I struggled with the feelings, the worse it got. It was an obsession. If her mansion was not protected behind high gates, I would have been that moron that appeared at her window every single night.
I was obsessed. Bad.
Since I couldn't have her, I got her attention in another manner: I teased her. Anything to draw a reaction from her. And it worked. She definitely knew my name after the initial few jabs I threw in class. But instead of humor, her eyes flashed with anger. I made a mistake. It escalated from there. Next thing I knew, I was outright bullying her.
I despised myself for it, but I could not help it. I was suffocating in hormones, rejection, and ego. If I had any sense, I would have made her laugh. But no, I made her cry.
I was with my friends walking down the hallway one day when I spotted Amara up ahead, laughing with her friends. She had not seen me yet.
I began to mock her laughter, making a bigger deal of it. My friends chimed in, laughing.
She spun around, shock lighting up her eyes as I snorted like she did when she laughed really hard. I scrunched up my nose and threw in an oink for good measure. My friends joined in. To this day, I can vividly recall the look on her face. Her eyes were hurt, but her jaw was clenched. The recollection still makes my stomach twist.
"Why do you hate me so much?" she said, her voice trembling. "I've never done anything to you."
"Is this your idea of a blind date, Ms. Alejandro? Crashing your boss's table with that fiery temper of yours?" Luciana froze, her cheeks flushed as she stared at the one man she swore to avoid: Finlay Maverick, her enigmatic and infuriating CEO. Single mother Luciana Alejandro's move from Mexico City to Dublin was supposed to be a fresh start-a chance to provide her young son a better life. Struggling to rebuild her life after years of disappointment, she lands a job at Maverick's Corp, thanks to her best friend, Maddison. But life takes a chaotic turn when a blind date gone wrong entangles her in the orbit of the magnetic yet aloof billionaire, Finlay Maverick. Known for his icy demeanor and aversion to commitment, Finlay finds his world turned upside down when Luciana's fiery wit and quiet resilience ignite a passion he can't ignore. But Luciana has secrets-secrets that could shatter the fragile connection growing between them. As Finlay battles his own fears of love and fatherhood, Luciana must confront the betrayals of her past, the meddling schemes of jealous friends, and the resurfacing of the man who abandoned her and her child. When scandal erupts, threatening to destroy everything they've built, will their love be strong enough to weather the storm?
"Guy why you dey look me like that?" His voice was steady, but the flicker of confusion and heat in his eyes made my chest tighten. "I'm not," I lied, though my gaze refused to move from the water sliding down his neck, tracing the hard lines of his chest before disappearing beneath the towel. " Huh! Really?" he asked, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. "Because you're looking at me like I'm some kind of forbidden fruit." I swallowed hard, cursing the way my breath hitched. He wasn't wrong. Something about him-his presence, his confidence, the way he stood there dripping wet like he didn't have a care in the world-had me unraveling. "You're the one standing half-naked," I shot back, though the words lacked bite. "What do you expect?" He laughed, the sound deep and rich, like the rumble of a storm. "I didn't expect you to be so easy to distract." "Distract? I'm not distracted." My words came out too quick, too defensive. He stepped closer, his damp hair falling across his forehead, and for a moment, the space between us felt electric. "Then wati dey make you dey blush?" I opened my mouth to respond, but nothing came out. Because he was right-I was blushing, my pulse racing, my thoughts a mess. And then, just as suddenly as he'd appeared, he was gone, leaving nothing but the memory of his smirk and the ache in my chest that told me this wasn't over. --- Can you survive the pull of gravity when it's not just the black hole that's consuming you-but him? Dive into ETHEREAL BLUE, a tale of cursed ghosts, forbidden connections, and the kind of chemistry that stops time itself.
"You're marrying well, Vera. Ivan's family is influential. Don't embarrass us." - Vera's Mother "But Mother, I don't love him. I don't even know him!" - Vera "Love is a luxury we can't afford. Your duty is to secure our family's future." - Vera's Mother But fate had other plans. "Who are you?" Vera whispered, her voice trembling as a stranger's hands explored her body. "I'm the one who'll change your life forever," he replied, his eyes burning with desire. Little did Vera know, that stranger was Ivan, her future husband. Vera is a young, beautiful and talented girl. Raised by her family she grew to be hardworking and loved by everyone around her. Bored with a kind heart, she treat her Olivia with love despite all the hate she receives from her. Seen as a tool to climb the social ladder, her parents decided to arrange a marriage between her and a young master, Ivan, without her wishes. Luck seemed to deviate from her as she loses her virginity to a stranger a night before her in-laws come to get her. Only to discover later, that her husband was the same man who took away her virginity. Will she be accepted by Ivan? Will she succeed in winning over his heart? This novel embraces the struggles, Vera will encounter, the way she handles and goes through each situation with the blooming romance between her and Ivan.
After two years of marriage, Sadie was finally pregnant. Filled with hope and joy, she was blindsided when Noah asked for a divorce. During a failed attempt on her life, Sadie found herself lying in a pool of blood, desperately calling Noah to ask him to save her and the baby. But her calls went unanswered. Shattered by his betrayal, she left the country. Time passed, and Sadie was about to be wed for a second time. Noah appeared in a frenzy and fell to his knees. "How dare you marry someone else after bearing my child?"
Belinda thought after divorce, they would part ways for good - he could live his life on his own terms, while she could indulge in the rest of hers. However, fate had other plans in store. "My darling, I was wrong. Would you please come back to me?" The man, whom she once loved deeply, lowered his once proud head humbly. "I beg you to return to me." Belinda coldly pushed away the bouquet of flowers he had offered her and coolly replied, "It's too late. The bridge has been burned, and the ashes have long since scattered to the wind!"
"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?"
Life was perfect until she met her boyfriend's big brother. There was a forbidden law in the Night Shade Pack that if the head Alpha rejected his mate, he would be stripped of his position. Sophia's life would get connected with the law. She was an Omega who was dating the head Alpha's younger brother. Bryan Morrison, the head Alpha, was not only a cold-blooded man but also a charming business tycoon. His name was enough to cause other packs to tremble. He was known as a ruthless man. What if, by some twist of destiny, Sophia's path were to intertwine with his?
"You're mine, little puppy," Kylan growled against my neck. A soft gasp escaped my lips as his lips brushed my skin. My mind screamed at me to push him away-the Lycan Prince who had humiliated me again and again, but my body betrayed me, leaning into him before I could stop myself. He pressed his lips against mine, and his kiss grew more aggressive, more possessive as I felt my legs weaken. What was I doing? In a split-second, I pulled away and slapped him hard across the face. Kylan's eyes darkened, but the smirk on his lips exposed his amusement. "You and I both know we can't fight this, Violet," he said, gripping my wrist. "You're my mate." "And yet you don't want me," I replied. "You told me you were ashamed of me, that l'd never be your queen, that you'd never love me. So please, accept my rejection and let me go." "Never," he whispered, his grip tightening as he pulled me closer. "Soon enough, you'll be begging for me. and when you do-I'll use you as I see fit and then I'll reject you."
Desperate to handle her grandmother's towering medical bills, Gianna agreed to a contract marriage with Tristan, the enigmatic man she'd once shared a one-night stand with. She assumed they'd fulfill each other's needs and dissolve the arrangement once the terms expired. Unbeknownst to Gianna, this marriage was a dream Tristan had clung to for ten relentless years. Certain she was just filling someone else's role, Gianna prepared to leave when that other woman returned. But Tristan, his eyes burning with unspoken emotion, seized her trembling hand and declared, "You’re mine. Now and always."