"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.
"Sign the divorce papers and get out!" Leanna got married to pay a debt, but she was betrayed by her husband and shunned by her in-laws. Seeing that her efforts were in vain, she agreed to divorce and claimed her half of the properties. With her purse plump from the settlement, Leanna enjoyed her newfound freedom. The constant harassment from her ex's mistress never fazed her. She took back her identities as top hacker, champion racer, medical professor, and renowned jewelry designer. Then someone discovered her secret. Matthew smiled. "Will you have me as your next husband?"
Yelena discovered that she wasn't her parents' biological child. After seeing through their ploy to trade her as a pawn in a business deal, she was sent away to her barren birthplace. There, she stumbled upon her true origins—a lineage of historic opulence. Her real family showered her with love and adoration. In the face of her so-called sister's envy, Yelena conquered every adversity and took her revenge, all while showcasing her talents. She soon caught the attention of the city's most eligible bachelor. He cornered Yelena and pinned her against the wall. “It's time to reveal your true identity, darling.”
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?"
"I stood at the edge of my heart and watched him choose her. In the end, I was not the one he needed. I was simply the one he settled for." - Noelle ~~~~~~~ I thought I was the one he loved. But a few days before our wedding, I saw him in a way I never had before. His eyes softened as he spoke to her. His first love, and the very woman who had left him in pieces. Heartbreak was something I knew too well. And as I watched the love he still held for her in his eyes, I realized what I had to do. I couldn't marry a man who wasn't truly mine. With no means to cancel the wedding and lacking the courage to confront him, I made a desperate choice to leave. I painfully gave his first love my treasured engagement ring thinking it was for the best and the only way to free myself. But when he saw that ring on her finger, the fragile world I had tried to escape began to shatter. His obsession to find me and bring me back ignited a dangerous game of cat and mouse.
Maria took her sister’s place and was engaged to Anthony, a disabled man who had lost his status as the family heir. At first, they were just a nominal couple. However, things changed when things about Maria were gradually exposed. It turned out she was a professional hacker, a mysterious composer, and the sole successor to an international jade sculpting master… The more that was revealed about her, the less Anthony could rest easy. A famous singer, an award-winning actor, an heir of a rich family—so many excellent men were chasing after his fiancee, Maria. What should Anthony do?
"I'm going to tell you what I have in mind," he murmured. "First you're going to strip down until you're completely naked," he whispered against her ear. "Then I'm going to tie you up so you're completely powerless and subject to my every whim." "Mmm, sounds good so far," she murmured. "Then I'm going to insert a plug to prepare you for me. After that I'm going to spank that sweet ass of yours until it's rosy with my marks." She shivered uncontrollably, her mind exploding with the images he evoked. She let out a small whimper as he sucked the lobe of her ear into his mouth. God, she could cum with just his words. She was already aching with need. Her nipples tingled and hardened to painful points. Her clit pulsed and twitched between her legs until she clamped her thighs together to alleviate the burn. "And then I'm going to f**k your mouth. But I won't cum. Not yet. When I'm close, I'll flog you again until your ass is burning and you're on fire with the need for relief. And then I'm going to f**k that ass. I'm going to take you hard and rough, to the very limits of what you can withstand. I won't be gentle. Not tonight. I'm going to take you as roughly as you can stand. And then I'm going to cum all over your ass. Are you ready to be completely and utterly dominated?"