Lena Carter never imagined her marriage would end with a set of divorce papers and a heartless goodbye. But as she sits across from her husband, Damian Wright, she realizes the love she fought so hard for was never enough. With a cold, detached expression, he slides the signed documents toward her, along with a so-called "parting gift"-$50 million and a luxury estate. His reason for leaving? He plans to marry his childhood sweetheart, Vivian Hayes. Desperate to save their marriage, Lena pleads with him to reconsider, hoping that their years together still hold meaning. But Damian is unmoved. Without hesitation, he walks away, eager to start a new life with Vivian. Left shattered and humiliated, Lena makes a choice of her own-one that will change everything. That same night, she is seen leaving in a sleek black Rolls-Royce, chauffeured by none other than Adrian Steele, the powerful CEO of Sterling Corporation. When Damian learns of this, a wave of frustration and jealousy surges through him. He assumes Lena has already replaced him, but then he discovers a painful truth-she left on her birthday, a day he had completely forgotten. In that moment, Lena realizes she is done waiting for a love that was never real. She refuses to be the woman who begs for affection. For years, she kept her true identity hidden, but now, she steps into her rightful place as Celeste Steele, heiress to the Sterling fortune. And this time, she walks away-not as a heartbroken wife, but as a woman who has finally chosen herself.
Lena Carter stared at the stack of divorce papers resting on the table. Kieran Holt had already signed them, his name etched in ink as if sealing their fate.
Her gaze drifted toward the window, where golden sunlight poured in, casting long shadows across the room. There he stood, his tall frame illuminated by the warm glow of the afternoon. Yet, despite the golden light surrounding him, Kieran remained as cold and unyielding as a marble statue. His presence filled the room with an unbearable sense of detachment.
"I've signed them," he said flatly, his voice devoid of emotion. "You should do the same. The sooner, the better. I want everything finalized before Juliette returns."
With his hands clasped behind his back, he spoke without sparing her even a glance. "The prenuptial agreement ensures there won't be any disputes over assets. However, as compensation, I'll transfer an additional twenty million dollars to your account, along with the villa in the western suburbs. It would be difficult to explain to my grandfather if you walked away with nothing."
Lena's fingers trembled as she clutched the edge of the table. His words barely registered, drowned out by the hammering of her heart.
"Does your grandfather even know you're divorcing me?" she asked, her voice quivering.
Kieran exhaled impatiently. "His opinion doesn't change my decision."
A deep shudder ran through her, forcing her to steady herself against the table. Tears blurred her vision, yet she refused to let them fall.
"Kieran..." She swallowed hard before continuing, her voice thick with emotion. "Can we not do this? Can we stay together?"
At last, Kieran turned to face her. His dark eyes, sharp and piercing, locked onto hers with a look of mild surprise.
"Why?" he asked, his tone laced with skepticism.
"Because I love you."
The words left her lips in a desperate whisper. Her eyes glistened with unshed tears as she pleaded, "Kieran, I love you. Even if you don't love me, I still want to be your wife."
A flicker of irritation crossed his face before he averted his gaze. "Enough, Lena. This marriage has been nothing but a burden." His tone was sharp, cutting through the fragile hope she had clung to.
With a dismissive wave of his hand, he continued, "You knew from the beginning that this was never real. I only married you to defy my grandfather. You were aware of my feelings for Juliette, and you knew why I couldn't be with her back then. Now that she's returning, I won't wait any longer. Our three-year contract is over. It's time for you to leave."
Lena lowered her head as silent tears slipped down her cheeks, splattering onto the table. She wiped them away quickly, but Kieran had already noticed. He saw the pain in her expression, but he chose to ignore it.
Just then, his phone rang. The second he glanced at the screen, his entire demeanor shifted. The coldness in his eyes melted into something softer-something Lena had never been able to evoke.
"Juliette," he answered, his voice suddenly warm and tender. "Are you at the airport?"
On the other end of the call, a cheerful voice responded, "Kieran! Yes, I just landed."
His brows lifted in surprise. "I thought you were arriving tonight?"
"I wanted to surprise you!"
A rare smile graced his lips. "Wait there. I'm coming to pick you up."
Without another word, Kieran grabbed his coat and strode toward the door. He didn't look back. Not once.
The door slammed shut behind him, leaving Lena in suffocating silence. Her fingers traced the divorce papers absently, her mind a whirl of emotions.
She had given everything-her love, her time, her unwavering devotion-to Kieran. And yet, to him, their decade-long history and three years of marriage amounted to nothing more than an inconvenience. A mistake. A contractual obligation he was finally free from.
He had walked away without hesitation, eager to reunite with the woman he had always loved. And in that moment, Lena realized she had never truly belonged in his world.
She had only ever been a temporary placeholder for someone else.
Lena felt a deep ache in her chest, realizing that no matter what she did, she could never win over Kieran Holt's heart.
Taking a slow, shaky breath, she forced a bitter smile and wiped away the tears that had smudged his elegant signature on the divorce papers. The ink, once bold and decisive, now blurred under the weight of her sorrow.
That evening, Kieran returned to Tideview Manor with Juliette Mercer in his arms. As the second son of the wealthy and powerful Holt family, his presence alone was enough to command attention, but carrying a delicate woman in bridal style only intensified the spectacle.
"Kieran, we shouldn't be this close," Juliette murmured, pressing a gentle hand against his chest as she spoke. "You're still married. If Lena sees us like this, she might resent me."
His expression remained cold and unyielding. "It doesn't matter. She means nothing to me," he stated flatly. "She's just my wife in name only. She should know her place."
As the Whitmores gathered around to welcome Juliette with open arms, Lena remained in the dining room, quietly setting the table. She moved through the motions as if nothing was amiss, but Kieran caught sight of her figure from across the room.
He scoffed inwardly. 'Does she think serving my family will change my decision? How pathetic.'
Moments later, the butler rushed over, slightly out of breath. "Young Master Kieran! Young Madam just left!"
Kieran's expression darkened. "She left? When?"
"Just now, sir. She didn't take anything with her-no luggage, no belongings. She simply removed her apron and walked out through the back entrance. A black car picked her up."
Without hesitation, Kieran strode up the stairs to their bedroom. It was as pristine as ever, almost as if Lena had never lived there. On the bedside table, the signed divorce agreement sat in silent finality, stained with the remnants of her tears.
Frowning, he walked to the window just in time to see a sleek black Rolls-Royce disappearing into the night. Its taillights flickered briefly before vanishing completely.
A sharp irritation twisted in his chest. 'Wasn't she so unwilling to leave just this afternoon? And now she couldn't wait to run away?'
Feeling a surge of frustration, he pulled out his phone and dialed his secretary. "Find out who owns the car with license plate SA9999."
"Right away, sir."
Five minutes later, his secretary returned with an answer. "Mr. Holt, the car belongs to Dominic Vale, CEO of Sterling Corporation."
In a town controlled by fear, Indianna is trying to find a way to survive. The only goal is to take down Rogue, but with him growing stronger every day it seems impossible. How can Indianna deal with new people, new challenges, the loss of a mate and a pregnancy, as well as a brother who wants to control the werewolf world and hurt everyone she cares about? In the end, who will be defeated, her or Rogue? (SHY BOOK #2)
Brooklyn Fox's parents are going through an ugly divorce. They decide to ship Brooklyn off to a small town to live with her cousin. A new face is a rare occurrence in this town and Brooklyn's confident and bubbly personality doesn't go amiss. She catches the attention of a dark, brooding bad boy and with this new found attention comes secrets. From both him and her.
Daisy wasn't your average girl. She was a trained killer. Give her a target and she could come up with multiple ways to end the target's life. After a failed escape attempt from the world she grew up in she has to get used to being back to the world of training, guns and death. Throw in a boy or two that both drive Daisy mental, a sarcastic attitude, lots of drama and a mission that may turn Daisy back into the assassin she used to be and you've got a pretty hectic story.
"She's shy," Brooke shrugged, glancing at Indianna who looked like she wanted to be anywhere but in the classroom. "Well, come on, I don't bite," Greyson urged and Indianna stiffened, just like before. "Don't talk about that," Indianna said, her voice was still quiet but it was firm. "Struck a nerve have I?" Greyson wondered and smirked. "Somebody likes it kinky." * Indianna Hughs had always been the quiet one, the shy one. She was always the one that stayed in the background. She blended in, never got noticed. She liked it like that. So when she's forced to move schools, she is not happy. Everyone notices a new kid, she didn't want that attention. Especially not from Mr Bad Boy who seemed to be very interested in her. COMPLETE !
Bailey seems to be never destined to fit in, a little geeky, but under it all, a hidden beauty that so many seem to miss, but still not what her pack Alpha is looking for in a fated mate... so he is determined to reject her and make her life hell. Bailey, knowing her life will likely never be the same focuses on what she can control, her future, and heads off to study; becoming a teacher. Asher is the Beta of Autumn Valley Pack, a neighbouring pack. A broken man having suffered the loss of his mate after a rogue attack, Asher is slowly crumbling. Falling to pieces. A shadow of his former self, and not a man that anyone wants to be around anymore... Until, Autumn Valley Pack require a new teacher, and Bailey finds herself there and pushed together with the Beta. Is there a connection building or is that in their imaginations? And what will happen when Bailey's mate comes back to claim what is his?
Lindsey's fiancé was the devil's first son. Not only did he lie to her but he also slept with her stepmother, conspired to take away her family fortune, and then set her up to have sex with a total stranger. To get her lick back, Lindsey decided to find a man to disrupt her engagement party and humiliate the cheating bastard. Never did she imagine that she would bump into a strikingly handsome stranger who was all that she was currently looking for. At the engagement party, he boldly declared that she was his woman. Lindsey thought he was just a broke man who wanted to leech off her. But once they began their fake relationship, she realized that good luck kept coming her way. She thought they would part ways after the engagement party, but this man kept to her side. "We gotta stick together, Lindsey. Remember, I'm now your fiancé. " "Domenic, you're with me because of my money, aren't you?" Lindsey asked, narrowing her eyes at him. Domenic was taken aback by that accusation. How could he, the heir of the Walsh family and CEO of Vitality Group, be with her for money? He controlled more than half of the city's economy. Money wasn't a problem for him! The two got closer and closer. One day, Lindsey finally realized that Domenic was actually the stranger she had slept with months ago. Would this realization change things between them? For the better or worse?
After a painful breakup with her boyfriend of two years who coldly told her to her face that he couldn't keep dating her because she was too uptight--In a moment of anger and defiance, Anna decided to throw caution to the wind for one reckless night. She headed to the wildest club in Texas, determined to lose herself in the chaos. But fate had other plans. To her shock, she ran into her ex-boyfriend at the club. Desperate to save face, she made a split-second decision and approached a stranger, pretending he was her new boyfriend. What she never anticipated was the magnetic pull she would feel towards him or the fact that she'd end up going home with this mystery man. Soon enough, the real surprise hit her--this stranger wasn't just anyone; he was her new boss. What begins as a night of rebellion spirals into a whirlwind of forbidden attraction, societal pressure and hidden affairs. And now there are so many things at stake. Find out how this story unfolds.
"Is it considered betrayal to develop feelings for your best friend's boyfriend? What about when fate intervenes, and he turns out to be your destined mate? You might think it's luck and thank the moon goddess for such a twist of fate. That's what I believed until the love of my life uttered those dreaded words: 'I want a divorce!' As I stared at the pregnancy test in my hands, I realized it was better to keep my secret to myself. My name is Violet, and this is my story."
Due to the plight of her family, Phoebe had no choice but to embark on the path of selling herself. In an accident, she had a tangled night with Alexander. Everything began to derail, and even if she fled to the ends of the earth, she would still be found by him and entangled... *** Phoebe screamed in frustration, "What do you want from me?" What was this supposed to be? He raised an eyebrow wickedly. "What do I want? You'll find out soon enough." With that, he hoisted her up and carried her back into the office. The door slammed shut with a kick, and he cleared the desk with a sweep of his arm before laying her down on it, his body pinning hers in place, completely trapping her in his grasp. Every cell in his body was telling him he wanted her. He wanted to claim her again. This time, there would be no escape for her-he wouldn't let her slip away. Never again. If he had suffered for five years, then this woman wouldn't get off easily either!
Elin spent twenty years deeply loving her husband, finally marrying him just as she'd always dreamed. But reality shattered her illusions—he wasn't the man she believed. Instead, he callously destroyed her family, crushing her heart beyond repair. At her lowest point, Ruben, equally betrayed that night, approached her steadily. "Marry me, Elin. I'll help you take revenge." Yet, after their wedding, she quickly discovered he was dangerously unpredictable. "I made a mistake. Let's divorce..." Ruben slid his arm possessively around her waist, whispering a chilling promise, "Only in death."