A Heart Misplaced, A Love Bone-Deep
Julian Laurent was known as the most notorious playboy in Rivermont, changing girlfriends as often as he changed his clothes and treating marriage like a joke.
Clara Sterling, on the other hand, had always been the most quiet and obedient daughter of the Sterling family. Raised as the heir since childhood, she had been flawless in every word and every gesture.
A family-arranged marriage forced these two complete opposites into the same life.
On their wedding night, Julian openly made out with a young model at a nightclub.
For the first time, Clara cast aside her propriety, slapping him and demanding a divorce on the spot.
But before the next day was over, their families had forced them to remarry.
This time, Julian managed to stay faithful for a month before he cheated again.
Clara filed for divorce once more, cutting ties with him completely.
However, that very same day, it was revealed that Clara was not the real daughter of the Sterling family, and she was thrown out.
At her lowest point, Julian found her and solemnly promised to protect her from then on.
They remarried again, and from that day forward, the scandals surrounding Julian ceased.
Everyone said Clara was lucky. Even her best friend insisted that Julian had truly settled down, and Clara believed it.
Until she saw him in a hospital corridor, holding her best friend's hand, his voice strained with deep emotion, "I never liked her. You're the one I've always loved!"
It turned out all of his tenderness had been a lie.
This time, she walked away and never looked back.
And the man who had once treated her as disposable only realized after she was gone that he had long since drowned in her quiet love, unable to escape.
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Chapter 2
Clara returned home, exhausted, a box of medicine in her hand.
She took her medicine, but instead of resting, she started packing.
The moment she thought of what she had seen at the hospital, the home that once felt warm now only suffocated her.
Her phone vibrated. It was Vivian calling.
"Clara, want to go shopping? It's your birthday today. I got you a present." Vivian's voice was bright and gentle, just like it had always been.
Hearing that familiar voice, Clara felt her chest tighten, like she could barely breathe.
She didn't want to go, but before she could answer, the front door swung open.
Vivian walked in as if she belonged there. Clara had once trusted her completely, treated her like family, even given her the door code.
Now that she thought about it, it had only made things easier for Vivian and Julian.
Vivian didn't seem to notice anything was wrong. The moment she saw Clara, she slipped her arm through hers like always.
"Clara, why are all your clothes out?" Vivian smiled, eyes curving with warmth. "Going all out just to shop with me? You didn't have to. Though honestly, you look good in anything."
Clara said nothing.
The scene from the hospital hallway replayed over and over in her mind. Julian's voice, full of emotion, saying, "You're the only one I've ever loved." Vivian's trembling reply, "You can't abandon her right now. I won't break up with you."
Every word felt like a poisoned needle, piercing the softest part of her heart.
Betrayed by the two people she trusted most, Clara felt like the world had already ended.
Lost in a daze, she let Vivian pull her along to the mall.
Inside a luxury boutique, Vivian led her straight to a display case.
"Look, I spent forever picking this out for you."
She carefully took out a deep blue velvet box. Inside was a gemstone bracelet, its pendant shaped like a tiny crescent moon. On the back, a line was engraved, "Always shining for you."
Clara froze.
It was something she had once said in passing during college.
Back then, she had stayed up all night working on a project, with Vivian keeping her company until dawn. Looking out the window, she had said, "If someone could be like the moon, always there, always shining for me… that would be enough."
She had long forgotten it. Vivian hadn't.
"I remember you said the moon was your favorite." Vivian fastened the bracelet gently around her wrist, her eyes shining. "Happy birthday, Clara. From now on, I'll be here for every one."
Clara's eyes burned, and a tangle of emotions tore at her heart as if it would split in two.
Growing up in the Sterling family, her birthdays had never been anything more than a formality at family banquets.
Her father, Victor Sterling, and her mother, Margaret Sterling, would be busy entertaining guests. The staff would bring out the cake. Clara would make the first cut, pose for photos, smile, and then it would be over.
No one ever asked what she wanted. No one ever remembered what she liked.
Not until she met Vivian.
Vivian had once saved up from her part-time jobs to buy Clara an out-of-print poetry collection she loved.
She had knitted Clara a scarf by hand, uneven stitches and all, yet it had kept her warm through an entire winter.
She had secretly recorded their little moments together and made them into a video for Clara.
Clara had always believed that, if nothing else, there was at least one person in this world who truly loved her.
But the very person who had promised to always shine for her was secretly planning a future with Julian behind her back.
"Thank you for still remembering my birthday." Clara spoke softly, her voice a little hoarse.
Vivian noticed nothing unusual and kept gesturing excitedly. "I also ordered your favorite chestnut cake. We'll go to our usual place later, that café by the river. Remember?"
Clara nodded, but her gaze fell to the side of Vivian's neck. There was a faint red mark there, like the trace of someone's kiss.
Then Clara suddenly asked, her voice very soft, "Vivian, are you seeing someone? Why didn't you ever tell me? I'd love to meet your boyfriend."
Vivian froze. She instinctively touched her neck, her cheeks flushing slightly before she quickly covered it up. "Oh… we haven't known each other long. It's not serious yet. Once things are settled, I'll definitely introduce him to you."
Clara watched the way Vivian avoided her eyes, and the last fragile thread of hope in her heart snapped.
How she wished Vivian would just tell her the truth.
Then she could simply turn and leave, instead of having to keep playing along with this ridiculous performance.
But they insisted on making her the fool left in the dark.
"Is that so?" Clara tugged at the corner of her mouth, her smile bitter. "That's wonderful."
She gently placed the gift box back into Vivian's hand and turned to leave.
Only to run straight into a firm embrace.
The familiar scent of cedar washed over her.
Clara stiffened and looked up into Julian's eyes.
He wore a dark gray coat, his expression carrying its usual lazy ease. But the moment he saw her, a flicker of panic crossed his eyes before he quickly forced it down.
"Clara? What are you doing here?" he asked, reaching for her wrist.
Clara stepped back sharply, avoiding his touch.
At that moment, Vivian spoke softly, a hint of reproach in her tone. "Julian, how could you forget what day it is? It's Clara's birthday."
Julian froze. He really had forgotten.
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7.7
Not only was I drugged, blinded and assaulted. I was deceived into carrying a baby by a stranger I never knew. Then he appeared and took my child away.
I was sent to a militia by the father of my child. I thought I was rescued but I was recruited to be a weapon for killing. Who was manipulating me, I didn't know. The answers were far from what I knew.
Forced to blend into the world that I could never believe I would be to, a place where brutality reigned, kill or be killed was the only language. I have survived but he has to pay for everything he did to me, because I believed every phase of my life was set by him and him alone. Have I really survived?
Who would have thought, he existed twice in the same world? Do I really know who I should take revenge on? Him or the person I would sacrifice everything for?
Was my mother the one who orchestrated everything? What kind of pawn am I?
7.4
In a city where data is power and truth is a weapon, some secrets are worth killing for.
Mara Quinn is a ghost in the system, an underground journalist known only as Cipher, feared by corporations and hunted by those with everything to lose. When she breaches a classified network inside Axiom Industries, she uncovers something no one was meant to see: ORACLE, a predictive AI capable of shaping human behavior on a global scale.
She expects retaliation. She doesn't expect Kael Draven.
Cold, brilliant, and untouchable, Kael is the architect behind Axiom's empire, and a man who doesn't make threats he can't execute. Instead of silencing Mara, he offers her a choice: work under his watch, or disappear from existence entirely. Trapped inside his glass fortress known as The Spire, Mara is pulled deeper into a world of surveillance, manipulation, and power plays that stretch far beyond anything she imagined.
But ORACLE isn't just a tool, it's already been used. Governments have fallen. Empires have shifted. And someone else is pulling the strings.
As a rival syndicate closes in and a hidden war erupts across the city, Mara and Kael are forced into an uneasy alliance, one built on intellect, suspicion, and a dangerous, undeniable pull neither of them can ignore.
Because in a world where every move is predicted...
the only thing more dangerous than control is feeling.
And the system is already watching.
7.7
Rory stood on the witness stand, forced by her father into an impossible choice: secure her dying mother's medical funding, or save her innocent boyfriend.
She looked Corbin right in his trusting eyes and lied to the court, testifying that he was the one driving the car during the fatal hit-and-run, sending him to a maximum-security prison for ten years.
The betrayal destroyed him. Corbin's father died of a heart attack upon hearing the guilty verdict. Six years later, Corbin returned as a ruthless billionaire and systematically blacklisted Rory from every job in the city. He cornered her into singing at his private club, humiliating her by forcing her to drink scotch—knowing she was severely allergic—and making her throw away his promise ring just to earn a stack of cash.
"Remember this moment. This is only the beginning."
She endured his cruel revenge because she was hiding a desperate secret: she was raising his five-year-old daughter, Willa. But when Willa's congenital heart defect suddenly worsened, requiring an impossible one-million-dollar surgery, Rory realized Corbin's calculated blockade had left her completely trapped with no way to save their child.
Staring at the sterile hospital walls, the last shred of her guilt burned away, replaced by a cold, hard resolve. He had destroyed her career and backed her into a corner, but he was the only one with the money. Wiping her tears, Rory turned and headed straight for Vance Tower.
8.5
Amelia, an artist struggling to live a life full of dreams and hardships, finds herself caught in an unexpected vortex after a wild night at a masquerade ball. She wakes up with a hazy memory of piercing blue eyes and a powerful presence, without knowing who the man was or what happened? A few weeks later, Amelia's life changed forever when she realized she was pregnant. The baby's father? None other than the Lycan King, a powerful and dangerous creature who rules the hidden world of werewolves. Forced into a world of magic, danger, and forbidden love, Amelia must adapt to a new life. He must navigate the dangerous politics of the Lycan Kingdom, learn to control the new powers that arise within him, and face the wrath of the King's jealous couple. In the midst of this chaos, Amelia must choose: accept her fate as the Lycan King's mate, or fight for her freedom and the life she lives.
9.8
Three women, three brothers, a single, crumpled dollar bill.
Alina's world shatters the moment she's auctioned off-and claimed by the powerful Hawthorne brothers.
Thrown into Adrian Hawthorne's cold, dangerous world, she becomes his to control... his to protect... and, terrifyingly, his to desire. He's ruthless, possessive, and hiding secrets that could destroy them both. But the deeper she falls into his world, the harder it becomes to tell if she's his prisoner-or something far more dangerous.
Because the Hawthorne brothers don't just take.
They keep.
Viviane has spent her life surviving, so when Julian Hawthorne "buys" her freedom, she knows better than to trust it. Men like him don't save people-they collect them. But Julian isn't as simple as he pretends to be, and the deeper she's pulled into his world, the more dangerous it becomes to walk away.
Especially when she realizes she might be the only thing he's ever been willing to fight for.
Lena doesn't belong to anyone-and she intends to keep it that way. Brilliant, guarded, and hiding more than anyone suspects, she enters Lucien Hawthorne's world on her own terms. But Lucien doesn't play fair, and he doesn't let go.
When her past comes crashing back, Lena is forced to face the one thing she's been running from: trusting someone who could destroy her... or save her.
Three women. Three choices.Stay. Fight.
Or burn it all down.
Because being sold was only the beginning.
8.0
Twenty-one-year-old Hazel has always lived in a safe, comfortable bubble, meticulously guarded by her fiercely protective older brother. Her life is predictable, quiet, and perfectly ordinary. Until he steps into it.
Silas is twenty-four, dangerously captivating, and her brother's best friend. He brings with him an aura of dark secrets, ink-stained skin, and a predatory gaze that strips away all her carefully built defenses. He is everything she has been taught to avoid, yet living under the same roof makes him impossible to escape.
What starts as a temporary living arrangement quickly spirals into a suffocating web of stolen glances, unspoken desires, and a dangerous obsession. Silas isn't just looking for a place to crash; he's looking at her. And once he pins her in his sights, the thorns of their forbidden attraction will bind them together in ways that could destroy them both.
In a house where walls have ears and her brother is always watching, giving in to the madness is a risk. But Silas is a temptation she might not survive.