Five Years as My Mate's Stand-In
I was secretly with Cole-my best friend Brooke's brother-for five years, only to find out I'd always been a stand-in for Alexis, my half-sister. He lied to me, took intimate photos of me without consent to share, and humiliated me publicly. Heartbroken, I ended things, took a job in Norlan Town, and even thought I was pregnant.
Later, work brought me back to Belmor Town. I reunited with Gabriel, and kept dealing with Alexis's harassment. When my dad died from a sudden heart attack, grief pushed me to fight back-and Gabriel, who'd loved me quietly for years, stood by my side to take on the Price family.
Gabriel and I formed a sacred bond.
Even when Cole finally woke up, admitted he'd loved me all along, I couldn't go back.
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Chapter 2
The moment I unlock Cole's phone, my last shred of hope crumbles.
I stare at his lock screen wallpaper, frozen. It's blurry, like a cropped chunk of a graduation group photo. The she-wolf in it has a bright ponytail and a smile that lights up the frame. Her eyes? They're practically mine-seven or eight parts the same.
Of course they are. She's my half-sister, after all. Same mom, different dad.
My trembling fingers hover over the screen, ready to shut it off, when a notification pings. A message pops up in a group chat, and my blood runs cold.
"Yo, Cole just called Lauren 'Alexis' while hugging her. Nearly gave me a heart attack. Good thing I played it off, 'cause if Lauren finds out Cole's only with her to mess with Alexis, she'd probably lose it-crying, screaming, the whole deal."
"Gotta hand it to Cole, though. Dude's so gone for Alexis he's willing to stomach sleeping with an older she-wolf. How long's he gonna keep this up? Wasn't it supposed to be a quick fling?"
"Say what you want, Lauren's a bit older, sure, but her looks and figure? Top-tier. If Cole ever gets bored, can I call dibs?"
The group chat's a cesspool of vile comments about me. My hands shake so hard I can barely hold the phone. I try to exit the chat, but then someone drops a private photo into the group, followed by a voice message.
"Since you're all so curious about her figure, here's a little something to feast your eyes on."
The chat explodes.
"Holy-talk about spicy! But come on, you're gonna tease us with a blurred-out version? Be a wolf and share the real deal!"
"Seconded, drop the uncensored pic! Gotta say, Lauren seems all prim and proper, but damn, she's wild in bed. No wonder Cole's stuck around five years. That look on her face? I'm losing it."
"Go beg Cole for the original. I only got this censored one 'cause he didn't want to 'taint my eyes' when I bugged him for it."
"Cole's too real. Alexis, come on, let our boy make it official already. You know how much he loves you. Why keep testing him? If it wasn't for screwing with Lauren, you think he'd even glance her way?"
The words blur as my head buzzes, drowning out everything. I thought Cole was just using me as a stand-in for Alexis. But this? He's been plotting to destroy me for her. Those secret photos and videos of me, snapped without my knowledge, were just tools to keep Alexis entertained.
Why?
Alexis is the pup born from my mom's affair. My mom ditched my sick dad, abandoned me, and bound herself to another wolf. Yet somehow, everyone's on Alexis's side, tearing me apart.
I haven't done anything wrong.
My heart throbs with a dull ache. Tears spill over, and I swipe them away, grabbing my own phone to record the screen. Scrolling through the chat history, I see it's all there-months of them scheming to mess with me. Late-night calls to pick up Cole, only to get harassed by goons they set up. Getting him drunk during my cycle just to watch me grit my teeth and take shots for him while I'm in pain.
Every memory stabs like a boomerang, slicing deeper into my heart. I bite my lip so hard it bleeds, stifling the sobs clawing at my throat.
When I exit the chat, I spot Alexis's name pinned at the top. Her contact is labeled "Future Mate." Below it, my chat sits with a little "Do Not Disturb" icon.
I don't have time to dwell on it. All I want is to delete those stolen photos and videos. I scour every app, every folder, but find nothing. I tell myself maybe it's just that one picture.
Setting the phone back on the nightstand, a hollow chill settles in my chest. No wonder he kept dodging when I wanted to tell Brooke about us after things felt solid. What I thought was love was just me being a desperate placeholder.
My phone rings, shattering the silence of the night. I slap my hand over the speaker and slip out to the living room balcony to answer.
My boss's voice crackles through. "Lauren, you thought about that offer? The branch office needs wolves like you. It's a tough gig starting out, but you're more than capable of running the show as manager."
"Michael, I'm in," I say, my voice steady despite everything. "Give me three weeks to wrap things up here."
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8.4
I worked three double shifts at the garage just to buy a velvet-boxed cake for my wealthy girlfriend, Arleen.
But when I pushed open the VIP room door, I saw her lover kissing her bare leg.
She didn't push him away. Instead, she laughed and swirled her martini.
"I only forgot Finn because I knew he would stay. He is a poor boy from Queens who follows me around like a loyal dog."
Later that night, her lover intentionally crashed a Porsche to scare me, sending a piece of jagged metal into my skull.
Lying in a growing pool of my own blood, I watched Arleen crawl out of the wreckage.
She didn't even look at me. She threw herself at her uninjured lover, screaming for a medic.
"He just got scraped by a piece of plastic. He is faking it. Deal with Jaquez first!"
When I woke up, I wasn't free. Arleen had locked me in a private hospital wing with 24-hour security, planning to isolate me and keep me as her broken, captive toy forever.
My blind, pathetic devotion finally froze into absolute disgust.
I looked at the heart monitor next to my bed and grabbed an IV needle.
I severed the sensor wire to trigger a flatline, slipped out the fire stairs while the nurses panicked, and burned my identity to ashes.
This time, I was going to disappear to London, build my own empire, and watch hers burn.
9.8
Blood And Shadow
9.8
SYNOPSIS
In the city of Nocturna, where vampires rule the night and humans exist as second-class citizens under the Blood Accord, twenty-three-year-old Sera Blackwood has spent her entire life hiding a deadly secret: she's a Dhampir-half-human, half-vampire-an abomination whose very existence is punishable by death in both worlds.
Working as a blood courier to survive, Sera's carefully constructed life of anonymity shatters when she accidentally saves the life of Daemon Ashford, the ruthless Vampire Lord of the Northern Court and the very man responsible for her mother's execution ten years ago. Bound by an ancient blood debt she didn't mean to create, Sera is dragged into the glittering and deadly world of vampire politics, where every smile hides fangs and every alliance is written in blood.
But Daemon isn't the monster she expected. Haunted by his own dark past and trapped in a web of court intrigue, he's the only thing standing between Nocturna and an all-out war between humans and vampires. As a mysterious illness begins killing vampires across the city-a plague that shouldn't exist-Daemon needs someone who can walk in both worlds. Someone like Sera.
Forced into an uneasy alliance, Sera and Daemon must navigate treacherous court politics, ancient vampire covens, and a growing attraction that could destroy them both. Because the plague isn't random-it's a calculated attack. And the conspiracy behind it reaches higher than either of them imagined, threatening to expose Sera's true nature and reignite the blood wars that nearly destroyed Nocturna a century ago.
As bodies pile up and the fragile peace crumbles, Sera must choose: remain in the shadows and let the city burn, or step into the light and risk everything-including her heart-to save both the humans and vampires who would kill her if they knew what she really was.
In a world where trust is a luxury and love is a weakness, some secrets are worth dying for. Others are worth killing for.
**Blood and Shadows** is a dark, seductive tale of forbidden love, political intrigue, and the monsters we become when we fight for survival.
---
7.2
Lauren Sterling gave up her career to support her boyfriend, Julian Drake, believing his words that he and his family lived for privacy.
But it was nothing but a lie. He had only replaced her with her best friend.
On the day they were supposed to get married, he left her waiting. Out of desperation, Lauren Sterling married a stranger!
Alexander Ashford.
The man who gave her three months to take her revenge.
In a dangerous game where revenge collides with betrayal, dangers and secrets. Will Lauren Sterling survive?
8.0
Lillian spent years training as a lawyer, determined to take down the ruthless Mafia King who ruined her family. Getting him arrested was supposed to be her victory until he was released that same night he was arrested. Forced into hiding, she began living in fear and abandoned everything about her old life.
But Jake Hernandez never forgets.
She had stained his image. Now, he'll take everything from her. But Lillian had one last plan - make him fall, then break him like he did to her.
8.6
For ten years, I was the indispensable right hand and fiancée to star architect Declan Sharp. I poured my life into his career, sacrificing my own ambitions for us. Our wedding was just weeks away.
But my world shattered when I saw him with the new intern, Kisha. He was showing her my design, the one he called "competent," and proudly saying, "This is Kisha's idea."
It got worse. He stole my groundbreaking research paper for her, then publicly dismissed me as a mere "drafting assistant." My own family attacked me, furious I had lost their meal ticket.
I was just a tool. A convenient machine he used to build his empire. He never loved me; he loved what I did for him.
So when he tried to kiss me to shut me up, I slapped him. I deleted every file, every blueprint, every trace of my work from his life. Then I blocked his number and bought a one-way ticket to Detroit. This time, I was building a life for myself.
7.6
Age Gap Romance/Arranged Marriage/Strong Heroine/Found Family/Revenge/Slow Burn Romance
Nineteen-year-old Clarice Sullivan was forced by her scumbag father to marry Theodore Grant, a man of thirty-one. On their wedding night, Theodore, transformed into a ravenous wolf, left her utterly exhausted. "I thought you said you couldn't?" she muttered, rubbing her aching lower back. "Aren't men in their thirties supposed to know some restraint?" Theodore, irritated, pinned her down again. "Round two!" he growled.
After marriage, Theodore switched into full protective-and-doting-husband mode.
"Darling, my worthless father is trying to hit me again!"
"Just wait," Theodore snapped, his temper flaring. He promptly dismantled the entire Sullivan family.
"Darling, she drugged me-tried to hand me over to another man!" Clarice pointed accusingly at her wicked half-sister. Theodore's fury erupted. He slapped the woman hard across the face and ensured her reputation was ruined beyond repair.
With Theodore's unwavering devotion backing her, Clarice repaid every slight and cruelty a thousandfold. When others criticized her for being spoiled, Theodore scoffed, "I'm the one who spoiled her-got a problem with that?"