LOVE PAINTED IN LIES
Prologue
Some stories begin with love.
Some begin with war.
But theirs began with a promise, one whispered under the fading glow of a streetlamp, sealed with youthful dreams and a future full of light. Neither of them knew how quickly love could twist into something darker... or how far a wounded heart could go just to feel whole again.
This is not a tale
Chapters
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Chapter 9
Mila did not go to school the next day.
She told her mother she felt sick, which was partly true. Her body ached with exhaustion, but it was her mind that refused to settle. Every sound outside her window made her tense. Every vibration of her phone sent a rush of fear through her chest.
Lena had crossed a line.
She was no longer hiding behind messages or screens. She had shown herself. On purpose.
By afternoon, Mila's phone lit up with a call from Adrian.
You can't stay home forever he said gently. But you also shouldn't be alone right now.
I know Mila replied. I just needed time to think.
That worried him more than panic ever could.
That evening, Adrian came over with Mara. They sat in Mila's living room, the curtains drawn tight. The air felt heavy, like the calm before something broke.
She's enjoying this Mara said quietly. The fear. The attention.
Adrian nodded. Lena wants control. And she's getting closer because she thinks no one will stop her.
Mila folded her arms. Then we stop her.
Adrian studied her face. Are you ready for that.
She hesitated. I don't know if I'm brave. But I'm tired of being hunted.
The next morning, Mila returned to school.
Whispers followed her again, but this time she lifted her head and kept walking. She stayed near teachers. Near friends. Near people. Yet she still felt watched.
During second period, a folded note slid onto her desk.
Her heart raced.
She didn't open it immediately. She waited until the bell rang and the classroom emptied. Then she unfolded the paper slowly.
Meet me after school
Old science wing
Come alone
You owe me honesty
No signature.
She didn't need one.
Mila showed the note to Adrian during lunch.
Absolutely not he said.
I have to she replied. If I don't, she'll keep coming.
Adrian shook his head. Then you're not going alone.
She met his eyes. She said alone. If she sees you, she'll disappear again.
He clenched his jaw. Then we do this smart.
By the time the final bell rang, Mila's heart felt like it might burst out of her chest. The old science wing had been closed for years. Most students avoided it. It was quiet. Isolated. Perfect for secrets.
She walked there slowly, her footsteps echoing. The hallway smelled like dust and forgotten textbooks. Lockers lined the walls, their paint chipped and dull.
Lena stood at the far end.
She looked exactly the same and completely different. Her hair was neater. Her smile calmer. Her eyes sharper.
You came Lena said softly.
Mila stopped a few steps away. You asked for honesty. Start talking.
Lena tilted her head. You never liked being told the truth.
Mila's hands shook but she didn't back away. Why are you doing this.
Lena laughed quietly. Doing what. Helping you remember who you really are.
I remember enough Mila snapped. You're stalking me.
Lena's smile faded. No. I'm reminding you.
Reminding me of what.
Of how easily you replace people Lena replied. One day we were inseparable. The next day you pretended I didn't exist.
Mila swallowed. I didn't abandon you. You pushed me away.
Lena stepped closer. You chose him. And when you got bored, you chose someone else.
That's not true Mila said. You scared me. You tried to control everything.
Lena's eyes darkened. I loved you.
The words landed like ice.
Not like that Mila said quickly. Don't twist this.
Lena's voice trembled. You don't get to decide how people love you.
Footsteps echoed suddenly.
Lena's head snapped up. I said alone.
Mila's heart dropped.
Ethan stepped out from behind the corner.
I told you she wouldn't come unless she felt safe he said quietly.
Mila stared at him. You're still helping her.
Ethan looked guilty. I'm trying to fix this.
Lena laughed again. He's trying to save you. The way he always does.
Mila turned to him. You knew where I'd be.
He nodded slowly. She asked me to make sure you came.
Tears burned in Mila's eyes. You betrayed me twice.
Ethan's voice cracked. I thought if you two talked, it would end.
Lena shook her head. No. This is the beginning.
Suddenly the lights flickered.
Mila's breath caught.
Lena stepped back smiling. See. Even the building remembers.
Mila's phone vibrated.
A message from Adrian.
Where are you.
Before she could reply, Lena snatched the phone from her hand.
No interruptions Lena said. This moment belongs to us.
Mila lunged for it, but Ethan held her back instinctively. The second he realized what he'd done, his face drained of color.
Let her go he whispered.
Lena's smile vanished. You had one job.
She turned and ran.
Mila broke free and chased after her, heart pounding. Lena disappeared down the stairwell. Mila followed without thinking.
She burst through the door onto the ground floor just as Lena slipped out the back exit.
Adrian stood there.
Lena froze.
So this is where you've been Adrian said coldly.
Lena's eyes flicked between them. You always ruin things.
Adrian stepped forward. It's over.
Lena laughed shaking her head. You still think this is about you.
She backed toward the exit. This story doesn't end how you want it to.
Then she was gone.
Security alarms blared.
Teachers rushed in.
Chaos filled the hallway.
Later, Mila sat on the steps outside, shaking. Adrian wrapped his jacket around her shoulders.
She's escalating he said quietly. She won't stop now.
Mila stared at the ground. She said she loved me.
Adrian nodded. Obsession feels like love to the wrong person.
Ethan stood a few feet away, silent, ashamed.
I never wanted to hurt you he said.
Mila didn't look at him. You still did.
Police cars pulled up outside the school.
As officers stepped out, Mila felt a strange calm settle over her.
This was no longer a secret.
And somewhere out there, Lena was watching.
Waiting.
Planning her next move.
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7.7
The Cameron family clinic smelled like lemon polish and impending death. For three years, I'd been a vessel in a cold, forced marriage to Underboss Kade Cameron. But today, the doctor's words would shatter everything.
"No heartbeat," Dr. Finch declared, then, "Stage IV gastric cancer. Terminal." A double death sentence. As the world tilted, a news alert flashed: Kade, my husband, parading his mistress, Carla Shaw, across Europe-"a love that defies family lines."
Dying and carrying his dead child, I overheard nurses gossip Kade wanted me gone for his "true love." I chose to feel the D&C agony, cleansing him from my soul. Stumbling out, Kade accused me of killing his child, then rushed Carla, feigning illness, to OB/GYN, ignoring my bleeding and dying state.
Back at the mansion, I vomited blood, my body failing. Kade watched with disgust, dismissing my terminal diagnosis as a "performance." He called me "collateral," a "debt payment," then left me for his mistress. The last shred of loyalty shattered, replaced by chilling clarity.
I signed the divorce papers he dismissed as a "tantrum," leaving his ring. No longer a Cameron, no longer his possession. With Fluffy, I made one call, choosing to die on my own terms, finally free.
8.4
"How can you smile like that when neither of your fathers are here at your own wedding reception?" Pond asked, eyeing Dunk, who stood in the gallery, smiling towards his newly-wedded husband.
Dunk's smile didn't waver, but his eyes darkened. He turned to Pond, voice sharp, "Do you think I don't care? That I'd go against them on purpose?"
Pond responded without hesitation, "Aren't you doing exactly that?"
"No, I'm not," Dunk snapped. His voice dropped lower, colder. "I'm standing here for my pride-the same pride he crushed. I'm not a child who goes crying to his parents. He destroyed me, P'Pond. Now it's my turn. I'm going to destroy his life-completely."
Pond looked shaken. "You can't marry someone for revenge, Dunk. I told you-I'm here for you. I'll never let anyone from the Guthithanan family hurt you again."
Dunk's voice cracked as he exploded, "But he crossed the line that night!" He scanned the room and quickly pulled Pond into a quieter corner.
His voice was low and furious. "He shattered everything I had. And now, with this marriage, I'm going to make him live with the consequences. He's trapped with me now-forever. I won't let him walk away so easily."
His gaze flicked across the room-directly to Joong, who stood beside Sarawat, calmly speaking to a business partner. Joong caught Dunk's stare and instinctively looked his way.
Dunk raised his champagne glass with a mocking smile. A toast to war.
Joong clenched his jaw, returning the gesture coolly-but his burning eyes slid to Pond, full of rage and warning.
7.1
"You broke the first rule, Princess. That means I get to take something from you. I'll start with this," he said, tugging at my panties and a needy throb ran straight through my core.
"Kyren, don't," I tried but it was to no avail.
He roughly pulled at the flimsy material, covering my most intimate part. The sound of lace ripping, filled the room. And the cool air from the AC bit into my exposed skin.
His hands slid up my back. He unclasped my bra with ease and it soundlessly dropped to the floor. His gaze raked over my trembling form with a satisfied hunger.
"You're not a cheerleader tonight. You're just mine. And I'm going to spend the next few hours showing you exactly what happens when you break my rules," he stated, before pushing my legs wide open with his knee.
××
Hailey thought she could handle the "Ice King." She thought she could seduce him, win the bet, and walk away with her heart intact. But Kyren sees right through her games. He doesn't want her seduction, he wants her submission.
As the lines between a dare and reality blur, Hailey finds herself trapped between her father's expectations and a man who wants to claim every inch of her. In a game where the rules keep changing, Hailey is about to learn that the Ice King doesn't just freeze people out... he burns them down.
9.3
They call Dante Moretti the ruthless and heartless mafia boss. Seven years ago, he made a
deal with Elara Vance. But he used her, broke her, and planned to send her to a medical facility
after she produces an heir.
Scared for her life, Elara ran away. Now, an entirely different person has returned to New York.
She doesn't want his money, and she certainly doesn't want his heart, unless it's on her
operating table.
The girl he destroyed is dead. The woman who replaced her is the only one who can keep him
alive. He's dying for a second chance, but he's just waiting for the first cut.
7.7
Five years of war, three peace summits. One rule that never changed. Ray Carter and Levi Morgan stay on opposite sides, until the night fate decides otherwise. Ray feels nothing, rules everything and answers to no one. He built his empire on control and his reputation on fear, and he has never once lost either.
Then Levi walks into the room. His enemy, his rival. The heir of the pack that took everything from him, his mate. One bond, two men on opposite sides of a war neither of them started. Laws older than their bloodlines demand they reject each other, walk away, and pretend it never happened. But the bond doesn't care about laws and neither, it turns out, does Ray. Someone already knows their secret and someone who has been waiting for exactly this moment.
The question isn't whether Ray and Levi can survive each other. It's whether either of them will survive what's coming and who exactly wants them to find out the hard way?
9.4
I was the daughter of a defeated Alpha, kneeling as a broken war spoil before the ruthless Lycan King, Kaelen Varg.
Through a twisted misunderstanding with a spiked drink, the tyrant lost control. But when he attacked me, an impossible spark ignited between us. His inner wolf roared in triumph, recognizing me as his fated Mate, and he claimed me in the heat of the night.
But the next morning, he woke up with another woman's name on his lips. Realizing he had surrendered to a lowly tribute, his eyes filled with absolute, violent loathing. To erase the humiliation of our bond, he shoved me to the floor like garbage.
"Take her to the Barrens. Leave her there. Make sure she never comes back."
His Beta dragged me to a sealed, sun-baked wasteland crawling with mutated beasts. They clamped silver cuffs onto my wrists, searing my flesh and suppressing my wolf, leaving me to die a slow, agonizing death.
I lay in the scorching dirt, the silver burning into my bones. I couldn't understand how a fated Mate could be so merciless. Why was my life worth less than his twisted pride? Why did I have to be fed to monsters just so he could keep his throne spotless?
The cold rage in my core solidified into a diamond-hard resolve. I forced my bleeding body to stand in the desolate wasteland. I will not die here. I will survive, and I will live to see his kingdom burn.