Phoenix Mode, Activated: Burn Me Once, Watch Me Rise
Chelsey loved Brett for seven years and tried everything for a baby-doctors, IVF, surgeries. Then she found out he'd been dosing her food with contraceptives.
She woke back at the fire years earlier and watched Brett carry another woman out, leaving Chelsey to choke in smoke. She realized he'd been reborn too-and picked his "true love."
Chelsey walked away and married Julian, her friend's cousin and the hot firefighter who saved her; he gave her all his money the day they married.
Brett scoffed... until Chelsey shone at an AI summit and Julian's real identity shocked him.
Seeing her with twins and another baby coming, Brett begged, "Come back to me! Please!"
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Chapter 2
Hope dimmed in Chelsey's eyes, and she felt herself slipping toward unconsciousness as she waited for the inevitable.
Without warning, a powerful, scorching grip closed around her wrist, and she was yanked forward into a firm, unyielding hold.
"Hold onto me!" a man demanded as he hoisted her up with little care.
Almost immediately afterward, an explosion thundered ahead, and his arm forced her head tightly against his chest.
Burning smoke flooded her lungs, and a blast of heat rushed past her back.
Cutting through it all was a sharp, chilling scent that struck her as oddly familiar.
Thick smoke stung Chelsey's eyes until they shut on their own, and she fought to open them, desperate to see who had pulled her from danger.
Through the gap beneath the firefighter's mask, she managed to glimpse a pair of deep-set, unreadable eyes.
At the same time, the edge of her vision caught Brett already outside the flames, carrying Lydia to a safer area.
Clutched in his arms, Lydia was held as though she were something precious reclaimed, and Brett's face showed a depth of fear and anxiety she had never once seen before.
Gradually, Chelsey let her eyes fall shut, and a quiet tear traced its way from the corner of her eye.
Deep down, she felt certain that Brett had also been reborn.
This time, however, he chose Lydia.
In their past life, he had pulled Chelsey from the flames, and that decision had cost Lydia her life.
Because of that loss, he carried Lydia's photograph with him for seven long years, grieving her day after day.
So much so that he would not allow any other woman to give him a child.
At last, he had saved the one who mattered most to him, making up for his greatest regret.
He must be happy now.
At the thought, Chelsey curved her lips into a faint, mocking smile.
Perhaps this second beginning was to give them a clean break from a relationship that was doomed from the start. Letting go felt overdue.
After Chelsey breathed in too much smoke and enduring the surge of overwhelming emotions, darkness crept into her vision, and consciousness slipped away.
Just before everything vanished completely, she thought she heard Brett's voice, filled with urgency and panic. "Where is Chelsey?"
Conviction settled in Chelsey's mind that she must have heard it wrong.
By now, Brett's thoughts and emotions revolved entirely around Lydia, and she no longer held any place in his heart.
...
Morning light greeted Chelsey when she regained consciousness.
Slowly lifting her lids, she was met with the worried face of her mother, Gretchen Holden, whose expression brimmed with fear and concern.
"Dear, you're awake at last. Does anything hurt? Are you feeling unwell anywhere?" Gretchen asked in a rush.
Tears welled up immediately as Chelsey bolted upright and wrapped her arms around her mother, clinging to her as if she might disappear.
"Mom, I missed you so much..." she said, her voice breaking as sobs overtook her.
Having her mother by her side in this life felt like an unexpected gift.
In the life before, a few months after she married Brett, her parents had traveled for business, and their private plane vanished into the mountains after a crash, leaving nothing behind.
From that moment on, aside from Brett's outwardly gentle but hollow affection, warmth had been absent from Chelsey's world.
Attention from others was fixated solely on her stomach, followed by whispers and judgment about why she still had not conceived.
Regardless of how much her body ached or how deeply grievances weighed on her heart, she had always endured everything in silence, with no one to lean on or speak to.
More nights than she could count, she had jolted awake from restless dreams, tears soaking her pillow as she longed for her mother to hold her again and reassure her that everything would be fine.
This time, however, fate had shown unexpected kindness by giving her another opportunity.
In this life, she vowed that none of those tragedies would ever happen again.
While Chelsey reached that quiet resolve, Gretchen continued to stroke her back with gentle, steady motions.
"Were you scared last night? Thank goodness Brett reacted fast and rushed in to save you. I was terrified. My sweetheart, you are about to get married. If anything happened to you, how would I go on?"
At those words, Chelsey's brows knit tightly together.
From what she had seen, Brett had clearly charged in to rescue Lydia the night before.
It was someone else who had pulled her from danger. The thought that Brett would take credit for it ignited anger in her chest.
Even so, she knew it was not the right moment to explain everything. Tightening her grip on Gretchen's hand, Chelsey spoke with quiet firmness. "Mom, I'm not marrying Brett."
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7.4
In a world ruled by dominance and desire, being an Omega is a curse, especially when you're mine.
On his eighteenth birthday, Luca wakes to a nightmare, his wolf has chosen the lowest rank of all. An Omega. The scent of submission, the mark of shame and the kind of wolf others own, use, and discard.
But Luca isn't broken, he's burning and the only one who's ever made him feel safe is Rafe, his best friend, his protector and his temptation.
Then Rafe shifts and becomes an Alpha and their wolves recognize each other, the bond between them is instant, magnetic, and utterly forbidden.
Because an Alpha claiming a Male Omega?
That's forbidden, but this Omega? He's different
Now their connection is more than a secret, It's a sin to their world, a deadly craving, slow, delicious and primal to fall into.
And when one bite can seal a bond or spark a war, how long can they resist it?
He's not supposed to want him.
But gods, he does.
And once an Alpha touches what's his... he never lets go.
8.2
In my previous life, I, Claire Holloway, was eight months pregnant, kneeling in a storm, begging Lucas Ashford to save the bankrupt Holloway family.
But he held his first love, Vanessa Wren, in his arms, looking down at me with cold disdain.
"The Holloway family's downfall was orchestrated by me. Did you really think I'd fall for a spoiled rich girl like you? If it weren't for getting my revenge today, I'd have found even touching you disgusting."
In despair, I died that freezing night—two lives lost with me.
When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day I was diagnosed with pregnancy.
Lucas was gently peeling shrimp for me, smiling as he asked what kind of diamond ring I wanted.
I looked at his hypocritical face and let out a quiet, cold laugh.
This time, I wouldn't make the same mistake again.
7.2
The Royal Pack’s glowing moonstone token rested in my palm.
Before I could even process the miracle of my rebirth, my half-sister Alyssa snatched it right out of my hand.
"This destiny is mine, little sister. Enjoy your cursed Alpha," she sneered.
My family easily caved to her whining. They forced me to take her place and marry Alpha Kaelen, a man they called an insane, crippled monster with three feral adopted sons. They laughed, expecting his beast to tear me apart before the honeymoon was over.
Alyssa thought she was stealing my crown. She didn't know she had just stolen my death sentence.
In my previous life, that exact token had made me the Alpha King’s Luna. But I was just a convenient, disposable meat shield for his true human mate. I died agonizingly, choking on poison meant for her, while the King didn't even blink.
I lowered my head, forcing my shoulders to tremble as if holding back terrified sobs. I played the part of the pathetic, wolfless Omega they all believed me to be.
But beneath my fake tears, I felt a profound relief.
I remembered the Kaelen from my past life. He wasn't a monster. He was powerful, agonizingly lonely, and slowly destroyed by a dark magic no one understood.
I wisely accepted the marriage pact and walked right into his freezing manor.
I know exactly who cursed him. And this time, I will save him, protect his boys, and make his entire pack mine.
7.2
Christa discovered her adopted daughter Evelyn was sneaking around with a street thug named Dante.
When she furiously confronted her, Evelyn squeezed out a few tears and played the tragic, abused orphan.
"Mom is so cruel to me, I just want someone to love me," Evelyn cried to the men of the house, who instantly took her side.
Christa didn't realize her anger only gave the girl the perfect victim card. Evelyn manipulated the family's guilt to drain their wealth and orchestrate a massive corporate fraud.
When the authorities closed in, Evelyn let Christa's eldest daughter Julianna take the fall, sending her to federal prison.
The Stephenson family went completely bankrupt.
Christa's husband Grant, crushed by the betrayal and debt, jumped off a Manhattan skyscraper.
Until her family was entirely destroyed, Christa couldn't understand. They had given the orphan a home, a trust fund, and endless love.
Why did Evelyn treat them like easy marks? Why did she use their kindness as a weapon to tear them apart?
Opening her eyes again, Christa saw the heavy velvet drapes letting in the pale morning light.
She was back seven years ago, on the exact day she first caught Evelyn texting that thug.
This time, Christa wouldn't scream or fight. She would cut off the money, drop the rules, and watch the parasite dig her own grave.
8.7
On the day of our mating ceremony, I wore a beautiful white dress, waiting to become the Luna of the pack. To ensure my Fated Mate, Kade, loved me for my soul and not my rank, I had hidden my true Alpha nature and lived as a fragile Omega.
But instead of my groom, my best friend Selena walked into the room. She flashed a fresh silver rejection rune on her wrist, smiling as she told me the ceremony was canceled. Kade had chosen her, the daughter of a powerful Beta, to secure his Alpha transition.
When I rushed to his study in disbelief, the words I heard through the cracked door shattered my heart completely.
"She's just an Omega. Her value doesn't compare to the loyalty of Selena's father."
Kade laughed coldly with his friends, calling our sacred bond a leash. He even planned to keep me trapped in the packhouse as a docile, broken toy under his and Selena's rule.
Every whispered promise of love was just a lie built for power. My disguise to test his true heart became the very excuse he used to discard me like trash. How could the man who promised to cherish my soul be so utterly ruthless?
Wiping my tears, I kicked the door open and publicly initiated the impossible: I, the "weak Omega," formally rejected him. After smashing a whiskey bottle over his head, I walked straight into the territory of his most feared rival—his older brother, Rowan. This time, I would tear his world apart.
7.4
As a princess who could not wield magic, Princess Daphne's only value to her kingdom was her arranged marriage. The task was simple, but when Daphne was kidnapped and brought to the cold mountains of Vramid, she realized that she was in over her head.
She had heard of these cursed mountains before― rocky terrain, freezing temperatures, and the land was ruled by a man feared by many within the continent.
King Atticus Heinvres, the blood-thirsty ruler of the North.
Even though she had never met him before, tales were spread of King Atticus's ruthlessness. Some said he was a monster, others claimed he was the devil himself, but whatever the story was, everyone knew of the man who had powers beyond anyone's imagination. He could topple armies and crumble nations with just one wave of his hand, aided by what others rumored to be a cursed obsidian ring.
No one outside of Vramid had ever met the fearsome king before. Not until Daphne.
However, upon meeting the formidable man, Daphne found out that the king might not really be the monster others had claimed him to be.
In fact, what was hidden under that obsidian shield could just be a diamond in the rough.
―
[Excerpt]
"Now... where should I put you both?" he asked casually, not expecting a reply. "It's regretful that I only have one chandelier."
"Underneath my bed? No, no, too dirty. My dust bunnies don't deserve this," Atticus mused to himself. "The mantlepiece? How about the vanity table? I suppose if I lop off one of your heads I could mount it over... Wife, which head do you want to stare at while you do your hair?"
"Atticus!" Daphne screamed. "I don't want any heads! Let them go."
"Fair enough." Atticus shrugged, and flicked his fingers.
There were two identical cracks as both necks snapped at once.
Daphne gasped, horrified. This man, her husband, had just killed two men with a flick of his finger, as though he was snuffing out candles.
"I told you to let them go!" Daphne cried out.
"Yes, I let them go," Atticus said. Then, his eyes darkened. "To receive divine judgment from the heavens."