Novels by Jennifer Okoye

Jade swallowed. “And just like that,” he continued hoarsely, “you walk away?” His voice shook now. “You erase us? You pretend what we had—what I still feel—meant nothing?” Her chest lifted sharply. Pain flashed across her face before she crushed it. “It mattered,” she said. That pause, small and lethal. “That’s why it has to stop.” Kain stood there, watching the wind pull her hair loose, watching her stand like someone already mourning something she’d chosen to kill with her own hands. Then she shattered what was left. “Kain. You should know something else,” Jade said. “…before you keep trying to save this.” His body reacted before thought—spine stiff, instincts snapping awake. “We’re enemies.” The word rang between them. She wiped her cheeks with the heel of her hand. Slow. Precise. Like erasing proof. Like sealing a file shut. “I figured you’d find out eventually,” she added lightly. “With all your systems. All your people.” A thin smile curved her lips

The truth tore out of him before instinct could cushion it. “Once. Before you.” It was like watching a light switch flip. Not anger. Not drama. Just… off. A brittle sound slipped from her throat. Half laugh. Half fracture. “So I wasn’t first,” Jade said quietly. “…I really stood there believing I was special.” “I believed I was special!” “That’s not true—” He reached for her without thinking. Fingers hovering in the air between them, shaking. He stopped himself like touching her might make it worse. “I regret it. I swear I do. I regret not meeting you sooner.” Her eyes lifted slowly. They weren’t accusing. They were tired. Then why does it still feel like I came second? She didn’t say it. She didn’t need to. “Then why didn’t you tell me?” she asked. Her voice was calm now, which scared him more. “Why did you let me fall…why did you watch me hope—while parts of the truth were missing?” His mouth opened. Nothing came out. A second passed. Just one

Preview X Recap❤️ ───────────────────────── Hi, lovely readers! This is not an official chapter, but a special little treat for those who can’t wait for the next update, plus a short recap to refresh your memory and keep the story vivid. I hope it excites you and gives you something fresh to enjoy in the meantime. Drop your thoughts. This is a safe space. Happy reading ✨✨✨🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹 🌹PREVIEW: ───────────────────────── Chapter 37: Can’t Save Me The truth tore out of him before instinct could cushion it. “Once. Before you.” It was like watching a light switch flip. Not anger. Not drama. Just… off. A brittle sound slipped from her throat. Half laugh. Half fracture. “So I wasn’t first,” Jade said quietly. “…I really stood there believing I was special.” “I believed I was special!” “That’s not true—” He reached for her without thinking. Fingers hovering in the air between them, shaking. He stopped hims

The night held its breath. “No matter what,” Kain said quietly, the words steady but weighted, “I won’t leave your side.” The garden lights shimmered soft and golden behind him, but his focus never left her. His shoulders were squared, yet there was something bare in the way he stood—as if he had already stripped himself down and was waiting to see if she would accept what remained. “No woman…” His voice faltered for half a beat, honesty pressing through like he was afraid volume might break her, “I won’t leave your side. No woman has ever made me feel like you do. You’re the first.” Jade’s breath caught. She didn’t look away, but something in her eyes trembled. “You gave me the gift of falling in love,” he continued, slower now, each word deliberate. “My childhood…” He swallowed. His jaw tightened briefly before he forced himself to continue. “It hollowed me out. I learned how to function, not how to feel. But with you?” He took a step closer, careful, as if sudden mov

The scent of flowers mixed with the faint tang of the night air, delicate yet intoxicating. Kain’s gaze swept across it, sharp, deliberate, assessing, approving. “Perfect,” he said to Mario, his voice low, a razor-edge of anticipation in it. He checked his watch. “It’s 8:30. Do you think she’ll come?” “Hopefully,” Mario said, shoulders tight with cautious optimism. He looked like a man willing to pray to the universe right now. **** Kain let a slow, controlled breath slip through his teeth. The garden was perfect. Too perfect. Hours of rehearsal. Every string tuned. Every light tested. Every detail bent to his will. He had controlled empires with less effort than it took to prepare this night and yet his chest burned like something wild had been caged inside him. He checked his watch again. He paced, fingers flexing at his sides, straightened his cuffs for the third time, then dragged a hand through his hair. His pulse beat hard at the base of his throat itching for th

“I won’t go into details,” Scarlett said quickly. “Some things should stay sacred.” Jade swallowed. Her chest felt hollow. “All I can say,” Scarlett went on, forcing a breath, “is that it happened fast. Too fast. And I never erased him from my mind after that night.” The wind swept between them. Scarlett lifted her hand. Her pinky. “He took this,” she said softly. “My promise finger.” MJade shuddered quietly as she stared at it, her heart pounding so loudly it drowned out the city below. “He even promised me marriage,” Scarlett said. “I didn’t doubt it. Not for a second.” Jade’s throat tightened. “Then he disappeared,” Scarlett whispered, eyes glistening. “Flew out of the country for business. You know how men like him are. Always moving. Always unreachable.” Her laugh came thin and brittle. “Do you know how much that I waited? I hoped. I searched. For years.” She looked straight at Jade. “The auction was my miracle.” Jade felt the words sink into her bones

A month ago:As I stand here, silently observing the world as it continues to turn around me, a profound and a somber ache takes root in the depths of my chest. Each passing moment serves as a stark reminder of the stark contrast between their lives and mine. They stride through their days unburdened, pursuing their aspirations with a sense of freedom that eludes me. Meanwhile, I find myself ensnared within the confines of a reality that I never wished for nor chose.“Every day, the yearning within me intensifies, an insatiable hunger for something more. I long to shatter the shackles that my family's expectations have placed upon me. I burn with the desire to chase my passions, to venture into unexplored territories, and to infuse vitality into the dreams that haunt my restless nights. Yet, every step I take seems like a battle, an unending struggle against the oppressive weight of their demands and the chains of tradition that bind me,” I reflect, my thoughts continuing to echo in t

As the layers between them fell away, Leon's gaze traveled over the contours of her body, a smoldering intensity that seemed to set her aflame. "Take off your heels," he ordered, the words punctuated by his gaze that held her captive. With each action, Ava's daring seemed to grow, an unwavering assertion of her presence and her desire.Finally, the moment arrived, an apex of audacity and vulnerability that neither of them could escape. "Take everything off." The command, issued with a mixture of command and curiosity, hung in the air like a challenge that Ava met with a resolute gaze. She stared into his eyes, a silent understanding passing between them, a recognition that they were both testing the boundaries of their attraction.And then, as fabric fell to the floor and inhibitions were stripped away, a silence descended, heavy with unspoken desire. Leon's closeness was intoxicating, his scent mingling with the charged air that enveloped them. Ava's heart raced, the thudding rhythm

As she ventured further, the silence of the mansion's interior seemed to envelop her, the grandeur of the surroundings both captivating and imposing. Her gaze roved, searching for the man who had effortlessly dominated her thoughts, her emotions inextricably linked to his enigmatic presence.In the dimly lit expanse of the mansion, Leon's movements remained unhurried as he poured himself a drink, the liquid glinting in the ambient light. Although his posture was seemingly nonchalant, his senses were attuned to the slightest shift in the environment. He sensed Ava's presence, her arrival a palpable shift in the air, even before she had made herself known. His voice, rich and layered, broke the silence with an observation that echoed his own intrigue. "You are one brave kid, aren't you?" The words, laced with a mixture of amusement and curiosity, seemed to hang in the air like a challenge.With each step that brought him closer to her, the layers of mystery that shrouded him seemed to d

Ava met his gaze, her eyes steadfast and resolute. "I want to get to know you better," she confessed, her words carrying the weight of her determination. With a half-smile that revealed a touch of enigma, Leon responded, "Be careful what you wish for.... It will cost you."The words hung in the air, a subtle challenge that resonated with the promises and mysteries that had woven their paths together. The masked ball had become more than an event; it was a turning point, a juncture where their worlds converged and diverged, each step they took on the dance floor reflective of the journey that lay ahead.Drawing on her own well of courage, Ava took the initiative, flipping the script as her curiosity drove her to voice the question that had lingered in the recesses of her thoughts. With a steadiness that belied the racing of her heart, she inquired, her unwavering gaze fixed upon him, "Why did you agree to go out with me?" The weight of her query hung in the air, a palpable undercurren

There he stood, clad in a manner that effortlessly exuded charm and authority. It was as if time itself paused, allowing her to take in the sight before her. The man who had captured her thoughts and ignited her curiosity was now standing before her, a living embodiment of her dreams. As their eyes met, a palpable connection formed — an unspoken understanding that held promises yet to be revealed.In that fleeting moment, Ava's nervousness was replaced by a sense of wonder, and the discomfort she had felt vanished in the wake of his presence. The ambiance of the event now seemed to bend and mold itself around them, cocooning them in a world of intrigue and possibility. With his words still hanging in the air, they were poised at the precipice of an encounter that would forever alter the course of their destinies.A month ago :Positioning himself gracefully before Ava, Leon donned a coy smile that exuded an irresistible allure, a beguiling charm that effortlessly seized her undivided

In this intricate web of longing and uncertainty, the world had taken on an ephemeral quality, reduced to a backdrop for her yearning. Time flowed with the pulse of notifications, and each ding, each buzz, carried the potential to shift her reality. As the days melded into nights and then back into days, Ava's existence became intertwined with the device that held the key to a door she desperately wished to open.Her phone, once a constant companion and harbinger of anticipation, became a weight in her hand. The persistent staring yielded to a sense of resignation, a realization that the insistent vigilance was claiming too much of her mental real estate. The hope she held onto like a fragile flame was gradually extinguished by the relentless passage of time.It was in the midst of one such early midday, as the sun stretched its rays across the sky, that the familiar ringtone pierced the air. The screen flickered with an unknown number, a digitized beacon in the sea of uncertainty. Un