Novels by Zenrict14

There’s nothing scarier for an employee than getting summoned to their boss’s office alone. Especially when there’s nothing scheduled.That was my first thought when the intercom buzzed and Mr. Callahan’s voice said, “Adrianna, can you come to my office?”Callahan isn’t the kind of boss who invites you in for casual chit-chat. If he calls, it means something has either gone very right—or very, very wrong.“Maybe you’re getting promoted,” Jenna said, trailing behind me like my personal anxiety soundtrack.I didn’t bother replying. We both knew there was zero chance of that. Fired? Maybe. Transferred? Possible. Doomed? Likely.“Or maybe,” she continued, trying to match my long-legged panic pace, “he’s assigning you to something big.”“Go back,” I said, cutting her off. “I’ll let you know how it goes.”She lingered at the hallway corner like she didn’t trust me to survive. “Don’t panic,” she whispered, more to herself than to me.I took a deep breath and opened the door to Callahan’s off

The next time I met Eric was nothing short of a scene ripped straight from a romcom.It was a Saturday—the kind meant for staying in, binge-watching trash TV, or complaining to Jenna about our boss over greasy takeout. Or, if duty called, stalking a celebrity for a scandal. Anything but this.Instead, I was stuck in a high-end restaurant on a blind date my mother set up.My date was going on (and on) about a high-profile case he’d won for some CEO, and I was seconds away from using the woman at the table behind me as a mental escape hatch.She was telling her friends how her ex had posted another girl with a heart emoji caption, claimed it was her birthday, and said they were cousins—except she knew the girl. She was a senior back in her school days, and definitely not family.I was this close to turning my chair around to hear the full gist when he walked in.Eric.Wearing a perfectly tailored suit—his signature look—he walked like someone who knew the world watched him and didn’t mi

Do you think it is okay like thisI used to love my job. It kept me just busy enough to ignore the fact that my personal life was on fire.Wake up. Chase scandals. Expose secrets. Rinse. Repeat.Rich people’s drama always felt safer than my own. But today? Not even a cheating billionaire or a PR crisis can save me from yesterday’s emotional ambush.“You need to end it,” my mom had said.“No,” I’d shot back, like that one word was strong enough to hold back an avalanche.“You don’t want to end up like me, Adrianna.” She only ever used my full name when she was mad—or when she was right.And that’s when I made the mistake of asking the question that didn’t need an answer.“What’s so wrong with ending up like you?”Cue dramatic silence. The kind that echoed with all the things I already knew.She had me young. Unmarried. Loved a man who didn’t—or couldn’t—stay. And when he died, we got nothing. Not a name. Not a dime. Just a life she had to build from scratch.And now I’m out here… pregn

"What did the doctor say?" "Is she going to be alright?" "They're still running some tests." The voices swirled around me, muffled and distant. I couldn’t tell who was speaking or where I was. My eyelids felt like they were weighed down with lead, and trying to open them was like pushing against a wall. I wanted to move, but my limbs wouldn’t respond. Panic crept in—was this what being paralyzed felt like? My fingers tingled faintly, giving me a flicker of hope. "I'm going to give her a shot," someone said, their voice clinical and detached. My heart pounded. I hated injections—wanted to scream and push them away—but my mouth wouldn’t open, and I felt trapped in my own body. The world around me started to blur even more, voices turning into whispers that faded into silence. Darkness swallowed me whole. When I woke up again, I wasn’t lying down. I was somewhere else—a room that felt both strange and familiar. A warmth lingered in the air, the kind that reminded me of old memories I

“What do you mean?” I asked Damien, stopping myself from falling back into thoughts of Eric.“You don't really have a choice,” he started, holding up a document I hadn’t noticed before. “I took permission from Mr. Callahan.”If I’d been drinking anything, I would have choked.“You took permission to stalk my ex?”He gave me a look like I was being dramatic. “Correction—our exes. And it’s not stalking if it’s for work.”I wasn’t sure whether to feel relieved or annoyed. On one hand, it wasn’t something worse—like some new twist involving Eric. On the other hand, it meant I’d have to confront reality. And that reality was Eric.Still, some part of me was relieved. Because not knowing anything about the man who might be the father of my child? That was scarier than facing him.“So, do I have your consent to start our field trip tomorrow?” Damien drawled.I rolled my eyes. “Like you care about consent.”He just smirked. “You’re right. I don’t. See you tomorrow.”I didn’t respond, and he s

Looking back, I should have known Eric Thompson would wreck me.Even meeting him started with a disaster waiting to happen. And I remember exactly how it began.A Few Months AgoMr. Callahan is the kind of editor every reporter dreams of having. He’s like that funny bachelor uncle who makes family gatherings bearable. But he’s only human, and sometimes, even he caves under pressure from his superiors.That day, he stormed into the office, eyes blazing, and dropped his tablet onto my desk without a word."See?" He stabbed a finger at the headline flashing across the screen.ERIC THOMPSON: HEIR TO A LEGACY OR JUST ANOTHER PLAYBOY?It was familiar—because the sole subject of the article I was working on at that very moment was also Eric Thompson."I see it," I said slowly, wondering if he was testing my eyesight or trying to make a point."And you don’t even know what you did wrong," he said, voice tight with frustration.I frowned. "I can’t seem to figure it out."His eyes narrowed. "Ho