Before She Disappeared

I stare at the email on my screen, unable to move my fingers. Tomorrow is our company's crucial product launch, and I just learn that the patent for the algorithm I spent three years developing is now filed under Matthew Ashford's new assistant, Sophie Bennett. I storm into Matthew's office to confront him. Sophie sits on his desk with her legs crossed, looking completely innocent. She claims that she filled out the form by mistake. "It's just a clerical error. The patent still belongs to the company. What's the big deal?" Matthew stands up from his chair, positioning himself in front of Sophie. I can't believe what I am hearing. "Matthew, this is my research!" "Emma, you're thirty-five. Why are you picking a fight with a twenty-three-year-old intern?" He frowns. Then, he turns to Sophie. "Starting tomorrow, you're the new CTO. Emma needs… some time off." I'm utterly stunned. A decade of marriage and five years dedicated to building a company together have been shattered by a few casual words from him. Thirty minutes later, Sophie posts a photo on social media of herself sitting on Matthew's lap. They are both clinking champagne glasses. "So lucky to have the best boss ever. I'll make sure to be his loyal kitten." Below that, Matthew leaves a comment—three red heart emojis. I shut my laptop and pick up my phone. "Hello. Is this Mr. David Langley from Novara Group of Sundale Valley? This is Emma Whitmore. I've changed my mind. I'm ready to join you." I pause. "And by the way, about that unreleased algorithm upgrade, I have the complete technical blueprint. Make me an offer." Later, I fly to Tallisport with an eight-figure check in hand, while Matthew goes frantic trying to find me.

I am in the middle of hosting an international conference when my younger sister, Aubrey Keller, suddenly calls me. She is sobbing over the phone as she says, "Aster, my spot in the student exchange program was taken away…" I immediately rush over to Aubrey's university campus. She's cornered in the teachers' office, her eyes brimming with tears. A young girl with punk flair is standing in front of Aubrey, gesturing at her with disdain. "Trying to fight for the spot against me, are you? I'm the heiress to the Keaton family in Centuria. "My father even funded an entire laboratory building for the university! Who do you think you are?" A teacher standing to the side is also adding fuel to the fire. "Aubrey, Ophelia's father is one of this university's key funders. Why don't you just let this go this time so we can all move on?" I'm about to rebuke the two when I hear the phrase 'heiress to the Keaton family.' Keaton family from Centuria? Since when did my father, Tristan Keaton, have another daughter besides Aubrey and me? I immediately call Tristan's number and ask coldly, "Dad, when did you cheat on Mom and sire another daughter behind her back?"

Today is the sixth time my girlfriend, Shirley Lake, is supposed to meet my parents. My parents and I wait at the restaurant for four whole hours. I call her over and over again, but she never picks up. Just as I'm about to try one last time, I see Shirley's childhood sweetheart, Joshua Solomon, post a picture on his Instagram, with the location tagged at a suburban hotel. The picture shows a woman's pale back, one shoulder bare, with a striking red spider lily tattoo visible on her skin. Underneath the picture was the caption, "We'll make it from 18 to 80." A mutual friend comments, "First-love couples are the sweetest!" I silently hit the like button, then comment, "Make sure to get buried together when you die. And don't come back to haunt anyone else."

My best friend Joanne and I were mated to Beta Shawn and his older brother, Alpha Edwin, on the same day. But three years after our bonds were formed, their childhood sweetheart, Carmen, returned. Both brothers were drawn to her like moths to a flame, and Joanne and I—once their mates—became little more than shadows in their lives. Joanne, unable to endure the cold neglect her mate had shown her, begged me to escape with her—and I agreed. But the night before we were supposed to leave, she leapt from Moonlit Crag and ended her own life. When I called Shawn, her mate, he didn’t believe me. Instead, he scoffed: “Jose, don’t you think this childish little trick is beneath you? Trying to get my attention like this?” When I reached out to Edwin, he only smirked, voice colder than the winds atop that cliff. “Jose, do you really expect me to believe you? You’re just jealous of Carmen. Don’t involve me in her drama anymore. She’s not worth the trouble—and neither are you.” Their indifference shattered what little hope remained. So I severed the bond with Edwin… and left without a word. But when Shawn finally learned the truth, he collapsed at Joanne’s grave, sobbing and begging for forgiveness. And Edwin? He howled into the night, desperation twisting his voice as he roared: “Come back, Jose! I won’t lose my mate—not you too!” But by then, I was already gone. And I had no intention of returning.

Rita Brown once loved Liam Wilson deeply, and used to believe that during the eight years of their marriage she could win his cold heart and make him love her. She thought she had given him everything! But she was so wrong to think so. So wrong to have loved him from the start. But she didn't realize she would have to give even more to get killed by Liam. She was pushed down from the stairs by him and She watched as Liam looked at her coldly and said mercilessly, " You deserve to die!" Rita was heartbroken at that very moment and swore to herself that if she could live through this, she would get a divorce. Luckily for her, she was reborn and time flew back to three years ago. Now that she had gotten one more chance at life, she swore never to be crazy over Liam and never allow what happened in her past life to repeat itself. She took back her obsession with him, but this time Liam wouldn’t Let her go. When she tried to escape away, he grabbed her waist to his, and said to her, “Do you think you can escape after wining my heart over.” Rita smiled… Did this scumbag think she would fall for him the second time?

In their two years of marriage, Helma King’s husband had been home no more than ten times. The last time he was home, he asked for a divorce. In her devastation, she got into an accident and lost her memory! No longer blinded by love, she refused to humble herself for the sake of peace. Instead, she resumed her position as the little princess of the wealthiest King family. With her headstrong and sassy personality, she kicked ass and taught all the scumbags a lesson. During a show, a reporter asked, “Miss King, is it true that you filed for a divorce because someone stole your husband?” Helma King smiled. “He’s just a man. If she wants him, she can have him. There are plenty of men to go around.” Hearing that, everyone turned to look at Young Master Guller, Helma King’s ex-husband, who was scowling with bloodshot eyes.

“You can’t blame me. Her father is the richest man in this country. You’re just an orphan. You should be grateful I even dated you. I won’t mind having you as my mistress though.” These were the words of my boyfriend after catching him in bed with my best friend. If it were with any other woman, it would have been less painful. But my best friend sleeping with my boyfriend behind my back? How does one heal from that? For the first time in my life; I am going to be very mean, because how could they? Yes, I was an orphan but does that give anyone the right to trample all over me? Well, I’d become the wife of that richest man! And have them address me as “Mom”

For twenty-four years, Alpha Draegon longed for a son, but the Moon Goddess had other plans. When his wife bore a daughter, he defied fate and raised her as a boy, hiding her true identity from the world. On Valen’s eighteenth birthday, the feared Lycanis warriors descend upon their kingdom, demanding a male from every family—or war will follow. To protect her secret, Draegon prepares to offer himself in her place. But before dawn breaks, Valen is gone. She has surrendered herself to the Lycanis. Taken to the High Dark Mountain—a cursed land where no man has ever survived—Valen learns the terrifying truth. The Lycanis are on the brink of extinction, and the men taken captive are meant for one thing: to breed. The strongest among them will become warriors, the weakest will become slaves. To her horror, Valen is both strong and dangerously beautiful, making her the most desired among the Lycanis females. But one man’s attention is deadlier than all their King. A monstrous warrior feared by all, he chooses Valen as his personal guard, unwittingly drawn to the one person who holds his fate in her hands. Valen struggles to conceal the truth because he is bound by duty, tormented by forbidden dreams, and forced to endure his darkest indulgences. Yet, secrets have a way of unraveling. And when war erupts, a single spear thrust reveals the one truth that could change everything—Valen is no man. Now, the King must decide: will he cast her aside as a traitor, or will he claim the only soul that can soothe his madness?

Five years had gone by since my death. The cops called my mom and told her they got news about me. My mother and brother marched to my grandmother's home and kicked her door down. "Where's Charlie? That shameless woman has been hiding from us far too long. Her brother needs her cornea, and she's giving it to him!" "Charlie's dead," said my grandmother, sobbing. My mother sneered. "As if. The cops called us. They said they had her news. Hand her over or get out of the house, you hag." My grandmother looked at her daughter, tears streaming down her cheeks. With trembling hands, she took my photo out. "I wonder if you've ever regretted saving your brother, Charlie."

He was inside me when I realized I didn't even know his name. I'm Harper and my life went to shit the day I walked in on my husband balls deep in my best friend. He threw divorce papers at me like I was nothing. So I got drunk in LA and let a stranger fuck me in ways that made me forget I ever had a husband. His fingers. His tongue. The way he pinned my wrists above my head and made me beg. I came three times before dawn and slipped out while he was sleeping. Biggest mistake of my life. Because now he's sitting across from me at my job interview with that same hungry look in his eyes. Hardin Wolfe. Billionaire. Ruthless bastard. The man who's been looking for me since I left his bed. "I've been searching for you," he says, and I feel it between my thighs. I need this job. I need to destroy the people who destroyed me. But working for Hardin means late nights alone in his office. Business trips with one hotel room. His hand on my lower back burning through my clothes. I keep saying no. He keeps getting closer. When he finally gets me alone on a work trip, I stop fighting it. He fucks me against the window where anyone could see and I don't care. I'm addicted to the way he makes me feel. Powerful. Wanted. Alive. Then I miss my period. I'm pregnant and it could be his. Or it could be my ex husband's from our last hate fuck before the divorce. Now my ex wants me back. Hardin's hiding something that could ruin everything. And I'm carrying a baby that might belong to the wrong man. Revenge never felt this good