Empty Smiles

“Marry me.” “You don’t even know my name.” “I will as soon as you agree to marry me.” * * * Hana Kent has lived all her life with one rule continuously enforced by her father. Don’t fall in love. If she forgets, Baba is there to remind her. She must and cannot fall in love with another person because she’s betrothed. And as soon as she turns twenty-five, she will leave for her husband’s house. One rainy evening leads her into the arms of a stranger, who not only protects her from the rain, but the men following her. It was supposed to be an innocent kiss to get her out of an impossible situation. But once her lips connect with that of the handsome Calvin McKenna, she realises she’s a lost cause. Calvin knows better than to kiss strangers. But when the pretty damsel in distress rushes up to kiss him, begging him to play along, he’s more than happy to do so. After the kiss, he takes her to his hotel to clean up. He expects gratitude, maybe even her name, but what he doesn’t expect is to wake up to an empty bed the following day.

Sharon’s parents convince her to marry Tom, the only son and heir to a powerful billionaire family. To them, it’s a dream union — a promise of security, prestige, and a future beyond imagination. But behind the lavish wedding and glittering smiles lies an unspoken truth. Tom has no love for Sharon. Bound by duty and family pressure, he agrees to the marriage solely to appease his parents. In secret, Tom and Sharon sign a prenuptial agreement — a quiet pact that their union will last only three years. As months turn into years, Sharon’s heart betrays her. She finds herself falling deeply in love with the man she once viewed as distant and cold. She believes time has changed him too — that perhaps love has found its way into their marriage after all. Then, just when she begins to dream of forever, Sharon’s world shatters. She walked into their living room to find Tom seated a brown envelope on the table. Calmly, he reminds her of the agreement they made three years ago. Sharon is left speechless, her heart collapsing under the weight of reality. What she thought was love was merely borrowed time — and now, it has run out.

The Dennis Family is one of the most prestigious political families the world has ever witnessed, with the pride and fortune of a thousand generations, riches beyond comprehension, and a high-class reputation. Their most prized possession is their youngest daughter, Olivia. What the world fails to know about the family is that they come from a lineage of powerful witches and black magic. To the outside world, they are saints. To Olivia, who sees them for who they are, they are vile and sinister. She can’t stand the hypocrisy of her ego-driven and bloodthirsty family who only knows how to put a saint image out to the public, and she seeks freedom. She would rather not be the puppet daughter who wears clothes her family picks, waves at all times and smiles when she isn’t in the mood, just to keep the perfect ‘good girl’ image and appear perfect to the public. One night of tasting freedom, and she gets herself into a one-night stand with the Alpha Nathaniel Gray. The last thing she wants is to let her family find out she is pregnant. Sealing her lips shut and going undercover, she runs away from home. And Olivia thought she had little to nothing to worry about. Until she found herself in captivity of the Alpha, whose child she was to bear.

Brittany Anderson is a young lady who has done nothing but made her father's company remain in the top three list of companies in the whole of America. The time to make a bigger sacrifice came, and that was to marry Ace Miller, a young CEO in America. What happens when Brittany is arranged to marry him, to make her claim what was rightfully hers? He was once the reason behind her smiles each day, but all of a sudden, became her nightmare. What possibly went wrong? She has agreed to marry him even when they both had a sour past together, but that wasn't enough to get what she wanted. She still needed to make more sacrifices and, this time, something greater than getting married to him. Would she come out successful? Or would she allow her anger ruin all that she has worked for? Would she still let her hatred from the past lead her? Or would she let go of the past and let the present lead? What happens when secrets, lies, betrayals began to reveal itself, leaving everyone guilty, including Brittany? Let's find out......

Amara Blake’s life is simple on paper: double shifts at a café, overdue notices tucked under a refrigerator magnet, a mother who needs more than hope can buy. Then she collides with Damian Cole - ruthless, revered, and impossible to ignore - and is pulled into a world of crystal chandeliers, whispered wars, and rules written by men who never hear the word no. What begins as a temporary job becomes a tightrope walk between pride and survival. With a socialite who smiles like a blade watching for her to fall, and an ex-fiancée returning to reopen old wounds, Amara learns that in Damian’s orbit, truth is currency and secrets are weapons. The closer she gets, the more his polished mask fractures - revealing a man built on control, haunted by betrayal, and drawn to the one thing he can’t command: her honesty. This is a slow-burn, high-stakes romance about power and vulnerability, the cost of desire, and the dangerous mercy of telling the truth - especially to someone who doesn’t know how to receive it. What will Amara sacrifice to keep her dignity - and her heart - intact? Will Damian choose control or the woman who unravels it? Can two people built on opposite truths survive the shadows they create together? Read on to find out.

She is Kiara Monera—New York’s Ice Queen, an award-winning CEO who built an empire from nothing. Ruthless. Brilliant. Untouchable. She doesn’t believe in luck—only in power, control, and winning. He is Silva Blackwood—the heir to the Blackwood dynasty, feared and desired in equal measure. Arrogant. Dangerous. A man who has never been told “no.” They were supposed to marry. Not for love, but for legacy, power, and bloodlines. But Silva would rather die than marry a woman like her. And Kiara? She would never beg for a man’s love. Yet one reckless night in a dark club changes everything. A kiss that feels like war. A night that feels like surrender. And a consequence neither of them can ignore. Now, she carries a secret that could shatter her empire. And he carries a rage that could burn the world. Bound by betrayal, pride, and a baby they never planned, Kiara and Silva are forced into a dangerous marriage where passion and hate blur into obsession. But in a world where enemies wear smiles, secrets can kill, and love feels like the ultimate weakness— Can two people who would rather destroy each other than submit… Survive being tied together forever?

Alexis was your typical everyday good girl with excellent grades, a single best friend, an annoying elder brother and a family that loved her to no end. When senior year rolled up, Alexis wasn't looking to expand her small social circle of friends or put herself out there but things are meant to change, after all, change is the only constant thing in life. Paired to do a group assignment with the school's three new mysterious gorgeous looking guys at the start of the term, Alexis is tested in more ways than one. Cheesy pick up lines, rude guys, charming smiles, motorcycle rides, coffee dates and long hours together is all it takes to make her question everything she ever thought she knew. But what happens when she falls for one of them? The one with the dark hair and green eyes? What will she do when he finds out about the secret she's been harbouring all her life? She begins to regret her decision and wish she'd met him long before, but life has its own way of playing with one's feelings. Will her secret break their newly found relationship or will it make it grow stronger?

After two years of marriage, I believed I was living the dream—until the day I gave birth to our long-awaited heir. The house was filled with joy as my husband's family arrived, bearing gifts and ready to bestow a name upon our child, as tradition dictated. But the happiness of the day shattered in an instant when my husband walked in, hand in hand with his childhood sweetheart. In front of everyone, he announced not only our divorce but also his engagement to her, as if I had never mattered. *** "I’m divorcing Stacy," Jason announces, his voice unwavering, "to marry Nicole Cruz, my childhood sweetheart." He points to the woman standing before him who smiles and waves at everyone in the room. My world tilts on its axis. The words echo in my mind, louder and louder until they drown out everything else. What is going on?? "But why?" I whisper, my voice barely audible, even to myself. I'm unable to believe his betrayal. Jason doesn’t even glance at the child in my arms. "Because this has been a long time coming, Stacy. I’ve only stayed this long out of obligation and not love."

He divorced her for another woman, not knowing she was carrying his heirs. For three years, Elara was the invisible wife of Lucian Thorne. She warmed his bed, managed his life, and loved him in silence. In return, he gave her cold stares and divorce papers on their anniversary, accusing her of betraying his company. Heartbroken and pregnant, Elara signed the papers and vanished into the night. Five years later, Lucian is the King of Wall Street, but he is haunted by the memory of the wife he discarded. When a mysterious, stunning CEO named "Ella" arrives in the city to acquire a rival company, Lucian is drawn to her. But this isn't the meek Elara he remembers. She is powerful, engaged to a handsome doctor, and she looks at Lucian with nothing but disdain. And she isn't alone—she has two children who look suspiciously like him. When Lucian discovers the truth, he falls to his knees. "Elara, please, come home." She looks down at him and smiles coldly. "I'm sorry, Mr. Thorne. My husband is dead to me. You are just a stranger." Can the Billionaire win back the heart he shattered, or is it truly too late?

Princess Riley of Avarayne watched merchants with ledger, smooth smiles murder her mother at the docks and cast the queen into the harbour's hungry rip. Days later, her grief-numbed father guided by a new wife with colder hands than the sea stripped Riley's birthright and crowned a newborn son in her place. Hounded by courtly poisons and a stepsister who polishes beauty like a blade, Riley binds her chest, hides her hair beneath a bandana, and vanishes into the night as "Rye." Aboard the infamous Gilded Wraith under Captain Kade Thorne, the Wolf of the Azure. Rye learns knots, storms, and the language of survival. A slow, impossible pull grows between captain and "boy," even as she steers the crew through sea monsters, rival pirates, and raids against the royal fleet hunting them. But when a bounty bearing House Morcant's seal surfaces, Riley glimpses the conspiracy that began the night her mother drowned. Captured and unmasked to save Kade's life, Riley is dragged back to a palace that would sell her in marriage to silence the truth. To free the man who became her compass and claim the justice denied her, she must choose: reclaim a crown salted with blood or burn the lies that built it.