pretend synonym

I barely have time to react when my back collides with the cold wall of my room. Gray’s hands slams against the wall on either side of my head, caging me in. his chest rises and falls. “You’re a coward,” he breathes his voice raspy. I swallow hard. “And you’re an asshole.” He smirks, but there’s no humor in it. “Maybe, but at least I don’t run from what I want.” I try to shove him away but with one hand he catches my wrists, pinning against the wall above my head. My breath hitches. His grip isn't painful, just firm and possessive. “You keep looking at me like that,” he murmurs as his lips brush against my jaw causing me to tilt my head, “but then you pretend you don’t want this.” “I don’t,” I whisper and even I don’t believe myself. Gray’s lips twitch, as if he’s amused. Then before I can stop him, his lips crash against mine. I gasp and that’s all it takes for him to deepen the kiss, his free hand sliding to my waist, pulling me against him. heat pulls in my stomach and moves between my legs. I should push him. I should slap him, make him stop… But I don’t. Because the moment his tongue brushes against mine, I’m gone. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………… He is my tormentor, my stepbrother, my worst nightmare. Yet somehow in the dark, when the world isn't watching, he becomes something else, something forbidden. We're never meant to fall. Never meant to crave. But here we are, heading straight for disaster.

Sofia just landed a job as a housekeeper and nanny in a luxurious apartment in the city's wealthiest district. What she didn’t expect was to run into Archie, a famous actor who happens to live in the same building. While he’s charming to everyone else, Archie has no problem showing Sofia his rudest side from the very start. As their worlds collide, they’re forced to navigate a tense neighborly coexistence filled with conflict—but will it always be that way? "I'm not your fan, you damn narcissist!" "My job is to pretend, and I have to say, you're terrible at it, sweetheart."

"Say you love me, Calantha," Favian demanded, those oceanic blue eyes piercing deep into hers. "Uhmm... No, thanks. The deal was to get married for a year. Smile before those fucking cameras and pretend to be absolutely in love with, after which you pay me my fucking money. So Mr Drake, cash or transfer?" Her indifference and cold response caught him off guard. A week ago, he could have sworn she was hopelessly in love with him. Or was it all a show? **** Calantha Donovan’s life takes a devastating turn when she’s fired from her dream job, leaving her drowning in debt and with no way to save her brother’s life. Desperate, she crosses paths with the mysterious and aloof billionaire, Favian Drake, who offers her a shocking proposition: A one-year contract marriage. No strings attached, no love—just a business arrangement to save her from her spiraling fate. But when the lines between duty and desire blur, Calantha finds out about Favian's haunting past. Will the price of their passion be more than either of them can bear?

"You’re making a mistake," James smirked, lounging beside Chloe. "You’ll never find someone better than me." Betrayal shattered Sarah Winters’ world. She thought she had it all until she walked in on her fiancé tangled in bed with her best friend. Humiliated but determined, she refuses to be a victim. If James and Chloe think they’ve won, they’re about to be proven wrong. Elliott Remington is a billionaire CEO, ruthless in business, and completely uninterested in love. Under pressure to marry, he needs a wife to silence his father and secure a critical deal. Sarah needs power, status, and a way to erase the sting of betrayal. They signed a contract for marriage. One year. No emotions. Strictly business. But playing pretend isn’t so simple when lines begin to blur. As jealousy ignites, hidden pasts unravel, and unexpected feelings surface, Sarah and Elliott find themselves trapped in a game where the biggest risk isn’t losing control. It’s falling for each other. And when the truth about Sarah’s past comes to light, the stakes become even higher. Revenge brought them together. Love was never part of the plan. But when the contract ends… will they be able to walk away?

Selene Carter, a human journalist on a mission to uncover a pack of undercover werewolves who secretly run the city gets killed in the process, under the full moon. She wakes up in the body of Raven Blackwell, the late mate of her murderer, Alpha Kieran Wolfe and is trapped in a dangerous world that she doesn't understand and must pretend to be Raven in order to survive and not be killed for a second time. 

I stood up fiercely with anger that was boiling in every part of my body. Who the hell is he to tell me what to do with my body! I moved closer to him and stood face to face with him. "Who the hell are you to tell me what to do! I am not keeping this child and you have no right to force me!” He growled. ****************************** Neoma’s life is devastated when she finds her fiancé in bed with another woman, a werewolf—the very people she despised so much. Now pregnant with another man’s child due hospital laboratory error during artificial insemination, she is forced to carry the child as it belongs to a powerful, fierce Alpha. Amarok is driven by a deep desire to become the mayor of the werewolf community to change rules by the older alpha that caused the death of his first love, finding out a human is carrying his child. He must keep the child alive by any means to achieve his mayor ambition, even if it means forcing the human woman to pretend to be his fated mate and to marry him. Will Neoma and Amarok overcome their differences? Will their love thrive after Neoma finds out that Amarok’s father was the one who killed her mother and made her father insane?

One minute Scarlett is catching her fiance in bed with another woman and the next she's getting caught in a storm that ends up being the most passionate night of her life. That is until she finds out that her one night stand isn't just her bestfriend's brother, he's also super start footballer Jett Heathrow. She tells herself it was a one time thing and it's most definitely not going to happen again. What she never factored in is getting into a fake relationship with Jett. As the line between real and pretend starts to blur, Scarlett has to decide what's most important to her, protecting her heart or fighting for the man she loves.

"I always tell you not to talk with your mouth full," Enzo murmured, towering above me, his fingers digging into the back of my head... Jaden has one plan: pretend to be Enzo's toy long enough to work his escape to Sophia, a girl he thinks he loves. But all plans proves abortive and he finds himself back in the bed of the same man he swears that he hates. The first night with the ruthless Mafia Lord, Enzo, would open Jaden's eyes to his hidden fantasies of being wrecked by Enzo. But even Lust and Love won't be enough for the trouble that's coming...

Sophia Ysabelle, 26 years old, accepted the life-changing deal of marrying the famous billionaire, Daniel Kelley, not for his money but his name. They have different reasons for marrying each other. Daniel needs a woman to pretend as his wife to get the biggest investment for their company, which will lead them to the top-grossing company in the whole state of California. While Sophia needs someone 'powerful' on her back while still seeking justice for what happened to her in the past. But there is a big problem between the two of them, they couldn't stand alone in one place facing each other. Daniel is a cold and arrogant billionaire with a smile as precious as a diamond, and who already put her under his judgement from the very first time they met. And Sophia is a stubborn yet resilient woman who never backs down from anyone's judgement, not even from her future husband's rudeness. But in the end, will she tell him the real reason for marrying him? When he finds out the truth, will he continue to judge her? Will he be able to protect her from her dark past or he will just remain a cold and arrogant husband towards her? "Never judge someone without knowing the whole story. You may think you understand, but you don't"