reluctant crossword clue

When she returned to the room, he was waiting. Handcuffs in hand. Eyes full of something dangerous. “You’ve been a bad girl,” Leonardo said, voice low and controlled. “Now you’ll take your punishment.” Arya was forced into a marriage she never wanted—to Leonardo Marcello, a man with a reputation built on blood, fear, and absolute power. Cold. Calculated. Untouchable. But the moment he saw her, something shifted. For him, it was already too late. Arya is everything he never expected—soft where he’s hard, light where he’s all shadow. And the more she tries to keep her distance, the more he pulls her into his dark world. It starts with stolen glances. Then with unspoken promises. And before she can stop it, the man she was forced to marry becomes the one man her heart begins to crave. But their world is brutal. And love? In the mafia, it’s the greatest risk of all. Will the reluctant mafia bride surrender to the man who’s already claimed her soul? Or will the world they live in rip them apart before she ever gets the chance?

The crowd starts a countdown to midnight like New Year’s Eve. I close my eyes and smile, holding Liam’s hand tightly. Everyone yells “ONE!” and cheers. I open my eyes and see the iridescent liquid light of the full moon pouring out of the giant orb flowing down over us. People around us ooh and ahh at the beautiful sight.  When the first rays of moonlight cascade over my skin, I feel a heat inside me turn into a burning fire. I gasp and look up at Liam. He looks at me with wide, surprised eyes. “Mate,” he murmurs and squeezes my hand tighter. It isn’t a comforting feeling. There are no sparks like people describe when they touch their mate. Maybe it takes a few minutes to develop. I smile and try to admire Liam, but I don't want to say it back. Nothing feels different. I still love him, but he’s not the one. Liam is looking at me, but it isn’t a look of true love. It’s lustful and carnal. I feel a pit in my stomach. Liam isn’t my mate. How can this be? And how was he able to call me his mate if he’s not mine? “Zara,” a woman’s voice says in my head, “My name is Lavender. I’m your wolf and you’re in grave danger, my dear. You need to run. You need to run now. Your life depends on it.” “My… wolf?” With everything that happened the past couple of hours, I forgot she was waking up. “L-Lavender, what’s happening? What do you know?” Lavender repeats her order. “Zara, you need to run. I can explain later. I’m so sorry this is happening to you, sweet girl.”

ALICE RILEY “I like you; you’re a wonderful girl. But your stubbornness? I can’t deal with that. Unless you change—” Before he could finish, I said goodbye and walked out. Just a week into dating, and all he could see was my so-called obstinance. Honestly, dating wasn’t my thing. Men admired my looks, sure, but my mind? That was a different story. A few dates were all it took for them to brand me as headstrong or argumentative. I was okay with that. I had no intention of changing myself to fit someone else’s expectations. Then came Vivian Scott, the enigmatic CEO of Scott Group. He was unlike anyone I’d met before. Why wasn’t he running for the hills like the rest? Did he actually think he could tame me, bend me to his will? VIVIAN SCOTT I had everything a man needed to make women swoon—looks, power, status, and wealth. Becoming the CEO of Scott Group at a young age had made me responsible, but it hadn’t dulled my appetite for fun. Whenever I encountered a beautiful woman, I knew exactly how she’d react. I never missed an opportunity to tease and charm my way into her good graces. It was all harmless fun—short-lived and never serious. That was until I met Alice Riley. Alice was gorgeous, no doubt, but it wasn’t just her beauty that intrigued me. Her sharp wit and unyielding attitude set her apart. She wasn’t like the women I’d known before. Unfortunately for her, she thought that throwing up walls and flaunting her defiance would keep me at bay. What’s more thrilling than conquering the impossible? I was determined to bring her to my track! __________ Cover Image Credit: Image by Freepik

Avery isn't proud of her past as a stripper nor of the fact that she slept with a man who treated her no different than a prostitute...as a result of that night she fell pregnant and had a adorable babies... Alexis,Alexa and Alex...she turned her life around and is now working for a wealthy couple as a nanny...but Avery is about to learn our past has a way of catching up with us.. when the man she never thought she'd see is back and wants the woman he met a few months earlier....Amber Storm ...but Alexandro soon learns that Avery has been keeping a secret from him and this new found information is exactly what he needs to claim her as his own...

"This is the story of a thirty-five-year-old cold and possessive Alpha who falls in love with a twenty-year-old wolfless and tough girl. Celia Beck, the wolfless daughter of the Dark Moon pack, is sold by her stepmother as an Omega. During her attempt to escape, she kisses a passing stranger, after which she is forced to become his Luna. She rejects him in every way possible, but instead of giving up, he wants her even more, as if there's some kind of inextricable bond between them..."

Melody is living in a nightmare. Abused as a child she must fight to protect the new younger girls from evil. Loki is the Alpha Werewolf of a large Pack. He is stunning both as a man and a Wolf and loved by his Pack as a fair and just Alpha. When Melody takes matters into her own hands and the girls make a run for safety the Watchers find her and bring her to the Alpha. Loki is lost from the minute he sets eyes on the beautiful little waif. She is his fated mate but Melody does not even know she is a Wolf. Fighting against her passion and her Wolf Melody must learn to survive and then conquer her new reality. Can she accept her destiny? Will love conquer all?

Hailey Johnson, a gossip columnist, wants to get the scoop of a lifetime while hot rock-star-turned-actor Noah Magellan is in town filming. This would boost her column and help with the tabloid’s circulation numbers. She’s scrappy and determined, but often doesn’t realize the unintended consequences of her actions. Noah Magellan never wanted to be a star. He wanted to make music, but he found an agent early on who believed in him and his career skyrocketed. He is reluctantly doing this movie, but then he wants to find a place to hide out and get back to his roots. No one is supposed to know he is in Philadelphia for this film. He’s doing his best to keep a low profile… until he drags a woman onto his private plane, and she turns out to be his worst nightmare.Her Reluctant Billionaire Boyfriend is created by Chris Redding, an eGlobal Creative Publishing signed author.

Future Alpha Cleo Sharpe believes that she has it all: an amazing future, a devoted pack, and a handsome fiancé. She is horrified to learn that her mate is the pack loner, not the man whose ring she wears. Cleo finds this out as she finally has a chance encounter with Zander and feels irresistibly drawn to him. Neither one of them can resist the magnetic pull of a true mate and grow closer. Cleo even learns her fiancé is harboring a terrible secret. Zander Underwood is a man on a mission: he is determined to find his parents’ murderer, even if it means breaking his own heart and abandoning his mate. He will stop at nothing to avenge his parents' death, so they are not forsaken. As Cleo learns more about the dark forces that haunt the wolf packs, she will be forced to choose between the life she has always imagined and the enticing pull of man as intoxicating as he is mysterious.The Alpha's Reluctant Mate is created by Katrina Guerin, an EGlobal Creative Publishing signed author.

Martina was a compassionate daughter for her father, who became disabled due to an accident caused by her. Feeling bad, she vowed to do anything her stepmother wanted, which included marrying a stranger. She initially resisted the idea, but her evil stepmother threatened to cut off her father's treatment if she didn't. She had no choice but to marry the man her stepmother had arranged for her. She soon found that the guy she was about to marry was someone wealthy, which motivated her to believe that her future husband might be able to assist her father's recovery by arranging for the best physicians and treatment available. She was willing to give herself up for her father's sake, but what she didn't expect was that the man she is about to wed is one of the richest men in the world, someone who was much older than she was—even much older than her dad! After being married, Zion decided to bring his new wife to his place, an island secluded from civilization, where Martina met a handsome man, a handsome man that made her heart flutter.

Jamari has been through a lot since becoming the Wolf Queen. She has now found herself in the Vampire Realm and confronted with her Vampire mate who is less than thrilled about sharing her with three others. With the help of Fate, Jamari must convince Lucern that they are meant to be together, the fate of the Realms depend on it. With a new threat stepping on the scene, will Jamari be able to convince Lucern to accept her as his mate before time runs out? Or will his loyalty to another get in the way of the yearning they feel for each other? *Book 2 of the Alpha Queen Series (Book 1: Rise of the Alpha Queen)*