the ways we hide

Seven years ago, Emerald Hutton had left her family and friends behind for high school in New York City, cradling her broken heart in her hands, to escape just only one person. Her brother's best friend, whom she loved from the day he'd saved her from bullies at the age of seven. Broken by the boy of her dreams and betrayed by her loved ones, Emerald had learned to bury the pieces of her heart in the deepest corner of her memories.Until seven years later, she has to come back to her hometown after finishing her college. The place where now the cold-hearted stone of a billionaire resides, whom her dead heart once used to beat for.Scarred by his past, Achilles Valencian had turned into the man everyone feared. The scorch of his life had filled his heart with bottomless darkness. And the only light that had kept him sane, was his Rosebud. A girl with freckles and turquoise eyes he'd adored all his life. His best friend's little sister.After years of distance, when the time has finally come to capture his light into his territory, Achilles Valencian will play his game. A game to claim what's his. Will Emerald be able to distinguish the flames of love and desire, and charms of the wave that had once flooded her to keep her heart safe? Or she will let the devil lure her into his trap? Because no one ever could escape from his games. He gets what he wants. And this game is called...The trap of Ace. *** Book one of 'Obsessive Billionaires' series

17-year-old Brook Grigsby's life was never the same after her father died. When her mother remarried, she thought the worst was over, but it was only beginning. Her stepdad is a werewolf, and among his people, she's known as 'Missy Mistake' because, to them, she should've never been born.Ryder Williams has taken his brother's name and place in the exchange with his uncle's pack, Black Mountain so that he can find a way to bring his uncle's cruel reign to an end. When Ryder sees Brook for the first time recognizes her as his mate. He wants to protect her from all the abuse she suffers, but Brook would rather suffer than risk her mother becoming the grief-stricken shell she was before. As a war between Ryder's pack and Black Mountain breaks out, Brook must decide just how far she will go to save the ones she cares about.

Kataleya Tamia Rossi is a twenty-year-old young woman known for her tender heart and passionate desire to help all those around her. Many say she is the mirror of her mother, Kiara, in more ways than one. All of her life she's had one goal, to find the boy who protected her and showed her kindness in her darkest moment. A boy who lost everything in the process. Kataleya has spent the latter years of her life working hard on a project that took root in her mind as a child - a project which has now been brought to life. The time to meet him again has finally arrived. Kataleya knows she'll have to overcome many challenges along the way but she's ready. Even when her own special abilities are at a stage in which they're becoming extremely deadly to her, she doesn't care. She is ready to risk it all and wants nothing more than to take away the pain and hatred that has burdened the heart of the boy she fell in love with years ago. Enrique Ignacio Escarra is the ruthless and cold-hearted Alpha of the most powerful pack in Puerto Rico. His goal? To rule the entire island single-handed. But hunger for too much power is deadlier than an arrow through one's heart and Enrique is already shrouded deep in the abyss of darkness. Will Kataleyas love and determination be able to bring him to the light? Or will his hatred drown her in the poisonous depth of the darkness itself? Book 5&6 of the Rossi Legacies Please note each duet runs under one title. Alpha Leo and the Heart of Fire - Book 1 & 2 The Lycan Princess and the Temptation of Sin - Book 3 & 4 Follow me on IG - Author.Muse

Selene auctioned her body in exchange for a large amount of money. She has no other choice. Ito na lang ang tanging naiisip niya para mailigtas ang buhay ng kaniyang kapatid na kailangang operahan. Isang matandang lalaki ang nanalo sa pagbili sa kaniya para sa isang gabi. Nanginginig man sa takot si Selene pero wala siyang magawa, kailangan niyang lunukin ang prinsipyo niya dahil hindi naman nito maililigtas ang kapatid niya. A strong man with brown eyes rushed into the room. She couldn't see his face, he tore off Selene's thin clothes and tortured her virginity like a devil The old man was about to enter the room but was blocked by two men guarding the room. Magagalit na sana ang matanda dahil sa ginagawa ng dalawang lalaki nang bigla nilang sabihin kung sino ang nasa loob. When the old man heard who it was he left immediately. Paano kung ang inaakala mong isang matanda ang ama ng yung anak ay hindi pala at ang tunay niyang ama ay ang pinakamayaman sa bansa? What will Selene do? How can she approach his son's father? Lalo na at ito ang Boss niya sa kasalukuyan.

"What... What are these?" Selene stammered, her voice barely more than a whisper. "Divorce papers?" She looked up at Maximus, searching his face for some sign of a joke, a mistake - anything to tell her this wasn’t real. His eyes flickered with a brief moment of hesitation before hardening into a steely gaze. "If Jess hadn’t disappeared, we never would have gotten married” he drawled before delivering the final blow. “Well, Jess is back now.” She couldn’t breathe. Despite her best efforts over their three years of marriage, Maximus had never acknowledged her nor loved her the way he loved Jess. **** She signed the papers, and left his life for good, taking the babies growing in her womb with her. A few years later, She became a top medical doctor and did everything possible to stay away from Maximus. However, on her twins’ fifth birthday, they came running to her, giggling: "Mummy, we found our billionaire daddy!" She looked up and saw Maximus standing in front of her, clearly expecting her to run into his arms. Instead, She chuckled. His eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets when she responded with a deadpan expression, "No, babies, your Father is dead."

Rihanna Smith's boyfriend and step sister set her up. Ipinagbili siya ng dalawa, sa isang kilalang club na tumutugon sa pagnanasa at kasiyahan ng mga mayayamang lalaki. Sa kagustuhan makapaghiganti, pumayag siyang pakasalan ang isang bulag at baldadong lalaki na naging unang customer niya. But unbeknownst to her, the hottest Greek God she married turned out to be Dustin Crawford, a blind and crippled Zillionaire who could buy the entire city with the snap of his fingers. Ginamit ni Rihanna ang kapangyarihan nito, upang paghigantihan ang mga taong nagkasala sa kanya, ngunit lumabag siya sa kanilang kasunduan dahil nabuntis siya. After she got her revenge, she left him without saying a word, which broke his heart. Five years later, she's back as a billionaire's heiress even more stunning than before. Upon seeing her, he asked. "How come you left me when you're pregnant with my son, huh?" She replied, "Because our love game says we've done enough." He suddenly stood up from his wheelchair, gave her a passionate kiss, and said, "Wife, do you think If I were blind, I would marry you? Do you think a cripple could give you love and pleasure in bed? Our love game is not yet over; we're just getting started." 

EXCERPT. "What makes you think, I need to be repaid?" He asked and I went quiet wondering if I was insane for stopping him. "Well, you saved me," I told him and he stared deeply at me. "You will know then, and I also hope when the time comes, you will remember all you have said now". He added before proceeding with his movement. ********************************************** Acapella Williams. A girl who has an open mind is judged by the world because of her imperfections. Unfortunately, she finds herself entangled with the deadly man in the world. A man rumored to be the devil, who wears a gold mask with a skull diagram drawn on it. Mysterious, dangerous, tempting, alluring. He is all of these. Little Acapella finds herself torn between a world of hers and a world of his, especially when she finds out that her entire life was a lie. It is also discovered that her entire life was somehow linked to this same mysterious devil. Then she tries to flee, but the same devil is already obsessed with her. Now, will she succeed in her quest for freedom, or will she succumb to the darkness of this devil?

    "This marriage has been fixed and it must hold."  That was the rigid statement of Charlotte's father.      A wedding day was supposed to be a lady's happiest day, but in the case of Charlotte, it was her saddest day. Her parents were about to force her to marry Ethan, a person known to be ruthless. Charlotte's marriage was a pivot of financial benefits for her family, but her happiness and career was at stake.     Will she bend to her parents' wishes? She was at the point of breaking ties what her parents when her aunty said the following words,     "Do you really want to let your parents down? I will teach you how to display an irk attitude, after you get married to him, and in a very short time, Ethan will divorce you." Is this a trap? Will her aunty show her the easiest way out of this ruthless marriage? Her entire hope lies on herself to display an irk attitude to a man who has started loving her.

Restaurateur and self-exiled heir Lucien Lenault's first look at the breathtaking young chef trainee for his trendy Chicago restaurant is a shock. She’s Elise Martin, daughter of a wealthy French fashion designer. She’s also the holder of a secret that could explode his carefully laid plans. Notorious for her flagrant exhibitionism, and for flouting the respectable façade of her aristocratic background, the coquine’s wild streak shocked most people. Not Lucien. He was tempted by it. It was a deliriously punishable offense as far as Lucien was concerned. But taking on Elise is more than a game. She’s a catastrophe waiting to happen, an inferno that’s burned many a lover. Lucien isn’t most men, however, and he won’t allow her to manipulate him. In order to control the defiant beauty—in order to see her submit—he’s going to have to willingly walk in the flames…

.... ✧⋄⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋆⋄✧𝕴𝖋 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖎𝖓𝖋𝖑𝖎𝖈𝖙 𝖕𝖆𝖎𝖓 𝖔𝖓 𝖒𝖊, 𝕴 𝖜𝖎𝖑𝖑 𝖒𝖆𝖐𝖊 𝖘𝖚𝖗𝖊 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖌𝖔 𝖙𝖍𝖗𝖔𝖚𝖌𝖍 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖘𝖆𝖒𝖊... ✧⋄⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋆⋄✧17 year old Valentina Smith a girl full of life. She had it all a normal girl could ask for. Good parents, good grades, friends that had her back, and a loving big brother.But one mistake of her brother leads to her walking down the aisle as the bride of the heartless Italian mafia Capo Alessandro Romano.Alessandro has been void of feelings for the past 2 decades while Valentina expresses herself. What happens when these two collide?Join the journey of Valentina as she is thrust into a new life of mafia, blood shed and illegal activities. In between all the chaos she tries to win over her heartless husband.She learns that no one could be trusted around her, maybe not even the man she has gotten used to call her husband. Will she be able to keep up the fight as she faces betrayal, pain and family secrets?Can she give up after all she is bind to him by '𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁'.