Why Does 'The Guy On The Right' End That Way?

My mother-in-law and I were traveling together. We'd just checked into the Solenne Hotel in Rivera City and decided to hit the pool. Then this woman—dressed like money and attitude—pinched her nose like we stank. "This is a luxury hotel. How did you people even get in? Sneak in just for the pool? Ugh, I need a test after this." Buzzkill. I snapped, "It's a hotel pool. Guests swim. If that's a problem, go build your own." Her face twisted. "Excuse me? Do you even know who I am? My husband owns this place. We always stay in the top suite. So get out. You reek of broke. You're contaminating the water." Georgina and I traded a look. Ice cold. This was her son's hotel. My husband's. Since when did he come with a second wife?

I was nineteen the first time Cole Whitfield broke me. Not with cruelty. With a single word. Why. Not did you — why. Like the answer was already settled and he just wanted the story to make sense. I told him the truth anyway. He said nothing that mattered. So I picked up my bag, walked out of his apartment, and decided that a man who trusted a rumor over two years of me wasn’t worth a correction. I spent the next two years becoming someone I actually liked. New city. Graduate program. A published paper with my name on it. I was done with Cole Whitfield in every way a person can be done. Then I walked into Seminar Room 114 and he was sitting right there, gray eyes already on the door, like some part of him knew. I sat down. I opened my notebook. I did not look up. Here’s the thing about studying how people form beliefs: you understand exactly why he believed it. That doesn’t mean you forgive it. That doesn’t mean two years of silence disappear because he’s learned how to look at you like he’s sorry. He wants a conversation. I want my degree. But the campus is small, the seminar table is round, and the boy who broke my heart at nineteen is doing everything right at twenty-one — and I’m starting to understand that composed isn’t the same thing as healed. I hate that I still know the exact sound of his voice.

Machines of Iron and guns of alchemy rule the battlefields. While a world faces the consequences of a Steam empire. Molag Broner, is a soldier of Remas. A member of the fabled Legion, he and his brothers have long served loyal Legionnaires in battle with the Persian Empire. For 300 years, Remas and Persia have been locked in an Eternal War. But that is about to end. Unbeknown to Molag and his brothers. Dark forces intend to reignite a new war. Throwing Rome and her Legions, into a new conflict

Five rounds of interviews, and I finally landed an offer from Gauthier Corp—earned it fair and square. I told Yvette Klutz, my girlfriend. Dumb move. She reported me behind my back and got me dropped. "Kevin's freaking out about not landing a job, so I gave him this one. Just shoot out a few more résumés. It's only a few days." Right. Kevin Hardwick got the job and a full-on welcome parade. I laughed—dry, dead inside—then called my sister, the CEO. "Haisley, think our company needs a new executive assistant?"

On the eve of his 26th birthday, Luca Virelli, heir to a multi billion dollar empire is set to announce his engagement to a woman he barely knows. It’s a merger of dynasties, a flawless public image, and a life scripted to perfection. There's only one problem: Luca is gay, and no one knows, least of all his ruthless, image obsessed father. Drowning in guilt, silence, and a future he never chose, Luca does the unthinkable: he gets drunk, kisses a stranger in a crowded club, and spends one unforgettable night in a hotel room with him. No names. No faces. No future. Just escape. But fate has other plans. The next day, as Luca meets his fiancée at their engagement party, that same stranger appears, standing calmly at her side. He’s her brother. Asher Hartwell. And he’s supposed to be straight. As worlds collide, desire smolders in the shadows. But love this dangerous can’t stay secret for long. When lies unravel and the cost of freedom means losing everything, family, power, legacy, Luca and Asher must decide: is the wrong kind of love worth everything it will destroy?

After claiming another pack, Kyler Vaughn of the Frostfang Pack was now the most powerful Alpha in the western region. But in all that glory, he seemed to have forgotten someone. Me, his destined mate, Elsa Thorne. Seven years ago, I took a poisoned strike meant for him. Because of that, I never awakened my wolf and was left a weak Omega. A year ago, he promised that once he became the strongest Alpha in the west, we would hold our bonding ceremony. Now that he had achieved it, my heart leapt as I ran to his study, full of hope. The door was slightly open, and I heard his voice. "We'll move forward with the plan tomorrow. Split into two teams, one for the Ember Pack and the other for the Shadow Pack." Another voice hesitated. "But Ms. Thorne..." "Why mention that useless Omega? She'll only slow us down. Enough of her." I froze outside the door, my excitement twisting into a bitter ache. I remembered the times he went on missions, while I could only wait in our territory for his return. So, this was how he actually saw me. A stubborn fire rose in me. I would go to the new territories and prove I wasn't useless. The next day, I disguised myself as a Warrior and stood at the rally point. When asked which team I wanted, the names Shadow Pack and Ember Pack spun in my mind. His disdainful gaze leaving me flustered, I blurted out, "The Ember Pack! I want to go to the Ember Pack!" I didn't know that my rushed choice would throw me headfirst into an unknown whirlpool...