Animated Films Dreamworks Novels & Stories

When Naomi Sullivan married me, she was already ten million dollars in debt. I spent the last five years working three jobs to help her pay off her "debts" while providing for her as well as our son, Shane Lewis. Not once did I ever complain about anything. All along, I firmly believed that my efforts would pay off, and we would eventually lead a good life together. Last week, our company finally secured a massive investment. Naomi and I hugged as we celebrated the occasion. I thought that the hard times were finally over. Today, I ended up seeing Naomi featured in the financial news. Dressed in a formal gown, she was hailed as the sole heiress to a multi-billion-dollar empire. She was shown engaged in an animated conversation with her "investor", Jared Lewis. The news headline read, "Naomi Sullivan Completes Five-Year Adversity Trial, Proves Her Ability to Build from Scratch to the Board of Directors". I trudge home in a daze. When I get there, the five-year-old Shane is playing with the latest limited-edition toy robot. He looks at me with a frosty, distant expression that bears an uncanny resemblance to his mother's. "Mommy told me everything. You failed the trial, Daddy. You care too much about money."

On the day of our engagement, my fiance, Adrian Kinsley, and I are just about to exchange rings. His adopted younger sister, Sarah Nott, suddenly rushes onto the stage and exclaims, "She starred in porn movies, did you know that? How can you marry such a tainted woman?" All of our guests gasp in surprise. At first, everyone thinks it's some kind of prank. But in the next second, Sarah plays a video on the big screen and says, "The woman is quite the celebrity. She shoots more than 60 films a year, and her starting rate is 2,000 dollars per film." I stare at the face in the video that looks almost identical to mine. I'm stunned, as I'm the daughter of a crime boss with a fortune worth hundreds of billions. I casually hand out millions to my subordinates as rewards. Sell my body for 2,000 dollars? I have to be out of my mind to do that.

Rule number one of surviving Valor State University: Stay invisible. For twenty-two-year-old Skylar Thompson, the rules are simple. Keep your 4.0 GPA, work your grueling double shifts, and never, ever date an athlete. Except, Skylar broke her own rule for Shawn Crawford–the star running back who made her feel seen, even if he kept their relationship a secret. But secrets have an expiration date. At a campus bonfire, Shawn is dared to kiss his hidden girlfriend. With her hopes up high, Skylar’s ready for her fairy-tale reveal. Instead? Shawn bypasses her entirely and presses his lips against her toxic stepsister. Humiliated, broken, and pushed to the edge, Skylar gets even. Looking for the ultimate weapon, she throws herself at the nearest distraction: Trey “Goliath” Parker. At 6’8”, the brooding, legendary quarterback is the most feared man on campus, and Shawn’s biggest rival. It was supposed to be a single, spiteful kiss to save face. But someone films it, the video goes viral, and by morning, the whole school thinks they are dating. But Skylar has no idea what she just started. That one impulsive kiss breaks a years-long curse of numbness, and brings a certain other anatomy wildly back to life. Suddenly, the monster has a muse. Trey doesn’t just want to be her fake boyfriend; he needs her. And he will do whatever it takes to keep her. Skylar’s quiet, boring senior year is officially dead. The monster has awakened, he’s utterly addicted, and he’s about to teach her exactly how good it feels to be bad.