Mantis Blades Elden Ring Novels & Stories

After dating for seven years, I proposed a hundred and one times to my boyfriend, Jason Brown. However, he always told me that he was not ready, rejecting my proposals. This continued to my 28th birthday. In his suit pocket, I found a ring box. Thinking he was about to propose to me, I was overjoyed. However, to my horror, I saw him going down on one knee to propose to his assistant, Marcella Hopkins. Right before my eyes, he placed the ring I had yearned for so long on her finger. When one of his buddies asked what he planned to do with me, Jason wrapped his arm around his new love and chuckled. "Dude, I don't think I can bring myself to marry a woman who wants to get married that badly. She's so needy. However, if I do get a second wife, I might consider her. After all, she is hopelessly in love with me." He was sure I would wait for him, and he even placed a bet with his friends that I would crash his wedding. However, on his wedding day, I never showed up. Moments before his wedding ceremony was about to start, he suddenly noticed me, fully dressed up in a wedding gown in a separate banquet hall. Seeing me about to marry someone else, he almost went crazy.

Among our kind, there's an old rule. Every Luna must carry a token of her rank, and only the woman wearing that token has the right to stand at the Alpha's side. I'd been with Damien Cole for seven years. For the Luna token, I gave him everything. I took care of him down to the smallest detail. I once threw myself between him and a rogue's claws, which is why there's a scar across my stomach that will never fade. And then, at the pack banquet, Serena walked in on Damien's arm in a couture gown and, in front of everyone, dared me to hand over the moonstone ring that marked me as Luna. Damien saw the whole thing. He said nothing. He let it happen. Everyone waited for me to scream, to make a scene. I didn't. I slid the moonstone ring off my finger, calm as anything, and pushed it onto hers. "It suits you better than it ever suited me." Something like surprise flickered behind Damien's eyes, but it melted fast into smugness. "Aurora. You finally learned your place." I kept my head down. The corner of my mouth curved. I hadn't learned my place. A month ago, I got back every memory I'd lost. I'm the Alpha King's long-lost daughter. In three days, he's coming to take me home himself.

My grandmother only knows how to draw one thing—infants. They're ugly, but people line up to buy the paintings. I watch as she takes those women into unlit rooms. Then, their bloodcurdling screams will ring out. Oddly enough, they always thank my grandmother when they're leaving. One day, I finally find out what exactly my grandmother paints. I discover the truth when I see an infant crawl out of one of the women's bellies—it looks just like the one my grandmother has painted.

Loraine Winehouse is a married woman, but she’s struggling to keep her own husband to herself. Jack Winehouse is every woman’s dream, but the ring on his finger keeps him chained to a life he’s not sure he wants. He loves women, but duty comes first—and that includes Loraine. But what happens when the air suddenly shifts, and Loraine becomes the very woman he can’t stop craving? Will Jack finally see her as his wife? Or will Loraine have to fight for their marriage the only way she knows how... by seducing her own billionaire husband?

ICE: The Alpha’s Unwanted OMEGA BOOK 3 "I told you to stay off my ice, Parker. The next time you cross the red line into my territory, I won't just break your skates. I'll break your wolf." Ethan Carter is the undisputed King of the Mysticfall winter league—a brutal, dominant Alpha who rules the arena and his pack with an iron fist. He needs a political alliance with the powerful Bennett family to secure his territory's hunting rights before the full moon freezes the valley solid. What he doesn't need is the intoxicating, infuriating presence of Collins Parker back in his den. Collins is a fierce, defiant omega from the northern hills who refuses to kneel to any captain. He thought his bond with Ethan was a sacred vow spoken to the moon. Instead, he got a one-way ticket to exile and a shattered heart when Ethan chose a blood-contract wedding with Chloe Bennett over their mate-bond. Driven away to the frozen border cabins of Skydrivee with two young pups and his pride torn to ribbons, Collins swears he is done chasing a ghost. He scrubs Ethan's scent from his furs, sharpens his steel blades, and prepares to run the winter wilderness alone. But a true Alpha’s mark can never be fully erased. "You sold your body to a rival house to save your franchise, Ethan. Don't look at my pups. Don't come near my bed. You chose your altar. Now sleep on it."

She wore his brother’s ring… but carried his child. One reckless night shattered every rule. Now, she’s the CEO’s assistant by day, his forbidden obsession by night — and hiding the secret that could destroy them both. If the truth comes out, he risks his family, his empire, and his name. But the deeper he falls, the harder it is to let her go. A brother’s fiancée. A dangerous affair. A baby that changes everything. Some sins can be forgiven. Others start wars. Which one will this love ignite?

Trigger Warnings! Do Not Read If You Cannot Handle: Sexual Assult, Abuse, Drugs, Drinking, Smoking/Vaping, Fighting, Emotional Abuse, Depression, Anxiety, Mental Breakdowns, Self Harm, Suicidal Thoughts, Murder, Blood and Disturbing Descriptions What can you do when someone out of greed takes away your sight? There are people made of pure greed out in the world. Being able to grant wishes places a giant target on her back. After having her sight stolen by her grandfather, Nicolette has trained long and hard to survive and defend herself in case he may return. Living in seclusion for many years, she is able to train in private and harness her skills to become a top assassin. Her first mission was challenging. She was given the task of marrying a mafia king in Italy, who turned out to be someone she knew from long ago. She held her blades in her hand, ready to kill him when the time was right, but she could never bring herself to do so. Delaying her task, she becomes absorbed in the dangerous world of guns and bullets. When her grandfather finally comes to take her back for his plans, she has no choice but to break her code and rely on her husband for help. Bloodshed in a world of mafia and assassins is inevitable, but who are you willing to lose? "The world may be a dangerous place, and you may be a strong man, but I am far more deadly." "You can rely on me amore mio. I am here to protect and serve you."

In Chicago's underworld, power is currency and loyalty is bought in blood. Jameson Connelly needs a wife to claim his throne. Catarina Vitale needs an escape from her gilded cage. Their arranged marriage should be simple—a business transaction, nothing more. Except nothing about this is simple. To the world, Catarina is the perfect Italian princess: refined, untouchable, ornamental. The truth is far more dangerous. She's been trained since childhood to wield blades with lethal precision, her family's most lethal weapon hidden behind designer dresses and polite smiles. When Jameson discovers her midnight blade work and weapons collection, all bets are off. He's grumpy, commanding, and impossibly sexy—everything she shouldn't want. She's lethal, sarcastic, and hiding secrets that could shatter his world. The attraction between them is instantaneous and absolutely forbidden. But their marriage has painted targets on both families' backs. Rival factions circle like sharks, and assassination attempts multiply as quickly as the stolen glances between newlyweds. When Jameson's uncle emerges as a threat from within, Cat must decide how far she'll go to protect the man she's sworn to resent. And Jameson must choose between the empire he's always wanted and the woman he never expected to need. In a world where trust is weakness and love is a liability, they'll have to forge something stronger than steel to survive. A gritty slow-burn mafia romance featuring grumpy meets curvy, sharp banter, dangerous secrets, and the kind of tension that burns hotter than any fire.

Seavora, Carmoria After seven years of a long-distance marriage, I was finally transferred to Leah Lambert's city. On Valentine's Day, I crossed Carmoria with my transfer papers, a big bouquet of roses, and a new diamond ring hidden in the bouquet. I waited outside her office, ready to surprise her. "Babe, where are you?" The second she walked out, I video-called her. I'd been counting down to this moment for years. Her voice was as gentle as ever. "Just got off work. What's up?" "Nothing. Just miss you. Do you miss me?" "Of course I do." A smile tugged at my lips. Thinking about her reaction when she saw me, I stepped toward her. "Really? Then turn around and—" My voice cut out. I froze. Her arm was wrapped around a man in a suit. Then she lifted her head and kissed the man. "If it's not urgent, I'll call you when I'm free. I have something important to do right now." She hung up. I stood in the cold and heard the man tease, "Babe, what's so important?" The woman I'd loved through college and seven years of marriage didn't hesitate. "Being with you." Tears hit the roses. I stared at the diamond ring nestled in the bouquet and let out a bitter laugh. So that's all I am to you? Someone who only matters when it's convenient.

Anthony Vitale—my husband’s older brother—was found dead after a fall at one of the family’s private properties on Long Island. He died before the men around him could even call it an accident. My husband, Enzo Vitale, stepped in as head of the family. At the same time, the senior men of the family made the decision for him—Enzo would take responsibility for his brother’s widow. His mother, Donna Victoria Vitale—the one truly running things behind the scenes—made it clear in the study at the estate. “Sophia is alone now,” she said. “You take her in. First, to carry on your brother’s bloodline. Second, to keep her under this family’s protection. This is family law.You don’t get a say.” That night, Enzo held me close, his voice low and soothing. “Elena, I’ll give her one child. That’s it. Once she’s pregnant, I’m done with her. You’re the only one who matters to me.” I believed him. But things didn’t stay that way. At first, he spent one night a month with her. Then it turned into one night a month with me. That was when I knew—he wasn’t mine anymore. The day Sophia announced her pregnancy at the private medical office the Vitales used, Enzo slipped the Vitale heirloom onto her finger—a black onyx signet ring engraved with the Vitale crest. It was the same ring he gave me when we got engaged. And he did it in front of everyone. That was the moment I knew—it was time to walk away.