Roses Without Thorns Novels & Stories

Six years after marrying Rhiannon Westley, she takes a lover. He's like a puppy—timid and clingy. He flinches at the slightest raised voice, so Rhiannon never loses her temper in front of him. But when he acts up in front of me, Rhiannon snaps. She's furious, and she gives him a harsh scolding. The next day, he sends me a photo of his neck covered in red marks. "Zane, Ms. Westley is so fierce..."

When Alyssa's boyfriend dumped her after a five-year-long relationship, little did she know that she was in for a toe-curling slow burn romance that turns into a wild ride with another guy from another time. Through a bizarre phenomenon, she wakes up as Allena, a Celtic tribe chief's daughter in ~200 BCE. With secrets to keep, adventures to go on, and a man to love, a timeless heartwarming love story spanning tens of centuries unfolds as the tides of destiny bring two fated, star-crossed lovers together.

My fiancé is the heir to a mafia empire. For seven years, I believed our love was the one true thing in a world built on lies. Then, on the night of our engagement party, I found him holding another woman — my own half-sister, the daughter of our family’s oldest enemy — whispering words that shattered everything: "I regret everything. Come back to me, and I’ll call off the wedding." I didn’t scream. I didn’t cry. I made a phone call instead. Three weeks later, on what should have been our wedding day, I erased my identity and vanished from his world. But not before making sure our wedding would be one he — and every family in the underworld — would never forget.

She walked back into my life as if she had always lived there as if my heart was a home built just for her. Meeting her was completely unplanned, but soon turned out to be the most beautiful part of my life. I thought that keeping her away from me would keep her safe, but I was wrong. You can keep the person that gives meaning to your life away, but I should have listened to her. I should have given it all up for us to be happy, but I was too selfish to do that.

At the end of the altar stands the groom, the man I’m meant to marry beside the groom stood my mate.

"You will not wear that to my pool party, okay?" He was so close now, I could practically inhale his breath. "Why?" "Because I'm your brother and I say so." I scoffed involuntarily. "Yeah, right. You mean my stepbrother, whom I don't and will never accept as my stepbrother?" "Whether you like it or not, we are stuck together. And although I do not like it either," he stepped closer, his body pressed against mine and causing my heartbeat to increase erratically. "I would prefer not to add to my suffering by watching you flirt with some other guy." I swallowed, confused and conflicted. Does my stepbrother want me or not? Which is impossible, because seven years ago in high school, I was so convinced Liam Shedrach hated my existence. Why the sudden change after he found out we would be step siblings? Did anything change? Will the pretense to keep up the loving siblings appearances even last for long?

Sloane "The Black Rose" Volkov is the most efficient cleaner for the New York Syndicate—until she is ordered to eliminate Julian Vane, a high-level fixer who knows too much. But Julian isn't a stranger; he’s the man who saved her life ten years ago before disappearing. When the hit goes wrong, they are forced into a lethal "fake marriage" to stay alive, hiding in plain sight within the very lion’s den that wants them dead. As the line between their ruse and their reality blurs, Sloane must decide if her loyalty belongs to the family that raised her or the man who is teaching her how to feel again. In a world of silver bullets and silk sheets, the only thing more dangerous than their enemies is their desire.

Two weeks before our wedding, Jonah Alston suddenly wants to postpone it. He says, "Sasha says she's having her first exhibition on that day. She'll be alone during the opening, and I'm worried she'll get stage fright. I have to help her. We're just going through the motions with the wedding, anyway. What does it matter whether it's a day earlier or later?" This isn't his first time postponing our wedding for Sasha Lester's sake, though. The first time he did it was because he claimed she missed having homecooked food after undergoing surgery. He'd flown abroad to care for her for two months. The second time was because he said she wanted to head into the mountains to get inspired. He'd gone with her out of concern for her safety. Now, this is the third time. I hang up and look at Austin Everett, my childhood sweetheart. He sits across from me, looking leisurely as he taps his emerald-embedded walking cane on the marble floor. I ask, "Do you need a wife?" On my wedding day, Sasha holds up her glass and waits for Jonah to clink it with his. However, his eyes are red as he watches a livestream—it's the wedding of the scion of Everett Group, the country's largest property development company.

For ten years, I bled for my fated mate, Damian. I forged him into an Alpha. I built his pack from nothing. But on the eve of our Blood Moon ceremony, he chose her. He made his first love, Isla—the one who abandoned him—the High Priestess. Not me. He thought I was just some rogue with a knack for magic. He thought he could drain my power, cast me aside, and claim Isla as his true mate. But he forgot who I am. I brokered the treaties. I negotiated the trades. I built the wards that kept them all alive. He and his pack hailed Isla as their savior. They groveled at her feet. They tried to get rid of me. Their plan? Force me to escort a demon to the Abyss of Exile. But he never knew my secret. I'm no rogue. I am the youngest daughter of the Alpha King. I am royalty. So I gave them what they wanted. I walked away. They only started to panic when my wards shattered and their lands were overrun.

Our wedding anniversary also happens to be our son's birthday. A month in advance, I carefully plan a family trip for the three of us—me, my husband, and our son. But right before we're supposed to leave, both of them suddenly disappear on me. I'm left standing alone in the pouring rain, dialing their numbers. On the other end, my son's young voice comes through, sounding cold and impatient. "Dad's having dinner with Ms. Moore. We don't want to go anymore." The call ends, and I'm blocked. Later that night, they intentionally lock me out of the house. I'm left standing in the freezing cold all night long. Soaked from the rain, I come down with a high fever and develop pneumonia. Meanwhile, my husband and son are off vacationing with Sophia Moore, smiling for a happy family photo with just the three of them. And in that moment, I know this marriage has truly come to an end.