When Does Armin Eat Bertholdt Novels & Stories

"Two families are here today hoping to adopt. You can choose which one you'd like to go with." In my previous life, I chose the Parkers, who owned a small neighborhood store. Life wasn't particularly comfortable, but they cherished me like their own. They fully supported my writing and helped me become a moderately successful novelist. Meanwhile, Sean Lowe chose the affluent Bennett family. Their home was comfortable, but cold and detached. He spent more than a decade trying to earn their affection, but never truly became part of the family. Now that I'd been given a second chance, the moment I saw the Parkers again, I nearly called them Mom and Dad. But Sean beat me to it. He threw himself forward and said, "Mrs. Harper, I want to go with the family that owns the store! I love snacks the most. I'll be good and listen to everything they say!" He buried himself in Claire Parker's arms like a kitten that had finally found its way home. I stopped behind him and didn't move. If my guess was right, he had been reborn too.

Clara Sterling, the richest woman in the city, successfully got a divorce and the custody over her daughter. I married her right away. Five years into our marriage, I've already quit my job and focused on becoming a great father and husband at home. Everything changes when Clara's ex-husband, William Sawyer, returns to the country abruptly. That night, my stepdaughter, Sarah Sterling, moves my things from Clara's room to a guest room. "You're my stepdad, so you can't sleep with my mommy. I can't make Daddy sad. You should leave our home!" The maids make fun of me. Meanwhile, Clara raises an eyebrow at me. "It's completely normal for Sarah to take her biological father's side. Don't take her words to heart. You're my husband now, anyway." I just hum in response as I pack up my luggage silently. Clara tries to climb into my bed late at night, only for me to turn her away. "Our marriage contract will come to an end in two days. Once the time comes, let's get a divorce."

I was the top engineer at the National Deep-Sea Research Center, and the only person in the world with experience in deep-sea rescue. When my sister’s submarine malfunctioned and was stranded ten thousand meters below the surface, I hung up on her distress call. Then I calmly walked into a police station and turned myself in for leaking classified research. A few minutes later, my father called. His voice was frantic and furious. “Your sister is missing. Where the hell are you? I’m ordering you to get to the site immediately and save her, or you won’t see a cent of the family inheritance!” I calmly pulled the blanket over my head and said into the phone, “I don’t have time, and you’re interrupting my sleep.”

Warning!! This book is Dark. Depraved. Addictive. When You Make A Deal With The Mafia pushes boundaries with unapologetically erotic content. Expect dangerous power plays, brutal passion, and kinks like—BDSM, degradation, rough encounters, and raw, unfiltered desire. Enter only if you crave the thrill of surrendering to the dark She was sold to the mafia to pay off her father’s debt. Now she’s undercover in a criminal empire and falling for the man she was supposed to hate. Adriana never asked to marry Matteo De Luca, the ruthless Don of the Diavoli, feared across New York. But when her father’s gambling debt lands her on the auction block, Matteo makes a chilling offer: The debts are gone, in exchange for her hand in marriage. What she doesn’t know is that Matteo has been watching her for years and he’s not just after revenge against his estranged father, the Don of the rival Colombo family. He wants Adriana’s body, mind, and loyalty. When Adriana uncovers that Matteo’s father is trafficking women under the cover of his drug empire, she makes a dangerous choice: go undercover to take him down. But the deeper she falls into the world of blood and betrayal, the harder it is to tell where the lines blur between duty and desire. As war breaks out between the families, Adriana must decide: Is Matteo the monster she always feared or the only man who can save her from the hell she’s in?

The Clan Healer told me that without the vial of Progenitor's Blood, the Blood Blight afflicting me meant I had only seventy-two hours to live. But my husband, Miles, the new Duke of our world, gave the only vial of the precious cure to my adopted sister, Vivienne, the woman I had turned three years ago. "She's in agony from the rejection, Isolde. It's a pain you can't possibly understand." His tone was self-righteous, devoid of any concern for the patch of skin on my collarbone already turning to stone. I nodded, watching as the life-saving, dark red liquid slid down another woman's throat. I accomplished a great deal in the time I had left. As I signed the documents, the lawyer's hand trembled. "Are you certain you want to transfer everything, Your Grace? The territorial rights of a thousand-year-old clan..." I didn't hesitate. "Yes. To Vivienne." My adopted daughter, Lily, the girl I had risked everything to save, who was now forever frozen at the age of eight, cowered in Vivienne's arms, pointing at me and screaming, "Aunt Vivienne is my real mommy! You're the witch who turned us into monsters!" I offered no defense. "Yes, that's right. Be a good girl and listen to your new mother now." The Progenitor's Ring, the symbol of the clan's supreme authority, now rested on Vivienne's hand. "Oh, sister, you're too kind," she sobbed, her sobs a practiced performance. "I'll be sure to protect the family in your stead." I nodded. "You'll run things better than I ever did." I even signed away my control over the Elder Council, a council sustained by my own blood. For the first time in a century, a shadow of complex emotion crossed Miles's face. He stared at me,"Isolde, stop fighting. It's better this way. You need to rest." Yes. On my deathbed, I had finally become the perfect, submissive Isolde they always wanted. An Isolde who was about to turn to dust. The seventy-two-hour countdown had begun. I wondered, when I finally turned to ash,

I died in the year my husband hated me most. Unable to endure his endless silent treatment any longer, I swallowed a bottle of pills and ended my life. At the crematorium, watching the flames roar inside the furnace, he allowed himself a rare smile. “Someone as vile as her doesn’t deserve to be laid to rest whole.” So when the staff handed him the urn, he flipped it over. My ashes scattered across the floor in an instant. All this time, he had believed I was responsible for the death of his first love. That belief was why he had schemed and plotted for years, all for this precise moment of final desecration. When it was over, he stepped over my ashes and walked away without looking back. Though not long after that, he fell to his knees and begged the crematorium to give my ashes back to him.

Joseph Larkin, my husband, who has been missing for seven years, suddenly comes back. Not only does he bring another woman back, but he is also asking me for a divorce. Joseph says, "Mabel risked her life to save me. That's why I have to marry her to repay her. If you know what's good for you, you'll tell everyone we're already divorced." Looking at his haughty expression, I calmly say, "But I've already married someone else." Joseph laughs disdainfully. "Who are you trying to fool? Everyone knows you only have eyes for me."

“You were only ever a replacement for her.” Those words destroyed Serena Cole’s marriage long before the divorce papers ever arrive. When Serena agrees to marry billionaire Damian Cole, she knows she can never compete with the memory of the woman he truly loved. Still, Serena accepted the cold marriage because her family needed saving, and because somewhere along the way, she began falling in love with her husband. Their unexpected pregnancy changes everything. For a brief moment, Serena believes they finally have a chance at becoming a real family. Until Damian’s first love returns. Old feelings rise and doubts grow. The man Serena trusted slowly becomes cruel enough to break her completely. Abandoned during the darkest moment of her life, Serena leaves the marriage believing she lost both her husband and her baby forever. But years later, Damian comes face to face with a little boy who looks exactly like him. Now the woman who once chased after his love has stopped looking back and Damian realizes too late that he destroyed the only family he truly wanted.

The company had been losing money for two consecutive years. That year, with our biggest client suddenly going out of business, we lost nearly ten million dollars in receivables. On New Year's Eve, I sent out a company-wide apology email after much deliberation. The email stated, "At this moment, I regret to inform that we can only increase each employee's monthly salary by 20 dollars this year." An intern named Ingrid Little took a screenshot of the email and posted it online. In no time, her post started trending. The entire internet criticized me for being fake and pretending to be poor. They said that my shameless act was a blatant insult to my employees' hard work. "20 dollars doesn't even cover commuting!" "Why hasn't this garbage company gone under yet?" Ingrid replied to each comment with the same line: "I don't care about the money. I just feel insulted. I'm quitting tomorrow." The next day, I walked into the office with bloodshot eyes and turned on the company-wide broadcast. I announced, "Since some people believe I've insulted their dignity, you may submit your resignation immediately. However, you will no longer be entitled to the year-end bonus of 20 thousand dollars." Everyone gasped in disbelief. Ingrid turned completely pale, and some workers even rushed into my office impulsively. "Boss, this has nothing to do with me! I stand with the company!" After all, my company had increased salaries for 37 consecutive years and given an average raise of over 2,000 dollars each time. They wouldn't find a company like mine elsewhere.

Lorenzo Machado. Sean McGrath thinks he's in control. He thinks he's untouchable. He's wrong. The moment I saw him, I knew I wanted him. He just doesn't know it yet. I've never lost a game, and this one won't be any different. Seven dates, that's all I need. Seven dates to break down the walls he's so desperate to keep up. (Sean.) I don't chase women. Women chase me. I take what I want, and I never stay enough for them to think that I'm theirs. But then he came. Lorenzo Machado. Mafia Boss. A man feared by many. And now for some twisted reasons, he wants me. I hate him. I hate how he looks at me, like he knows something I don't. I hate how he follows me, shows up like he owns the damn world. I hate that for the first time, someone is chasing me. I don't know how to run from him. And worst of all? A part of me doesn't want to run.