Echoes of Desire Dance of Deception

Modern

Twenty minutes before the "Wedding of the Century" at The Plaza, I stood outside the Presidential Suite in a fifty-thousand-dollar Vera Wang gown. I was the girl from a West Virginia trailer park about to marry Hugh Maxwell, the golden heir to a billion-dollar defense empire. I pushed the door open only to find Hugh pinned against the bed with my own stepsister, Floy. She was wearing my bridal diamond necklace, and the sounds of their laughter scraped against my eardrums like sandpaper. I didn't scream; I listened as Hugh grunted that once the wedding was over and the trust fund unlocked, he'd dump "that hillbilly trash" on a bus back to the mountains. They weren't just cheating; they were planning to steal my family's land deeds and leave me with nothing. When I set off the sprinklers and exposed their naked bodies to the paparazzi, the Maxwell family didn't apologize. They called me a "greedy peasant" and threatened to ruin my life unless I signed a new deal to save their crashing stock. I realized then that I was never a bride to them. I was a transaction, a rounding error in a ledger to be used and discarded. They thought my poverty made me weak and my silence made me a victim. "If we don't have a marriage certificate by midnight, the bank freezes thirty percent of our liquidity," their lawyer warned. So, I gave them exactly what they wanted. I used a loophole in their hundred-year-old family covenant and married the only other direct heir available. I didn't marry Hugh. I walked into the ICU and married his uncle, Fleet Maxwell-the legendary war hero who had been in a vegetative state for months. Now, I am the matriarch of the Maxwell dynasty. I've suspended Hugh's executive powers, exiled my mother-in-law to the Swiss Alps, and taken control of the family vault. They think I'm just a gold-digger waiting for a "corpse" to die so I can collect a fifty-million-dollar widow's payout. But last night, as I lay beside my comatose husband, the man they called a vegetable gripped my hand back.

Romance

With a shift, I let my dress slip from my shoulders and to the floor, revealing the lingerie beneath. Nathan's eyes darken, as closing the small distance between us, his lips claim mine in a possessive kiss, his tongue tangling with mine, both hungry and tender. Then, slowly, oh so tantalizingly slo

Romance

Ultimately, the story explores themes of love, deception, and self-discovery as Violette navigates the complexities of her relationships and confronts the harsh realities of her situation. With her world unraveling around her, Violette must summon the courage to confront the truth and chart a new co

Literature

The Dance of Death by Francis Douce

Romance

So what can I do for you, young lady?" Andrew asked.  "My name is Lily, and I am here to apply for a job in your company." Lily pushed forward her credentials towards Andrew for a review.  "I can see you have good qualifications here, but you lack working experience," Andrew said to Lily.  "Actua

Romance

"It's really beautiful here in Macau!" I shouted when I got to the hotel swimming pool. I don't know what happened but I know that this is my year, that I was lucky because I was chosen in the raffle earlier in the office and I was still with my longtime crush at work, this is my year, yes. This is

Adventure

Here we follow the footsteps of Adrian Addams, an orphan, a loner, a night crawler to the core who works for Jordan Cromwell, the city's most influential man's son. The city is going through some changes after 33 years of the separation, and Adrian is caught right in the middle of it. He's accust

Werewolf

In the moonlit forest, the Alpha and Alora engaged in a secret, passionate dance away from prying eyes and their pack's demands. A deep voice filled with desire rumbled like thunder in the night. "To me, you are the passion that flows through my veins, the intense desire that drives me. I long to h

Short stories

A quiet, brooding seaside town-out of season, filled with gray skies, the scent of salt, and crashing waves. A distant lighthouse watches like a sentry over secrets buried in time. Juliet Johnson returns after eight years-now a solitary, reclusive artist-summoned by a letter from her brother, Jone

Werewolf

Meet Katherine Lunar, a brave and strong omega. Bullied by her pack due to her parents' sins. She dreams of a better future. However, when she discovers her mate is Alpha Xavier, her hopes are shattered as he rejects her and imposes punishment on her. Determined to escape her torment, Katherine find

Romance

Ari remembers a life that doesn't belong to her anymore. A loving family. A powerful name. And Emy-the boy who promised to find her in every lifetime. Then she died. Now she's a nobody. A scholarship student forced to work as a servant in the house she remembers as home. That's where she sees

LGBT+

“You know your body is a walking temptation, you should cover it, instead of leading men astray with it," "I am inside the house," "Yes you are but there is a man here too and just in case you don't know, I do men and with a body like yours I don't mind throwing away all my morals to have that dick

Romance

When struggling artist Rose's world collides with that of reclusive billionaire Alexander at a charity auction, sparks fly and a magnetic connection forms. As Rose is swept into Alexander's opulent lifestyle, she faces escalating tensions with her best friend, Alice, who feels overshadowed and left

Young Adult

The night before the SATs, I sat at my desk, my mind fixed not on review books, but on Kevin Johnson, my ex-boyfriend, whose excited voice boomed from downstairs, bragging to my dad about Tiff Rodriguez' s party-his new girlfriend. Then, a horrifying, vivid memory jolted me from what should have be

Romance

Khloe Daniels has always known how to keep her distance, both emotionally and physically. Balancing two lives-one as a waitress by day and the other as an enigmatic performer by night-she thrives behind the masks she wears, keeping the world at arm's length. But one fateful night, her carefully mai

Adventure

Amanda Holson never imagined that a chance encounter with the enigmatic billionaire Leonardo Castelli would change her life forever. When Leonardo proposes a contract marriage to solve his dangerous personal and business challenges, Amanda is thrust into a world of luxury, lies, and lethal secrets.

Billionaires

Isabella's life was never her own, she entered an arranged marriage with Alessandro. Which was never supposed to be more than a business deal to him. He is a cold and calculating Italian man who only sees her as nothing more than a means to an end. Alessandro has signed a deal with Isabella's fat

Romance

Astreille knew her capability as a hacker and how her strength in that field can ruin someone else's life. For years, aside from writing stories, she also managed to survive by reading some stories a mysterious writer wrote. Astreille doesn't know anything about that man but it's strange that she s

Others

In the glitzy world of high-stakes politics, billionaire James Harding's Senate bid seems to be inexchangeable. But under the polished campaign, a network of secrets waits and might destroy everything. James's secret weapon is Alex, his charming, bright, totally committed son. So then is he? James i

Horror

My bank account was a graveyard of numbers, each one a testament to my crushing debt. One hundred and fifty-two thousand, four hundred and eighty-one dollars and sixty-two cents, to be exact. It all started when Jennifer Chavez, my ex-colleague, whispered about an impending grid collapse. I belie

Romance

Astreille knew her capability as a hacker and how her strength in that field can ruin someone else's life. For years, aside from writing stories, she also managed to survive by reading some stories a mysterious writer wrote. Astreille doesn't know anything about that man but it's strange that she s