2206 Book(s) Related to he said i was just a surrogate tool

When Kaida Nyx is murdered by those she once trusted, she awakens in the forest with one purpose—revenge. But her path collides with the infamous Alpha Thoran Noctis, a cold, merciless leader feared by all.

Defying him should have meant death. Instead, her rejection sparks a dangerous obsession. Thoran claims her in fury, binding her fate to his against her will. Now trapped between her thirst for freedom and the undeniable pull of her sworn enemy, Kaida faces a choice: escape the Alpha who owns her, or uncover the secrets that tie them together.

As war brews and old betrayals rise from the shadows, Kaida must decide—fight for her destiny, or surrender to a bond that could destroy them both.

I gave up my dream offer to Cambridge just so I could follow my heavily bullied childhood sweetheart to Princeton.

Yet, the day before we were supposed to submit our applications, I overheard him and his teammates laughing heartily:

"Man, you deserve an Oscar," one of them snickered. "You actually got the Vanderbilt heiress to drop Cambridge just by playing the victim?"

"To cause a rift with my family for me, and to serve as my shield against adversity—what a foolish heiress, impossible to shake off," Carter sneered to his friends.

"Once I drag her to Princeton, I can finally date Lily without her getting in the way."

I didn't storm in.

I quietly shredded my Princeton forms and submitted my Cambridge acceptance.

Carter seemed to have forgotten one crucial detail: without my family's money, he wasn't a tragic prince. He was just a stray dog.

Three years ago, I was the sole surviving legendary mage of Ash Valley. To fulfill my comrade's dying wish, I married into the Robert family, becoming a despised and bullied son-in-law . For three years, I endured torment and humiliation; my entire family treated me like trash . My wife handed me divorce papers , then accepted the marriage proposal of a nobleman. On my wedding day, I walked into the hall in old clothes, and everyone laughed, thinking I was crazy. Until I shattered all magic with a wave of my hand, my legendary presence overwhelming everyone present, the woman who had once despised me finally cried and asked me: Why did you lie to me?

"She was MINE before. How could I have known she would find another man so quickly?"
Dresden Wade was pretty sure the goddess was punishing him. Married for half a decade to his childhood sweetheart without a child, he is desperate for a chance to fight his wrongs when he sees her again.
His TRUE mate. The woman he scorned and humiliated all those years ago.
Except that now, she is standing holding hands with another Alpha.
Mara Reid wants nothing to do with the surly, arrogant Alpha that used to be her mate. He had made the earlier parts of her adulthood traumatic to say the least.
So why did meeting him again feel like coming home?
Why did her traitorous heart skip whenever he called her name?

She thought it was nothing more than a one-night mistake — not knowing she had long since become an obsession he couldn't shake.

Emily was just an ordinary woman, yet she stumbled into Evan's world by chance. He was cold, domineering, and untouchable — and yet, time and again, he lost control in front of her. He said he needed to restrain himself, yet he appeared at her most vulnerable moments again and again. He said he felt nothing for her, yet in the instant she trembled and broke into tears, he gently pressed his forehead against hers — "I'll admit it. What I feel for you is different."

But who, exactly, was the "you" he spoke of?

Her name, her body, every sound she made — he said they were identical to someone else's.

Was she a substitute? Or the one he truly wanted, buried somewhere deep inside him?

As desire and secrets became entangled, as the closeness of flesh could no longer silence the questions in her heart, Emily began to realize — this man's reasons for drawing near to her may never have been impulse alone, not from the very beginning.

"Are you really Emily?"

“I, alpha Ri Dylan, reject you as my mate, Mona Ryan. I have affairs with many women, Mona. Stronger women who are very different from you, I am not a one-mate kind of guy, and believe me when I say this; this rejection will favor you more than it will me because I am not the wolf you would want to be mated with.”

On her 18th birthday, Omega Mona felt the mate pull and was encouraged by her parents to go and meet her mate for the first time. Upon meeting him in the forest, he was devastated to hear that her mate was alpha Ri Dylan of the Lycan pack, the alpha that most wolves feared and hated. She then ran away and didn't say a word to him because of her surprise and disappointment.

“He's no good to reckon with, he's dangerous, he's not trustworthy, and he's the last person in this world you should have any business with.”
Mona has been warned severally about Ri Dylan. What will she do when finding that the goddess has arranged this big, bad, and dreaded alpha who rejected her to be her fated mate?

On our third anniversary, I gave my husband my pregnancy test results as a gift. What I got back was a photo—a man's hand on a woman's chest. The wedding ring on his finger told me everything I needed to know. He was my husband. And he was cheating.

Affected by her broken family, Amy Hood found it hard to hold faith in a relationship. However, the desire to be a mother drove her to make a crazy decision.
She decided to get a cute baby from some stranger.
She picked an outstanding one and spent an unforgettable night with him.
This was supposed to be a one-night stand for both of them.
But never in her wildest dream, Amy had expected life would bring her back to him,
Derek Shepherd, Her New Boss.
If things could get any worse, it's when he started to force her to step into this dangerous relationship.

The plan was simple: Break the nephew by seducing the uncle.
Wesley Vance didn't just break my heart; he tried to sell my dignity. So, I went after the only man he feared. The man who owned the city, the empire, and Wesley’s future.
Lance Lawson. He’s cold. He’s untouchable. He’s my ex-boyfriend’s uncle. I thought I was the one setting the trap. I wore his shirts, haunted his penthouse, and chipped away at his legendary control until the ice finally cracked.
But I made one fatal mistake. I thought Lance was a man I could use and discard. I didn't realize that once you wake a predator, he never goes back to sleep.
Now, Wesley is gone, the Vance family is in ruins, and I’m trapped in a gilded cage of my own making. Because Lance doesn't want my loyalty. He wants my soul.
I wanted revenge. I got an obsession.

After finding out that he had a year left to live. Alpha Logan Wolfie, requested for six months, where he could only live in a carefree and unhindered manner. In other to numb the pain and sadness in his heart before he fulfilled his mother's wish, to give her an heir who would become the next Alpha of the Pack.

"You will produce an heir before the curse takes over..."
Those are the very words of his mother. He hated commitment, and deep down in that dying heart of his, he wanted someone to love, even if it was just for a day before he died but he never thought that someone was a human girl.
Akira Ross, the woman, with zero knowledge about wolves and their existence, the woman that got the cure to his curse, just with the taste of her blood and lips.
Will Akira be able to cure the curse that runs in his bloodline and will she be able to accept the beast she loves is an Alpha?

"What the fuck? You Left hickeys on my neck?" I yelled, "Why didn't you tell me that you left those stupid pieces of stuff on my neck, I was practically telling the whole world that I had a passionate night?"
"Stupid! They aren't hickeys, I branded you?"
"What I do not understand?" I asked, he smirked, moving closer as his breath met my neck.
"I just stick my claim on you, you are mine now, that is my mate mark on you."

"I reject you, Elara. You are wolfless, weak, and unworthy."

Those words were meant to hurt me. Humiliated by Alpha Kade in front of the whole pack, people expected me to run away and give up. Instead, I did something unexpected. I dried my tears, turned my back on the man who broke my heart, and walked directly toward his greatest enemy: Alpha Ryker.

Ryker is a nightmare. He is a scarred, ruthless warlord known as the "Butcher." He is cursed, dangerous, and feared by everyone. He needed a fake wife to secure his inheritance, and I needed protection. We signed the contract in blood.

But once I entered his fortress, everything changed. I learned that Ryker isn’t just a monster; he is a man in pain, and my touch is the only cure for his madness. As our fake marriage turns into real passion, a shocking truth comes to light.

I was never wolfless. I am the White Wolf—a legendary Royal with the power to command nations.

Now, Kade realizes he threw away a Queen. He stands at my borders, begging for forgiveness, ready to start a war to win me back. But he is too late. The weak girl he rejected is gone. The woman in front of him is the Blood Moon Luna, and she doesn’t forgive.

One month before my wedding, I was trying on the wedding dress I'd designed myself when a message from a friend popped up: [Diana, get over here! Your fiancé just lost at Truth or Dare and has to kiss your rival.]

All Kimberly Callahan wanted was one unforgettable night with the boy she secretly adored—Jason Travolta. What she never expected, however… was to kiss his twin brother. 

A stolen moment behind a mask. A forbidden kiss that tasted too perfect to regret—until a scandalous photo spread across campus, making headlines among the crowd. Now Kimberly finds herself trapped in a fake relationship with Jett Travolta, the twin she was never supposed to touch.

To make matters worse, her mother has just married their father.

Living under the same roof as the Travolta twins was never a part of her plan. Loving one and loathing the other should’ve been easy—until the blurred lines turned into a dangerous spark. 

One kiss changed everything.

Now, she was trapped between two brothers and every step she took brought them closer to dangerous attraction and affections.

But the real question is:

Was it ever truly a mistake… or fate in disguise?

Eight years of marriage — she thought she'd married love itself.
Until the day she watched her husband's Bentley rocking on the roadside, and knew exactly why.
She played it cool. Maneuvered him into signing the divorce papers without a clue, then waited for her billion-dollar exit.
But before she could walk free, someone poisoned her drink and staged a crash that nearly killed her.
The man who saved her wasn't the husband who swore he loved her — it was Erwin, cold, dangerous, and ruler of a business empire.
The untouchable, legendary Erwin — shielding her, risking himself, again and again.
When Levi finally woke up to what he'd lost, he came back red-eyed and desperate: " I was wrong. Can we start over? I can't live without you."
Erwin simply tilted his head and kissed her — eyes cutting straight to Levi's ashen face:
"I don't think you understand. The moment you let her go, she became my wife."

"I WANT DIVORCE!" I shouted, my voice echoing off the walls.
The room fell silent. Alexander stopped in his tracks; his back still turned to me. I could sense his tension, his surprise. But I didn't care. I meant it. I wanted out of this loveless, abusive marriage. I wanted to be free.
Slowly, Alexander turned around, his eyes narrowing as he looked at me. But I didn't flinch. I held his gaze, my eyes blazing with determination. I was done. I was finally done with this toxic marriage, done with being treated like a doormat. I wanted my freedom, and I was ready to fight for it.
Alexander's steps halted, his cold face turning towards me with a mixture of shock and disdain. "What did you say?" he asked, his voice dripping with ice.
I stood my ground, meeting his gaze with matching coldness. No fear, no softness, just a resolute determination. "I want divorce, Mr. Alexander Valtor," I repeated, my voice firm and clear.
Alexander's expression twisted in contempt. "Don't you think it should be me who asks for divorce? I am the one who was forced to marry a girl like you."

"Please, Lydia, give me a second chance. I swear, let me love you again." "Too late, Nathaniel, I have someone else now."
In a twisted tale of deceit and sacrifice, Lydia Milan, who hid her identity and family, endures a loveless marriage to handsome, wealthy Nathaniel King, who views her only as a blood source for his ailing ex.
Struggling against mistreatment, Lydia Milan finally demands a divorce and leaves the marriage, and that was when Nathaniel King discovered that she was the only daughter of the richest man in the country, whom he had been trying to have an audience with since.
A suspenseful journey unfolds, revealing the complexities of love, betrayal, and redemption in this gripping novel where hidden identities and vengeful schemes entwine in a web of secrets.

"Use me to get back at your ex. Make him jealous. Even if he doesn't love you, he won't handle seeing you with someone else. Especially someone like me."
I blinked at him, confused. "Especially someone like you? Why would he be jealous? He doesn't even like me."
He smirked. "Trust me. Derek will lose his mind watching his ex-wife move on. He'll wonder if you ever loved him... and why you replaced him so easily. That's when he starts running back."
"Deal?"
His eyes glittered with danger. My brain screamed run. But I still found myself nodding.
"Deal."
Vanessa Holland thought signing divorce papers with Derek—a man with the emotional depth of a teaspoon—was the worst day of her life.
She was wrong.
Rock bottom has a basement... and Ryker Holland is waiting there, handsome, ruthless, and armed with a plan.
Ryker, Derek's half-brother and the real power behind the Holland empire, offers Vanessa a deal she's not supposed to refuse: Make Derek jealous enough to crawl back in humiliation, while Ryker secures the CEO throne he's been denied.
But this isn't kindness. Ryker is petty. He is cruel. And he wants to destroy Derek—piece by piece.
Vanessa is the perfect weapon: a discarded wife with nothing left to lose... and maybe just enough vengeance in her heart to play along.
Except fake dating Ryker doesn't stay fake for long.
Emotions blur. Lines cross.
The man she should fear becomes the one she can't stay away from.
Now Vanessa must decide: Is she Ryker's pawn? Or has she learned how to play the Hollands better than either brother ever expected?
Two brothers. One broken heart.
Revenge never looked this tempting...
And the Holland boys are going down—
one will break, and the other will enjoy every second of it.
Disclaimer: Contains morally grey characters, power games, manipulation, emotional cruelty, and a whole lot of chemistry. Reader discretion advised.

My ex-husband betrayed me.
My new husband saved me.
“Trust me,” he whispered against my lips.
I wanted to.
But every answer I find about my past leads back to him.
And I'm starting to wonder...
Was meeting him really fate—or part of a secret planned long before I knew the truth?

"You think five years of running could free you from me completely?"

The man's icy gray eyes locked onto mine as his fingers brushed the faded bite mark on my neck.

His mark.

The nightmare I had spent five years trying to forget.

Five years ago, I fled the Black Moon Pack with nothing but scars and secrets, disappearing from Alpha Bruce's world.

Now, five years later, I have returned to Silver Crown City as a photographer. I thought I could finish one project and leave unnoticed.

I was wrong.

Bruce was still powerful, dangerous, and every bit the Alpha who stood above everyone else.

Worse, I soon realized our reunion was no accident.

The high-paying assignment. The unexpected invitation. The carefully arranged seat at the gala...

'Why now, why him? I shouldn't have looked. I shouldn't have stayed. But my ears betrayed me. Adrain's lips on her - it felt like a knife twisting inside me. Why does it matter so much? He's my best friend's brother. He is trouble. And yet, my heart races whenever he is near. I hate myself for wanting what I can't have."

.....................................

Inez is a romance loving nerd navigating her love life. After catching her boyfriend, Ethan, cheating, she stays with her best friend, Irene, where she meets the playboy, Irene's brother, Adrain.

Despite their instant attraction, Adrain's playboy reputation and Inez's insecurities keep them apart. As Inez faces bullying, family drama, and danger, Adrain becomes her protector and secret crush. Will they overcome their past and Adrain's possessive nature to find love?

woke up with the worst hangover of my life and a half-naked man tied to my bed.

Not just any man. Kai Donovan, my best friend's older brother, semi-pro hockey captain, and heir to the city's most dangerous crime family.

I had zero memory of how he got there. Before I could figure it out, armed men burst into my dorm room and Kai did the only thing that would keep me alive.

He claimed I was his fiancée.

Now I'm trapped in a fake engagement with the most dangerous man I've ever met. I have to move into his penthouse, attend family dinners with actual criminals, and pretend to be madly in love with him while my heart still belongs to his younger brother Asher, the sweet, golden boy I've been hopelessly in love with for three years.

The boy who just found out I'm marrying his brother and looks at me like I betrayed him.

Kai tells me this is temporary. Play the role until the threat passes, then I can have my life back.

But living with him changes everything. He's not what I expected, protective and possessive, dangerous and gentle, making me feel things I've never felt before. Every fake kiss starts feeling real. Every touch blurs the lines. And somewhere between the lies and the danger, I stop pretending.

I'm falling for Kai Donovan.

Rival families want me dead for some reasons . Asher is transferring schools because watching us together is destroying him. And people keep asking questions I can't answer.

Kai says he'll keep me safe. That he's falling for me too.

But in his world, love might not be enough to keep us both alive.

He claimed me to save my life. Now I'm his for real, and there's no going back.

Three days after I died, the morgue called my husband Sebastian to collect my ashes.
He was kissing another woman when he hit speaker, his voice cold and dismissive: "She's dead? Cremate her. Don't call me again."
And just like that, my body was wheeled into the cremation chamber.
When he finally showed up to collect my remains, he smashed the urn on the floor and ground every fragment of my ashes into the tile with his shoe.
"Playing dead? What a pathetic stunt," he sneered. "Tell her the anniversary of my mother's death is coming up. She'd better show up at the cemetery on her knees, or even if she really is dead, I'll scatter her ashes in the sewer myself."
But he didn't know—I truly was dead.
My soul was bound to him, forced to drift at his side as he planned a lavish wedding with his adopted sister Claire—his mother's true killer.
By the time he discovered the truth and exposed Claire at the altar, I had already vanished.
He lost his mind, racing to the ocean to search for my ashes.
Never knowing that the remains he'd crushed like garbage under his shoe—the "fake ashes" he'd dismissed as part of my act—
Were all that was left of me.

For three years, I deliberately suppressed my grades to rank under my boyfriend William, paving his way to our promised Cambridge exchange. I overheard him and my best friend Maddie confess they framed me for plagiarism in my past life, driving me to jump off the 38th floor, yet they still carried on an affair. They lied and ignored my pain afterward. Heartbroken, I secretly applied to Cambridge alone. The twist? My years of hiding my brilliance were never selfless sacrifice. I collected all their dirty secrets. I’m going to Cambridge not to flee, but to ruin every dream they cling to.

I longed for family affection and true love all my life. I tried my best to get along with my stepbrother Karen, and wholeheartedly loved his friend Nolan. However, my sincerity was trampled into the mud. They conspired to hurt me, spread indecent content to ruin my life, and even broke the last relic left by my grandmother. I suffered countless humiliations and injuries, then chose to leave without saying goodbye. Years later, the two men were trapped in endless regret, but I had already walked out of the shadow of the past. Trust is gone, and so is my tenderness for them.

I divorced the same man nine times.
The first eight times, I was the one sobbing, begging him not to go.
The ninth time, I was the one who slid the papers across the table.
He signed them, then told me we'd remarry once she left.
I said okay.
What he didn't know was that my flight was already booked.
This time, I was leaving for good.

My adopted sister, Adriana, hit and injured Hadley Brooks—the prized mistress of Hartwell’s mafia boss, Dario Salvatore—and fled the scene.
Don Salvatore gave us exactly three days. And so, my husband and my parents all turned their eyes to me: Go take the fall for her. You always know how to fix things.
I agreed.
What they didn't know was that on that very same day, my doctor had given me my own deadline: I had, at most, three days left to live.

"Priest, I'm requesting to transfer my registry to the Forbidden Lands. And I need the materials to forge a Moonshadow Puppet. In three days, it will stand in my place at the mating altar."

I spoke into the communication rune in my palm.

From the other end, the Moon Priest's voice spiked with warning. "Aria, do you have any idea what you're saying? The Forbidden Lands is an abyss of no return! It's ruled by the Lycans. You don't even have a wolf spirit—walking in there is a death sentence!"

"My decision is final."

After a long beat, his heavy, suppressed sigh echoed through. "Using a puppet substitute is an act of absolute blasphemy against the Moon Goddess... You've waited for Kaelen for so many years. Why walk away now?"

"Because a puppet will never betray a sacred vow."

At twenty-nine, Dominic Brooks owns this city's underworld.

This year, I'm pregnant again. Finally.

But on our daughter's death anniversary, he doesn't show. Five hours. Nothing.

I find him at our casino with some girl draped all over him. The same girl I pulled out of a trafficking ring two years ago.

She's laughing loud enough for everyone to hear. "His wife won't stop crying about that dead kid. God, he's so over it."

He kisses her. Right in front of me.

Three days later, he tears up our daughter's grave. His mistress wants a swimming pool.

The shovel comes down. My unborn baby goes with it.

Years ago, Dominic taught me the rules of our world. How we handle traitors.

Time for a reminder.

I was dead, and the whole world was celebrating for my sister.

For twenty-two years, I had been the hardest-working but most invisible daughter in the Sterling family, forever living in the shadow of my gymnastics prodigy sister.

Running a high fever, I begged my family to take me to the hospital, only to hear: "Don't you DARE ruin Bella's award ceremony!"

When I was tricked into the abandoned equipment room and used my last breath to call my boyfriend while lying in a pool of blood, all I heard was: "Grace, quit the drama! Bella's accepting her award on stage!"

On stage, thunderous applause erupted as Bella lifted the "Young Gymnast of the Year" trophy.

And I drew my final breath.

When they returned home triumphant, thinking I had run away in a tantrum, they had no idea I was already dead right under their noses.

For the tenth time, James Smith left me behind because of a call from his female student.
But it was as if I had become a different person—I no longer doubted that there was something ambiguous between James and his student.
Even on our wedding anniversary, when he abandoned me in the remote mountains for Sophia's sake, I bore no resentment.
Eventually, James began to sense something.
"Emily, you seem different," he said.
I shook my head with a smile.
Because I had simply made a different choice from the one in my past life.

I gave Arthur a thousand years. A thousand years to secure his throne as God-King.

And on the day of our engagement ceremony, he announced he was marrying someone else.

In my past life, I bled myself dry for him.

He told me Lilith needed Seraphim blood to live. I believed him. He bound me to the Divine Punishment Pillar and carved open my chest, one cut at a time.

He massacred my entire clan, calling it "treason."

I only learned the truth as I was dying. That pitiful "saint" was a demon from the Abyss all along.

Now that I'm reborn, watching him sit on that throne makes my skin crawl.

I destroy our engagement in front of everyone and take the entire Seraphim clan with me.

This time, I'm only here to watch him destroy himself.

"Daddy... so cold... and it hurts..." When my precious daughter Mia whispered these words in her weak voice, my heart felt like it was being torn apart.
The life-saving medicine was just ten meters away, but that damned anti-magic barrier had become an insurmountable chasm between life and death.
What made me even more furious was that the vampire guarding the gate not only extorted my life savings, but also demanded I kneel like a dog and lick his boots before he would open the door.
He didn't know that if the door stayed closed, it wouldn't just be my daughter who died—his son and mother would perish too!

"If you want to get your needs met tonight, it will be with me and no other man. Am I clear?"

¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢

Charlotte Hendry escaped Houston's gilded cage to chase freedom on her own terms, graduate school in New York, a secret life in New Orleans, and absolutely zero entanglements. Maverick Pierce built his empire from nothing, turning poverty and pain into a billion-dollar media dynasty. Neither of them planned for a collision that would shatter every rule they had carefully constructed.

When Maverick discovers Charlotte at his favorite private BDSM club, he faces an impossible choice: walk away or claim the one woman who challenges every part of him. Their connection burns fast and undeniable. But Charlotte's independence and Maverick's possessive nature could destroy what neither of them expected to find.

Can two people who were never looking for love actually build something real?

My name is Thomas Rodriguez, and I found myself stranded on an unnamed deserted island following a plane crash. As the saying goes, "Great misfortune promises great fortune." At the outset, with a beauty in one hand and supplies in the other, watch how I create a diverse community on this nameless island. However, in the face of treacherous human nature and an emerging mysterious civilization, where will destiny lead me?

Amara Cole has always believed in doing the right thing. A scholarship student at the city’s most elite high school, she’s learned to keep her head down, protect her family, and avoid trouble at all costs. But the one person she’s been warned to stay away from — Adrian Vale, the principal’s golden son — is about to turn her carefully ordered world upside down.
Adrian was supposed to be the enemy: charming, untouchable, and the reason her brother’s future was shattered. Yet, every time he’s near, her heart betrays her. And when a school project forces them together, secrets begin to unravel — secrets that could destroy both their lives if anyone finds out...
In a city where every mistake is magnified, Amara must navigate first love, jealousy, and the painful choices that come with it. Can she protect her heart without losing herself? Or will falling for the one she’s not supposed to love become the only way to truly live?

After eight years in the military, Frank Moore returned to New York.

He had intended to attend his comrade's sister's wedding, only to witness her being utterly humiliated by mafia thugs, forced to drink their foot-washing water.

Enraged, Frank crippled the young thug's legs, condemning him to a wheelchair for life.

Faced with assassins from both the underworld and above, Frank made a phone call.

Hundreds of elite mercenaries descended from the sky, and the entire New York mafia fell to their knees in terror.

The tide in New York was about to turn!

I was reborn, and so was my husband. But he chose his true love as his wife...

"Spread your legs. If you don't do as I say, I'll open your pussy with my whole hand. Understand?" His voice was calm and firm.

I whimpered loudly but nodded.

"Good baby, now let's get started on what I want. Will you be a good girl?" His voice was once again filled with coldness.

"Yes." I whispered as I clenched my teeth and managed to place my hands in his. His hands were big and held me firmly.

"Good girl." He replied sarcastically. But before he let go of my poor nipples, he rubbed his palms over the sensitive and delicate pussy...

Alan Hillman is a man with a singular interest in revenge. Kidnapped as a young boy and sold into slavery by a power-hungry mobster, he has thought of nothing but vengeance.

For twelve years he has immersed himself in the world of pleasure slaves searching for the one man he holds ultimately responsible.

Finally, the architect of his suffering has emerged with a new identity, but not a new nature. If Alan is to get close enough to strike, he must become the very thing he abhors and kidnap a beautiful girl to train her to be all that he once was.

But what if he falls in love with the girl he kidnapped?

Is it a sin to love? If secret love is a sin I am willing to accept whatever is at stake.

I'm Marina Daughn Welch, who will pretend to be the wife of my twin's fiancé.

<>



Vanessa thought rock bottom was signing divorce papers with Derek Holland, a man with the emotional depth of a teaspoon. Turns out, rock bottom had a basement, and Ryker Holland was waiting for her down there with a smirk and a plan.

Ryker, Derek's older half-brother (aka the family's dirty little secret), shows up offering Vanessa a deal: help her make her ex-husband, Derek Holland, jealous enough to come crawling back. In exchange, he secures his position as CEO.

But Ryker isn't doing this out of kindness. He is petty and cruel. He would do anything to trample all over Derek, and now he has the perfect weapon. Vanessa, freshly dumped and just desperate enough to play along. And if she happens to enjoy making her ex suffer too? Well, that's just a bonus.

As Vanessa sinks deeper into Ryker's twisted world of fake romance, secrecy and family dysfunction, things start getting real. Because fake love? It's a lot easier to control than real feelings. And Ryker has no idea what to do when the game stops being a game.

Is Vanessa walking into a trap or building one of her own? Either way, the Holland brothers are going down. One's going to break, and the other's going to enjoy every second of it.

_Disclaimer:

This story contains morally complex and flawed characters, who often operate with hidden motives and questionable ethics. Themes explored include emotional manipulation, gaslighting, power imbalance, dual identities, and blurred lines between love, control, and obsession. Certain scenes may be intense or unsettling. Reader discretion is strongly advised.

Kimberly Smith thought winning a scholarship to Greywood Academy would be her way out. Straight A’s. A fresh start. A future that her mom could finally be proud of.
Instead, Greywood takes one look at her thrift shoes and homemade lunch—and decides she’s entertainment.
They call her Scumbag of the Week.
They film her, mock her, and turn every mistake into a headline.
And the worst part? The boy who started it is the one person she can’t avoid.
Xavier Grey is the heir everyone fears, the boyfriend every girl worships, and the bully who knows exactly how to break people with a smirk. Kimberly swears she’ll survive him, not fall for him.
Then the lines blur.
A “dare kiss” goes viral. Someone pushes her into a pool. Her scholarship is suddenly under review—with “evidence” that makes her look guilty. Her only friend turns against her. Even her mother starts to doubt her.
And Xavier—cold, controlled Xavier—starts showing up when it matters. Warning her away from traps. Paying to erase posts. Touching her tears like he hates that they exist.
Greywood is built to crush girls like Kimberly.
So why does its most dangerous boy look like he might burn it down for her?

She planned to give her virginity to her boyfriend.
Instead, she gave it to his best friend.
In the darkness, one mistake changes everything.
Now bound by a secret they swore to bury, Veda and Winslow must pretend nothing happened…
But some nights refuse to be forgotten.
And some feelings? Impossible to ignore.

All nobles mocked me for rejecting the talented common mage and picking a brutal gladiator with no magic as my escort. They called him a filthy hound unworthy of serving an Oberlin lady. But only I remember—this scarred man died twice for me in my past life. Reborn before my family’s ruin, I swear bloody vengeance on Cedric and Liliana, who poisoned my father and stripped my skin. I endure searing magic backlash, fight bloody death matches, and burn all traitors alive. The shadow they sneer at will become the indestructible shield of my reign.

I'm the forgotten eldest son of the Cross family.
My parents see me as a walking blood bag for my brother Colin, while my wife views me as a sinner destined to spend my life atoning for my mistakes.
When Audrey pressured me to donate a kidney, I agreed.
Not only did I agree, but I also liquidated all my assets and transferred them to my lab.
They thought I was foolish, that I was still begging for their love.
In reality, I was just tying up loose ends.
The night before the surgery, I coughed up a pool of blood.
Audrey laughed coldly over the phone: "Stop the act, Evan. You just want to dodge responsibility. You'll go to any lengths for attention."
The surgery was a "success."
Colin got the kidney he'd always dreamed of.
And I died in the recovery room.
My soul floated in the air as I watched Audrey push open the hospital door, wearing a smile that dripped with pity, ready to put on a show of "redemption."
"Evan, I know you've been wronged. Let's start over..."
The only response to her was the white sheet covering my lifeless body.

The day I walked in on my boyfriend screwing that blonde tramp, I dropped the homemade tiramisu right there on the floor—our two-year relationship smashed to bits, messier than the splattered cream.

I ducked into a bar, slamming back whiskey, when this guy in a sharp black suit sidles up, his voice smooth as silk laced with bourbon. I spat out, "Help me forget him," but ended up totally lost in the presidential suite. He backed me against the wall, tore open my blouse, his tongue circling my nipple before biting down hard, leaving me breathless. "You taste like candy, baby—tonight, I'm gonna eat you up."

But then my boyfriend FaceTimes, spots the guy behind me, and loses it, screaming, "Dad!"

I went ice-cold—my hookup was my boyfriend's stepdad? Even worse, this thirty-three-year-old powerhouse was Brooklyn's deadliest mob boss.

What began as a vengeful fling spiraled into a forbidden nightmare?

My husband bought a necklace for the woman who killed my mother.

When I saw my foster sister Rebecca Rebecca wearing that emerald necklace with Aaron at the party, I knew history would repeat itself. Seven years ago, my mother lost everything the same way—her husband, her dignity, and finally her life.

I wouldn't follow in her footsteps.

So after slapping Rebecca across the face, I told everyone I was divorcing him and walked out with my suitcase.

Rebecca thought she'd won again. Aaron thought I was just being hysterical.

Neither of them saw it coming—

This time, I'd make them pay.

Three months ago, I was kidnapped. When Alexander rescued me, I woke up in a hospital bed with my clothes disheveled and bruises covering my body. What happened during those hours? I don't remember any of it.

A week ago, I found out I was pregnant. He held me as I shook and told me that it wasn't my fault. That he failed to protect me. Even if the baby wasn't his, he'd raise it. He'd still give me the perfect wedding.

But the guilt ate me alive until depression took hold.

Every night, sleep stays out of reach. Nightmares find me the moment I close my eyes. I've tried to end it. Three times now. Each time, someone found me just in time.

After the third failed attempt, I make tea and head toward his study to apologize. Voices drift through the door before I reach it.

"Are you out of your mind? Evelyn's your fiancée!" His friend sounds disbelieving. "You actually hired someone to kidnap her? Made her think she was assaulted? Just so Lily could take her place? Do you know how messed up that is? What that does to someone?"

Alexander's voice comes out calm. "Lily got sick because of me. Her dying wish is to marry me once before she goes. If I didn't push Evelyn out of the picture, her father would never let Lily take her place."

All those nights. All those nightmares. All those times I scrubbed my hands raw until they bled. It was all a lie. A setup.

For another woman.

I pull out my phone and call my father.

"Dad. I'll agree to the arrangement."

To please his mistress, Callum ordered me—pregnant—to dance barefoot in the black salt ice cellar.

When I stumbled back to the doorway to warm myself, the mistress covered her mouth and retched.

"I'm pregnant. I can't stand this death-stench of winter."

Only because I was a princess of the Winter Realm, born carrying frost in my veins.

Callum flew into a rage and had me locked inside a frost-crystal cage, sunk to the bottom of the ice well. No one was allowed to release me without his command.

"A princess of winter, afraid of the cold? What a joke!"

No matter how I struggled or begged, he couldn't have cared less. He and his mistress treated it as entertainment. And just like that, I froze to death at the bottom of that well.

What he didn't know was that although we winter-born are forged in bitter cold, when we carry a child, every drop of magic goes to protecting the baby. We have no defense left for ourselves. The very ice that shaped us becomes the thing that kills us.

Two days later, he was finally satisfied and ordered them to pull me up.

But I could never come back up again.

I stepped out of my OB-GYN appointment, only to be crushed by a speeding truck while my husband watched from the opposite curb, not even blinking.
I choked on my own blood before waking up on the exact same street corner.
I thought I had been reborn, but then I saw a glowing red number "4" burned into the skin of my forearm.
What the hell was happening?

I grew up alongside my next-door neighbor, ice hockey prodigy Lachlan, silently paving the way for his future. In my past life, he planned to quit his crucial scout game for his girlfriend Tamsin.
Fearing he would ruin his career, I tipped off his parents to stop him. After graduation, I joined his sports agency and spent three years cleaning up his messes, clinging to the hope that my devotion would eventually win him over.
Yet after Tamsin’s death, he blamed me entirely, shattered my fingers, and drowned me in a frozen lake. Reborn back in high school, I finally woke up. I will no longer stop him from chasing his doomed fate.