"You can't take all of us, sweetheart." Valen's voice is smooth, teasing, but the way his fingers brush against my hip isn't playful. It's testing. Behind me, Fennec chuckles, his breath warm as he leans in, his lips barely ghosting the shell of my ear. "She could try." His voice dips lower, dragging heat down my spine. "I'd love to watch her try." ------------------------------- Soraya Cordova was never meant to survive. Stolen as a child and discarded as a mistake, she was given a second chance when the Cordovas adopted her into a life of wealth, secrets, and silent wars. But when her parents are declared dead and the world turns against her found family, she realizes survival is no longer enough, she needs to fight. Raised as assassins, her adoptive brothers have spent years keeping her in the dark, but now? Now, she's in the center of the storm. Wanted by the government. Hunted by the man who created her. And trapped in a dangerous game of love, loyalty, and lies with the only people who have ever mattered. Because in their world, trust is a weapon. Not all love stories are gentle. Some are jagged at the edges, built on shadows and sins, tangled in pasts too dark to escape. White Lies is one of those stories. It's about the things we do to survive, the lies we tell to protect, and the love that thrives even in the darkest corners. Read at your own risk.

|| Featured FREE story with exclusive paid chapters - previously a paid story || When Haley discovers the truth behind Xavier, whose silence holds a deeper meaning, she sets her mind on making his life better one small step at a time. ***** Haley Rosamond is happy with her simple life, content under the wing of her father. Well-protected, she has no idea of the darkness surrounding Xavier Hunt, with his all-black attire and infrequent presence in school-accompanied by his bruises and scars. That is, until Haley catches a glimpse of Xavier's reality and is made to question everything she knows about family and life in general. The truth, she realizes, couldn't be more different from everything she has heard. Supported by her father, Haley sets her mind on helping Xavier any way she can, and what begins with tutoring sessions, free food, and random acts of kindness blooms into friendship and something a little more. But when Haley's admission into her dream college and another tragedy in Xavier's life threaten to undo everything she has worked for, Haley needs to decide if she'll stick by Xavier or simply be another person in his life that disappears. [[word count: 80,000-90,000 words]] Cover designed by Holly Thurston