The lifestyle her mother introduced her to? It was never a child's place but she had no choice. Esmé Solei, at the age of twelve, witnessed things a child should never have to. A lifestyle meant for survival but passion to most, at least according to her mother. Esmé grew accustomed to the streets being that she's around her mom twenty four seven. Unfortunately the number twelve would be embedded in her head forever. A particular night happened to change her life for the better and worse when she runs into Moses. A face the streets feared and the name that was opposite of the biblical meaning. But that's also short lived.. because she wanted everything and by all means necessary, she was going to get it.

Solani is the type of woman who lights up any room she walks into. She's single, fun, got her own job, her own place, and her weekends stay booked and busy. She's not pressed about finding love-if it happens, it happens. When her best friend and her fiancé plan a pre-wedding trip to Hawaii with the whole wedding party, Solani is all in. She's just there to have fun and maybe sip a few margaritas. But once she meets Demetri, the best man's best friend, all that "I'm just here to chill" talk goes out the window. He's fine, laid-back, and got that confidence that makes her nervous in the best way. What starts as playful flirting turns into something deeper. The two start spending every day together on the trip-late-night talks, laughing, and vibes that feel too good to be temporary. But once the plane lands back home, real life hits. Suddenly, those vacation feelings start to clash with the reality waiting for them both.

" 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐛𝐞 𝐤𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐞, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐈'𝐦 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐲𝐨𝐮, 𝐈 𝐛𝐞 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐞."

Kairo is scared his autism will stop him from finding love.

Solei came to college to get her degree, not lose herself in a man she couldn't have. Books, grades, and minding her business - that was the plan. Until she started slipping in her hardest class and ended up needing extra help from one person she should've stayed far away from. Basim Hart is everything she should avoid - intelligent, composed, and carrying an energy that makes people pay attention without him saying a word. One tutoring session turns into something neither of them can ignore, and suddenly Solei is caught between what's right and what feels too real to walk away from. But there's more to Professor Hart than the campus knows... and Solei starts to feel it long before she understands it. His past. His power. His secrets. All of it shadows the connection growing between them. As lines blur and temptation rises, Solei realizes she might be stepping into something deeper than a forbidden love and lesson - something that could change everything she thought she knew about him... and herself. A quiet girl. A complicated man. A love neither one of them saw coming. Secrets, tension, and danger - but you won't know how deep it goes until you turn the page. 🥇In literature 1/1/26 🥈 In Double Life 12/30/25 🥉Urban Novel 12/30/25

Before the crowds screamed his name, before the league talks and the magazine covers, he met her. Calista Marchand. Not the kind of girl you run game on. She was sharp where it counted, soft only when she wanted to be. Real Brooklyn - pretty in the face, slick with the mouth, and solid with her hands if you stepped wrong. She kept her circle small, her loyalty tighter. The kind of woman who knew how to turn silence into safety and side-eyes into shut-ups. Men feared her. Girls tried to be her. She didn't chase, didn't fold, didn't need nobody. Until Ibrahim Montaigne walked into her life like he had all the time in the world. He didn't come with sweet nothings or flashy promises - just steady presence. Intent in his eyes, patience in his chest, and something rare behind the way he looked at her. Like he saw through the polish and the fire, like he knew the woman behind the defense. He didn't try to tame her. He studied her. Let her be exactly who she was. The shift was slow. She still fought when needed, still had a rep in the streets and in the salon chair. But somewhere between nursing exams and late-night block parties, she started saving parts of herself just for him. The quiet parts. The delicate ones. The ones nobody else got close to. And when she crossed that graduation stage, RN-BSN stitched behind her name and her grandmother crying in the crowd - he bragged harder than anyone. Didn't care who was listening. Forget MVP, forget the championship rings. She was the win. She was the headline. The girl from Brooklyn with spitfire in her lungs, gold in her smile, and a softness only he ever got to see. This isn't a story about being chosen. It's about choosing each other. No fairytales. Just Brooklyn grit and a love that never let go.

𝗡𝗮𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗶 𝗶𝗻𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗹𝗲𝗳𝘁 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵. 𝗦𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻'𝘁 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗲𝗹𝘁 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁. "𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗳𝗮𝘂𝗹𝘁 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗺. 𝗜𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗳𝗮𝘂𝗹𝘁. 𝗜 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗯𝗹𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂.." 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗺 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗿𝗮𝗻 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗮𝘀 𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗺𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵. 𝗜𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗿𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗻, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗳𝗲𝗹𝗹. "𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘄𝗵𝘆 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗯𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸 𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝗺𝗮? 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗵𝘂𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻' 𝘁𝗼𝗼. 𝗛𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗺𝘆 𝗳𝘂𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻' 𝗯𝗮𝗯𝘆 𝘁𝗼𝗼."

"𝐈𝐚𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐥 𝐚𝐬𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐲𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐛𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐜𝐤𝐢𝐧' 𝐰𝐢𝐭 𝐀'𝐤𝐢𝐫𝐚"

Damn, college really is the best part of yo life. Especially at an HBCU.

𝐒𝐞𝐯𝐲𝐧 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐚 𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐬𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐫𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐞𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐮𝐩 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐨𝐲𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝'𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐯𝐲𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐛𝐚𝐝 𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐚 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐭? Trevante Rhodes || Ari fletcher Read it and you'll love it 🫶🏽 Started January 11th, 2023