Valeria didn't rush. She never did. Inez was pinned beneath her, wrist locked overhead, the hold precise and impersonal. Not pain. Control. Inez scoffed anyway. "That's it?" she sneered. "I've had tutors scarier than you." Valeria said nothing. The silence pressed in. "You don't scare me," Inez added, louder. Brattier. "You just-" "Enough." One word. Flat. Final. Valeria lifted Inez's chin with two fingers, detached as a correction. "Look at me," she said coolly. "If you're going to embarrass yourself, do it properly." Inez laughed, brittle. "You think this makes you powerful?" "I don't think," Valeria replied. "I decide." Her gaze never wavered. "You provoke because it's the last control you have." "I don't belong to you," Inez snapped. Valeria leaned in, voice razor-thin. "You are my wife. You belong to consequences." She released her grip. "Say it." "No." Valeria waited. The quiet broke Inez, she hated being ignored. "...I'll behave, I'll be a good girl" Inez muttered. "Specify." Inez swallowed hard. "...I'll be your good girl" Valeria stepped back, already distant. "Good," she said. "Remember why." #1 older women-13th February (FAST PACE BOOK)

Nova can't escape the rich town of Riverside, where a tragedy follows her every step, but she can work to uncover who's been lying to her all these years. ***** When seventeen-year-old Nova Nightingale returns to her late mother's hometown the last thing she expects is to be public enemy number one, but the rumors surrounding her mother's sudden disappearance fifteen years earlier follow Nova everywhere she goes. And to top it all off, the local rich boy, Isaac Royal, is adamant about making her life hell. Surrounded by rumors, lies, and a secret keeping the town on edge, Nova has to figure out why she's hated and why the boy hell-bent on making her suffer seems to be the only person she can trust. Content/Triggering Warning: this story contains themes of suicide and violence [[word count: 80,000-90,000 words]]