When a self-made beauty boss tries to leave her toxic past behind, she crosses paths with New York's most feared kingpin who's already decided she'll be his, whether she's ready or not.

𝐆𝐀𝐑𝐃𝐄𝐍 𝐎𝐅 𝐄𝐃𝐄𝐍 ( 𝐄-𝐃𝐄𝐍) ; 𝐍𝐎𝐔𝐍: 𝐀 𝐁𝐄𝐀𝐔𝐓𝐈𝐅𝐔𝐋 𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐃𝐈𝐒𝐄 𝐅𝐈𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐃 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐋𝐔𝐒𝐇 𝐓𝐑𝐄𝐄𝐒 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐑𝐔𝐈𝐓. 𝐈𝐓 𝐒𝐘𝐌𝐁𝐎𝐋𝐈𝐙𝐄𝐒 𝐈𝐍𝐍𝐎𝐂𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐌𝐎𝐍𝐘, 𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄 𝐀𝐃𝐀𝐌 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐄𝐕𝐄 𝐋𝐈𝐕𝐄𝐃 𝐁𝐄𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐈𝐑 𝐅𝐀𝐋𝐋 𝐅𝐑𝐎𝐌 𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐄. Growing up in a challenging environment in New Orleans, Eden found herself trapped in a world of young teen prostitution, forced to confront adult situations far too early. Despite the darkness surrounding her, she possesses an undeniable spirit and resilience that shines through her struggles. As she embarks on her journey into adulthood, Eden experiences the thrill and pain of first love with a fellow teenager who understands her struggles. Their connection offers a glimpse of hope and healing amidst the chaos, but it also brings its own set of challenges. The story explores the impact of abuse and the fight for self-identity as Eden learns to reclaim her life and redefine what love truly means- all while simultaneously juggling motherhood. "Garden of Eden" is a raw and poignant story of motherhood, survival, love, and the quest for redemption, capturing the essence of black teen love while addressing the harsh realities of growing up a "fast little black girl." Started: March 2025 Ended: TBD

"So when you gon' stop playing and let me hit that shit, Zuria?" Mitch asked while he smoked a blunt in my mother's living room and we both sat on the floor. "Let you hit this?" I asked, raising an eyebrow as I watched him blow smoke into the air. "Yeah." He smirked, cockily. "How about when you learn how to talk to your girlfriend?" I took the blunt out of this hands and smashed it on the ashtray that was on the coffee table. "Whatchu do that for?" He bit his bottom lip, leaning into me. "Hm?" He went on, softly biting my neck. "I've told you, you can't smoke in here, Mitchell." "You're really not even supposed to be here." I said to him, considering my mother did not condone boys in her house but here he was. He'd completely ignored me though as he mushed his head into my neck, leaving small kisses. "Stop." I whined playfully as he pushed himself up onto me and kissed my lips, pushing me backwards with our lips still attached. "Mitch." I spoke nervously as he climbed on top of me while I now laid my back onto the carpet. "Let me hit that shit, ma." He spoke softly into my ear as he continued leaving kisses on my neck. "Mitch, we cant. My mom will be home from work soon." I expressed to him but he ran his hands up my school skirt anyway. "Stop bitchin'." "Let me finally pop that cherry, Z." He spoke, putting his lips on mine as he slowly moved my underwear aside and rubbed his fingers against my Girl. "Mm." I moaned, unfamiliar with this feeling but it felt great. And though I knew my mother would be here soon, I no longer wanted to stop. He continued rubbing it as I laid there, looking up into his eyes. As I did, he smirked down at me and I smiled small, rubbing a hand down his cheek. I was so in love with this boy.

"𝘛𝘰 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘺 𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘮𝘺 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮."

/ˈemˌpī(ə)r/ noun noun: empire; plural noun: empires Building a foundation, a team, a generational wealth, a legacy. An Empire.

𝙏𝙞𝙡 3005, 𝙄 𝙜𝙤𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠, 𝙬𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙙𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨, 𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙪𝙥.....

"I made the decision to cheat on my wife because I liked the way you made me feel vulnerable and comfortable enough to open up to you the night before it happened. I ain't never did shit like that before and that's what made it easy for me to choose to risk everything I got for you." "That shit probably not a big deal to you but a nigga like me ain't never opened up to nobody but my best friend-and still..that's rare. I hate even talking about her with you but I don't even feel comfortable talking to Ariana about my feelings 'cause I know she gon' judge me. You don't make me feel like that."

Detroit has always been the type of city that carries its own unique name with pride. Full of nonstop hustlers who move with dignity, each chasing their own dream. Trevon Gardner is one of them: a rapper finally gaining real attention, trying to turn his talent into the life he's been chasing forever. Xamira Evans is a gifted cosmetologist with her own blueprint, living life to the fullest. Their worlds don't usually collide...until one unexpected moment changes everything. Now they have to face the consequences. Will it bring them together, or tear them apart?

"Damn. Hasn't even been that long and you got a whole rock on your finger now, huh?" "...What are you doing here?" She unthinkingly rubbed her swollen belly, the tight knots forming in her stomach at the same time. "What you mean? I came for the art." His tone was sarcastic as he gestured at the paintings on the walls. She watched his eyes drift down her body, before he tightly clenched his jaw. "But I see I have more than one thing to congratulate you on." He said, bitterly. • • • • • • 𝚆𝚑𝚊𝚝'𝚜 𝚊 𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚝𝚕𝚎 𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎 𝚊𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚝 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝚠𝚎 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛? ❤️‍🩹👻 𝙱𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝟸 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚅𝚊𝚕𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚎 𝚜𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜 (𝚜𝚎𝚚𝚞𝚎𝚕)

"So you just wanna fuck me forever, and that's it, huh?" "I ain't say-" He sucked his teeth. "We already talked about this shit, Z." "Nah." She chuckled dryly. "You just keep shutting me out." "Why you doin' this to me, Ma?" He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Hm? Why you tryna fuck everything up?" • • • • • • 𝚆𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝚊 𝚗𝚘𝚗-𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚒𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚖𝚎𝚎𝚝𝚜 𝚊 𝚑𝚘𝚙𝚎𝚕𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚛𝚘𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚌, 𝚊 𝚌𝚕𝚊𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚌 𝚝𝚊𝚕𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚏𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚜 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚋𝚎𝚗𝚎𝚏𝚒𝚝𝚜 𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚗𝚜 𝚝𝚛𝚊𝚐𝚒𝚌 💌👻 𝙱𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝟷 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚅𝚊𝚕𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚎 𝚜𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜