"The Help doesn't have to set a single foot into my office. Do you understand?" Mr.Armani spoke to me, condescension heavy in his tone. '𝘛𝘩𝘦 "𝘏𝘦𝘭𝘱" 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘤𝘶𝘮 𝘦𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳.' I think to myself, '𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘐 𝘥𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦.' ✂ ✁ ✃ My name is Maxine Walker. I was a bright eyed 22 year old woman, with nothing but a high school diploma and the desperate need for something new. I craved independency, and to be away from my parents. I had to find a way to make ends meet and somehow, I got the opportunity to become a housekeeper. A housekeeper for a rich man and his hot, hot wife... Mrs.Armani, Naya Armani, was a sight for sore eyes. But I was her employee. And I had a long-distance girlfriend. And she was married. Fuck, I can't believe she's married. ✂ ✁ ✃

"Lily." she said my name, the letters falling from her mouth like petals wilting from a flower of sin. I didn't respond. Not because I didn't want to. I just didn't know what to say. "I am not going to leave this place without you. I know that I messed up before, but my biggest mistake of all would be losing you. I refuse to let that happen." 𓃠 𓃠𓃠 My name is Lily Lovelace, and I am as bubbly and feminine as my name is. I've moved around with my family from country to country due to my father's job. Due to my unstable and nomadic lifestyle, I've become closed off to true connection despite my strong desire for passion and romance. My heart found itself caught between its hunger for love and the safety of solitude. Eventually we settled down in the rural parts of Italy. I never would have expected to meet a fiery young woman all the way from New York City, with hair akin to a lion's mane and the personality of a cunning fox. Oh, Zafina Mustafa, the woman that you are. 𓃠 𓃠𓃠

Valentina Moreau was too rigidly perfect for my liking. Even given her divorce, she managed to stay mature and composed at all times. In harsh contrast, I was a young firecracker still throwing fits over subpar men who couldn't tell loyalty from sticking it into anything with a pretty-enough face. And now, I was meant to be her co-worker and live alongside her. She was the housekeeper. I was the personal chef. I found her tedious. She found me reckless. But God - when you put us together - it's just... Chef's Kiss.

"I've never been with a woman before." I was an echo chamber to her words as I made my admission shyly, looking away as my face grew hot with embarrassment. I wasn't lying. I never had been with a woman before. Especially not an older, well respected and successful woman. Vivian Black took me by my chin, forcing me to look her in the eyes, "Let me change that." I watched and allowed her to trace circles into my hip, "What about the men I told you about? She let out a small laugh, her lips now on my neck and her hand in between my legs, "I'll make you forget all about them."

── Wherein 𝗠𝗔𝗬𝗨𝗠𝗜 𝗗𝗢𝗟𝗢𝗥𝗘𝗦, a kindergarten teacher, finds herself intertwined with 𝗟𝗔𝗩𝗜𝗡𝗜𝗔 𝗥𝗢𝗦𝗘𝗪𝗢𝗢𝗗; a woman twice her age, a CEO wrapped in precision and control, and the very thing that just might unravel her. There's tension in every glance. Gravity in every touch. And somewhere between whispered apologies and sharp-edged desire, Mayumi realizes: It isn't falling if it was always fated. So what else is there to do? Not when 𝙠𝙞𝙨𝙢𝙚𝙩'𝙨 to blame... ── ✦ 𝙍𝘼𝙉𝙆𝙄𝙉𝙂𝙎: #1 gxg #1 olderwomen #1 agegapwlw #7 sexuality #9 lgbt #35 darkromance

One girl, haunted by demons she never asked for. One girl, holding onto a dream with bleeding hands. One girl, clinging to a life she never was supposed to survive. One girl-and one infuriating woman she was never meant to meet. Aurora Winters, 18, soft-spoken and sweet like spring rain, begins her second last first day of senior year. The wreckage of a car crash last Christmas stole what little safety she had left-leaving her in the bitter care of an aunt who never wanted her and a man who only knows cruelty. Bruised, quiet, alone and unraveling, Aurora is trying to survive the storm. But survival becomes complicated when a certain woman enters the picture. Valentina M. Harlow, 37, new to this part of town, new to the school, old to the weight of the world. Once a sweet girl who ached to be seen, now a woman shaped by silence and cold resolve. Sharp-tongued, guarded, emotionally untouchable, manipulative and entirely disinterested in attachments. She is the oldest daughter who walked away-from blood and businesses, from love, from everything that broke her. It's been seven years since she last let herself feel. And she likes it that way. Until Aurora. What begins as uneasy glances and sharp conversations becomes something far harder to ignore. Valentina sees the pain in the girl's eyes. The bruises beneath the surface. And suddenly, the woman who feels nothing is faced with a choice: walk away as she always has, or reach out-risking everything. This is a tale of longing and danger, where hearts shatter, wounds heal, and reopen. Again and again. A story of two women who were never meant to orbit, yet crash into each other anyway. A story of it all. Of longing that feels like ruin. Of aching that feels like home. Of broken things that refuse to stay broken. A slow unraveling, a dangerous pull. A love that could save-or destroy-them both. Maybe they'll piece themselves back together. And set the world on fire, together.