18+ | 2026 WATTYS SHORTLISTER | First Draft | Not edited. |"You gonna sit there all night?" Luka glances at me, smirking. I glare back. "I was enjoying the last few seconds of peace before having to spend an evening pretending to like you." "That's funny," he says, unbuckling his seatbelt. "Why?" I snap. "Because I was thinking the same thing." | The rules? Easy enough. 1. Pretend to be the perfect couple. 2. Keep it professional. 3. And whatever you do, don't. catch. feelings. Simple, right? Sofia Calloway never planned on going viral for throwing a drink in Luka Mikhaylov's face. But one video, one pissed-off hockey star, and one furious university later... she's suddenly stuck in a fake relationship with the guy she can't stand. He needs to clean up his image before the NHL draft. She needs the free tuition that comes with the deal. All they have to do is smile for the cameras, hold hands at the games, and act like they don't want to strangle each other. Then come the late-night arguments that last too long. The stolen glances that feel too dangerous. The moment where "pretend" starts looking way too real. Because when you break the rules, someone's bound to lose. And this time, it might be both of them.

❝𝑾𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒃𝒆𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒚 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒕, 𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒓𝒚?❞ _____________________________ Sidharth never wanted this marriage. Trapped by circumstances and haunted by a past he didn't want to face, he told himself it was only a duty. But Noor-silent, simple Noor-was something he couldn't ignore. Her presence stirred something in him, her quietness louder than his own chaos. She never asked for anything, yet she made him face the parts of himself he wanted to forget. And as his walls started to fall, he hated that he wanted her-that he needed the warmth of someone he was never meant to have. As time went on, He began to behave in ways that were antithetical to his initial intentions. He found himself doing everything he had once vowed never to do with his wife. He became the very husband he had despised. He started to crave more, an insatiable desire that gnawed at his soul for her. And then nothing seems to satisfy his aching soul other than his arranged wife's one smile. ●An Indian arranged marriage romance. #Book-1 in #His bride series. (A standalone book) ●Bᴏᴏᴋ ɪs ʀᴀᴛᴇᴅ ᴍᴀᴛᴜʀᴇ ᴅᴜᴇ ᴛᴏ Dᴀʀᴋ ʀᴏᴍᴀɴᴄᴇ, ᴀɢᴇ ɢᴀᴘ ᴀɴᴅ ʜɪɢʜʟʏ ᴍᴀᴛᴜʀᴇ ᴄᴏɴᴛᴇɴᴛ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴍᴇɴᴛɪᴏɴ ᴏғ ʟɪɢʜᴛ BDSM. (Have a lot of grammatical and spelling mistakes.) ╰┈➤Started on: 28 April 2024 Author♥️

𝙄𝙩𝙣𝙞 𝙨𝙞 𝙗𝙖𝙖𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙞 𝙢𝙪𝙟𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙪𝙢𝙨𝙚 𝙥𝙮𝙖𝙧 𝙝𝙖𝙞 ♡ 𝘿𝙍𝘼𝙒𝙉 𝙏𝙊 𝙔𝙊𝙐 ♡ "Some love stories don't begin with forever - they begin with fate finding its way back." When Rivaan Malhotra, a quiet, introverted topper from Delhi, transfers to a new school in Class 11, the last thing he expects is to find fragments of a forgotten past waiting for him. Then there's Vanya Mittal - lively yet thoughtful, an ambivert from Banaras who believes some connections are written by destiny itself. Between unfinished memories, shared glances, and a bond that feels strangely familiar, their worlds slowly intertwine. What neither of them realizes at first is that they were once childhood sweethearts - separated by fate, time, and silence. As friendship blooms amidst school chaos, teasing classmates, late-night conversations, and unspoken feelings, destiny gently pulls them back toward each other. But love isn't always easy when hearts carry old wounds and life has its own plans. Will Rivaan and Vanya finally rewrite the story fate once left unfinished? A heartwarming high-school romcom filled with nostalgia, devotion, slow-burn romance, and the kind of love that feels like coming home Started- 24 june 2025 Finished-

🌌 Whisper's of Destiny 🌌 By @ashii_verse 🖤 "Some stories aren't meant to be told. They're meant to bleed through silence... and leave scars where no one sees." --- Avni. Soft. Subtle. Almost invisible to the world. But beneath her quiet grace lies a storm she's too afraid to name. She doesn't raise her voice. She doesn't ask for more. She simply exists - until he sees her. The man no one dares to look in the eye... yet she meets his gaze with trembling honesty. Rajveer. Sharp mind. Cold presence. A man who speaks less and controls more. He doesn't crave love. He craves silence, control, and order. But there's something about her - the way she lowers her eyes when he speaks, the way her fear doesn't hide her truth - that draws him in like a storm waiting to be unleashed. --- ❝ You look at me like I'm human, Avni... ❞ ❝ But I've spent my whole life making sure I'm not. ❞ ❝ And still... ❞ ❝ You make me want to be yours. ❞ --- This is not a love story. This is restraint and desire at war. A girl too soft for his world. A man too dangerous for hers. And a fate that ties them together - not gently, but violently. He doesn't know how to love. She doesn't know how to leave. And somewhere in the silence between them, something begins to burn... slowly, darkly, beautifully. ✨ Whisper's of Destiny - a haunting slow-burn of longing, power, and a love so quiet... it leaves nothing untouched. ---

𓂃˖˳·˖ ִֶָ ⋆🌷͙⋆ ִֶָ˖·˳˖𓂃 ִֶָ हीरे मोती मैं ना चाहूँ मैं तो चाहूँ संगम तेरा मैं तो तेरी, सैयां तू है मेरा सैयां सैयां तू जो, छू ले, प्यार से आराम से मर जाऊं आजा, चँदा, बाहों में तुमें ही गुम हो जाऊँ मैं तेरे नाम में खो जाऊं सैयां सैयां 𓂃˖˳·˖ ִֶָ ⋆🌷͙⋆ ִֶָ˖·˳˖𓂃 ִֶָ "𝐔𝐧𝐤𝐢 𝐤𝐡𝐮𝐬𝐡𝐢 𝐤𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐲𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐢 𝐦𝐞𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐚𝐢 𝐛𝐡𝐢 𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐞 𝐤𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐲𝐞 𝐛𝐡𝐢 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲 𝐡𝐮" "I am enchanted, willingly undone, and worshipful in this soft abandonment..for loving him is no longer a choice; it is the only language I know." "𝐕𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐯𝐚𝐧 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐢𝐧 ?!" "If kneeling and touching her feet in chaos made my male ego hurt, then let it be. " "𝐌𝐚𝐚 𝐤𝐞𝐡𝐭𝐢 𝐭𝐡𝐢 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐤𝐨 𝐝𝐞𝐯𝐢 𝐦𝐚𝐚𝐧𝐚 𝐤𝐚𝐫𝐨" 𓂃˖˳·˖ ִֶָ ⋆🌷͙⋆ ִֶָ˖·˳˖𓂃 ִֶָ #1 in Lucknow #1 in poetic #9 in Delhi #1 in cultural #1 in bestbookever #1 in classical music #8 in teenagers #3 in destiny

'𝙄𝙨𝙝𝙦 𝙟𝙪𝙣𝙤𝙤𝙣 𝙟𝙖𝙗 𝙝𝙖𝙙 𝙨𝙚 𝙗𝙖𝙙𝙝 𝙟𝙖𝙮𝙚, 𝙃𝙖𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙚 𝙖𝙖𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙦 𝙨𝙪𝙡𝙞 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙙𝙝 𝙟𝙖𝙮𝙚' After crossing the first phase of love, they now stand at the edge of a new journey-one that will test their hearts and devotion in ways they never imagined. "Like the moon awaits the sun after a long night, her heart held onto his light through every shadow and silence."