Josie thought the hardest part of falling in love with Nate was overcoming all the reasons why she shouldn't- would she, could she survive the trauma of another betrayal? Her fears were valid. The invisible scars her ex boyfriend left were deep, ragged and still bleeding. Josie swore she'd never open her heart to another cop again. But Nate was patient, steady, and impossible to ignore. Little by little, he quieted her fears and became the one exception she never meant to make. Until a forgotten morning alarm forced Josie to realize Nate may not be the man he promised to be. As old wounds begin to bleed again, she must decide if the ghosts of trauma past still hold power and whether trusting her heart to Nate cost her everything she fought so hard to walk away from. Josie will have to decide if the man who once asked her to dance beneath the stars deserved a second chance to heal her shattered heart.

***STORY ON HOLD, AUTHOR HAS SEVERE CASE OF WRITER'S BLOCK*** ZOSIA I fell in love with Konstantin Krasnov. On the night I thought he was going to propose, I found another woman in his bed. I ran. I rebuilt. Life went on. Until one day, I'm attacked, and my savior is none other than the man who shattered me. Now there's a target on my back, and the man who cheated on me is the only one who can keep me alive. And I find out I never knew that man at all. Because Konstantin Krasnov is a monster. A butcher. A killer.

They call my husband the embodiment of cruelty. Demetri Ferraro was forged for control, vengeance, and bloodshed without conscience. Strangers murmur cautions about what he might do, forgetting I sleep inches from him nightly. If only they could witness what I have. There's a terrifying authenticity to our marriage. With me, he's attentive to the point of reverence. I wear his fingerprints like brands. His vigilance wraps around me, reflexive as breathing. I trusted him completely because betrayal seemed impossible. That was my undoing The merger of our families cost me things I didn't know I was losing. I salvaged only the skating rink-solitary hours on pristine ice before dawn or after midnight. The architecture of my future was more elaborate than I comprehended. The truth doesn't announce itself with confession. It arrives without remorse, manifesting as inevitability, as though questioning his constructed reality was never an option. I don't doubt that my husband loves me. For the true terror of Demetri Ferraro isn't found in shadows or violence. It's in how he determined I belonged to him, by systematically eliminating any alternative path.

Cheating romance - please beware, new H. When Stella discovers her fiancé is cheating just weeks before their wedding, she doesn't fall apart, she rises. With her closest friends by her side, she swaps heartbreak for strategy and turns betrayal into the perfect revenge. TROPES: Cheating Revenge - new life with new H Grovel

"Let's get a divorce." The words should have broken her. Instead, she felt nothing. Claire Bennett thought she had built a quiet, ordinary marriage with Ethan Miller until the day he asked to leave for his first love, Vanessa Reed. Without tears or arguments, Claire signs the papers and walks away, determined to return her life to the way it was before Ethan. But cutting contact completely is never simple. Vanessa's envy runs deep, and Ethan's certainty begins to crumble as the woman he left behind starts to shine without him. When a mysterious artist named Ryan Carter steps into Claire's life, he challenges everything she thought she knew about love, loyalty, and self-worth. In a world where appearances mean everything, Claire learns that the greatest revenge is peace, and that the right love never asks her to wait.

Phoebe Miller is the "nerdy" farm girl who finally lands a prom date with her longtime crush, Ryker Blackwood. The night is ruined when she overhears him mocking her as a "charity case." Heartbroken but done being the victim, Phoebe spends her final summer in Texas transforming into a woman who no longer needs him. Now, Ryker is the one watching from the sidelines as the girl he dismissed becomes the only one he can't have.

Aurora Hale knows how to make anything bloom. Roses. Nightshade. Even love. In the sun-washed city of Elysian Coast, she runs Thorn & Bloom-a café-floral atelier that deals in beauty with a bite. Her husband, Jeremiah, is chasing the kind of perfection that photographs well: seaside dinners, charity galas, and promises whispered through polished smiles. But the petals have started to fall. What once felt like devotion now feels like decay, soft, slow, and deliberate. Thier relationship is withering under the weight of its own rot. And in Elysian Coast, everything that grows beautiful must feed on something dying.

"You left me for her. Now you want to remember how to breathe without me?" Two years abandoned. Two years silent. On their anniversary, he walks in with the woman he left her for. Papers signed, heart sealed, she walks away. But the past has claws-and soon, the truth unravels. When the mistress turns out to be a nightmare in lace, and the wife-his wife-emerges stronger, crueler, and so heartbreakingly beautiful... he regrets everything. But regret isn't enough. He wants her back. This time, he'll burn the world to do it.

One lesson I learned very early in life was to be cheerful, to be agreeable, to do as I was told and ask for nothing, and to never ever complain. Smile Maddie. Be happy Maddie. Don't make trouble and maybe they'll love you. I grew into an adult who took care of others and never expected that those I loved would take care of me in return. I gave and never asked, never expected, never demanded. Smile Maddie. Be happy Maddie. Don't make trouble and you'll find someone that will love you. And then one day, a Dragon walked into my workplace and turned my world upside down with a single wink. Having grown up watching his father treat his men like they were disposable, just meat bags to be fed into the grinder, Dragon was determined to be different when he became president of the Dragon's Inferno MC. He cares about his people. He takes care of them. He was upfront with me, taking care of his MC and those he considered to be his would always be his priority. And I agreed to that, I joined him in that mission, throwing myself into becoming the perfect old lady of the prez. Smile Maddie. Act happy Maddie. Take care of them and maybe they'll love you. Smile Maddie. Be happy Maddie. Don't complain and maybe he'll love you. I told myself I was independent. I was strong. And I didn't need my Dragon to take care of me. And I almost believed it. Almost. But now I'm watching him with her. I'm watching him comfort her. I'm watching him listen to her, support her, reassure her. I'm watching him take time from his day to check in with her. I'm watching him worry about her. I'm watching them become closer right in front of my eyes. I'm seeing every thoughtful gesture he does for her. And me? I'm not happy. I'm not smiling. I'm done being agreeable. Fuck not causing trouble. I'm about to set my Dragon's world on fire. And then I'm walking away. She can have him. For the first time in my life, I'm choosing myself.

Claire: I loved Andrew from the moment I met him, but love can only get you so far. We have been together for four years, and his family still treats me like I'm the other woman. I finally decided to choose me and love myself to walk away. Andrew: Claire is the air I breathe, I have loved her from the moment I laid eyes on her, but Becca has been a family friend since we were kids and I promised her a happy ending and that promise is now messing with my happy ending. I can't lose Claire but I'm afraid after all is said and done I will lose her anyway but I will try, I will beg I will grovel I will do anything to get my happy ending with Claire I just hope it is enough.