Family - the most important thing in the world, right? If it's your own, maybe. But if it's the family of the incredibly powerful, incredibly alluring businessman with whom you've been conducting a secret office affair, and they don't yet know about the affair, things are a little bit different. Life is about to get real for Lilly Linton. All those stolen moments behind closed doors, those secret kisses and whispered words are about to catch up with her. As she and her boss, business-magnate Rikkard Ambrose, travel north to his parents' palatial estate, she is about to discover whether she has the strength to step out of the shadows and change her fate forever. Volume four of the award-winning "Storm and Silence" series.

British business mogul Rikkard Ambrose has departed London to face his arch-rival in a deadly game of espionage and intrigue at the Royal Court of France, leaving his lady love behind to knit socks and twiddle her thumbs. Left behind alone? That is not something Lilly Linton is willing to put up with! Determined to show her boss who's boss, she embarks on her most dangerous adventure yet, armed with the most powerful weapon of all: love-and, just in case, her trusted revolver. The 5th volume of Robert Thier's award-winning Storm and Silence series.

He was her first love and 'never'... She will be his last and 'forever'. *** Tessa Maxfield has always been the smart one because she couldn't be the pretty one or the cool one. And she's fine with that. The upside of being smart is not making stupid decisions like she did as a kid, falling in love with her older brother's best friend. She outgrew that and could still outsmart it now. Jake Hastings has always been a playboy because he could be so why not? But his best friend's rash wedding and fairytale marriage has left him wondering if he could have more. The downside to his notorious reputation is that when he unexpectedly finds the girl he can't live without, she won't believe him. He burned that bridge a long time ago and she's not letting him build a new one now. Can two people who want so much of what they're afraid of find their way through first loves and second chances to finally find each other? *** This is a spin-off from The Mischievous Mrs. Maxfield. It can be read standalone but I would highly recommend reading the original book first before this one for a lot more context and extra scenes. *** Copyright © 2016 by Nina Tippett. All rights reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of Nina Tippett. This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously.

Silent. Cold. Chiselled perfection. That is Rikkard Ambrose, the most powerful business mogul in Great Britain. Free-spirited. Fiery. Definitely NOT attracted to the aforementioned business mogul. That is Lilly Linton, his personal secretary and secret weapon. The two have been playing a cat and mouse game for months. So far, Lilly has been able to fight down and deny her attraction to Mr Ambrose. But what happens when suddenly, the dark secrets of his past begin to surface and they are forced to go on a perilous journey into the South-American jungle? A journey they can only survive if they band together? Book 3 in the Watty-Award-winning "Storm and Silence" series.

1996 is the year when it all began. One man ordered to take everything she cherished. A few others collaborated. Now, fifteen years later, she's out hunting for every one of them. And no one can stop her.

Jason Tisse, is on a jet plane headed to to Europe, his first trip abroad. To relax he picks up an old cinema trade magazine and is shocked to find an article written by his film school mentor, Edgerton. It's a story so fantastic that Jason can't tell if the article is fact of fiction. It's whimsical tale which describes the origins of a magic Brownie Kodak camera, which strangely seems to be the very camera that Jason has stored in the overhead compartment right above his seat! Jason had planned to use the camera to document the works of his favorite painter, and when he does, the magic box of light will unleash all of the sex, violence and humor captured on canvas by the infamous artist, Caravaggio! In this excerpt from Gregory Earls' first novel, "Empire of Light," this short story is a COMPLETE short tale written by the mentor of our main character, Jason Tisse. I hope you enjoy, "The Cinematographer, the Box of Light, & Magic Hour!" Get the entire book at Amazon.com. Thanks!

The mayor of Toronto collapses and dies while making a speech. The newspaper receives an email -- a fake obituary that claims credit for his murder. The note is signed by a secret society at a prestigious downtown university. Clare Vengel is given her first undercover assignment: to pose as a student, penetrate the secret society, and find out who killed the mayor.

There is an intangible magic to the secret double-lives of strangers on trains. She spends her journeys gazing out at city lights outside the window of the train. He watches strangers on the seats around him. Two strangers living off the stories of strangers, with only one journey to find their own. {Written 2013.}

Sometimes all you really need is a place to call home. *** Claire is lost and scared and utterly alone. Her family is in shambles after the death of her older sister Ina, and she's left to pick up the broken pieces of herself as her life heads into a downwards spiral of loneliness. Her heart leads her to 5:48, a little cafe by 33rd street, where she finds her new home. With a broken heart and a speech disability, Jasper has his heart and mouth sewn shut by the winding threads of hurt and fear. Painting and serving coffee in cafe 5:48 are one of his last few saving graces, but the smile he's been painting on himself will soon fade away as everything he's ever held dear slips away from his grasp. Ezra is out-of-sync and oddly cold by the way life has treated his young self. Abandoned by his single mother at an early age, he has grown up thinking that he is a mistake. His constant shaking hands are a reflection of what he often thinks of himself, but the delightful pastries he bakes for 5:48's customers are a reflection of what others see of him. Drew is a quirky rarity. He is a dash of loud, a pinch of exuberant, and a cup of eccentric - just like the meals he serves in the cafe as the only chef there. Behind his playful grins and outlandish clothes, however, are his jutting ribs, hollowed cheeks, and too-thin arms. Sometimes he cannot stomach being in his own skin as much as he cannot stomach food. This family has gone a long way from finding each other, and they'll be going a long way together too as reality comes catching up to them, threatening the newfound happiness they've found with each other. Secrets are revealed, pasts become presents, and lives are changed. Slowly but surely, they find their way back home. *** NOTE AS OF 08/2026: This is the old version of the story from 2012, posted in FULL. Another story that will be considered a reprise of this old version is in the works, and will be posted under the name "Hiraya House."

❝The most rebellious people in society are the dreamers; for their minds are capable of creating incredibly beautiful and impossible concoctions. And those single thoughts alone have the ability to reconstruct anything.❞ Alice is nearing graduation and the stress is pushing her to breaking point. So, in a spontaneous decision to run away, she finds herself in the circus tent at a carnival two towns away. What better way to distract herself than speculating upon an entertaining show of optical illusions?