Ari Callahan has no idea how to talk to boys -- or how to talk to anyone for that matter. Enter Zac, the cute new guy in town who won't stop texting her. But is his interest real, or does he have a hidden agenda? ***** Found as a young child washed up on the beach, 17-year-old Ari Callahan has never uttered a word out loud to anyone -- not even her adoptive family. Psychologists have diagnosed her with a condition called selective mutism, but Ari can't help identifying with her namesake character, Ariel, the little mermaid in the fairytale whose voice was stolen by a sea witch. Mermaid-obsession aside, Ari's silence makes socializing tough. She's never had a boyfriend or been asked out on a date. Not until Zac, the confident new arrival in town, asks for her number. But Zac has his own reasons for texting with Ari. He's part of a movement to sabotage the artificial music app called SirenSong, threatening to render human singing obsolete. Zac's collaborators have scoured the globe in search of a singing voice perfect enough to break the SirenSong spell, and their search has led them straight to Ari's beachside town. Will her relationship with Zac help Ari find her voice and unlock the secrets of her origins? Or will he use her and leave her high and dry? Title: Ari and Zac (formerly The Mermaid Hypothesis) Content Warning: This story contains references to selective mutism, suicidal thoughts, and early childhood trauma.

[WATTYS 2016 WINNER!] [COSMOPOLITAN Featured!] Trapped in her white trash hell, Layla Danner is failing at life. Her friend Peyton? Everybody thinks he's perfect, a staggeringly rich, handsome, and well-mannered story book prince. But they don't know what Layla knows. And she'll never tell. Jake? Jake's trouble. A down and dirty charmer, this one's got a devil-may-care attitude and a mouth to match. Everything goes to hell in a handbasket when he shows up to town one summer. Layla never meant to fall in love. All she wanted to do was finish her senior year, get the hell out of this town and never, ever look back. But when mysterious secrets from the boys' past refuse to stay buried, Layla must decide how far she'll go for a chance at a once in a lifetime love. Follow three unforgettable characters in this captivatingly melodramatic, soap-operatic, and larger-than-life tale of first loves, loyalty, intrigue and the magic of growing up. ♦️WARNING: This writer is a hopeless romantic with a filthy mouth and a dirty mind who loves to re-work cliches. The style of the story reflects this. Also, some dark themes. ♦️

Seat filler Lincoln Parker never expected to accidentally fall on one knee in front of world-famous superstar Emily Margot. Now, with his face on the cover of every tabloid, he has to pretend to be her lover-and keep hidden his real, growing feelings as their time together starts to run out. ***** When 23-year-old Lincoln Parker accidentally trips over famous actress Emily Margot, he never imagines that she would ask him to be her pretend fiancé until the scandal-of being caught supposedly proposing to her-blows over in the media. Because he's a relative nobody; just an army medic on leave, moonlighting at award shows as a seat filler. But with his name on the dotted line of their contract, he has to find a way to survive in her Hollywood bubble and also bury his growing anxiety, especially as his leave from the army runs out. Can their budding relationship withstand the distance? Is their love built to last? [ General fiction #2 chick lit #4 ] [Wattys 2015 Winner - HQ Love) [word count: 60,000-70,000 words] Cover designed by Lucas Fisher Sequel: The Game Changer