FORMERLY TITLED "FATUM" Chosen as a Wattpad Featured Story in May 2017 There's a reason high school senior Athena Thorpe spends every available moment reading books: fiction is always so much better than the real world. Even the unexpected scandal she suffered thanks to Jackson Montgomery was just a blip in her typically mundane existence in Sparrow, North Carolina. But no story could ever compare to the life-altering events that occur when Gabriel Valente moves into town. Being the son of a notorious crime lord and having grown up on the streets of Manhattan, Gabriel defies all the expectations the students of Sparrow High have for him, including Athena's. She never expected he would match her interest in the written word, or his unlikely grand gestures and definitely not the immediate but intense feelings which cause them to spiral into a secret relationship. A relationship that hinders on Gabriel's uncertain future, which could find him being the heir to the mob throne. Whether or not she wants to admit it, Athena knows the world Gabriel comes from is a dark and violent one. It's just really easy to pretend it doesn't exist within the bubble that is Sparrow. Yet, no matter how much we pretend, reality is never far away, with Gabriel and Athena learning a tragic lesson about choice and consequence a little too late. When you finally decide what you want most in life, the next question becomes: will fate agree?

As Claire aims to leave her oppressive stepfamily behind, she befriends Zion. Will he be her ticket to freedom or a distraction in achieving her dreams? ***** Claire Olsen has had a crush on Zion Petrakis since the first time she laid eyes on him, but he never noticed, instead only having eyes on the school's it girl, Maddie Jennings. Knowing she couldn't compete with Maddie, Claire hid her feelings for Zion, satisfied with admiring him from afar. However, when a series of events led Claire closer to Zion, her feelings for him grew from infatuation to love. And despite fighting hard to keep her feelings contained by distancing herself from Zion, he was determined to show her that he's earned a spot in her life. [[word count: 100,000-150,000 words]]

College is just like her old life . . . bleak. Surviving it won't be easy, especially when the girlfriend of the guy she's loved her entire life would rather see her dead. So much for that clean slate. Instead she's constantly looking over her shoulder, watching, waiting and worrying. Lucky for Emma she met The Senator's Son. Zach Walker is the typical rich kid . . . or is he? He's all heart, not like all those other guys. She isn't supposed to fall for him. She doesn't even know if she can trust him. He is completely tempting and totally out of her league. Please note - there is profanity and sexual situations. All rights reserved. I hold copyright so my work cannot be copied in any form whether in print or electronically, or any other form for that matter. So please, don't plagiarize. It's not nice.