Book 1 of the Hearts of Oakhaven series He built a fortress around his heart. She brought a wrecking ball and a secret. Elias Thorne is a mystery in Oakhaven, A solitary figure and the owner of a successful tattoo franchise, his wealth is as carefully guarded as his silence. He is the quiet grump the whole town wants to decipher, but no one ever gets close. Elias likes his life neat, organized, and utterly empty of anything that could remind him of love and loss. Then June Hayes arrives. Burnt out from the new york art scene and pregnant via a donor, June is determined to create a peaceful, new life for herself and her baby. To the locals, she's just a sweet, new artist. They have no idea she's also viral sensation with over a million followers who sells her work to the A-list. June sees Elias's grumpy exterior and smiles. She needs a friend, and she has decided the broody, ball cap wearing man (no seriously I never see him without a hat on - June) across the street is it. She invades his quiet space showing up at the inkwell every Tuesday and spending the day, sharing her music, and poking at his meticulous order. Elias fights it all, clenching his jaw and pulling his cap low to hide the truth: he fell for the Wildflower the minute she crashed into his life. As June begins posting subtle, faceless photos of him, their reluctant friendship turns into an online viral romance that threatens to expose both of their secrets. How do you guard a heart that already belongs to a Wildflower, a baby, and a life you swore you'd never have? And what happens when the most careful grump in Oakhaven blurts out, "That's my wife," just to stay by her side? Tropes: - Grumpy x Sunshine - He Falls First - Protective - Pregnancy - Small Town - Forced Friends - Friends to lovers - Secret Identity CAN BE READ AS A STANDALONE

"Soren, P-Please," I begged, my hand clasping around his wrist, desperate for him to thrust his finger inside me. "I love it when you beg, Amore. But we're running late." He stopped, and I definitely wanted to strangle him for making me frustrated. "I hate you," I groaned. He spun me around and placed one hand on the back of my neck, pulling me in for a kiss. "No, you don't," he mumbled against my lips. He pulled away from the kiss, with a small peck on my forehead, and a light smack on my ass. "Did you strap on your holster?" He asked. ♡♡♡♡ Aurora Daniels, a young exhibition coordinator finding her footing in a new country, runs into a man who had given her the best sex of her life in a one-night stand. Soren Bianchi, the ruthless leader of the Italian mafia, hasn't stopped thinking about her from the first night they spent together.

Five years ago, Aria Castellano learned the truth that destroys most people: innocence is the easiest weapon an enemy can use. So she cut hers out. Piece by piece. She left New York to sever every tie that made her vulnerable-family, friends, and the boy she loved enough to become a liability. She traded softness for strategy, hesitation for violence, and the girl she used to be for a woman who understands that survival requires dirty hands and an even dirtier conscience. Now she's back. Not for forgiveness. Not for closure. But to finish the war that began long before she knew she was part of it. Her return exposes traitors, rattles alliances, and forces her to face the one person she swore she'd never see again. And the worst part? It hurts. It shouldn't- but it does. Still, pain is a small price. Because Aria isn't in New York to feel. She's here to win. And she stopped fearing the monster inside her the moment she realized- monsters survive longer.

Seventeen-year-old Aria Castellano thought she knew who she was - a scholarship student, a good daughter, a girl with simple dreams and a mother who made the world feel safe. But when her mother dies in a car accident, the life Aria knew unravels overnight. A letter. A name. A father she's never met. Now she's flying across the country to New York - to a mansion with guards at every gate, brothers who don't know what to make of her, and a father still struggling to accept the daughter he didn't know existed. Her stepmother is kind, her new home beautiful... but nothing about it feels right. At St. Augustine's Academy, power hums beneath every smile and secret. The students there were born into legacies - families bound by alliances older than the school itself, until betrayal tore them apart. Those old rivalries still live on in the halls she walks now, and Aria's arrival is stirring them all back to life. One boy in particular seems to hate her most. He's untouchable, cruel in that effortless way only someone raised in power can be. But behind the sharp words and colder eyes is something else - something that pulls her closer even when she knows she shouldn't look twice. As Aria begins to uncover the truth her mother died protecting, she learns that some secrets were buried for a reason... and that even in a world built on bloodlines and betrayal, the most dangerous thing of all might be the way he looks at her. "Some secrets don't stay buried forever. And Aria Castellano's name might be the one that brings them all back to the light"

❝I didn't mind helping. I just didn't realize no one was helping me.❞ Danielle Whitaker has always been the girl people rely on. In Hawkins, she's known for her kindness. The one who volunteers, bakes when she's stressed, looks after her siblings, and keeps the peace without ever asking for credit. Being needed feels safer than being seen. Billy Hargrove arrives in town angry, reckless, and already halfway burned by a life that never gave him much to hold onto. He notices Dani not because she's loud, but because she doesn't look away. She laughs when he expects fear. She stays when he expects distance. Some girls are praised for holding everything together. Some boys are taught to break before they bend. This is the story of what happens when they collide. Disclaimer: This story contains mature themes and references to abuse and violence. Reader discretion is advised.

"𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐬𝐚𝐲 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐦𝐞-" "𝐈 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮, 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐬 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐛𝐚𝐥𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐲." ‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾　　☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙ in which the eldest byers child works as a secretary for the hawkins police department - and the chief of police is just a little obsessed with her.

She thought Gotham was behind her. He thought Forks was safe. But some ghosts don't stay buried. Selina Kyle thought she had escaped her past - until she finds him again. After the tragic death of Bruce Wayne everything had changed, all hope that she could one day join the bat again was gone. In a world of immortal secrets, power, and desire, some connections can't be ignored - no matter how hard you try. Bruce Wayne/Edward Cullen x Selina Kyle

The world had stopped for both of them - just in different ways. Oscar Piastri lay in a hospital bed, ribs aching, silence louder than any engine he'd ever known. Next door, Alara Finch held her newborn son against her chest, whispering promises she wasn't sure she could keep. Between them, only a thin wall. And the sound that would change everything - a baby's first cry, slicing through the quiet, finding him when he thought he'd been lost for good.

√ 𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐧𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐞 𝐟𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐚𝐦𝐨𝐧 𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐬 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐬. [𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐟𝐞𝐦 𝐨𝐜 𝐱 𝐝𝐚𝐦𝐨𝐧 𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐞]

The followers are convinced Adrienne and Jackson are dating. She's the social media manager for his hockey team, and he's the captain. When her boss asks them to give the people what they want for the content's sake, they can do nothing but agree. So, they're not actually dating. Not yet, at least.