book #3

"And it doesn't matter how much time passed or how much time will pass-it's him. It always has been him and it always will be him...I just don't know how to tell him," When it's more than a like, and they're more than a friend. When they know you better than you know yourself and just the thought of them is all you need to put a smile on your face-telling your best friend you're in love with them should be simple. Right?

"Your heart has no concept of time, if it wants to move on, it will. With or without you,"

For three years Kasim, Nala, and Zuri had been a throuple. They'd started off as close friends throughout highschool but it wasn't until college when sexual feelings started between the three and that soon turned into romantic feelings. Despite their families views and opinions on their relationship they had stuck through it and had thrived once they got the hang of being with one another. Things had been going great until Orion- Nala's bestfriend had went through something traumatic in his life and they'd opened their home to him. He was a bisexual male and Kasim found himself becoming curious once he was around more. He'd never struggled with his sexuality before he'd always been a straight man- something about Orion had intrigued him though. One drunken night had changed the dynamics of the once shared friendships/relationships between the four. Could they add on more than they could handle? More people came with more drama/problems. Was that one night worth it enough to change their throuple into a-- QUAD?

Can you damage someone beyond repair? Luca plays his role as the loyal underboss. Violent, lethal, flawless. The lapdog, the starboy. On the surface, he maintains his facade of smirks and casual charm, but beneath the mask, thereʼs a profound darkness, a relentless memory of the girl who shattered his heart years ago. Soft, innocent, naive---sheʼs the last thing he needs... yet the only thing heʼs ever wanted. When trouble drags Wren back to New Yorkʼs underworld, she has no choice but to face the past she never outran. She never stopped yearning for the boy who lit up her world seven years ago, the only person who ever made her feel truly alive. Fate throws them back into the same orbit, but can they survive the wreck of their past?

A spontaneous Friday night outing led Nova to a surprise destination: Ramiro's bed, the one person her brother can't stand- and the one who ignited a fire she can't seem to ignore. "𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙞𝙩 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙥𝙞𝙨𝙨 𝙢𝙚 𝙤𝙛𝙛, 𝙙𝙤𝙣'𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪?" 𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙪𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙙, 𝙠𝙞𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙤𝙛 𝙢𝙮 𝙚𝙖𝙧. "𝘽𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙄 𝙛𝙪𝙘𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨, 𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩?" 𝘼 𝙠𝙞𝙨𝙨 𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙙 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙤𝙛 𝙢𝙮 𝙣𝙚𝙘𝙠, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙚𝙚𝙩𝙝 𝙦𝙪𝙞𝙘𝙠𝙡𝙮 𝙧𝙖𝙣 𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙖𝙢𝙚 𝙨𝙥𝙤𝙩. 𝙄 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙄 𝙝𝙖𝙙 𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙙 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙖 𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙚𝙙 𝙙𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙢𝙮 𝙨𝙥𝙞𝙣𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙄 𝙛𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙞𝙣 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜. "𝙍𝙖𝙢𝙞𝙧𝙤," 𝙄 𝙢𝙤𝙖𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙣𝙖𝙢𝙚, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙡𝙤𝙬 𝙘𝙝𝙪𝙘𝙠𝙡𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙙 𝙢𝙚 𝙜𝙪𝙡𝙥𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙚𝙨. "𝙍𝙖𝙢𝙞𝙧𝙤?" 𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙤𝙩𝙚𝙙. "𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙈𝙞𝙧𝙤, 𝙖𝙢𝙤𝙧?"

Zahra Ariel Simpson was never the girl to aim for the unattainable, but living in closed quarters with the man of your fantasies shatters beliefs faster than the strike of lightning - especially when that man is your best-friends dad. Gabriel Antoine Lemaire was a man that knew his strengths and weaknesses well. Grown to be calculated due to circumstances he hates surprises. As his thread dwindles daily just from the scent of florals and caramel floating in the hall, he comes to understand just how quickly Rome fell. -------------------------- "I need a minute Zahra. I need a minute or I'll ruin you. I flip you every which way on the couch and fuck you like a whore." He bites into my skin. "Give me a goddamn minute." I don't give him his minute. I have him right where I need him. Desperate and hanging over a cliff. I chuckle, my nose tracing a pattern on his cheek. He's unhinged, his hips rolling into my center full of need as his fingers bruise my skin in a way I like - the hope of admiring them tomorrow stark in my mind. My voice is a whisper, my tongue slipping out to lick his lips. "Fuck me like a whore then Gabriel."

BOOK #9 || One thing the two young adults have in common: being the headline.

Imperfect flowers follows different young adults as they navigate grief, growth, and survival at pivotal moments in their lives. Among them is Sterling Waters, a privileged African American woman raised in a sheltered world shaped by wealth, structure, and expectation, and Arzen "Ace" Suárez, a young man carrying the weight of a turbulent past he's been trying to outrun. Their stories intersect with others who are searching for purpose, healing, and connection, revealing how lives overlap, influence, and fracture in ways no one sees coming.