It starts with a contract, not a love story. After a mission in Spain goes wrong, Aleksandra Mikhailovna Dragunova, Moscow's Bratva princess, is ordered to marry the lion of Sicily to stop a war. One wrong deal. One betrayal. One forced marriage between two empires that should never mix... and a slow-burn obsession that could burn them all. Hunted by her own world and driven out of every safe house and city, Aleksandra has one way left to survive: align with the Spadaro family. A ring she never wanted becomes her only shield. Domiziano Massimo Spadaro, Underboss and the heir to the Black Lion's crown, was raised on blood oaths and loyalty. His loyalty is the kind that makes men fear his name more than the law. When the contract lands on his desk, he doesn't see a bride; he sees a liability wrapped in strategy. A Dragunov. A woman he is ordered to claim, never trust. Aleksandra led men who killed at her word and bled at her feet. Her rules were simple: freedom over fairy tales. Power over promises. Control over love. They walk into the marriage as enemies, bound by ink, not choice. They promise themselves one thing: do not fall. ~~~ "He was supposed to be my protection. Not my addiction." ~ Aleksandra Dragunova

𝐒𝐡𝐞 𝐤𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐞. 𝐇𝐞 𝐫𝐮𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐫𝐮𝐢𝐧. Her ambition runs too thick and her patience stretches too thin. She disappears when the pressure builds, returns polished and untouchable, like she wasn't just clawing for air in the dark. She was only supposed to steal a few files-files she knows too well. Just enough to secure her place at the top. Instead, she captures the attention of a man who built his empire from ruin. A man who doesn't forgive betrayal. He wants control. He wants obsession. He wants to ruin her. And she might just ruin him right back.

𝐒𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡. 𝐇𝐞 𝐫𝐮𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐭. She hides behind sharp boots and brighter dresses, yellow loud enough to drown out the cracks in her heart. It almost works. Until the man her papa crossed decides to collect what he's owed. He doesn't ask. He takes. Tattooed hands. A ruler of empires built on blood. He closes the distance. She tries to keep it. But he's always liked the chase.

Alex Baker, a guarded photography student determined to keep her distance from athletes, has to play a dangerous game of casual passion with the campus's biggest hockey playboy in order to get him out of her system without falling for his charm. ------- Alex Baker is in a catastrophic dry spell, and frankly, she's over it. She knows exactly what she likes, but no guy on campus seems capable of delivering-until she crosses paths with Jaxon Cross. ​Jaxon is Northridge University's hockey golden boy, though his real reputation has absolutely nothing to do with the ice. The rumors about his bedroom skills spread faster than campus gossip, painting him as the ultimate, unforgettable sin. But behind the cocky smirk and the heavy praise is a guy secretly suffocating under the shallow image everyone forces on him. ​Alex detests him on principle. Jaxon is addicted to the fiery, sharp way she looks at him-like he's the worst mistake she could ever make. ​But when Jaxon overhears her brutally venting about her lackluster sex life, he offers her a deal that makes her blood run hot: a strict, no-strings-attached hookup pact. No emotions. No expectations. Just pure, unadulterated pleasure. ​Curiosity wins. But the second Jaxon touches her, the boundaries blur. ​Because Jaxon doesn't just satisfy her body-he wrecks her mind. Between tangled sheets and breathless midnight confessions, he shows her a sweet, protective side no one else gets to see. Suddenly, the player who was only supposed to be a temporary fix is becoming an addiction she can't quit. ​Alex swore this was just a game. Jaxon is ready to change the rules. And now, she has to decide if she's brave enough to risk her heart on the one guy she promised herself she'd never love. This is the second book in the Northridge Series.

"Every step you take away from me only drives you closer to the brink of my madness. You belong to me, Winter. Any alternative reality or illusion you hope for- I will destroy them until your very existence is entwined with mine." -𝐈𝐯𝐚𝐧 𝐀𝐫𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐞 Eighteen-year-old Winter has always been a quiet shadow, a shy spy avoiding the perils of the spotlight. But when she's tasked with stalking five powerful Heirs, her carefully crafted invisibility shatters. Her mission is clear: erase their scandals, track their every move, and never draw attention. Yet, when she crosses paths with Ivan Arcane-the ruthless heir to one of the world's most powerful empires-everything changes. At first, Ivan saw her as dull and dependent, an insignificant watcher in the crowd. A beautiful doll to be kept locked and safe somewhere- an innocence belonging nowhere near him or his world. But when she makes one fatal mistake, he uncovers the sharp, wild mind she's concealed beneath fragile masks of pink and purples. Now, Ivan is obsessed, determined to dismantle her defenses and claim her as his own. And In a world where power rules, Winter is no longer the Hunter in the game -she's Ivan's fixation, a prey to a predator and he'll stop at nothing to change the very narrative of the fairy tale so the villain gets the girl in the end. REVIEWS This book is so consuming. My heart is unsteady since i read this chapter. I read it trice and i am stil recovering -neilavni_love I am blown away. WTF just happend? -meladeeee I think i seriously need to go for a check up. Why does my heart race so fast reading every fucking chapter? -amara_sullivan IVAN FUCKING ARCANE I love you so much baby -googleydodley So hot for what? -kookieshopes •CHECK LIST OF TRIGGER WARNINGS INSIDE• •4 YEAR AGE GAP• •DUAL POV•

❝I hurt people; especially pretty girls like you ❞ In which an innocent but broken girl foxtrots with insanity. And the music only stops when a demented man says so. ➳ Criminal psychology student Tahlia Meyers finds her world in disarray after being assigned to observe an infamous serial killer, who in turn, takes an uncanny interest in the girl. [ © Cluelessdaddy 2017] •Featured in Mystery• •#2 in Mystery-Thriller•

They're on opposite sides of a long-standing war. And now, thanks to one catastrophically unfortunate mission at the elite assassin academy they both attend... they're partners. Welcome to the academy. You're already bleeding. Sneak peak: "You're dangerous, Love" he murmured. "And you're tempted." A beat. A breath. And then, just barely audible "Yes." I smiled, sharp and mean and satisfied. "Then come be reckless with me, darling."

Six years ago, Blanchard Collins packed her bags, boarded a bus to Houston, and never looked back. She left behind her abusive father, the town that never forgave her for speaking her mind, and Rueben Bailey, the boy who broke her heart the night before they were supposed to run away together. Now twenty-four, Blanchard returns home with her five-year-old daughter, Willow, and a dying mother who's asked for one final thing-her presence. But coming home means facing the ghosts she thought she'd buried, including the man she's never truly stopped loving. Rueben "Benny" Bailey did what his family expected. Stayed, took over the farm, and proposed to the girl everyone said was right for him. But when Blanchard walks back into church with a little girl who looks just like him, everything he's built starts to fall apart.

Tobias and Talia are complete opposites, yet thrown together in an arranged marriage. Can they navigate married life in the wake of a terrible tragedy? ***** After being pressured into an arranged marriage to merge their families' companies, Talia and Tobias are stuck living together as husband and wife. Although they are both unhappy, neither tries to make the best of it. Tobias is too busy, and Talia is too distraught by the tragic death of her former fianceé, Jason. But as time goes by and they spend more time together, an undeniable attraction develops between the two. Despite this, Tobias can't seem to see past his jealousy of Jason and accept Talia - and Talia, plagued by guilt, is unwilling to let Jason go. Are the two heading for better - or are they headed for far worse? [[word count: 50,000-100,000 words]]

Avery's senior year is turned upside down when a kiss with her older brothers' best friend ignites a forbidden relationship tangled in danger, heartbreak, and family secrets that could destroy everything. *** "Aiden..." I shake my head, eyes fixed anywhere but the gorgeous man next to me. His hand grips my chin tightly, just enough to make me avert my eyes to his. "You know you want this as much as I fucking do. I want you to be mine. I want to be the one to hold you and kiss you the one you go to whenever you're happy or fucking sad. But let it be me, let me fucking show you that it should be me." He glares, jaw tensing. ...... ©hessaherophinelove