Lee Jacquot

Kameron Ford can lick the bottom of my shoe. No, really, I’d pay almost anything to see my childhood rival on his knees, ankle in hand, with my foot dangling in his smug little face. And I’m pretty sure if you asked him, he wouldn’t mind me tasting his boots. Sounds a little much, but it’s been like this since we were old enough to talk, and even then I’m sure it was a race as to who spoke first. I’m pretty sure we were born to be this way, and in the three decades since, nothing has changed. For those reasons alone it shouldn’t surprise me when Kam pulls one of his classic moves and forces us to compete in yet another bet. Only this time, the winner isn’t subjected to something like our usual Designated Driver duty or eating a lime off the floor. This time, it’s for each other. It’s to end the undertones of tension that neither of us can deny, and put the neverending torment to rest. But in the end, the real question still remains… Is this just another bet, or are we playing for keeps?

Hermit, introvert, homebody. All are adjectives that can be used to describe me, and that’s how I like it. I’m content within the four walls of my home, safe from all the work one has to put in just to walk outside. But solitary life also means the only real romance I get to experience is from my holiday movie marathons and watching my old high school crush play for the NHL. My extroverted twin sister, however, doesn’t like my plans and sets me up on a date. A blind date. On Valentine's Day. At a five-star resort. She somehow gets me to agree despite my very real aversion to being in public places. Only, when I arrive, I couldn’t care less about anyone else in the room because the very man I cheer for through my tv is sitting across from me. Not only that, he's challenging everything I thought I knew with one simple question: Truth or Dare?

My best friend’s brother is the most infuriating person to walk this planet. Since the day I met him, he’s made it his mission in life to make mine hell. If he’s not hiding behind the nearest dark corner, he's plotting his next trick. That’s Dorian Davis, and nothing about him has changed in the two decades that I’ve known him. I should be used to it by now. Immune to his antics. I even considered myself prepared when his sister coerced us into helping her host a Halloween party for her company. I wasn’t. Turns out, Dorian didn’t want to scare me. He wanted to hear me scream. To hear me beg. He wanted to show me that everything I thought I knew was wrong, and that everything I thought I wanted wasn’t enough. Maybe if I weren’t wearing a maid outfit, playing a real-life murder mystery game, and running through a hedge maze for my life, I’d appreciate the sentiment. But I’m currently doing all of those things, and if he catches me, I don’t think I’ll survive. Because as he said... this isn’t a game anymore.

Arian Kinkaid grinds my damn gears. He was everything I aspired to be; successful, talented, creative. And for the longest time, he was my inspiration. My guide. But the saying never meet your idol came from somewhere, and I now fully understand why. He’s an asshole. No. More like arrogant. Entitled. Frustrating. And until New Year’s Eve, I avoided ever seeing him again at all costs. But when a life-changing opportunity is presented in the form of hosting a party with the man himself, I can't refuse. I repeat the mantra that I’ll be fine. That it will be worth it in the end. It's only one night, after all, and then I'll be able to go back to pretending he doesn't exist. I tell myself I can do it because I’m not the same sweet girl he ran into years ago, and I’ll have no problem putting him in his place. The only problem is, as luck would have it, that place just so happens to be on his knees at my feet.

My boss, Mr. Chen... sucks. He’s the biggest grinch that’s ever plagued the earth, and not even his pretty face or his Black card can make up for his crap personality. I can write a book about all the ways I hate him and his alluring dominance that somehow attracts everyone, including me. But instead, I’ll settle for being a pain and continuing to defy him in any way possible while still keeping my job. The only problem is that he likes to ruffle my feathers as much as I do his, so he’s forcing me to attend the annual Christmas party. It was on the tip of my tongue to deny his demands, but instead, I found myself enjoying his order. I also like the way his eyes lock on me, following my every move. They say it’s the season of giving… perhaps I should see what my boss has to offer.

I had everything under control until I met Theo.My life was simple, straightforward, and clean. I thrived in my career, improved daily at being a single parent, and disguised any not-so-ideal parts of my life pretty well. Like the fact I carried more than a few insecurities my ex-husband left me with. The biggest being the simple notion that I was one of many options, and my idea of love was ridiculous. I knew it only existed on the big screen or in the pages of books, but I still wanted it. Still yearned for it. Still hoped that maybe, somehow, I’d find it. Never once did I think I’d find it in the lifeguard nearly ten years my junior. Theo plans to dismantle everything I thought I knew. He wants to rip down every wall I have and rebuild it with just four words.

It’s crazy to think how the man I once admired morphed into the bane of my existence. Declan Foxx was at one time my idol, the man who wrote stories so incredible that the very path of my future was changed. I didn’t just look up to him, I aspired to be just like him. But when the day came I got to meet him, I realized what a pompous jerk he was. Vain, arrogant, naturally talented, and demanding. Still, he was the best of the best, and when given the opportunity to work alongside him, I didn’t dare turn it down. I thought I knew what I was getting into. Thought I understood how difficult he would be. But it turns out, I had no idea. He was so much worse. Mr. Foxx may be a man of poetic poise and pretty words, but it’s simply a guise for the dirty ones lying beneath the surface. The words that are so dirty and degrading most would be shocked by every single one. But the thing is… I think I might like being his perfect little word whor—.

Elliot Rivera is the definition of forbidden. Even in high school, when I first laid eyes on the mysterious boy, I knew better than to get involved. He screamed of broken promises and shattered hearts, and nowhere in my agenda did I have time for either. Then again, I didn't have time for anything outside my already overwhelming schedule. Volleyball, advanced classes, and college prep were enough to fill my time, making me the wallflower who vowed only to watch but never touch. And I did. For three years, I observed all that made Elliot the heartthrob he was, and slowly, my walls began to crumble. Looking was no longer good enough to satiate my curiosity. I needed more. But not in the way I ended up getting it. By a cruel twist of fate, our parents fell in love and got married. And for the past eight years, I’ve had to pretend like I’m perfectly fine with having him as a brother. Pretend like I didn’t dream about him paying me a not-so-innocent visit in the middle of the night. But after all these years, we’re home for Thanksgiving, and as luck would have it, he may not be my sibling anymore. So does that mean he’s still off limits? Or do I finally get a taste of forbidden fruit?

The greatest weakness any man can ever have is a woman. The inherent need to protect them can become overwhelming and all consuming. It makes us think irrationally and do stupid things. In my case, falling down a rabbit hole. My sister made a mistake. One that put us in debt with the Italian mob who owns half the state, and as payment they’ve enlisted me to work for them. Only it isn’t them I’ll be working for. It’s for her. Onyx Embros. She’s a ghost, a legend, the head of their rival mafia family, and the queen of Wonderland. In order to save my family, I have to act as her guard so they can find a way to kill her. But the longer I stay, the more I realize Onyx isn’t who I thought she was, and neither am I. Turns out, I’m just as mad. A Bodyguard Mafia Romance

Noxus City is full of criminals, and Lucian Hyun is one of them. He parades as the city’s prosecutor, free from judgment, while inside, he’s as corrupt as those he condemns. Until he makes a mistake that indebts him to the kind of man he would otherwise prosecute. As part of said debt, he’s sent to retrieve the man’s fiance. Just another of many tasks. That is until he meets her. The one who he was only meant to collect. Noxus City is full of innocent faces, and Sabreena Accardi is one of them. Born to a world she isn’t made for, her light and spirit dwindle in the cramped confines of her ivory cage. Bartered off to marry a man by the will of her family, she’s certain the life she never truly had, is all but lost. That is until she meets him. The one who was only meant to collect her. Two sides of the same coin, though one side is damaged and the other pristine. To take a chance on love would mean losing it all. But with everything to gain, it just may be worth it.

Marcus Debois is completely off limits.Not only is he an agent at the publishing house I work at, but he also happens to be my father’s sworn enemy, and my ex’s dad. It doesn’t matter that I knew Marcus before my ex, and even had a pretty big, very secret, crush on the man who is also fifteen years my senior, he is forbidden. A hard limit. A do not pass go, do not collect two hundred dollars. And for four years, I respected that moral boundary and did really well not crossing it. But like any good romance plot, there has to be a point where the tension breaks. Where the two main characters are put into a situation where they can no longer ignore their feelings and say screw it right before finally giving in. Looks like for me, it’s when I hear he’s spending Father’s Day alone, and I can’t help but insert myself into his no-plans plan. But I'm not going to overthink it. It will be a quick dinner–a professional one, even, where we can talk about work and manuscripts and all things publishing. There will be no rendezvous boat rides, no sexy lessons on patience and catching fish, and most certainly no playing with explicit toys in the middle of the lake. Because if there is one thing I know for sure, it’s that while I still harbor a crush on Marcus Debois, there’s not a chance in hell, he feels the same.

Life was simply life before I emailed a cowboy named Andrew Dawson. Since graduating college, I’d fallen into a cycle I was so stuck in, I didn’t realize I was in it. Work eight hours, have a glass of wine, and fall asleep to reality TV. I just rinsed and repeated every single day. But then the case of the strawberry cow happened. What started as a simple mission to educate my students, turned into the world’s longest game of cat and mouse. For five years, the ranch owner and I have been unable to do anything about the growing attraction that bloomed between us on my first trip, a reason or two always keeping us at bay. But for every one of those years I went to his ranch, I discovered more about the life I’d been missing. Realized what it was to find home. I was happy again. Alive. There was only one thing I still didn’t have. Luckily, it seems as though this Easter, I may finally get it. But only if I can find the golden egg before he catches me.

TRUST It's the most fragile concept ever created. Built over time. Shown through actions. Tested with loyalty. And broken when hit with the smallest pebble. My family trusted him. 𝘐 trusted him despite something deep in my core knowing he would be my downfall. The destruction of Wonderland. Now, I'm at his mercy. Forced on a bent knee and made to listen to the side of a story I don't want to hear. Because despite our past, despite what we believe or what we want, there's only one throne, one crown-and even through the looking glass, I can see there isn't room for the both of us.

Amora Joy Orlov. The thorn in my side, the bane of my existence. The woman with the loud bark and even harsher bite. Cutthroat and defiant, she’s everything I don’t want, but exactly what I need. And as luck would have it, she also needs something from me. A deal is struck; use each other until we both get what we want. It should have been easy, and even easier to walk away in the end. Somehow though, I’ve grown addicted to the pieces of herself she keeps hidden away, the little glimmers of the woman beneath the ruthless façade. But the clock is ticking for the both of us, and in the end, it’s Amora who has to decide-- Hide behind the masks we wear, or burn them to ashes?

Love. It’s the most widely used deception in the world. It creates weakness within the mind, leaving rooms for distractions, and threatens to hinder my goals of success. I won’t allow something as inconsequential as love to get in my way. Even if it means pushing away the only one who’s ever made me feel something. Remy Solace. She’s a dangerous distraction. She’s the sun, threatening to incinerate the darkness from my soul, and keep me from focusing on what really matters–what I’ve always wanted. And while every fiber of my being knows I need to stay away, I can’t help but wonder... What good is a knight without a queen to protect?

My mother tells me you can’t run from your past. You need to face it in order to appreciate the present and plan for the future. But I’d sell my soul not to deal with mine. It’s five foot four, has fake green eyes, and is the cause of all my torment. When I knew her-when I loved her, she was just Liliana. But now they call her Lily. The Queen of Emerald Falls. She thinks she can bully me into silence. Make my life a living hell while keeping her prestigious status intact. But a lot has changed in three years. It’s time the Queen met her match.

Two best friends grow up together, fall in love, get married, and live happily ever after. But what about the one where the girl gets friend-zoned after an awkward attempt at making a move on her best friend? That’s my story. More than a decade has passed, and while our platonic relationship somehow survived, I still cringe when I think about it. Like now. I’m supposed to be getting my hotel ready for all the guests from the St.Patrick's Day parades, but instead, I’m staring at my best friend while he repairs one of my sinks. The memory and sting of his polite rejection years ago usually helps get my head on straight, but it’s not working this time. Not when there’s been an obvious shift in the air. And definitely not when he just grabbed onto my hips, growled in my ear, and told me to run.