Paws, Plants, and Perjury
By @john1208
I promised my dying sister I'd take her place. Now I'm pretending to be the glamorous, politically savvy bride to Vrokas, the terrifying Alpha of the Garkyran Sovereignty. To survive a royal pack that brutally governs all werewolf law, I play the part of a cheerful, clueless airhead to lower their expectations. My only escape from the deadly politics is botany. But every time I wander into the monstrous Xyloth Wilds looking for rare ferns, my fearsome husband goes on a berserk, blood-drenched rampage to 'rescue' me. The feral beast treats me like spun glass, especially after I accidentally discover my touch completely cures the bone-breaking agony of his shifts. Between dodging jealous she-wolves who want the 'weak human' dead and managing a giant predator who turns into a needy puppy around me, keeping my younger brother safe is exhausting. The hardest part? Falling for a man who thinks I'm someone else. If the royal court discovers I'm an imposter, werewolf law demands my execution. How long can I smile through assassination attempts before I accidentally reveal my sharp edges to the beast who holds my heart?
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The Blind Giant's Smiling Vengeance
By @john1208
Xaida always smiles. Even when her sadistic father, Margrave Vexil, hunted her down and exiled her to the monstrous atmospheric tides. Even when she wakes up inexplicably suspended inside the glass lantern of the Vestergrip Lighthouse, surrounded by a churning, levitating ocean that defies gravity. She maintains her bubbly, airheaded facade to keep her little brother, Toben, from succumbing to terror. But beneath her dimpled grin lies a mind meticulously calculating a cold, bloody revenge. Her only obstacle - and unexpected savior - is Ghaldir, the towering, monstrous keeper of the lighthouse. He is completely blind, his eyes heavily scarred, but he reads auras with terrifying accuracy. He easily sees past her cheerful lies to the raging trauma within. When an accidental telepathic bond forms between them, they discover a profound ability to project calming sensations into each other's minds, soothing their crippling panic attacks. As their fated romance blooms in the stormy sanctuary, Xaida uncovers a chilling truth: her beloved childhood mentor didn't orchestrate her escape, but delivered her as bait. With her father's hounds closing in, can the smiling exile and her gentle giant turn their warded sanctuary into a deadly trap, or will the traitor tear their bond apart?
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