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2025-11-19 18:12:01 +0000 UTC View PostWelcome to my Patreon!
Whether you are new here or a long-time supporter, from the bottom of my heart thank you for helping me bring these stories to life.
To ensure you get the best possible reading experience (and to save me hours of re-formatting different versions that I'd rather spend writing) I host all Early Access content on my dedicated author website.
The carriage jolted over a particularly rough stone, and Valentina was torn from her memories. Cosimo stirred beside her, his hand sliding lazily over her hip.
"What are you thinking about?" he murmured sleepily.
"The summer ahead of us," she replied, which wasn't entirely untrue.
He smiled and pulled her closer. "It will be an interesting summer, my dear. I promise you that."<...
2025-11-16 18:12:01 +0000 UTC View Post
"Be careful with that," Valentina instructed a young servant who was lifting one of her chests too hastily. It was the chest that contained the Eye of Deceit and her forbidden books, carefully wrapped in waxed leather and hidden in a false bottom.
"Of course, my lady," he muttered, blushing.
It was still early, and the morning hung heavy and grey over Bridgewater, but she had been wid...
2025-11-13 18:12:01 +0000 UTC View Post
She needed more information about Ethan Cooper. And she knew exactly how she was going to get it.
The way forward seemed clear. If she filmed for Bound.com, she would have direct access to him. She could grill people about him, maybe even talk to him herself, get a feel for who he was.
Fuck it. Let's do it.
She pulled out her cell phone and dialed Ben's number as she wa...
2025-11-12 18:12:01 +0000 UTC View Post
In the shadow of the city's mighty Flametower, Johann Georg Bombastian von Agrippin strolled leisurely through the cobblestone streets of Agrippin toward the inconspicuous entrance of an establishment called Zum Goldenen Band. The building was deliberately hidden behind an unadorned facade in a side street of the merchant district. Not even a sign drew attention to its existence. Either you knew...
2025-11-09 18:12:02 +0000 UTC View PostDear Readers,
Over the past few days, I've had to invest a lot of time moving A Blossom of Flames from Royal Road to my own website, which I had to build completely from scratch. That wasn't something I had planned for, but unfortunately it became necessary to make sure the story can continue safely and in the way it was meant to be.
I'll continue maintaining a mirror of A Blossom of Flames on Royal Road, though ...
Chloe woke up with a start from a deep, exhausted sleep. Her phone was vibrating insistently somewhere under the pillow. She fumbled for it, her eyes still half closed, and squinted at the display.
11:15 a.m.
Damn. Sleeping in this late shouldn't become a habit.
Her body still felt heavy as lead. Memories of last night's party came back to her. The pink champagne glasse...
2025-11-09 06:12:01 +0000 UTC View Post
She had to get out of here. But how? Just leaving was not an option.
And then she saw Elena.
The Latina was leaning against the wall next to the French doors leading to a terrace. Even from a distance, Chloe could see that something was wrong. Elena was swaying slightly and her eyes were glassy and unfocused.
A man was standing way too close to her. Sixty maybe, with thinning ha...
2025-11-08 18:12:01 +0000 UTC View Post
The taxi app showed a seven-minute wait. Chloe stood in front of her apartment building, nervously tugging at the hem of her black dress for the third time. The evening heat of Valley City still hung heavy and sluggish over the city.
Then the white Toyota pulled up to the curb. The driver, a middle-aged man wearing a baseball cap, eyed her through the rearview mirror as she got in.
"V...
2025-11-07 18:12:01 +0000 UTC View PostDear Readers,
And so the second book about Valentina and Vyxara comes to an end. In a sense, it was more challenging to write because two new settings (and, above all, social spheres) were added with Palewood and Dusktown, but that's also exactly what made it so much fun. It gave me the opportunity to incorporate even more of the things I have in mind for the Valentinaverse.
The book was characterized by Valentina venturing further and further into morally grey territory and – o...
2025-11-06 18:12:02 +0000 UTC View Post
When Chloe opened her eyes at around 11 a.m. on Tuesday and slowly stretched, her body felt like it did after a particularly intense yoga session. But it was nowhere near as bad as after Throat Me. Apparently, her body was actually getting used to the physical demands of this shitty job.
At least all those years of yoga have paid off.
She reached for her phone and scrolled ai...
2025-11-06 12:12:01 +0000 UTC View Post
As Chloe climbed out of the dryer and stood up, Ashley rushed over to her with a bathrobe and a water bottle. She wasn't necessarily thirsty, but she wrapped the bathrobe around herself, grateful for the illusion of privacy, even though everyone in the room had just seen the important bits naked anyway. Besides, her legs were quite sticky.
Steve was already putting his jeans back on and loo...
2025-11-06 06:12:01 +0000 UTC View Post
The next few days blurred together in her memory since there wasn't much happening. Then on Friday, Chloe woke up at seven and went through her yoga routine, even though her knees still protested as soon as she went into downward dog. The marks from the studio floor at Throat Me had faded to ugly green and yellow stains on her knees, and her throat felt almost normal again. Swallowing no longer h...
2025-11-05 18:12:00 +0000 UTC View Post
Finally, Ben turned into a quiet side street where trees were planted at perfect intervals and stopped in front of a discreetly and artfully lit restaurant. A valet in a vest and bow tie hurried over.
"Mr. Ziegler, it's good to see you again." The valet took the keys with practiced professionalism.
Ben got out and walked around the car, offering her his arm and Chloe took it. He smell...
2025-11-05 06:12:01 +0000 UTC View Post
The sun was already beating through the thin curtains when Chloe's phone jolted her awake from a deep, exhausted sleep. It was 11 a.m. She had slept for more than twelve hours, and yet her body felt as if it had been run over by a truck.
The phone continued to ring, vibrating on the wobbly nightstand. She reached out an arm, her muscles protesting at the movement. Her knees ached, and her t...
2025-11-04 18:12:01 +0000 UTC View PostDear supporters,
Starting today, the price for new patrons will increase from $5 to $10.
For you (existing patrons) nothing will change. You will keep your current price of $5 as long as your subscription remains active. However, if you cancel at any point and rejoin later, the new price will apply.
Why the change?
Over the past few weeks, I've spoken with several other RoyalRoad authors and learned a lot. Many said th...
2025-11-04 15:15:45 +0000 UTC View Post
She gasped for air like a fish out of water. Every breath felt like she had swallowed sandpaper. Her throat burned like fire, no, worse, as if someone had pushed a red-hot poker through it and twisted it a few times just to make sure there was enough damage.
A production assistant, young, maybe twenty, wearing a "THROAT ME CREW" T-shirt, rushed over with a towel. Chloe took it gratefully, w...
2025-11-04 06:12:01 +0000 UTC View Post
Sunday evening Chloe stared at her phone and read Ben's message with the details for Wednesday, which had just arrived. Studio address, time, and then the name she had been hoping for: Trevor Knight will be your scene partner.
Trevor Knight. The guy Samantha had complained about.
At least this way I can get to him.
She rolled over on the squeaky mattress, opene...
2025-11-03 18:12:00 +0000 UTC View Post
Ben was nowhere to be seen.
She stood on tiptoe, searching for his thinning, slicked-back hair among all the styled heads. There he was, in the corner by the window. But he wasn't alone.
The man Ben was talking to looked like an investment banker. He wore an impeccably tailored charcoal gray suit and had gray hair slicked back with gel, the whole man just overly smooth. He didn't look...
2025-11-03 06:12:01 +0000 UTC View PostThe mood was excited among the second-year students as they gathered for the grading ceremony. The main hall of Bridgewater University filled up quickly. Valentina stood between Innogen and Crispin, their hands clasped tightly together.
"I think I wasn't this nervous even before the Greystone competition," thought Valentina.
"Oh, you have a very short memory," Vyxara mocked in her head. "You were a bundle of nerves."
The Decan Valemont stepped up to the pod...
2025-11-02 18:12:02 +0000 UTC View Post
Valeria Cruz.
Valeria Cruz stood by the window, surrounded by three men who listened attentively to her. She wore a sharply tailored white pantsuit and her dark hair was pinned up in a severe bun. Even from a distance, Chloe could see her large gold hoop earrings sparkling.
"Shit, there she is," Ben muttered, hastily adjusting his tie and brushing his thinning hair back with ...
2025-11-02 14:42:21 +0000 UTC View Post
The champagne glass in Chloe's hand was slowly becoming heavy. That was the downside of trying to drink slowly.
Ben Ziegler's hand rested on her lower back, and she could feel the moist warmth of his fleshy fingers through the thin fabric of her red dress. It was the shortest, most revealing dress she owned, and she had even followed Julian's advice and left her bra off and yet she still fe...
2025-11-02 06:12:01 +0000 UTC View Post
Shortly afterwards, Chloe stood under the thin, lukewarm stream, her hands flat against the tiled walls, her head bowed. It wasn't as bad as she had feared. She didn't have to cry. She didn't feel dead inside either. Actually, she mainly felt... relieved. It was over. She had done it.
Don't think about it. Not yet. Get home first.
The shower was a narrow cubicle with a cheap ...
2025-11-01 18:12:02 +0000 UTC View Post
The alarm clock rang at 8 a.m., but Chloe was already awake. For hours, actually, if she was honest. She had tossed and turned all night, waking up repeatedly, staring at the time on her phone. 3:34. 4:27. 5:19. 6:41.
Now she sat on the edge of the bed, her feet on the stained carpet, staring at her hands on her knees. They were shaking slightly. Adrenaline and lack of sleep was a shitty co...
2025-11-01 06:12:00 +0000 UTC View Post
"Tomorrow?"
The word barely crossed her lips.
Ben guffawed suggestively. "Oh yeah! He couldn't wait. Randy performs in the scenes himself, you know, and he can't wait to get his hands on you."
Chloe swallowed hard.
"The standard deal is five hundred bucks for the scene, plus a five hundred bonus if the video does well afterwards. So bring your A-game."
A pause. Then,...
2025-10-31 18:12:10 +0000 UTC View Post
Shortly before 2 p.m., Chloe got off the bus near the converted warehouse where the photo studio was located. She was wearing her short shorts and a crop top, practical in this weather, and she could change at the studio, after all.
The gym bag over her shoulder also contained two dresses, the red one and the black one, a few lingerie sets, and some other clothes, everything she might need ...
2025-10-31 06:12:01 +0000 UTC View Post
