STARLIGHT & SCARS

MY SISTER'S EX IS MY BOSS

She was always second best-until he made her first. Isabel "Bela" Cruz grew up in the shadow of her older sister, Marianne-the golden girl, the perfect daughter, the heart everyone wanted to win. While Marianne dazzled under the spotlight, Bela learned to disappear behind oversized sweaters, quiet smiles, and borrowed books. She never asked for much. Just a place in the world that was truly hers. But life had other plans. At fourteen, she fell in love for the first-and only-time. Not with a boy. With a man. A Russian exchange student named Kyril Aleksandrov, whose piercing silver-blue eyes saw right through her silence. He was everything she wasn't supposed to want: dangerous, distant, and completely untouchable. And he belonged to her sister. So she buried her feelings deep. Told herself it was nothing. That if she ignored it long enough, the ache inside would go away. It didn't. And when tragedy struck two years later-ripping apart her family and leaving them broken beyond repair-Kyril vanished just as suddenly as he came. He left without explanation. Without goodbye. Without looking back. Five years passed. Bela rebuilt her life from the ruins. No longer the quiet girl hiding behind curtains, she became someone new-someone strong. Someone who fought for what she wanted, even if it wasn't easy. She graduated at the top of her class, earned a scholarship, and carved out a future for herself and her struggling family. She told herself she was done with ghosts. Done with the past. Done with him. Until the day she walked into KyTech Corporation, Manila's most powerful conglomerate, for a simple secretarial job. And there he was. Still tall. Still cold. Still the same man who once shattered her heart. Only now, he looked at her like he remembered everything she tried so hard to forget. --- Kyril Aleksandrov was never meant to be a man of business. Born to a powerful Russian mafia lineage and raised between continents, his childhood was shaped by violence, betrayal, and a father who believed power was earned in blood. He came to the Philippines as an exchange student-but it was never just for education. His father had plans for Asia. And Kyril was meant to fulfill them. But then he met Marianne Cruz. The golden girl. The perfect daughter. The one who made him feel human again. He let himself fall-for a while. Then he saw the way her younger sister looked at him. Not with admiration. Not with idolization. But with something deeper. Something real. And he ran. Because some desires were too dangerous to indulge. Because falling for the wrong sister could destroy them all. Now, five years later, he rules KyTech Corporation with an iron fist and whispers of fear follow his name in the underground. His empire stretches across continents, built on secrets, lies, and silent wars fought in boardrooms and back alleys. And yet, the moment Bela walks into his office wearing modest clothes and clutching a resume like armor, Kyril feels the same pull he thought he buried long ago. Only this time, there's no sister between them. No reason to run. No reason to hide. Just her. And the truth he's carried for years: He didn't leave Marianne because he stopped loving her. He left because he started loving the wrong sister. And now? Now he wants what he denied himself for too long. Her. --- From the moment their paths collide again, the lines blur between boss and obsession, memory and temptation. Whispers follow Bela everywhere-coworkers talk about how the CEO never lets his eyes off her, how he cancels meetings just to see her walk by. Security footage mysteriously disappears. Gifts appear on her desk with no note. Her apartment locks are changed overnight without explanation. Kyril is watching. Protecting. Possessing. When Bela finally confronts him, demanding answers, he gives her one that chills her blood. "I let her go... because I already wanted you." The truth hits her like a storm. He didn't leave Marianne because he thought she cheated. He left because he knew Bela loved him. And he couldn't risk falling for the wrong sister. But now? Now he doesn't care. Now he wants her. All of her. Even if it destroys them both. As Bela digs deeper into Kyril's past, she uncovers the truth her sister never got to hear-the real reason he left, the danger he tried to protect them from, and the empire of shadows he rules from behind closed doors. Kyril is not just a billionaire. He is a kingpin of the Russian mafia in Asia, a man whose name commands fear in the underworld. His empire stretches across continents, built on blood, power, and secrets. And now, he wants her to be part of it. But Bela isn't sure if she's falling for the man or the monster. And worse... She's not sure if she even wants to escape. ​

Forgiveness Denied: Entangled With My Ex's Uncle

Madison had always believed that she would marry Colten. She spent her youth admiring him from afar, dreaming of their future life together. But Colten was always indifferent to her, and when he abandoned her at a time when she needed him most, she finally realized that he never loved her. With renewed resolve and a thirst for revenge, Madison left. Endless possibilities lay ahead, but Colten was no longer part of her plans. Colten rushed to her place in a panic. "Madison, please come back to me. I’ll give you everything!" It was his powerful uncle who answered the door. "She's my woman now."

Passion Unleashed: Carrying The President's Child

After a one-night stand with a stranger, Roselyn woke up to find only a bank card without a PIN number. Still in a daze, she was detained on charges of theft. Just as the handcuffs were about to close, the mysterious man reappeared, holding her pregnancy report. "You're pregnant with my child," he said coldly. Shocked, Roselyn was whisked away in a helicopter to the presidential palace, where she learned the truth: the man from that night was none other than the country's most powerful and influential leader!

When Love Defies The Terms

To fund her father's medical bills, Helena stepped in for her half‑sister and wed the city's notorious deaf heir. On their wedding night, as she bared herself, he dismissed her hope with, "This is strictly business." Living beneath the weight of his unpredictable moods, she learned to fear every moment. When everyone bet on her ruin, he became her fiercest protector. But as their contract expired and she gathered her things, tears shimmered in his eyes. "Please… don't leave me."

The Mafia Heiress's Comeback: She's More Than You Think

Sawyer, the world's top arms dealer, stunned everyone by falling for Maren—the worthless girl no one respected. People scoffed. Why chase a useless pretty face? But when powerful elites began gathering around her, jaws dropped. "She's not even married to him yet—already cashing in on his power?" they assumed. Curious eyes dug into Maren's past... only to find she was a scientific genius, a world-renowned medical expert, and heiress to a mafia empire. Later, Sawyer posted online. "My wife treats me like the enemy. Any advice?"

The Wife He Designed

My life with Ethan Cole, the charismatic tech CEO, was perfect. I was his beloved wife, carrying our first child, convinced I was the center of his universe. But when my father fell ill, Ethan disappeared from my life, only to reappear in a crushing photo: his arm intimately around my successful cousin, Olivia Hayes. My world shattered. The betrayal ran deeper than I could have imagined. I discovered I was merely a meticulously chosen stand-in, a grotesque copy of Olivia, the woman he truly loved. He even desired our child to have *her* features, a living link to his obsession. Every tender gesture, every shared dream, was a calculated lie, meaning my marriage, my love, and my pregnancy were all built on his monstrous deceit. A cold rage blossomed within me; how could I have been so blind? He believed he owned me, that I would never leave, especially with a baby on the way, confident I was a compliant fool. He was terribly wrong. I would not be his vessel, his substitute. When he least expected it, while he was still flaunting his obsession, I quietly underwent an abortion. Then, using his arrogance against him, I meticulously orchestrated my escape, securing my divorce and vanishing without a trace. He thought he was playing me; I showed him exactly who was being played, leaving him a devastating truth about his own making.

Requiem of A Broken Heart

Rachel used to think that her devotion would win Brian over one day, but she was proven wrong when his true love returned. Rachel had endured it all-from standing alone at the altar to dragging herself to the hospital for an emergency treatment. Everyone thought she was crazy to give up so much of herself for someone who didn't return her feelings. But when Brian received news of Rachel's terminal illness and realized she didn't have long to live, he completely broke down. "I forbid you to die!" Rachel just smiled. She no longer needed him. "I will finally be free."