

When I opened my eyes, my sister Serena Shaw was kneeling in front of me, sobbing with a fruit knife pressed near her wrist. “Nora, I swear I didn’t mean it. I had too much to drink. I don’t even know how Lucas and I…” I almost laughed. Because I had seen this scene before. In my last life, Serena cried like a victim after sleeping with my fiancé, Lucas Arden. Everyone comforted her. Lucas married her to save her reputation. And I was pushed into a marriage with Graham West, Serena’s abandoned fiancé. Before the wedding, Lucas showed me my name tattooed on his wrist and promised he would only love me. I believed him. I wasted five years beside a husband who wanted my sister, waiting for a man who had married her. Then Serena died. I thought Lucas would finally come back to me. Instead, I found him at the funeral home, holding her photograph like he had lost the love of his life. “She was my wife,” he told me. “Let it go, Nora.” At my birthday party, Lucas and Graham fought over Serena on the rooftop. One had married her. One had never stopped wanting her. While they fought over her, I was shoved into traffic and died under the headlights. When I opened my eyes again, I was back at the beginning. This time, I thought I was the only one who remembered. I was wrong. Lucas remembered. Graham remembered. And even with a second chance, both of them still chose Serena. This time, I would not be traded, chosen, or discarded. This time, I would build something none of them could take from me.

Serena Rivers spends three years in prison for a crime she didn't commit and uses every single day of it. She trains under four of the most formidable masters the underworld has ever produced and walks out as something entirely different from the woman who walked in. On her first day of freedom she corners the cold prison warden Xavier Stone against the water dungeon wall and kisses him without apology. He is her insurance policy and she knows it.Outside, the fake heiress has stolen her shares, her younger brother demands she kneel, and her former fiance has already moved on with a new bride. She tears up the rejection notice on the spot. Moments later, the Stone family motorcade arrives, the warden reveals himself as the family patriarch, and he shows up with a hundred billion in betrothal gifts and absolutely no intention of letting anyone touch her again. Together, they dismantle every person who had a hand in her three lost years.

Serena Moretti believed she had the perfect life.Once a waitress from the slums, she married Alessandro Moretti—the ruthless Mafia heir who supposedly traded his throne of blood and gold for her. Until she discovered the truth. While Serena poured everything into their marriage and years of failed IVF, Alessandro had been living a second life with his childhood friend Bianca Rizzo. Bianca had given him twin sons. Heartbroken and pregnant with Alessandro’s child, Serena refused to stay. With her only trusted friend Isabella, she staged a catastrophic avalanche that “destroyed” the luxury Alpine Scenic Train—and faked her own death in the snow.
![[ENG DUB] The Kiss Was Just the First Step](https://acfs3.goodshort.com/dist/src/assets/images/pc/common/f901131c-default-book-cover.png)
Serena Rivers spends three years in prison for a crime she didn't commit and uses every single day of it. She trains under four of the most formidable masters the underworld has ever produced and walks out as something entirely different from the woman who walked in. On her first day of freedom she corners the cold prison warden Xavier Stone against the water dungeon wall and kisses him without apology. He is her insurance policy and she knows it. Outside, the fake heiress has stolen her shares, her younger brother demands she kneel, and her former fiance has already moved on with a new bride. She tears up the rejection notice on the spot. Moments later, the Stone family motorcade arrives, the warden reveals himself as the family patriarch, and he shows up with a hundred billion in betrothal gifts and absolutely no intention of letting anyone touch her again. Together, they dismantle every person who had a hand in her three lost years.

Serena, heiress to the Klein family, married Nathaniel after six years together—unaware their perfect love was his revenge scheme. Years ago, Serena's father Victor stole Nathaniel's father's drug formula, killed him, and built his empire. Nathaniel faked deep affection to get close, plotting his revenge. Serena's world collapsed: her father imprisoned, her mother dead from the shock. On her mother's funeral day, Nathaniel attended an awards ceremony with actress Vanessa. He seized Klein Biotech, served Serena divorce papers, confessed all his lies, and left her with nothing—destroying her faith in love. With friend Sophie's support, Serena rebuilt her life. She worked from the bottom at Sophie's studio while connecting with her mother's lawyer, Alex, determined to uncover the truth and clear her father's name. She faced Vanessa's humiliation but struck back calmly, partnered with veteran journalist Lee, used media pressure against Nathaniel, and hunted for evidence proving her father's frame-up. Nathaniel planned his engagement to Vanessa, but Serena exposed her secrets—turning the celebration into a farce. Desperate, Nathaniel used his power to crush everyone around her. But with help from an old servant, Serena found her mother's clues and located key witness Old John, learning the truth: while Victor had his faults, Nathaniel's father had also stolen Klein's core technology—and Nathaniel's conviction evidence was forged. Armed with proof, Serena launched her final counterattack. Together with Alex, Lee, and Victor's former allies, she exposed Nathaniel's fabricated evidence and illegal financial dealings. Nathaniel landed in prison, Victor's sentence was dramatically reduced. Serena reclaimed Klein Group, became CEO, reformed the company, helped Sophie rebuild her studio, rose from the ashes, and stepped into her own future—free at last.

Quinn Thorne, a club waiter, accidentally rescued Sera Dutt when she was drugged. Quinn is mistaken for an antidote by Sera, who takes half of his necklace jades as a token. Six years later, Quinn works at a Dutt Group construction site to fund his foster mother's medical bills. Mocked by coworkers for being single, he encounters Sera and her daughter, Lila, who calls him "Dad" after recognizing his matching necklace.

Serenna, an orphan, grew up in the same children's home as her boyfriend, Kian—the only light in her dark existence. But their humble happiness caught the ruthless attention of Arianna Moretti, the spoiled heiress of the powerful Moretti crime family. Obsessive and unhinged, Arianna pursued Kian relentlessly; when he firmly rejected her, her pride shattered. Armed with her family's influence, she launched a savage campaign of torture and cruelty that ultimately cost Kian his innocent life. In a world where justice is dead and the powerful show no mercy, Serenna found no help. So she tore off her gentle, naive self and crafted a new mask—meek, submissive, a lowly housemaid. Alone, she infiltrated the fortress-like Moretti mansion, a den of sin and secrecy, swallowing every humiliation as she bided her time for revenge. Damon Moretti, the family's iron-fisted patriarch and Arianna's father, becomes drawn to Serenna—and she wields him as the sharpest blade in her vendetta. Roman, the stoic and perceptive eldest son, sees through her disguise to the wounds and secrets beneath, and time and again chooses to shield her in the shadows, even at his own cost. Luca, the wild and fiery youngest son, falls for her with reckless abandon. Her enemy—the one who destroyed her love—sits untouchable above them all, yet these three men who rule the underworld turn against one another for her sake. Revenge and true love collide; hatred and devotion become inextricably tangled. Caught in a web of intrigue and desire, will Serenna finally spill her nemesis's blood and rise reborn, or will she surrender to a love that is as intoxicating as it is deadly?

A farm girl Ava escapes to New York after being sold by her stepmother and unexpectedly marries Gabriel, a wheelchair-pretending mafia boss. As love grows amid ballet dreams, betrayal, and a hidden identity, an emerald swan necklace reveals Ava is the lost daughter of ballet queen Yetta, and Gabriel’s childhood promise to marry her comes true.

Quinn Thorne, a club waiter, accidentally rescued Sera Dutt when she was drugged. Quinn is mistaken for an antidote by Sera, who takes half of his necklace jades as a token. Six years later, Quinn works at a Dutt Group construction site to fund his foster mother's medical bills. Mocked by coworkers for being single, he encounters Sera and her daughter, Lila, who calls him "Dad" after recognizing his matching necklace.