one step too far lisa gardner

Three years ago, Gabriella Kelly unknowingly convinced her husband Ray Chambers to sponsor college student Angela Mitchell's education as a blessing for their future child. Three years later, Angela arrives at Ray’s company for an internship with two friends, but she completely misreads the situation and believes Ray is interested in her romantically. She begins acting like she owns the place at work and shockingly mistakes the pregnant Gabriella for Ray's mistress, even going so far as to cause her miscarriage.

Daniel, a retired special forces king and hidden global tycoon, returns home disguised as a cleaner for his son Matthew’s wedding. At the wedding, Matthew is brutally humiliated by his wealthy future in-laws, who believe Daniel and his son are nothing but poor nobodies. But they have no idea they’ve just offended the world’s most untouchable billionaire. When Daniel finally reveals his true identity, how far will he go to destroy the family that ruined his son’s life?

Olivia abandons her billionaire family for Rory, but when childbirth becomes a life-or-death crisis, his true colors emerge. The arrival of Rory's “best friend” Rebecca reveals a truth more dangerous than money. Will Olivia's father save her and the baby before it's too late?

After transmigrating into a novel, Janet Benton is forced to marry the brooding, disabled tycoon Trevor Stout. She plans to use his family's resources to rebuild her dessert business, but a mistaken kiss lets Trevor hear her thoughts and share her pain, exposing all her schemes. As they go from using each other to truly falling in love, they succeed in both career and romance. But during childbirth, their strange connection returns—proving their sweet chaos is far from over.

Anne Cooke is about to get married when she discovers her fiance has been cheating. With her mother gravely ill and five years of love too heavy to just drop, she swallows it, until the sleeplessness becomes unbearable and she wanders into a traditional medicine clinic. There she meets James Young,and something shifts. On impulse she propositions him. Just one night. What she doesn't know is that James already knows exactly who she is, and has quietly decided to help her find her way back to herself. Through carefully prescribed remedies and steadier conversations, he walks beside her as she slowly remembers she has a spine. On her wedding day, she exposes her fiance in front of everyone and walks away with her head up. By then the feelings between Anne and James have long stopped being subtle, and the revelation that he comes from money and that his mother once knew hers feels less like a plot twist and more like something that was always going to happen. He proposes in the same clinic where they first met.

Heidi Zahn is abandoned by her husband of twenty years, John Judd, as he chases status with Hannah Lane. After her uncle dies, she unexpectedly becomes chairwoman of Byzon Group, backed by business titan Henry Walker. John tries to return, but she’s already far beyond his reach. When she and Zoe Walker are bullied while buying a home, Heidi buys the entire real estate group on the spot and gets rid of everyone involved. She goes on to build a warm, happy life with Henry and Zoe.

Gemma Vale, an aristocrat, was forced to become a consort for the crown prince, who was known to be brutal and violent, after falling for a scheme set up by her family in her past life.After she gets reborn to the day of the selection of the crown princess, Gemma keeps her cool as she comes up with plans to lure her manipulative adopted sister and her parents into dire situations instead. Thanks to her skills and wisdom, she wins over the queen's and the crown princess' hearts.Gemma plans out every step with extreme caution. At a palace banquet, she unravels the vile schemes that are plotted against her and takes out old enemies who want her gone. In the end, she's able to turn her fate around by establishing her standing in the Eastern Palace and finding her happiness there.This is a story about revenge, survival, and self-rescue that takes place in a royal palace.

After transmigrating as Yulia Jones—the vicious ex-wife of male lead Jensen Forbes in the novel—she knows the original plot all too well: Yulia aborts their child and divorces him just as his family is sent to the countryside. Determined to rewrite her fate,Yulia devises a new plan, that is to keep her handsome husband by her side and embark on an unexpected journey of love and family.

Diana's pregnant sister mysteriously commits suicide, and Diana knows there must be a hidden truth behind it. Determined to uncover the mystery, Diana returns to her hometown with her assistant, Dean. They discover that everything might be connected to her brother-in-law, Sam, and her sister's best friend, David, whose relationship is far from ordinary. With the help of her assistant Dean, her friend Wyatt, and her boyfriend Colt, Diana fights through numerous obstacles. In the end, she is shocked to realize that the evil mastermind behind it all is someone right by her side…

Amelia is deliberately hit by a scheming woman. Lying injured in hospital, she sees her husband neglect her cruelly and tend to her attacker instead. Broken-hearted, she chooses a life-saving surgery that wipes out all her memories, leaving her painful marriage and past behind. Her husband only realizes his irreversible loss when it is too late.

Emily Porter, an ordinary housewife, finds herself shunned by her mother-in-law for giving birth to a daughter instead of a son. Her husband, Joe Baker, driven by greed for a hefty insurance payout, conspires with his lover to murder Emily. In a calculated move, Joe stages a car accident that leaves Emily in a vegetative state. In a shocking turn of events, he goes as far as to bury his comatose wife alive, only to rush off to marry his mistress moments later. But fate has a twist in store, as Emily awakens, ready to seek justice and reclaim her life.

After transmigrating as Yulia Jones—the vicious ex-wife of male lead Jensen Forbes in the novel—she knows the original plot all too well: Yulia aborts their child and divorces him just as his family is sent to the countryside. Determined to rewrite her fate,Yulia devises a new plan, that is to keep her handsome husband by her side and embark on an unexpected journey of love and family.

Attending the ten-year high school reunion for the cheerleading squad and football team, I arrived in an old domestic Ford, while the parking lot was filled with Lamborghinis, Ferraris, Maybachs, and even a gold Bugatti. It was as if I were the only relic from another era. The moment I stepped out of my car, a former classmate, whose name I could no longer remember, looked at me with a sneer. “Well, if it isn’t the coach’s pet. How is it that after all these years, you’re still driving this beat-up old Ford?” “This thing looks like it belongs in a scrapyard from the last century!” During dinner, everyone gathered around the Bugatti owner, raising their glasses in celebration, while I was left ignored at the side. Only the cheerleading assistant sat next to me, raising a glass in my direction with a comforting smile. “Don’t let it get to you. Your car may be old, but I believe you’ll be driving a luxury car one day.” I let a small smirk curl at the corner of my lips and lowered my voice. “This car may look unimpressive, but it’s been fully upgraded with a carbon fiber body. It’s already worth over half a million dollars. Too bad, none of you even recognized its true value.”

Lynn, a girl born in a remote mountainous region, worked diligently to gain admission to a prestigious university. However, her father, who favored sons over daughters, refused to support her aspirations and even went so far as to tear up her acceptance letter. In contrast, her mother sold her blood to help fund Lynn's education. Five years later, Lynn achieved remarkable success and envisioned building factories in her hometown to uplift all the villagers. However, the villagers mistakenly perceived her as a foot massage worker. In reality, she was the CEO of Honor Group.

Jamie witnessed the tragic death of her husband Ethan. With grief, she uses her magic to travel back five years and vows to save Ethan's life. To do so, she must make Ethan the heir to the Volckoski family, but things are far more difficult than she imagined.There are many sinister people in the family who want the money, including Ethan's aunt, Gloria Volckoski, who killed Ethan.Jamie and Ethan go through a lot of trouble to fall in love again and hold on to the heirship, but then fate plays tricks on them, and the two lovers face a life and death test again.

When I realize that I've gotten reborn as a snake that's soaked in poisonous wine, I accidentally awaken a system amid my despair.With the power of devour, I gain my strength and power continuously until I get to escape the wine jar in the end.When I'm faced with the threat of getting hunted down by human beings and mutated creatures, I hide my tracks while growing even more powerful at the same time. Slowly, I evolve from a weak venomous snake into a formidable mutated beast. Later on, I get rescued by Faye Kirk, a kind-hearted human, and her family.During my time with them, I learn how to trust and protect the people around me.As the spiritual energy in this world gets awakened, natural disasters keep erupting all over the world.That's when I realize that only with constant evolution can I protect myself as well as my loved ones in this apocalyptic era.Hence, I step on a journey that allows me to explore the unknown and break my own limits.

When I realize that I've gotten reborn as a snake that's soaked in poisonous wine, I accidentally awaken a system amid my despair.With the power of devour, I gain my strength and power continuously until I get to escape the wine jar in the end.When I'm faced with the threat of getting hunted down by human beings and mutated creatures, I hide my tracks while growing even more powerful at the same time. Slowly, I evolve from a weak venomous snake into a formidable mutated beast. Later on, I get rescued by Faye Kirk, a kind-hearted human, and her family.During my time with them, I learn how to trust and protect the people around me.As the spiritual energy in this world gets awakened, natural disasters keep erupting all over the world.That's when I realize that only with constant evolution can I protect myself as well as my loved ones in this apocalyptic era.Hence, I step on a journey that allows me to explore the unknown and break my own limits.

Finally, I've returned home from my business trip that has lasted for half a year. As soon as I step through the front door, my wife, Lila Hickman, rushes toward me eagerly. With anticipation glinting in her eyes, she tells me that she wants a baby.The sudden request makes my heart sink, leaving me with thoughts of doubt swirling in my head. After all, Lila and I have been leading a long-distance relationship for such a long time.Since I can't stay by her side all the time, it's only inevitable that I start being paranoid about her intentions.So, I've secretly installed hidden cameras at home. After that, I lie to Lila, claiming that I need to go on another impromptu business trip due to my company's sudden arrangements.Having checked into a room in a hotel across from my home, I start digging up Lila's secret via the live camera feed on my phone.