Quick reads you can finish in 10-30 minutes
Found 11 short novels in Entertainment Circle
"He put his hands around my waist and kissed my neck." "I said, 'Don't. I'm making breakfast.'" "No you aren't. You want something else." He laughed in my ear, spun me, and my back hit the kitchen table. His face filled my world. His mouth covered mine. "Stop—" I tried to pull away, but the kiss swallowed my words. He tasted the coffee I'd just brewed and the last night's wine. He nibbled my neck like it was his right. "You're softer than five years ago," he murmured. He...
"I don't like men," I said loud enough for the room to hear. They all laughed. I wanted them to laugh. "That's a lot of words for a singer," Jacob Hawkins said from the booth. "Who's the lucky man who broke you?" "Nobody," I said. "Nobody is allowed." I had just finished a set at Jasper's bar. The lights were low. The crowd was kind. I had sung my throat raw for thirty minutes and the applause still felt like a warm coat. I liked that. I liked work that paid bills and left no room...
“Get out of my sight.” I swatted the hand away and stepped back, letting the wedding dress trail over the dusty floor. My cousin Bridget Owens only laughed, a thin, cruel sound. “Corinna, everyone knows the Castillo family fell. And there are rumors—terrible ones. Who would want to marry a man who prefers men? You don’t have to go through with this.” “I never said I don’t want to marry,” I said, fastening a simple earring in front of the cracked vanity mirror. “You’re not listening....
"I-I'm fine," I lied and wrapped my arms around my ribs like they could stop the cold. "You're not," Maureen said, and her voice had that careless, breathy edge that meant she had already lost interest in the truth. "Come sit. One drink, Gemma." "No." I kept my voice low. "I told you I can't—" "You're the group leader." Maureen slid her phone across the table. "You have to finish the report." "I know." I rubbed my temple. "I'll send my part tonight." The music was too loud for an...
“Where are you?” I typed, then hit send before I could think. “Sorry,” Daniel Castillo replied. “Something came up. Can we reschedule?” I stood in front of the city registry office in June heat, my dress sticking to my skin, a paper ring box heavy in my palm and a taxi meter running on my phone. Kids’ nap time at the kindergarten would be over in twenty minutes. I could not wait all day. “That’s today,” I typed. “We said today.” “No, I have to—” His message stopped and then a new...
"I shouted, 'Stop the blade!'" I didn't know why my voice came out so loud. I didn't know why my hands were wet with someone else's blood. The stage light burned hot. The heads rolled on cue. People cheered and then some of them screamed. I was kneeling on a cold stone floor in an old scene, and then I opened my eyes in a narrow bed, the room smelling of instant noodles and cheap detergent. "Who are you?" the woman in the doorway asked. "Who am I?" I said. My throat felt wrong. My...
"You missed so much," Drake said, shoving my name into his phone like it was a prize. I looked up from the lab gate and smiled without meaning to. "What did I miss?" "You'll see," Drake replied. "Heard a whole class went quiet. The new substitute? Wow." "Substitute who?" I asked, and felt them all watching me like a minor scandal. Drake laughed. "You're the guest star, Jovie." I didn't answer. I kept my stride and pushed open the lecture hall door. The room smelled of chalk and...
"I'll say hello and smile," I told myself as Beckett steered me toward the cluster of men with too much drink and too much money. "Annika, meet Mr. Deacon," Beckett said, and the man with the big belly reached for my hand like it belonged to a prize. "Nice to meet you," I said, and smiled slow. "You're even prettier than the papers said," Deacon Singh slurred, and his hand found my hip. "Back off," I said, cold as a glass. Beckett laughed nervously and lifted his drink. I moved...
I slapped the air and cursed, hard. "Are you awake?" a voice said. I blinked. White lights. A bed that was not my bed. Two men leaning over me like they owned the place. "Her vitals are normal," the man with the nervous smile said. "She should wake soon." "She fell three ribs ago," the other said. "Big crash." Big crash? I tried to rise and my hand found nothing—no power, no weight, no force. "Hey — you okay?" the nervous man asked again. He had a name badge: August Cook. I...
"I don't want your money." I slammed the bank card into Carter Bennett's palm and walked out before he could finish his sentence. "You're my daughter," he called after me. "Say it. Say you are my illegitimate child. Say it now and we'll fix everything." I kept walking. Rain pricked my hair. The black hoodie I wore was stained where someone had just dumped a bucket of cold water from a balcony above. My hair stuck to my forehead. My lips were dry. I let the card fly. "Hey!" Carter's...
"This broth is perfect," I said, and my spoon made a small, happy sound against the bowl. "You're the only person who eats noodles like it's a ceremony," Maki laughed from across the table. "I'm Kaylie," I said, and then I paused, because the man by the window turned his head as if the name had been a bell. He had a look that belonged to magazine covers and late-night interviews. He had a faint scent like bamboo tea. "Reid?" Maki mouthed. Camila blinked and covered her mouth. I kept...
