Tadhg Lynch has always played life like a game - reckless, charming, and with nothing to lose. When his friends challenge him to win over Lana Healy, the quiet and guarded girl who keeps to herself, he accepts without hesitation. After all, it's just a bet. But Lana is not like the others. She's sharp, perceptive, and completely uninterested in Tadhg's easy charm. Lana has learned the hard way not to trust people, especially boys with easy smiles and reputations that precede them. But when Tadhg begins showing up when it matters - walking her home, listening to her when no one else does - she starts to let her guard down. For the first time, Tadhg finds himself wanting more than just to win. But as the line between the bet and his real feelings blurs, the truth threatens to unravel everything. When Lana discovers the truth, will Tadhg have the courage to prove that his love was never a game? Or will the damage be too deep to repair?

"𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐛𝐞, 𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐢 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐝, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐰𝐨 𝐨𝐟 𝐮𝐬 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐦𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐞𝐫." 𐮚𐮙𐮚𐮙𐮚༄ 𝐓𝐀𝐃𝐇𝐆 𝐋𝐘𝐍𝐂𝐇 grew up in an abusive household for the first few years of his life, and his life turned around when the Kavanagh's took he and his family into their home. Now at age seventeen, he's going into his fifth year at Tommen College, but despite the area code change and his new upbringing, he still holds that trauma that flows through his veins, refusing to let anyone get too close to him. That is until he meets Aisling Byrne. ‎𐮚𐮙𐮚𐮙𐮚༄ 𝐀𝐈𝐒𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐁𝐘𝐑𝐍𝐄 has been on the run from her abusive father for six months, and has finally found solitude in County Cork, Ireland, in the town of Ballylaggin with her grandparents, her mother, and older cousin, Niall. Entering her fifth year at Tommen College, Aisling is determined to stay focused and stay alert, not letting anyone get too close. But when Tadhg Lynch, the troubled and violent, but beautiful student, enters her life, there's no way she can stay away, and neither can he.

Tadhg Lynch has never liked Niamh Gallagher-not in primary school when her life seemed perfect, and definitely not now at Tommen College. After his father's violent rampage tore his family apart, Niamh was one of the few who tried to be kind, but he lashed out, shutting her down. Years later, she's unrecognizable. Once warm, she's now the Ice Queen, untouchable and ruthless. Forced to be around her thanks to their best friends dating, Tadhg is thrown by her transformation. She's not the girl he resented, nor the one who pitied him-she's Frost, sharp-edged and cold. But beneath their bickering and hostility, something simmers. As tension builds, old wounds reopen, and neither can ignore the undeniable pull between them. Hate was easy. Wanting each other? That's dangerous.