There are roles a princess can never abandon. A princess does not obey anyone but the King and Queen. A princess does not lie. A princess does not run from the crown that was stitched into her skin at birth. And yet... I did. They taught me how to bow before they ever taught me how to speak. How to smile with my mouth shut. How to bleed beautifully. Rules. Etiquette. Sacrifice. I wore them all like second skin-until the day I tore them off and disappeared. My name is Arabelle Montclair Winthorne Ravenshed. Firstborn of House Ravenshed. The Heir. The Shame. The Ghost. I've lived a dozen lives since I fled the palace. I've scrubbed counters, lied about my name, buried parts of myself so deep I almost forgot they ever existed. Until he found me. Not with a crown. Not with a sword. With eyes that looked too long. With hands that held too tight. With a voice that said I see you when I couldn't bear to be seen. Now I live in a stranger's mansion. And the walls are starting to close in.

He's watching her, silently dismantling the walls she's built to keep him-and everyone else-out. And when the lines between loyalty and betrayal blur, Sydney must decide: will she keep running from the truth, or will she confront the man who holds the power to unravel everything she's tried so hard to protect? In a game of secrets and lies, the only thing more dangerous than the rumors is the truth.

She thought she had escaped the pain-until fate brought him back as her teacher. Resisting him should have been easy. But some desires are impossible to ignore. Their love is forbidden, their passion a sin. And as they walk the thin line between right and wrong, one question remains-how will their story end? Love or ruin? Salvation or damnation?