I went to a mafia gala in six-inch heels, smiled at people I hated, and tried not to throw up on my fake fiancé. Then I made eye contact with Lucien Vale. And now I'm locked in a penthouse, with no phone, no exit, and a man who watches me like I'm both a threat and a puzzle he wants to pull apart. He says I saw something I shouldn't have. I say I don't know what the hell he's talking about. He's cold. Precise. Unshakeable. Until I start shaking him. And now? I'm starting to wonder what happens if I don't want to be let go.

Two years after the death of star trapeze artist Stella, the Goldfield Circus has reopened-but some things never returned with it. The townspeople remember Stella as a tragedy. Inside the circus, her name is a ghost no one dares touch. When 22-year-old Maria Quinn arrives from Idaho searching for a fresh start, she never expects to be placed in Stella's old role-or paired with Ethan, Stella's former partner and the man who caught her every night... until he didn't. The circus watches Maria with careful eyes. A photograph appears in her dressing room, then vanishes overnight. Strange messages begin finding their way to her. Questions lead to lies. Lies lead to secrets. And the closer Maria gets to the truth, the more she begins to wonder if Stella's death was ever an accident at all. In a world where trust hangs by a thread and one mistake can mean falling, Maria must decide how far she's willing to go before the circus takes something from her too.