Champagne

"She was the invitation to a game I swore I'd never play, and I was the reason she never wanted to stop."

JULIETTE

I hated her.

Sergei Agapov-the ice-cold heiress, the untouchable queen of St. Éloise. She walked through the academy like it was built for her, like the marble floors should be grateful she graced them with her steps. Perfect posture, perfect uniform, perfect little smirk when she knew she was getting under my skin.

God, I wanted to ruin her.

I wanted to see that composure crack, to see something real behind those lake-blue eyes. But no matter how many times we clashed-whether in the classroom, at the parties she pretended she was too good for, or in the shadows where words cut deeper than knives-she never broke.

At least, not in the way I wanted.

SERGEI

I hated her.

Juliette Auclair-the reckless little fox who always had to have the last word. Too clever for her own good, too wild to be controlled, too damn good at making me forget who I was supposed to be.

She was chaos wrapped in silk, an infuriating contradiction of sharp wit and soft skin. The kind of girl who smiled like she knew all your secrets and laughed like she wasn't afraid of anything-not even me.

And I should've ignored her. I should've let her chase her highs, dance on tables, and flirt with disaster. But she had a habit of getting too close, of setting fires just to see if I'd burn.

She had no idea how much I wanted to.

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Two childhood enemies. One prestigious academy.

The rules were simple: stay in your place, play your part, and never let your guard down.

But we were never good at following rules.