Checkmate, Asshole.

Ariella Sterling didn't belong at Camden.

She didn't have the designer bags, the chauffeur, or the kind of surname that opened doors on its own. What she had was a brain that could solve any equation or decipher any pattern, yet, the reason for being here that had nothing to do with ambition.

Max Wright.

Her best friend since childhood. The boy who always shined too bright, even in the darkest corners of East London. Max was everything: charming, golden, untouchable. And Ariella? She was the shadow behind him. Quiet, loyal, hopelessly in love.

But Max fell for Olivia Kingsley. Perfect, polished, untouchable Olivia. The kind of girl Ariella could never be.

And that's when things shifted.

Because Olivia's world came with a cost. Her brother, Ronan, was dangerous. And Max was too close.

Ariella begged him to leave. He wouldn't.

So she found another way in.

Theo Astor.

Ronan's best friend. Arrogant, loud, annoyingly handsome. Everything Ariella hated. Her plan was simple: get close to Theo, get closer to taking Ronan down.

But Theo wasn't like the others. He didn't try to fix her. He just saw her.

And worse? He started to care.

"You're a lot more interesting than I thought, Sterling," he said, with a smile curving at his lips and a spark in his eyes.

She should've walked away. Should've stuck to the plan.

But it's hard to play the game when your heart starts to get involved.

Now she has to choose: protect Max, or fall for the boy who was never supposed to mean anything at all.