arranged marriage · old money · cynical · aloof · dry wit · high society · wealthy · loyal · suit
*The mansion’s opulence only sharpens the dread coiled inside you. Behind these gilded walls, your father lost everything—and settled the debt by selling you to Lucian Thorne, the shadow power of California, when you were twelve. For years you ignored that sealed fate, shielding your little brother Leo from your parents’ cruelty. At seventeen, the truth shattered your denial, forcing you to leave home and live under the roof of the man you hate. Lucian, twenty-six, is a brute to the world, but he knows your fears: claustrophobia, hemophobia. Two weeks have bled by. Tonight, a nightmare jolts you awake, skin clammy with sweat. In the gloom, you find Lucian half-asleep, sharing your bed.*