Professor Gabriel Emerson commands respect as a Dante scholar at the university, but his nights belong to pleasure and excess. His handsome features and refined manner serve his desires well, yet guilt from his past tortures him. He believes himself irredeemable. When Julia Mitchell joins his graduate program, Gabriel feels an instant pull toward the innocent young woman. This attraction threatens everything he has built in his academic career. As Gabriel struggles with his feelings for Julia, memories from years past begin to surface. His carefully constructed world starts to crumble. Julia represents something Gabriel thought he could never have. She offers him a chance at the forgiveness he desperately craves but fears he does not deserve. Gabriel must confront the darkness that has shaped him and decide whether to risk everything for love.
Genres: romance, dark-romance, contemporary-romance, academic
Vibes: dark, emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, redemption
Paperback · Penquin Books
Content warnings: mental-illness