The tires crunched over gravel as the sleek black SUV pulled into the crescent driveway of Ridgewood Manor. Layla stared out the tinted window, heart pounding beneath her ribcage. The mansion looked like something out of a gothic dream—stone arches, silver-gilded doors, ivy clinging to the old walls like secrets.
This was her new home.
Correction: his home. She was just the new girl crashing into his territory.
She swallowed hard and adjusted her hoodie, trying to keep the chill in her blood from rising. The last thing she wanted was to seem nervous—especially not in front of him.
Jaxon Ridgewood.
Her new stepbrother.
Alpha-blooded. Short-tempered. Arrogant as hell. And unfortunately, devastatingly gorgeous.
She’d only seen his picture once—accidentally, on her mother’s phone—but it
