Dernière Danse

Paris, 1863.

Lucien de Villeneuve was born into everything society envies: an ancient name, obscene wealth, beauty that turns heads across ballrooms, and a future already decided for him.

As the youngest son of one of France’s most prestigious aristocratic families, Lucien is expected to marry well, protect the Villeneuve reputation, and become another flawless piece of the family legacy.

Then he meets Gabriel Valcourt.

Tall, severe, and impossible to impress, Gabriel is heir to one of Paris’s most powerful banking dynasties—a family old nobility whispers about while quietly borrowing their money. Where Lucien is silk, pearls, and dazzling charm, Gabriel is restraint, calculation, and quiet power.

Their first meeting is hardly romantic.

Unfortunately, neither of them can seem to stop looking at the other.

What begins as irritation becomes curiosity. Curiosity becomes stolen conversations, private letters, lingering glances, and feelings neither man can safely acknowledge.

Because in a world where marriages are negotiations and reputation is everything, two powerful families have far too much to lose.

And Paris is always watching.

**Beauty. Power. Scandal. Some vows were never meant to be kept.**