In the deepening dusk, the young master said he l…

The old house's rules were like the creepers clinging to the walls—deep-rooted and unshakable. Mirabel Davenport was the young master who held absolute authority within these walls, and Alistair Vance was the personal maid he had brought back from the orphanage. At school, she was the untouchable beauty, cold and aloof; but back home, she became the most loyal shadow. He protected her, yet habitually controlled her, savoring the veiled obedience in her eyes. That was, until one spring night, when a bowl of scalding soup spilled onto his shirt, shattering this precarious balance. Watching her tremble on her knees before him, the young master suddenly lost all interest in the rules of master and servant. He wanted to play a different game.