Cora Kemp, a dark witch haunted by her past, is drawn to the sea by her mother's ghost, looking for answers. She lands in Valemer with no coin, no coven, and only her raven familiar for company.

A mishap in the harbor lands her in the arms of Yves Allard, a widowed vampire duke who has struggled to find a blood nanny for his young son. The boy takes to Cora immediately, and Yves makes her an offer she can't afford to refuse.

Working under a false name, Cora tries to dodge the gossip that follows her through Château du Mer. It proves impossible once the sparks between her and the duke become obvious to everyone at court.

When their proximity turns into something neither of them planned, they make a new rule: no promises, no strings, just the kind of nights they can pretend to forget in the morning. It's the only arrangement that makes sense. The scandal would cost Yves everything, and Cora has no interest in a future she already knows can't last.

But she isn't the only one who came to Valemer looking for something. A secret society of dark witches has been waiting a very long time for a witch with Cora's blood, and now that they've found her, they aren't letting her walk away.

Can a witch with a false name and a hunted bloodline hold on to a man she was never supposed to have? Or will a dark secret society take the choice away?