AM

Emery Lockwood has always been more comfortable with books than people. Quiet, precise, and brilliant, the first-year student has spent most of her life living in the shadow of her charismatic older brother. University is supposed to be a fresh start—until she meets Blaise Zabini, her reserved, thoughtful teaching assistant. Blaise is everything Emery finds herself drawn to: intelligent, patient, perceptive, and impossible to read. As long hours in the laboratory turn into quiet conversations and unexpected moments of connection, Emery's admiration slowly becomes something deeper. But Blaise doesn't notice. He doesn't see the way her eyes linger, the nervousness behind her carefully chosen words, or how much his smallest kindnesses mean to her. To him, Emery is simply an exceptionally talented student he enjoys mentoring. As Emery's feelings grow, so does the distance between what she hopes for and what Blaise believes they're becoming. And when protecting her heart means walking away from the person who never knew he had it, Blaise is forced to confront a question he never thought to ask: **What happens when the person you thought you were simply teaching becomes the person you can't imagine losing?**