Every barmaid dreams of a prince. Aren just didn't expect hers to be cursed, arrogant, and bleeding magical ruin all over her tavern floor. Aren Bellamore has no use for fairy tales?especially the kind that come stomping through her door with royal blood and a death sentence. She's spent her life slinging ale, fending off drunks, and dreaming of escape. Not romance. Not crowns. Just more. Prince Dietan is everything she never wanted: brooding, entitled, and bound to the Rings of Fate?ancient magical relics that were never meant to touch human flesh. Now they're killing him. Slowly. Spectacularly. And when Aren accidentally triggers one, she gets tied to the curse, too. If he dies, so does the kingdom. If she walks away, she'll take the magic?and half the realm?down with her. Their only hope? Each other. Forced into an uneasy alliance, Aren and Dietan must unravel a mystery buried in legend, outwit a power-hungry usurper, and survive magic that's turning against them both. And somewhere between dodging assassins and sharing too many fireside glances, Aren starts to wonder if her more might include the one thing she swore she didn't want... A prince. A curse. And a fate far more dangerous than falling in love.