One innocent fumbled paper. Two warring brothers. A world of ice and silk where silence is the only survival.
When Élise Laurent left France for a prestigious internship in Italy, she expected hard work and high fashion. She didn't expect to be caught in the crosshairs of a decades-old blood feud. During her interview, a single moment of vulnerability caught the eye of Adriano Moretti the "Ice CEO" of Milan. He is cold, untouchable, and powerful enough to crush anyone in his path. But for the first time in his life, the man who has everything has found something he refuses to share.
Enter Pedro the charming, friendly neighbor who helped Élise move in. He’s the man who knows her coffee order and her floor plan. But Pedro is no stranger. He is Adriano’s brother, the shadow in the Moretti legacy, and he’s spent his life waiting for the perfect weapon to destroy the Golden Son. He found that weapon in Élise.
Now, trapped in a luxurious estate on the cliffs of Varese, Élise is no longer just an intern. To Adriano, she is a prize to be guarded at any cost. To Pedro, she is the ultimate bait. And to Lucia, the vengeful socialite promised to Adriano, she is a threat that must be eliminated.
As the secrets of the Vigna del Sole begin to unravel, Élise realizes that in the Moretti family, love is a liability and "protection" feels a lot like a prison. Caught between the brother who wants to own her and the brother who wants to use her, Élise must find her voice before the ice closes in forever.
In this game of kings, the silent pawn is the most dangerous player of all.

​The drive back from the Navigli district was a silent, tension-filled journey. Adriano sat behind the wheel of the Maserati, his knuckles white as he navigated the rainy streets of Milan. Beside him, Élise clutched the singed leather satchel in her lap, her gaze fixed out the window at the blurred lights of the city.


​Every fiber of her being screamed for her to run to head to the airport, to return to the simple safety of her mother's kitchen in Paris. Yet, every time she looked at Adriano's profile the sharp line of his jaw, the raw exhaustion etched into his features she felt a magnetic pull that she couldn't explain. He wasn't just her boss anymore; he was a man who had admitted he was drowning, and she was the only one he was reaching for.


Chapter 24 - The weight of the crown