Infuriatingly Synonym

Tamine Jordan has three rules for surviving Blackridge Academy: 1. Keep her head down. 2. Avoid the Thorpe brothers at all costs. 3. Never, ever, let her heart get involved again. But rules have a way of shattering, especially when your cheating ex and his infuriatingly charming half-brother are determined to make your life impossible. Atlas Thorpe, the boy who broke her heart, is cruel, smug, and still playing games that leave her humiliated in front of half the school. Evans Thorpe, the hockey team’s golden boy, should be easier to ignore… except one reckless night left her tangled in his memory and in his sights. Now Evans has maneuvered his way into her Literature class, and thanks to the world’s most sadistic teacher, Tamine is stuck tutoring him. Being near him is dangerous; not just because of his relentless teasing and disarming smile, but because she can’t stop remembering the way he once touched her. And when two brothers are locked in a rivalry where the prize is her, it’s only a matter of time before someone gets burned. The real question is, will Tamine survive the game, or end up playing it too?

Dante Matino Cruz is a delivery rider, sweating day and night just to keep food on the table and medicine for his ailing mother. Life is hard, but his pride is harder—no shortcuts, no handouts, no selling himself for money. Celestine Isla Navarro is a CEO who thrives in a world where hesitation means weakness. She’s used to buying what she wants and bending people to her will. But the day she crosses paths with Dante—sun-bronzed, stubborn, and infuriatingly unyielding—something inside her shifts. Her first proposition is reckless: a single night, no strings attached. Dante’s answer? Not for sale. But fate doesn’t end with one rejection. Celestine offers him something else: a job. A dangerous but well-paid position as her personal bodyguard. The money could save his mother, even secure work for his childhood friend, Liza. It’s everything he’s been breaking his back for—served on a silver platter. Now Dante faces a brutal choice: swallow his pride to protect his family, or stand firm against a woman who never takes “no” for an answer. What begins as a battle of wills turns into a dangerous, slow-burning game of temptation. Pride versus desire. Fire against fire. And in this game, someone will surrender. The question is—who will break first?