Tattiana Taylor thought skipping town would save her from the arranged marriage her father forced on her… until she was kidnapped out her own driveway by the dangerous man waiting to make her his wife.

Kaseem Carter is feared, rich, emotionally detached and next in line to inherit his family’s empire… but only if he marries immediately and produces an heir within twelve months.

Now trapped inside a heavily guarded compound with a man who controls everything around him, Tatti is forced into a life full of power, luxury, violence and secrets. Dead bodies start showing up at the Carter gates, enemies are circling the family empire, women from Kaseem’s past won’t go away and the deeper Tatti gets pulled into his world, the harder it becomes to escape it.

But while Kaseem is trying to force Tatti into becoming his perfect wife, he slowly realizes she’s nothing like the quiet woman he expected. She’s smart, reckless, protective and hiding secrets dangerous enough to destroy both of them.

And somewhere between the threats, the chaos, the bloodshed and the toxicity… they start falling for each other in the worst way possible.

Now the same man Tatti once feared might become the only person capable of protecting her… if his enemies don’t destroy everything first.

",{"_136":68,"_33":76,"_191":192,"_193":64},188,"May 27, 2026","May 27","B0H33H1ZLB","#24180b",[],"https://cdn.blackauthored.com/books/4378i/a3e2fdd7-d1dd-42cf-91d6-091bc0a28d8c.jpg","https://img.blackauthored.com/?preset=poster_thumb&image=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.blackauthored.com%2Fbooks%2F4378i%2Fa3e2fdd7-d1dd-42cf-91d6-091bc0a28d8c.jpg",{"_136":195,"_33":121,"_164":196,"_197":-5,"_198":-5,"_199":120,"_200":265,"_202":47},[203],"67f3fcc7-f717-4702-9068-45a8e2ca5104",[],[287],"Ember: A Mafia Romance","3b61c097-8682-4c4f-8e56-34087e4df0b7",{"_21":284,"_136":285,"_286":120},"Jul 2026","2026-07-14","5139-ember","

DELUXE EDITION--featuring beautiful blue sprayed edges!

From USA Today bestselling author Naima Simone comes a new scorching dark mafia romance in the Hunted Kingdom series in which a modern-day Cinderella must fight against the stepbrother who inherited her legacy--but he wants more than just the family empire: he wants her.

He’ll burn it all to keep her.
Her fire will consume his soul.

Today, my father gave me the perfect gift: he died.

But he left my legacy, the multibillion drug empire, to pure evil―my stepbrother, Asad Prince.

Petty even in death? Two can play that game.

As the last Cross, I’ll leave it all behind. And I will have the last laugh too: I’ll take the formula for the drug I created with me.

It’s the perfect plan until Asad makes his final move―marry him, or everyone I love dies.

A deal with the devil. Until he reveals his secrets.

His obsession might have always been my freedom.

Now, Asad might rule with fire.

But I'll light the match.

EMBER is a dark mafia romance that explores themes, subjects, and scenes that may not be suitable for everyone. Please see the author's content note at the beginning of the book.

Tropes:
Enemies to lovers
Arranged marriage
Forced proximity
Touch her/him and die
Morally grey MMC/FMC
Fairy tale reimagining

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