Crossed (Never After Series, Book 5) Emily Mclntire

Festivalé, Vermont is a town where despair hides behind beautiful facades, and it's here that Father Cade Frédéric, a devout yet tormented priest from Paris, is sent. Father Cade battles a darkness within, a sickness that compels him to purge evil. He is righteousness incarnate, yet a monster lurks beneath his holy exterior.

Amaya Paquette, a local enigma, spends her days nurturing her younger brother and her nights captivating audiences as Esmeralda. Despite yearning for love, Amaya fears abandonment and shuns intimacy. Her mysterious allure catches the eye of Father Cade, who becomes obsessed, convinced that she uses witchcraft to ensnare him. Unable to eat, breathe, or think of anything but her, Cade sees her as his ultimate test.

As temptation overtakes him, he decides Amaya must be destroyed to save his soul, even if it means ending the life of the woman he might truly love. This dark and gripping tale of conflicting desires and moral struggles explores themes of sin, redemption, and the devastating power of temptation. Father Cade’s inner battle and Amaya’s poignant loneliness create a haunting narrative of love and destruction.