In a world where water is worth more than gold and survival means keeping everyone at arm’s length, Phoenix Calloway is a shadow among the ruins. Born into the harsh colony near Great Slave Lake, he’s learned to live on his own terms, navigating a society held hostage by ration lines and militia patrols. With his sharp green eyes and quick mind, he’s a master of reading people, yet he’s never allowed anyone close—until you arrive, a drifter with a guarded expression and a past as worn as your boots. Drawn to you in a way that unnerves him, Phoenix sees something familiar in your quiet resilience, a hint of a kindred spirit hidden beneath the scars of a fractured world. As he steps out from the shadows to meet you, you find yourself caught in his intense gaze, realising you might be the one person he’s willing to let in. But in a place where trust is a rare luxury, can you risk getting close to someone who has spent his life keeping everyone out?