The Broken Sands by Iren Adams

She’s a daughter of a tyrant. He’s a rebel against the regime. They were meant to be enemies…
Two men reign over what’s left of the lifeless desert. The ruthless Emperor of Usmad from behind the high walls of the palace and the cruel King of Rebels from a lost town in the endless sands.

Neylan is one of the countless daughters of the emperor, exchanged by her father for a favor from the most powerful governor of Usmad. But the empire is built on vicious intrigues and perverse games, and Neylan’s betrothal is no different.
Rebels attack the train on which she travels to her new home, and with death as a crude possibility, Neylan finds herself in the middle of the enemies. Wounded and lost in the world in which she doesn’t belong, she will have to learn to trust and to love, and as her forbidden gift of binding life energy flourishes, she’ll have to carve a place for herself before she might end up as a pawn in another game.