All men must fall in love—The Top 12 Couples on Game of Thrones

5. Tyrion and Shae

Tyrion and Shae have a lot of qualities that make them successful as a couple. They’re both very intelligent and capable of entertaining each other in idle moments. They both have high sex drives, so they’re compatible that way. They even share protective instincts they try to cover up — note that they’ve each tried to protect Sansa Stark on different occasions. (Tyrion stopped Meryn Trant from hitting her and Shae tried to step Cersei’s spy from tattling to the queen after Sansa had her first period.) In another world, they could have had a long and happy life together.

But they live in Westeros, and their social positions are vastly different. Tyrion is a nobleman and Shae is a prostitute. Ultimately, things were going to have to come to a head, especially because Tyrion has a father like Tywin, who disapproves of any show of impropriety from his children. Tyrion dismissed Shae, and she returned to what she knew — climbing the ladder so she could find security. What could have been a wonderful romance ended in blood when Tyrion murdered Shae after finding her in his father’s bed.

Like many romances on Game of Thrones, this one was sweet but short-lived. If Tyrion lives through this story, he’ll probably remember it vividly for the rest of his life.