He needed a girlfriend to fix his reputation.
She needed money to save her family.
Neither of them planned to fall in love.
After a very public breakup tanks investor confidence, billionaire CEO Lucas Kade agrees to a strategic solution: hire a pretend girlfriend. The rules are simple. Public appearances. Professional boundaries. No emotions. Harper Mitchell signs the contract for fifty thousand dollars a month, determined to treat it like any other job and keep her heart completely out of it.
But fake chemistry turns dangerously real. Between charity galas, quiet breakfasts, and long nights planning media strategy, Harper sees the man behind the empire — the lonely boy who built success as armor. Lucas sees the woman who isn’t impressed by his wealth, who challenges him, who refuses to need him for anything except the paycheck she earned.
When rumors expose their arrangement and Lucas chooses to defend Harper over his own reputation, the contract stops feeling like protection and starts feeling like a cage. The board pressures him. The media circles. The expiration date looms closer.
Now the choice is no longer strategic.
When the contract ends, will they walk away clean…
Or risk everything on something that was never supposed to be real?
Because love can’t be negotiated.
And the most dangerous thing about pretending… is discovering you were never pretending at all.
Perfect for readers who love fake dating tension, emotionally guarded billionaires, strong independent heroines, slow-burn chemistry, protective alpha heroes, and high-stakes corporate drama.
One contract. One expiration date. One love worth rewriting the terms for. Start reading now.