A protective CEO with dark secrets. A brilliant scientist who shouldn't be tempted. When a bet ignites their chemistry, more than their careers are at risk. Dr. Aleria James has worked too hard to let her past with Liam Valeur derail her career. But when he becomes the CEO overseeing her groundbreaking research project, their carefully maintained professional distance combusts into an inferno of forbidden attraction. What starts as a playful dating bet evolves into something far more dangerous-and addictive. Liam Valeur always gets what he wants, and he wants Aleria. But as their secret affair intensifies, so do the threats against his family. With a deadly enemy closing in and devastating secrets coming to light, Liam must choose between protecting the woman he loves and exposing the truth that could destroy everything.