He needed a wife to secure his empire. She needed a shield to protect her daughter. Theirs was a simple, cold contract—until one forbidden kiss threatened to break it all. Alexander Blackwood is a cynical billionaire heir, bound by the dark shadows of his past and a relentless addiction to control. To silence the rumors of his instability and secure his legacy, he proposes a solution as ruthless as it is brilliant: a marriage of convenience to his own assistant. Eleanor "Ella" Reed is a genius single mother, hiding her own struggles with addiction and a web of past lies. For the sake of her young daughter's future, she agrees to become the temporary Mrs. Blackwood. It's a simple transaction: her pretense of love in exchange for his financial protection. But when opposites attract, the line between pretense and reality blurs. In a world of corporate intrigue, family betrayal, and haunting secrets, a single moment of weakness leads to a kiss that was never part of the deal. Now, they must ask themselves: was that one kiss a mistake? Or was it the beginning of the one thing their contract forbade... a real second chance?