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T he days leading to the Christmas party at my uncle’s house were filled with long work hours.

Sometimes I left the office building before Liam, taking the car with my own assigned bodyguard and driver back to the condo where I’d wait for my husband to come back home.

But that sucked. I hated the pacing and worrying. He worked too hard. But he believed in his company.

It was everything to him and coming from the background I did, I completely understood.

ODI was poised to revolutionize the industry. I wasn’t psychic, but anyone could see it was going to be the driving force that made nano batteries not just a futuristic concept but a tangible, everyday reality.

The company’s vision was clear.

We were going to make cutting-edge energy storage technology more accessible, bringing nano batteries into the mainstream for the products that consumers increasingly relied on.

This wasn’t just about innovation for the sake of it. It was about meeting an undeniable demand fueled by an insatiable desire for faster, more efficient, and more powerful devices.

Like smart phones.

PCs.

Tablets.

Electronic vehicles.

What had once been considered luxuries—all those high-performance gadgets we all craved—had morphed into essential tools for daily life.

From work to entertainment, fitness to communication, these devices had become extensions of ourselves. With that shift from things you’d like to things you actually needed to survive came an ever-growing expectation.

People didn’t just want these products, they needed them now. They demanded they worked faster, lasted longer, and recharged more quickly.

Kind of like my husband.

Desire was the driving force behind the market. And behind my investment in this marriage.

Sure, I was tickled that Liam had made me a partner almost immediately. For the first time in my life, someone recognized my value as something more than just a Volkov. He seemed to see me.

Like really see me.

Even better? I enjoyed my new job.

ODI was a special place. It had just the right amount of push the limits , ask all the questions , and take no shit meets cool tech company ambiance to make employees feel proud and excited about their work for us.

Nano batteries were the key to unlocking unlimited potential in today’s market.

With their superior energy density, faster charging capabilities, and longer-lasting power, nano batteries transformed the way we interacted with our devices.

With few American companies making strides in this area, ODI had a pretty open field.

Improving lives, powering the technology you crave.

That was our company motto, and it wasn’t half bad.

As the demand for more efficient and convenient products grew, ODI’s role in the market was becoming more crucial. The company’s future looked great.

As for my marriage, the jury was still out. We had crazy physical chemistry.

That part was undeniable. It was the emotional side I was unsure about.

I knew it was foolish of me to have feelings for the man, but how was I supposed to help it? Love cropped up unexpectedly, and well, I knew myself well enough to realize it was hopeless.

I was in love with my husband-of-convenience.

Maybe I should have just told my parents about that DJ all those years ago, but the person I was would never have done that.

Ironic that I’d craved independence and freedom and wound up losing both in an arranged marriage to keep my promise to Margaret O’Doyle for getting me out of that whole mess.

And what did I have to show for it now?

I’d actually fallen in love with the man. But what would happen when he fell in love with someone and wanted out? Or worse, did he think he could keep a mistress and me as his wife?

We hadn’t thought that far ahead. Hadn’t laid out any ground rules.

For all I knew, Liam could already have one.

No! He couldn’t. He wouldn’t. Would he?

He’d never said anything like it, and his whole demeanor was that of someone possessive. But I knew men like that, and it was just part of his chemical makeup. It had nothing at all to do with me.

And to my utter shame, I really wished it did.

I wished Liam was as hung up on me as I was on him.

Shit.

I was spiraling. I needed to focus on the good. I liked my job. ODI was awesome and working side by side with my sexy as fuck husband was easy.

I mean, I hardly saw him lately. Liam was completely locked in, dealing with our partners overseas, and from the little I knew it was bad.

Yeah, sometimes I left before him, but more often than not I remained at ODI until he called it quits.

I had a lot of catching up to do myself, and I was still finding my way with my team. The task we were working on was testing to ensure the nano batteries themselves seamlessly integrated into computing systems and devices.

Designing power management systems that effectively interface with nano batteries was just as important as manufacturing the things themselves.

I was waiting in the lab for a last-minute test result with Clint McCombs, one of ODI’s original employees. I was still sorting through resumes to add to the team, but saw no reason to move anyone around just yet.

Clint was capable and intelligent, but he had a strange aura about him. Like he was always looking too long or hard, but I just wrote it off as a quirk. His peers seemed to get along with him just fine. But they were all men.

That was something else I was working on at ODI as far as the computer engineering team went. We needed more diversity. But of course, it was all about quality and capability with me.

I wanted the brightest and the best working for us. Everything else was second place. A shiver ran through me, and I cursed myself for the second time, wishing I’d brought my sweater.

Computer labs were always frigid for the health of the machines, but my tired ass forgot my cardigan upstairs and I was shivering as the system finished compiling the data.

“Cold? Here,” Clint grabbed his zippered hoodie off his chair and held it out to me.

“Oh, um,” I froze for a second, but the goosebumps on my arms in the ivory shell top I wore with brown pointe pants was not enough to ward off the chill.

“Here. Seriously, you’re making me cold watching you shiver,” Clint joked, and shook the sweatshirt.

I laughed and shook my head.

“No, really. I’m fine.”

“Don’t be silly.”

He stood up, draping it around my shoulders.

“Really, Clint, I appreciate it, but no thank you,” I said, and removed the sweatshirt, handing it back to him.

There was something about wearing another man’s clothing that just didn’t feel right.

“Suit yourself,” he replied and shrugged, refilling his coffee at the small station in the corner before circling back to his desk.

I crossed my arms and waited, feeling slightly uncomfortable with the bigger man. It wasn’t that he was being creepy, but he kept looking at me and I wondered if maybe I’d done something to give him the wrong impression.

“Done! Check this out,” he said, and I leaned over to read the results with him.

“Everything looks great,” I said, eyes on the screen.

I felt Clint’s attention on me and when I turned, his face was way too close. His eyes were on my mouth, and I backed up immediately.

“Clint, I think maybe you’ve gotten the wrong impression?—”

“You don’t have to play coy, Michaela. You know, ever since you came here people haven’t stopped talking. Like they can’t figure out why Mr. O’Doyle married you. But I see it.”

“Excuse me?” I scoffed, backing up farther.

“It’s the perfect merger. Volkov Industries and ODI! Plus, you’re brilliant and hot. We all know O’Doyle has a thing going with Chen, so I take it yours is an open marriage,” he said like it was nothing.

Clint was basically telling me my husband was cheating on me just like he’d pass on the traffic news or weather report. Like it didn’t matter.

“What? No, that’s not right,” I said, the pounding in my head growing more and more by the second.

“Come on, Michaela. You’re an adult, I’m an adult. We can have a little fun together. All these late nights, working together, I know you’re asking for it,” he said, his expression growing darker as he stalked me across the room.

The lab was filled with the latest and greatest computer systems and temperature controls. Even the lighting was special. They all gave off this soft electronic hum that should have been soothing, but all I heard was this man telling me my husband was a cheater and I’d been asking for his attention by working late.

What the actual fuck?