Elena Vance would do anything to protect her nephew, Leo. After a tragic accident left him in her care, she faces a ruthless custody battle against distant relatives who see the boy only as a paycheck. Enter Julian Thorne, a man of logic, law, and iron-clad boundaries. He needs a stable image to secure his firm's future; she needs a husband to secure Leo's. It was a simple contract: one year of marriage, separate rooms and no emotional entanglements. But forced cohabitation and the shared responsibility of a grieving child have a way of shattering even the strongest walls. Between quiet mornings in the kitchen and the growing trust in Leo's eyes, Elena and Julian find themselves facing a threat more terrifying than any courtroom: a love that wasn't part of the deal. In this emotional contemporary romance, two strangers must decide if their 'convenience' was just a legal strategy or the foundation of the family they never knew they needed.