Maddox James is the entire package. Soulful, deep, hotter than the fiery pits of hell. He’s also my best friend, and did I mention, he’s celibate?
Two years ago, we were strangers sharing sunsets, secrets, and a connection neither of us could ignore. For one perfect night, I thought something extraordinary was beginning—until he rejected me without explanation, leaving me feeling humiliated.
Now, fate has thrown us together again in the worst possible way: he’s my boss’s younger brother. Still maddeningly handsome, endlessly compassionate, and impossible to ignore. The worst part? He’s impossible to dislike too. Beneath the sexy confident smiles and effortless charm is someone quieter than I remember, someone carrying shadows I don’t understand. And when he finally tells me the truth, that rejecting me had nothing to do with him not wanting me—it changes everything.
Somewhere between late-night conversations, daily laughter and sharing our dreams, he becomes my best friend. Which would be fine if I wasn’t falling for him all over again.
Because friendship starts to feel dangerously small when every touch lingers too long, every look feels like a confession, and the man who once swore off intimacy begins breaking every rule he made for himself.
But love doesn’t erase the past. And when the darkest parts of our lives come back to claim us, we’ll have to decide if what we have is strong enough to survive the things that almost destroyed us both.