Ten years ago, Lucien was a proud young Alpha who paid Evander—the top student—two thousand dollars per session to tutor him. He stole Evander's glasses, carved his name into their shared desk, and slipped secret notes into Evander's textbooks. Before fall break, Evander bought a charm bracelet and wrote a confession letter—but Lucien disappeared overseas due to complications from presenting as an Alpha.
Ten years later, Vale Industries is on the verge of bankruptcy, and Lucien is offered up as a marriage pawn. Evander steps in with three hundred million dollars—on one condition: Lucien marries him. Lucien thinks it's just a cold business deal, until he discovers the piano room designed to his taste, the credit card PIN set to his birthday, and the truth behind the bracelet that was never given. When he finally finds the faded letter and the name carved into a desk ten years ago, Lucien realizes—Evander never bought a marriage. He bought a second chance to come back to the one he'd loved all along.