Forrest Lambert lives on schedules: study, save, survive. He doesn’t ask for trouble — trouble asks him for change. When top-dog alpha Dagger Martinez stops Forrest on a sunset street and walks away with one hundred seventy-six dollars and a shrug, Forrest decides getting his money back is worth the risk. What he doesn’t bargain on is that Dagger’s temper is as lethal as his good looks, that Dagger fears dogs in a way Forrest can’t yet name, or that a string of small, embarrassing rescues and awkward favors will bind them into a dangerous, delicious orbit. From stolen cash to hospital corridors, late-night hotels, and a tutoring job that sticks Forrest inside Dagger’s world, these two collide — and the damage they do to each other might be exactly what saves them. A tender, messy slow-burn about debts, bruises, and the quiet bribery of second chances.

22 Chapters