Clara Langford knows how to curate a beautiful life—her i********: is proof. But behind the velvet chairs and gallery lighting is a 25-year-old art history graduate living off dwindling parental support and volunteering at a museum that can't afford to hire her. When her parents arrange a blind date to “help her future,” Clara expects the usual boredom. Instead, she meets Julian Crane—her ex’s impossibly powerful, infuriatingly attractive former boss. Julian is everything Clara’s not: wealthy, poised, and deeply uninterested in love. With a reputation to maintain and a high-stakes promotion on the line, he needs a partner to complete the picture. Clara just wants the perks: fine dining, black-tie galas, and an escape from the growing pressure of her crumbling world. They strike a deal. They’ll fake a relationship. No strings. No feelings. But when her parents cut her off and Julian offers her more than just a dinner date, Clara does the one thing she promised herself she wouldn’t—she runs. Straight into the arms of her toxic ex, triggering a chain of public humiliation and private heartbreak. Now, with her last savings spent and her pride shattered, Clara uncovers the truth: Julian didn’t just want her—he protected her family behind the scenes, risking his own position to shield her. And she left him. So when Julian invites her back to New York, first-class ticket included and a cold promise to “set her up,” Clara returns with a suitcase and a secret: she’s not over him. Not even close. But the rules have changed. The air is icy, the tension unbearable, and what started as pretend is about to burn very, very real.