czjaded
Dove Celestine Worthington, the fiercely intelligent and ambitious heiress to Worthington Global Enterprises, has only ever wanted to do one thing her entire life: make films.
At a young age, she found her one true love on the pages of her favorite book. Since then, she made it her life mission to bring the words into life; to bring the images in her head into the big screen.
Except her family wants her to follow in their footsteps and join the family business - it is a dynasty, after all. Blacklisted from Hollywood by her powerful, controlling uncle, Dove is out of options.
In a desperate, last-ditch effort to fund her own studio, with a $150 million trust fund that is locked under a marriage clause like it's the 1950s, she makes an unconventional proposal to the one man chaotic enough to make it believable: Cross Wilde.
Wilde has built a reputation for himself - one is that quickly becoming the cause of his downfall. He is a brilliant actor whose career is in a freefall, torpedoed by a carefully cultivated "bad boy" reputation and a string of public scandals.
With no choice left, she asks Cross to marry her. It will get her access to her trust fund and mend Cross' reputation in the process by showing he is a one woman-man.
But as they play their roles for the public, the lines between the performance and reality begin to blur. Their witty banter and sharp sarcasm become a language of intimacy, and their business arrangement is complicated by moments of undeniable chemistry and genuine vulnerability.
While Dove wages war against the industry that fears the power her uncle holds over it, she finds an unexpected ally in her fake fiancé. Cross, in turn, reveals a hidden depth and a secret past he has protected for years.
What begins as a calculated business merger evolves into a high-stakes partnership where the biggest risk isn't losing a fortune, but losing their hearts.