Overview

Derek Cross thought the "International Fitness Ambassador Program" invitation was just another brand collaboration opportunity. A chance to showcase optimal human performance to a select audience, probably with some high-end gym equipment and a decent paycheck.

What he didn't expect was to wake up on an alien spaceship face-to-face with Kav'eth, a formal Nereidan diplomat who thinks humans are inefficient, unpredictable, and generally inferior. Unlike the previous accidental abduction, this assessment is deliberate, methodical, and completely by the book.

Meet Kav'eth, Council member and owner of the galaxy's most rigid adherence to protocol. Assigned Derek's assessment as punishment for opposing the human compatibility program, he's determined to prove that this fitness-obsessed human is exactly as shallow and unsuitable as he expects.

Unfortunately for both of them, Derek's optimization-focused lifestyle crashes headfirst into Kav'eth's duty-focused worldview, creating sparks that have nothing to do with their empathic bond and everything to do with two control freaks learning to let go.

But when Derek realizes his entire life has been performance rather than presence, and Kav'eth discovers that there's more to humans than social media metrics, their clinical assessment becomes something much more personal. Because choosing to build a life together is complicated enough without adding interspecies politics, family dynamics, and the fact that Derek's ex-boyfriend is already living happily ever after with Kav'eth's brother.

Some assessments become partnerships. Some opponents become lovers. And some connections are worth changing your entire world for.

A steamy sci-fi romance where diplomatic protocol meets Instagram culture, bioluminescent aliens, empathic bonding, and the revolutionary concept that being present matters more than being perfect. Low angst, high heat, with a guaranteed HEA.

Deliberate abduction • Enemies to lovers • Forced proximity • Size difference • Bioluminescent alien • Empathic bond • Duty vs. desire • Opposites attract • Learning to be present