Jessa Robson applied to the alien match program for the money. After a string of disappointing relationships and a childhood spent shuffling between foster homes, she doesn’t envision love in her future. When she’s chosen to be a mistress for a Virilian male, she sees that five-million-dollar fee as her ticket to an independent life, free from scraping by and dead-end jobs. All she has to do is provide one of those gorgeous Virilian males with an heir. But she doesn’t expect such a powerful connection to her match—the enigmatic and devastatingly handsome Virak Braal, ruler of Tagja City. Virak has had one failed pairing and has no expectation that this one will turn out better. The life of a Virilian king is solitary and Virak, who was raised by brutal combat trainers and cold attendants, has learned to keep everyone at arm’s length—emotionally and physically. Virak is immediately drawn to Jessa, but he long ago accepted his discomfort with closeness and touch. When his city is invaded, putting him and Jessa in danger, primal forces within him snap the chains on his tight control. A familiar enemy threatens Virilia, forcing Virak to trust allies, both old and new. Finding out who is behind the deadly Sifter group’s growing power will put Virak’s leadership to the test and expose Jessa to the darkest part of him. This is book three of the Virilian Mail Order Mates series. It features no cliffhangers and no cheating. I write what I love to read, so there is always consent and always a happy ending.