Three months ago, at the Imperial Midsummer Ball, seamstress Sera Bennett caught her fiancé Michael and her fake friend Laura cheating. Michael, soon to be a duke's guardsman, sneered that she was just a ""lowly sewing girl"" unworthy of his rising status. She slapped him and fled, only to crash into the cold, noble embrace of Duke Alexander Drake, the empire's guardian and Michael's ultimate patron. Burning with rage, Sera seduced him that very night. After one night, he handed her not gold, but a church‑blessed marriage contract. She assumed it was a deal: she'd gain a duchess's power to crush her betrayers, while he seemed to want her body. One year, then they'd part. What Sera never knew: Alex is the last ancient black dragon, sealed for centuries. Her kiss is the only cure for his volatile dragon power, and the blood pact binds their souls forever. Married life reveals his strange fevers and odd behavior… and their one‑year agreement becomes anything but simple."