Elena asked for. But everything changes when her grandfather, Alexander Sinclair, announces that she has been chosen as his Sinclair never expected to inherit the Black Empire.At twenty-five, she has built a life away from her powerful family and has no interest in fighting for a throne she neveruccessor.There's only one condition.She must survive twelve months of probation.With the Sinclair family watching her every move, a skeptical board waiting for her to fail, and powerful executives questioning her abilities, Elena is thrown into a world where one wrong decision could cost her the empire.Then there's Adrian Vale.At thirty-four, Adrian is a ruthless billionaire and the powerful CEO of Vale International. Cold, calculating, and impossible to intimidate, he is also one of the few people whose opinion could influence Elena's future.From their first meeting, they clash.He thinks she's inexperienced.She thinks he's arrogant.But as Elena digs deeper into the Black Empire, she discovers that the problems surrounding the company are far more complicated than anyone told her. Someone is hiding information. Someone wants her to fail. And the closer she gets to the truth, the more dangerous the game becomes.As business battles turn personal and an unexpected attraction grows between Elena and Adrian, she must decide who she can trust.Because the Black Empire isn't simply waiting to see whether she can inherit it.Someone is determined to make sure she never does.She was born an heiress.Now she has twelve months to prove she deserves the empire.

Lena Hart has spent years living under the shadow of her father's disgrace.Her father was once a respected financial analyst at Blackwood International—until he was accused of stealing millions from the company. His reputation was destroyed, and his mysterious death left Lena with nothing but unanswered questions.Now, years later, Lena gets the opportunity of a lifetime: a position inside the very empire that ruined her family.But her new boss isn't the ordinary CEO she expected.Alexander Blackwood is powerful, ruthless, and untouchable. The billionaire CEO has built an empire everyone envies, but behind his polished image are secrets he refuses to reveal.And he knows far too much about Lena's father.Alexander didn't hire Lena by accident.He believes someone inside his empire knows the truth about Daniel Hart's downfall—and he needs Lena to help uncover it.But the deeper Lena digs, the more dangerous things become.Someone is watching her.Someone doesn't want the past uncovered.And the closer Lena gets to Alexander, the harder it becomes to tell whether he is the only man she can trust—or the one person she should fear most.Because behind Alexander Blackwood's empire lies a secret powerful enough to destroy everything he has built.And falling for the man at its center may cost Lena far more than her heart.