Maria Ruiz has three months to prove she can run Lakeview Vineyard Events flawlessly—or lose her chance to own it forever.
When a high-profile bride demands proof that Maria’s personal life is as “stable” as her venue, Maria makes a risky decision. She drafts a professional agreement with Cole Barrett, the quiet carpenter finishing her barn renovations: for one summer, he will be her plus-one in public rooms. No romance. No chaos. Just optics.
Cole agrees for practical reasons of his own. He needs stability, clean reputation, and solid references to secure custody of his young niece. A contract partnership with a respected venue owner offers exactly that. Boundaries are written. Schedules are locked. Fences are built.
But when online gossip, developer interference, and wedding-day pressure collide, Maria and Cole must decide whether they are only protecting a business arrangement—or something far more fragile and real.
In a world where perception is currency, can two people who live by careful planning trust something unplanned?
The Plus-One Clause is a smart, slow-burn contemporary romance about competence, boundaries, and the quiet ways love takes shape when no one is looking.
