The First Seed Syndrome
In the high-stakes world of professional tennis, the most dangerous game is the one played off the court.
Thayer Macallen was the king of the Global Apex Tennis Circuit, but at thirty-one, the "Aging King" is watching his empire crumble. Beneath the surface of his legendary serve lies a catastrophic micro-tear and a ticking clock on his physical autonomy. When the pain finally boils over into a viral outburst heard 'round the world, his career is on the verge of total collapse—unless he can be rehabilitated by the most clinical mind in the business.
Briony Everson doesn't do emotions; she does data. As a senior crisis specialist for Aegis Sentiment Labs, she is hired to monitor Thayer’s biometrics and mathematically optimize his public persona. In the sterile locker rooms and high-security hotel suites of the international tour, their hostility is visceral. Thayer sees a corporate parasite; Briony sees a volatile variable. But when her algorithms uncover the medical secret that could ruin him, she makes a choice that deviates from every metric: she becomes his secret keeper.
The stakes turn deadly when a toxic parasocial collective known as The Macallen Phalanx begins using open-source intelligence to hunt Thayer. As the line between professional management and physical intimacy blurs, Briony must choose between her career and the man she was hired to control. In a world of digital transparency, the only way to survive is to step off the baseline and find synchrony in the shadows.
The Blurb
Thayer Macallen was the king of the Global Apex Tennis Circuit, but at thirty-one, the "Aging King" is watching his empire crumble. Beneath the surface of his legendary serve lies a catastrophic micro-tear and a ticking clock on his physical autonomy. When the pain finally boils over into a viral outburst heard 'round the world, his career is on the verge of total collapse—unless he can be rehabilitated by the most clinical mind in the business.
Briony Everson doesn't do emotions; she does data. As a senior crisis specialist for Aegis Sentiment Labs, she is hired to monitor Thayer’s biometrics and mathematically optimize his public persona. In the sterile locker rooms and high-security hotel suites of the international tour, their hostility is visceral. Thayer sees a corporate parasite; Briony sees a volatile variable. But when her algorithms uncover the medical secret that could ruin him, she makes a choice that deviates from every metric: she becomes his secret keeper.
The stakes turn deadly when a toxic parasocial collective known as The Macallen Phalanx begins using open-source intelligence to hunt Thayer. As the line between professional management and physical intimacy blurs, Briony must choose between her career and the man she was hired to control. In a world of digital transparency, the only way to survive is to step off the baseline and find synchrony in the shadows.
"The chemistry between Thayer and Briony is absolutely electric! I loved the mix of high-level sports physics and the terrifyingly real stalking subplot. It's rare to see a romance where both characters are this competent and actually work together against the world. A total binge-read!"— Elena G.