He's sworn to protect her. She's determined to make him stay.  I’m Elijah Rhodes, top-tier Guardian Security agent. We protect the world’s power players: heads of state, royalty, A-listers. The elite. I didn’t grow up with much, and nothing came easy. My time in Special Ops hardened me, gave me purpose, and left me with a black heart. I took the missions no one else would. Still do.My rules are simple: No long-term assignments. No repeats. No attachments. Keep it professional. Keep it distant.It’s how I’ve survived. Until her.Dr. Danielle Sinclair is brilliant, beautiful, and off-limits. I protected her, then did what I always do. I walked away.Now, a year later, tragedy strikes. Dani’s life is in danger, and every instinct in me demands I break my own rules to keep her safe.Some lines shouldn’t be crossed. Some rules were made to be broken.I’ll protect Dani with my life, but I can’t give her a heart I don’t have.Have you been Aleatha’d?DEFENDING LOVE is a steamy, high-stakes, bodyguard, stand-alone romantic suspense with second chances and all the feels—set in the same world as the Sinclair Duet.