Astrid Anderson has known Jim Harper for years. There have been family picnics, holiday dinners, the occasional eye-roll across a crowded parlor. But it wasn’t until university crew that he became a problem. A too-handsome, too-confident, too-flirtatious problem. Luckily, Astrid is fast on the water and even faster with a comeback—essential skills when rowing alongside the varsity golden boy who tosses grins like grenades. 

After months of trading barbs and sidelong glances, Jim issues a challenge: a race on Lake Washington. One-on-one. With a wager that’s equal parts scandalous and irresistible. Astrid is sure she’ll win—she always does. But as oars hit water and tensions rise, she starts to wonder: what if winning isn’t the point? What if the tides have changed and Jim isn’t racing against her…but toward her? 

For a girl who never loses, that might be the riskiest wager of all.