Olive Smith, a third-year Ph.D. candidate, does not believe in long-term romantic relationships, but her best friend does, which is what got her into this situation. It was always going to take more than hand-wavy Jedi mind tricks to persuade Anh that Olive is dating and well on her way to a happily ever after: Scientists require proof. As a result, Olive panics and kisses the first man she sees, as any self-respecting biologist would. That man is Adam Carlsen, a young hotshot professor and well-known assassin. That's why Olive is taken aback when Stanford's reigning lab tyrant agrees to keep her charade a secret and act as her pretend boyfriend. But when a big science conference goes awry, putting Olive's career on hold, Adam surprises her once more with his unwavering support and even more unwavering... six-pack abs. Suddenly, their little experiment appears to be on the verge of exploding. And Olive discovers that the only thing more complicated than a love hypothesis is examining her own heart.