When brilliant, ice-cold corporate lawyer Kaori Nakamura is tasked with closing a hostile takeover of a fiercely independent start-up, she expects one thing: leverage. She does not expect to meet the uncompromising CEO steering the target company — Ryo Sugimoto — a founder who treats his business like family and will fight every boardroom manoeuvre with everything he has.   A week-long negotiation retreat becomes the crucible where strategy meets chemistry. To calm jittery stakeholders and blunt a rival bidder, Kaori and Ryo agree to a pragmatic, public-facing pact: present as partners — a strategic alliance engineered to stabilize markets and preserve value. Both arrive intent on winning; both keep their guard firmly up.   As the lines between role play and reality blur, the disciplined due diligence of Kaori’s world collides with Ryo’s fierce loyalty. In late-night strategy sessions and high-tension deal talks, they confront buried scars, reassess assumptions, and discover an unexpected synergy. When the market noise falls away and only two people remain in the room, they must decide whether to protect the facade — or to stake a claim on something real.   High stakes, sharper loyalties, and unexpected desire: Hostile Hearts is a corporate romance about power, protection, and the risk of letting someone in.