diff --git a/config/settings.py b/config/settings.py
index 2a14913..5db7d69 100644
--- a/config/settings.py
+++ b/config/settings.py
@@ -40,6 +40,7 @@ def load_config():
         == "true",
         "require_confirmation": os.getenv("CLOVER_REQUIRE_CONFIRMATION", "true").lower()
         == "true",
+        "ssl_verify": os.getenv("CLOVER_SSL_VERIFY", "true").lower() == "true",
         "project_root": os.getenv("CLOVER_PROJECT_ROOT", "."),
         "summary_file": os.getenv("CLOVER_SUMMARY_FILE", "clover.md"),
         "structure_file": os.getenv("CLOVER_STRUCTURE_FILE", "structure.md"),
diff --git a/models/api_client.py b/models/api_client.py
index 6e531e2..b3f7d31 100644
--- a/models/api_client.py
+++ b/models/api_client.py
@@ -20,8 +20,36 @@ class APIClient:
     def __init__(self):
         """Initialize the API client with configuration"""
         self.config = load_config()
-        self.base_url = self.config.get("base_url", "http://192.168.8.223:11434")
+        self.base_url = self.config.get(
+            "base_url", "error-set-CLOVER_BASE_URL-in-.env-file"
+        )
         self.api_key = self.config.get("api_key")
+        self.ssl_verify = self.config.get("ssl_verify", True)
+
+        # Use requests.Session for connection pooling and consistent SSL settings
+        self.session = requests.Session()
+        self.session.headers.update(
+            {
+                "Content-Type": "application/json",
+                "User-Agent": "clover-cli/1.0",
+                "Accept": "application/json",
+            }
+        )
+        if self.api_key:
+            self.session.headers["Authorization"] = f"Bearer {self.api_key}"
+
+        # Warn if using HTTP (non-TLS) connection
+        if self.base_url.startswith("http://") and not self.base_url.startswith(
+            "http://localhost"
+        ):
+            import warnings
+
+            warnings.warn(
+                f"Using non-TLS connection to {self.base_url}. "
+                "Consider using HTTPS for remote endpoints. "
+                "Set CLOVER_SSL_VERIFY=false to disable SSL verification for self-signed certs.",
+                UserWarning,
+            )
 
     def _make_request(
         self, endpoint: str, method: str = "GET", data: Optional[Dict] = None
@@ -29,6 +57,8 @@ class APIClient:
         """
         Make a request to the LLM API server
 
+        Uses requests.Session with explicit SSL verification control.
+
         Args:
             endpoint (str): API endpoint
             method (str): HTTP method (GET, POST)
@@ -43,27 +73,15 @@ class APIClient:
             endpoint = endpoint if endpoint.startswith("/") else f"/{endpoint}"
             url = f"{base}{endpoint}"
 
-            headers = {
-                "Content-Type": "application/json",
-                "User-Agent": "clover-cli/1.0",
-                "Accept": "application/json",
+            kwargs = {
+                "timeout": self.config.get("timeout", 300),
+                "verify": self.ssl_verify,
             }
 
-            # Add API key if available
-            if self.api_key:
-                headers["Authorization"] = f"Bearer {self.api_key}"
-
             if method == "GET":
-                response = requests.get(
-                    url, headers=headers, timeout=self.config.get("timeout", 300)
-                )
+                response = self.session.get(url, **kwargs)
             elif method == "POST":
-                response = requests.post(
-                    url,
-                    headers=headers,
-                    json=data,
-                    timeout=self.config.get("timeout", 300),
-                )
+                response = self.session.post(url, json=data, **kwargs)
             else:
                 raise ValueError(f"Unsupported HTTP method: {method}")