Love wasn’t on his agenda when they met, but how could his wounded heart resist her beauty, grace, and intellect? But even as he fought to overcome a painful past to find new love, a jealous rival was plotting in the background to take her from him forever.
Wounded by a past romantic betrayal, Roland Waring, the Duke of Anglefield, had sworn never to love again. As a distraction, he threw himself into his work as a historian, bent on writing a book about a colorful Elizabethan ancestor. The quest for research took him to the home of the Earl of Worrell and his famously well-stocked library. When the Earl’s reputedly old maid of a daughter turned out to be an enchanting lady of great beauty, innocence, and intelligence, both Roland’s concentration and his vow began to waver. As old fears resurfaced, he hesitated to declare his love, unaware of the pressing danger the lady was in. Would he be able to save her in time and find lasting love?
At 21, Lady Sylvie Porter, daughter of the Earl of Worrell, was resigned to the quiet country life of an old maid, helping her father maintain his precious library and run their home. When he hired an assistant to relieve her load, the man made her skin crawl, making life more unbearable. Then, things changed when a dashing duke arrived, needing the library to research his book. As Sylvie and the Duke worked together, drawing ever closer, she began to fall for him, knowing he would one day leave and break her heart. When unforeseen danger threatened her life, would the Duke return to save her, and would they find true happiness together?