A scoundrel haunted by scandal...
After being wounded in the Peninsular War, Captain Desford Cardros returns home with plans for revenge against the man who swore Cardros stole the legendary family gem, the Cardros Ruby. That man is his brother. But an injured rider—and his beautiful sister—pull Cardros into their more pressing problems; someone seems set on murdering young Lord Seaford. Caught up with the lovely Helena's schemes to catch a murderer, Cardros can't resist the attraction to her. But Helena is a woman already half-promised to his brother—and a lady who has little use for rogues such as him.
A lady expected to marry well...
As the granddaughter of an earl, Helena Seaford knows her duty to marry well—and she has Lord Althorn courting her. But her brother's death would leave her a rich woman, so how can she trust any man's interest when her brother is threatened by mysterious accidents. Now she has one man courting her and another flirting with her, but can she trust either with her heart—or her brother's life? She has no answers, other than to follow her heart, wherever it may lead.
