Sycamore Dorning has watched one sibling after another succumb to the blandishments of wedded bliss, while he has grown wealthy and-deuce take it-lonely. He loves the ladies generally, though he waits in vain for the woman who can love him in all his contrary, stubborn, outspoken glory.

Jeanette, Marchioness of Tavistock, endured six years of wedded purgatory before earning the independence of widowhood. She's admittedly attracted to Sycamore. He's refreshingly blunt, no toady to convention, and loyal to those he cares about. When trouble stalks her, she turns to Sycamore for help, because she would trust him with her life. But will she trust him with her heart?