Louisa thought she'd made the right choice. Jeremy had been the man she'd loved, but he wasn't who she thought he was. After he dies in a horse riding accident, she wants more. Not another husband, but perhaps a lover who'd fulfilled her needs while she raised her daughters. Albert never expected to return to England, let alone to take up the family seat or the title of Earl of Conney. Yet here he was, returning from the wilds of Australia, with his friend, Frederick. A convicted felon. He'd sworn to himself if he was going to assume the title, he'd use the influence that went with it to clear his friends name. Brothers-in-law, Langdon Devereaux and Aeddan Fitzsimmons are the connections he needs, and they bring him into the contact with Louisa Lavenwood, a beautiful and aloof widow with two gorgeous but young daughters. But she has a dark secret, and this unwilling hero feels the need to save her. Along the way passion explodes and they're helplessly lost in its thrall; if only they can overcome the danger, then perhaps more than passion lies in their future.