War hero Major Tristan Ruthven never expected to inherit his rakehell father's title. The new Earl of Asherton finds himself in need of a respectable wife to help bury his family's scandal-ridden past. Unfortunately, no daughter of the Ton is desperate enough to accept him unless he discloses the true size of the fortune he's inherited. He refuses. Not after a money-match destroyed his mother.

Vulnerable, beautiful commoner Elinor Harcourt enchants Tristan the moment they meet. But he's seen what happens to sheltered young ladies dropped into the Beau Monde. Elinor's happiness must prevail. She deserves the comfortable, quiet life she dreams of.

Elinor can't risk her future on a fleeting fancy. Tristan makes her feel more alive than anyone else, but he's not just an Earl? he's a soldier like her father. That's too many chances for tragedy. If only she could stop thinking about him...