New to wealth and to London high society, American heiress Cora Dove discovers that with the right man, marriage might not be such an inconvenience after all. . . .
Cora Dove and her sistersโ questionable legitimacy has been the lifelong subject of New Yorkโs gossipmongers and a continual stain on their fatherโs reputation. So when the girls each receive a generous, guilt-induced dowry from their dying grandmother, the sly Mr. Hathaway vows to release their funds only if Cora and her sisters can procure suitable husbandsโfar from New York. For Cora, England is a fresh start. She has no delusions of love, but a husband who will respect her independence? Thatโs an earl worth fighting for.
Enter: Leopold Brendon, Earl of Devonworth, a no-nonsense member of Parliament whose plan to pass a Public Health bill that would provide clean water to the working class requires the backing of a wealthy wife.ย He just never expected to crave Coraโs touch or yearn to hear her thoughts on his campaignโor to discover that his seemingly perfect bride protects so many secrets...
But secrets have a way of bubbling to the surface, and Devonworth has a few of his own. With their pasts laid bare and Coraโs budding passion for womenโs rights taking a dangerous turn, theyโll learn the true cost of losing their heart to a strangerโand that love is worth any price.