A reluctant peer

Grey is still settling into his new role as the tenth Viscount Hollister when he finds that his late brother, the previous holder of the title, owed an immense amount of money to gaming hell proprietor Thaddeus Barstow. One way or another, Barstow is determined to be repaid – and since Grey doesn't have the money, he demands that Grey marry Barstow's daughter Rilla instead.

But just because there's a wedding doesn't mean Grey is willing to be a husband.

An undutiful daughter

All her life, Rilla Barstow has been no more than an afterthought where her father is concerned. But she's grown up now, and in Thaddeus Barstow's eyes, that makes her an asset – because she's his pathway into the aristocracy.

But just because there's a wedding doesn't mean Rilla is willing to be a wife.

A master player

In Thaddeus Barstow's world, indebted peers and convenient daughters are pawns to be moved around as he likes, and he has a fancy to make his future grandchildren part of the upper class.

But this time, the pawns he's chosen are determined to play by a different set of rules...

Until Rilla and Grey discover that the chessboard of life doesn't have to be a war game.