Having trusted the wrong man, bluestocking Miss Amelia Burcott is forced to seek employment as a governess in order to support herself and hide from the polite world. Little does she suspect, when she joins the household of the Earl of Raftesbury, that her new employer has a secret as great as her own and has need of a special woman to help him conquer his past.

Hugo Marchbanks, son of the Earl of Raftesbury, had never expected to succeed to his father's title with two hale and hearty brothers before him. Yet following the wars with the French, he returns to the family estate not only in that position, but guardian to seven children. Somewhat nervous of feminine company, Hugo finds himself drawn to Amelia in a way unprecedented in his life before. She is quiet and restful, yet he detects a mischievous sense of humour. Then an excursion with the children reopens an old wound and he finds himself blurting out his secret...