Marriage to such a lord would be a fate worse than death!

Lady Amanda Gilbertson hasn't seen the toad-eating wretch Lesley Earnshaw since they were both children, but that doesn't stop her from spending the Duchess of Braxton's party hiding in a tree to avoid the loathsome man.

But Fate plays its hand that evening when she finds herself in the potent midnight embrace of the black-masked Captain Rakhell. He is a thief, no doubt, but a romantic dream come true compared to the ridiculous fop who has just been introduced as Lesley Earnshaw, her betrohed

Amanda knows her preordained future will change forever if only she can determine the true identity of Captain Rakehell.