The Season is about to begin, and Lady Cassandra Burke, like many of the ladies of the English upper classes, is trapped by her need to marry in order to secure her inheritance—and her father has a clear plan for her future.

He expects her to marry her distant cousin and heir to the Burke estate, Mr. Benedict Grantham.

Ready to give up all hopes of love and romance to please her father, Cassandra entertains the idea…

But when Mr Grantham’s friend, Nathaniel Grey, the Third Earl of Winchester, arrives in town, all her plans are thrown upside down.

Lord Grey has a reputation for being a rake, but there’s more to him than meets the eye, and Cassandra can’t help but be drawn to him.

She’s never experienced such intense attraction and hatred for someone at the same time, and she has no idea what it means… And it becomes all the more complicated when he discovers a secret she’s been keeping very close to the vest.

Meanwhile, it seems that Mr. Grantham may have actually found true love—in the form of Cassandra’s best friend.

Perhaps it could all work out perfectly… If only Lord Grey wasn’t intent on blackmailing her and her future didn’t hang in the balance. If her secret gets out, Cassandra stands to lose her independence as well as her inheritance.

She always wanted to marry for love, but now that she’s caught in this complex dance with two very different suitors, she’s not sure she’s as clear about what that means as she once was.

Is there any chance for a lady to have a fulfilling future, or is she here only to serve her role in society and do what it takes to avoid being cast into poverty when her father passes away?

She’s about to find out… and challenge her understanding of love along the way.