A confirmed bachelor inherits a family. 
After her father dies, Caroline Leeming's younger brother and sister are made the wards of Nicholas, Marquess of Pennington. About to embark on her first season, Carrie must first spend a month at the marquess's home, Elm Park.
Determined to dislike him, Carrie finds the handsome marquess is not what she expects. When he proves to be a kind and capable guardian for Arabella and Jeremy, Carrie fears she is falling in love with him. As the days pass into weeks, she finds it unbearable to leave Elm Park for London and a life away from her family.
Suffering the tragic loss of his first love and the recent deaths of his brother and father, Nicholas is determined never to risk his heart again. A historian, his life is one of routine while he manages his estate and spends his free hours in his library.
Then his dying friend, Maxwell, Baron Leeming, asks Nicholas to become guardian to his children. He fears his younger brother, who is wanted for murder, will return to England and attempt to take control of the children's fortune. Max's young heir could be in danger.
Nicholas finds himself with not only two unruly youngsters who test his nerves, but a lovely debutante he must see through her first London season. His sister, Lady Guinevere Winston, has agreed to be Carrie's chaperone, but Nicholas finds it increasingly difficult to see her safely married. The entrancing young woman turns his safe, sober life upside down, and no suitor seems good enough for her. 
Keen suitors pursue Carrie, but she wants no man but Nicholas. She is sure he loves her, if only he'll admit it. Will he risk his heart?