Samuel Charles Aubrey St. Aldwyn, Duke of Gravenhurst, is a radical rogue and champion of unpopular causes. No one would dream that he is also the author of a bestselling series of dark historical novels, a writer accused of corrupting the morals of the public, and a master seducer who counts among his passionate fans wellborn Miss Lily Boscastle. But Lily is no stranger to disrepute.

When her engagement to another man ends in a tarnished image and public disgrace, Lily is forced to seek employment outside London—as housekeeper for Gravenhust himself. Her sharp wit and sensuality appeal to his wicked instincts, and she's a perfect match for every beguiling move he makes. Yet there's more to him than Lily imagined: a secret known to few living souls, ghosts from the past that haunt both of their futures in ways too dangerous for even the duke to have invented.