Chase Dearborn and Meredee Price

If Chase Dearborn, the powerful Earl of Allyndale, found Meredee Price's family in Scarborough, surely he'd continue his quest to challenge Meredee's stepbrother to a duel. Meredee is determined to avoid the earl at all costs.

But saving a drowning young lady thwarts Meredee's plans when her act of heroism nets her the attention of the lady's brother and guardian–none other than Chase himself.

Meredee's gentle ways and tranquil beauty touch Chase's guarded heart from the moment he meets her. He''s waited a lifetime for a worthy companion–someone he can trust with his deepest secrets. But then he discovers that Meredee has harbored a secret of her own, one that love may not overcome.