London, 1817. Rugged, roguish Major Connor Forbes has just received the surprise of a lifetime. After returning from the front lines of the Napoleonic Wars, the Irish-born warrior has just learned he's the heir to an English dukedom. The only problem? The last three Dukes of Amberley all died under very mysterious circumstances, and before long, Connor is convinced that someone is trying to kill him. As he attempts to survive his new title and navigate life in the London aristocracy, he knows he needs the guidance of a high-society insider...but whom could he possibly trust? Innocent, mild-mannered Lady Margaret Winthrop is desperate to escape her cruel sister's household, even if it means marrying her only suitor--an arrogant boor. When the hothead challenges the new Duke of Amberley to a duel, she has no choice but to throw herself on the war-hero's mercy to spare him. But Maggie never expected she'd have to make a scandalous pact with the dangerous outsider to keep her beau alive... As Connor and Maggie search for clues together in the London ton, they can't help but grow closer. To him, she embodies, a battle-hardened soldier's dream of peacetime. To her, he calls forth the adventurous streak she didn't know she possessed. But can their fragile bond survive Connor's cursed inheritance, or will a vengeful assassin and family secrets buried deep within the House of Amberley destroy their chance at happiness?