After having lost the love of his life, Captain Myles Cameron has come to terms with never marrying unitl and enticing temptation, in more ways than one, is placed before him. Called to Markham House by the Duke of Markham, Myles learns he can secure the Earl of Twynforde title if he will marry the duke's granddaughter, Catherine Landsdowne, and search for the duke's missing youngest son. Those are the old man's conditions. Catherine wants to leave England to search in China for her missing uncle, the last male heir to the dukedom but her grandfather, the Duke of Markham, will not allow his unmarried granddaughter to leave without the protection of a husband. A husband he has selected for since she's never found anyone in her twenty-seven years of interest to marry. Catherine balks at the very idea of marrying this unknown man until she seeks this Captain Cameron out at an inn near the docks and watches him from afar. Myles expects a spoiled on the shelf old-maid and is greatly surprised to see the beautiful woman who'd caught his attentions the night before at a local inn, Myles decides this will not be a marriage in name only. After agreeing to a few of Catherine's conditions, the two are wed that very night and set sail on their voyage to China a few days later to search for her missing uncle. From the beginning of the voyage attraction is there between the two but someone doesn't want Catherine or Myles to reach China to learn what became of her missing uncle. And Catherine doesn't want Myles to learn any of the secrets she holds.

October 1886 Captain Avery Murphy finds his live unfulfilling and lacking any sort of challenge. He feels as if the world is passing him by. Having purchased his niece's house after she returned to England, he finds that the house place only reminds him of what's missing in his life. Wife and children Having lived for years haunted by the deaths of his wife and child and having his fortieth birthday, Captain Murphy decides it's time to move on and find a wife never suspecting that said wife might already be under his roof. Newly widowed Priscilla Brightmore is desperate for employment and down to a very few precious coins, she seeks a housekeeper's position at Captain Murphy's house in Bridgeport. Without references, Priscilla convinces the present housekeeper to give her a two weeks trial, hoping that once her foot in in the door, so to speak, she can prove herself to the woman and keep the position. After saving his life, Avery takes notice for the first time of his new housekeeper and finds under the disguise of drab clothes and hairstyle a betwitching woman. A woman he finds very much he is attracted to. With a whirlwind courship and marriage life settles into all that Avery and Priscilla hoped it would be for them until Avery's past changes everything between them.