Forbidden love. Duty. Danger. Will love be enough to conquer all? Max, Lord Rotham, has been browbeaten by his mother, the Duchess of Davenmere, to marry her choice for him. The more he resists, the more she schemes to force the match upon him. He became connected with the beauty Hope Whitford when her and her sisters were entangled in a dangerous situation, and while he feels drawn to her, he is not ready to commit to a lifetime because of his mother. But is losing Hope worth spiting his mother? Hope Whitford, the second of five sisters, has always dreamed of a grand London Season and match, despite their modest claims to the upper class. Their new guardian places them centre stage in the middle of the ton and in close proximity to its most eligible bachelors. When they are invited to a house party at a ducal estate, it looks as though her dreams may come true … except someone means to make certain that never happens … no matter what.