A wife is the last thing he needs. A husband is the last thing she wants.

A widower who refuses to remarry.
Grayson Devereaux, the Sixth Duke of Bedford, doesn’t want a wife. He needs a governess; they keep quitting. Grayson’s energetic, seven-year-old twins need someone with stamina—a woman that can provide a firm hand, stability, and guidance. And someone who doesn’t run screaming from the room when they find a toad under their pillow.


A spinster who refuses to marry.
Miss Lydia Hammond lost her mother in childbirth and equates marriage with not only the loss of her freedom, but a risk she is unwilling to take. She’s happy being unwed and mistress of her own life. When her wealthy merchant father insists she marry a competitor’s son to grow their empire, Lydia escapes the alter and accepts a position as governess for the Duke of Bedford and his children. But as Lydia grows to care for the children and their father, she begins to wonder what she’s missing.

As an unlikely friendship blossoms between Lydia and Grayson, his former mistress contrives to destroy their happiness. Can Lydia and Grayson overcome the past to have a future?