Janet Bennett

A beautiful maiden, longing for love

Surrounded by happily married friends, twenty-year-old Elizabeth Hollingberry longs to find a loving husband of her own. Yet no man has been worthy of her hand, and her father has refused every potential suitor. Now, the King of England himself, Henry VIII, is interested in her marital status.

An ambitious man loyal to the king

Gabriel Athelston has sacrificed much to become one of King Henrys most trusted men. His new commission will send him to Piffenview, a castle bordering England and Scotland, to protect the kings borders. But when the king orders him to marry Elizabeth Hollingberry and take her with him, Gabriel silently curses his bad luck. The last thing he wantsor needsis a wife.

A passion theyve never known

Elizabeth, determined to escape her situation and her dismal future, runs away from her fathers home, further cementing Gabriels reluctance to marry. When the two finally meet, the attraction between them is unmistakable, and Elizabeth realizes this man may be the answer to her prayers. But dangerous forces are at work. When Elizabeth is poisoned and barely escapes with her life, Gabriel begins to uncover a deadly plot that could destroy his chance of happiness with a woman he can no longer live without.