Since her mother's disappearance seven years ago, Lady Sarah Denham has remained resolutely at Manderfield Hall. She is certain her mother will someday return home, so when the estate is sold, Sarah can't bear to let go of the house or the hope it symbolizes. There's only one solution that will allow her to stay: she must marry the new owner. But her impulsive proposal does not go as planned.

When Christopher Moulton takes over Manderfield Hall, the last thing he anticipates is an offer of marriage from the previous tenant. However, as a businessman, he can see one considerable benefit to the arrangement: Sarah's high rand in Society will secure advantageous marriages for the two younger sisters left in his care. A bargain is struck, and wedding bells soon chime for the virtual strangers, but for Christopher, the pain of the past is inescapable. How can a proper lady ever come to love a scarred and rough-mannered man like himself?