"Miss Emily Sinclair has just been offered a month to find a willing gentleman or suffer a marriage to her stepmother's odious cousin. Having assumed herself safely relegated to spinster status, the timing couldn't be worse, particularly as she's just uncovered a highwaymen's plot that she believes might be her first and last chance for a grand adventure. Feeling lucky indeed, Emily is delighted to call a halt to her husband hunt when she realizes that her childhood hero has recently returned from the Continent. Little does she know that her best friend Sophie harbors a secret hope of marrying him as well.
Rusticating in Devon, Lord Brandon Davenport believes himself far removed from the desperate ploys of the weaker sex. That is, until he stumbles into a young lady of quality dressed as a stable lad, playing at ambush with an unloaded pistol. Braving Emily's temper, Brand decides to partner the anonymous young miss in her evenings' attempts to ambush a pair of highwaymen. Through Brand's arrogant high-handedness and their success at apprehending one of the highwaymen, Emily rapidly comes to realize that he is the only man of her acquaintance to accept her just as she is. Not to mention the fact that his kiss has left her yearning for even greater indiscretions. As such, Emily believes Brand is now the perfect prey for her husband hunt. Lucky indeed, as Sophie is quite intent upon her own prey.
The difficulty, Emily knows, will be in persuading the man himself. Having kept her identity a secret, Emily is unaware that Brand has puzzled it out for himself. She is also privy to the knowledge that Brand has resolved never to marry, and as such, nervously uncertain over her success. Still, she is determined to make it all work. When temper unexpectedly segues into passion, Emily is pleasurably convinced that Brand is as affected by their partnership as she, leaving them only to solve the mystery of the second highwayman.
"
Stephanie Graves, Resident Scholar
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