A wallflower in the shadows ... As an earl's daughter who has inherited her mother's famed beauty, Lady Catherine Adderley should be considered the jewel of the ton. Instead, her debilitating shyness leads her to shrink from conversation and flee from ballrooms, causing her first London Season to end without suitors. When she musters the courage to attend the matchmaking Lady Wellesley's house party, she vows that nothing will stop her this time from engaging with the quiet gentleman who previously caught her eye. What she doesn't count on is the arrival of an unexpected guest: Viscount Kendrick, a man whose scandalous behavior has the power to unnerve her like no other and turn her well-laid plans on their head. A most inappropriate rake ... Philip Hadleigh, Lord Kendrick, has committed to living his life with abandon, placing no salacious deed off limits. He has no interest in demure house parties, and even less of a desire to marry. However, now that a series of tragic events has left him heir to a marquessate, he must face an unwanted truth. He needs to at least attempt to find a bride, and soon. The reserved, guileless Lady Catherine is the last woman he should pursue, but fate seems determined to keep casting her into his arms, until a scandal necessitates their hasty marriage. Matters that aren't what they seem ... Out of their union comes an unexpected passion, but can a timid wallflower find real happiness with a renowned rake? For beneath his carefree exterior, Philip holds secrets that prevent him from truly getting close to another. And it seems Catherine, too, is not all she appears ...