Lara, Lady Hawksworth, is nearly at the end of her year of mourning after her husband's death in India. Her move from Hawksworth Hall to the small cottage wasn't as hard to take as the loss of income. All her extra money goes toward the local orphanage. Not only does she support them monetarily, she spends as much time there as she can. There she can feel all the love she has not received in other areas of her life. When she is told that her husband has returned, Lara only feels despair. The man she married was cold and cruel. To have him return to her life leaves her feeling hopeless.

Hunter is nothing like the man she once knew. He looks the same but he is a much more intense person and his interest in Lara is hard to believe. The man identified as Hunter reactions more strongly to injustice and makes his interest in resuming relations with his wife perfectly clear. Overcoming her doubts, Lara gradually allows Hunter back into her life and heart. Just as their relationship starts to blossom, she receives information that places his identity in doubt.

Hunter returns from India with a massive scar on his head and a daunting task before him. He must convince everyone of his identity and seduce his wife. His uncle, who inherited the title, is suing to have him displaced. His friendship with Lonsdale has come to an abrupt end when Hunter learns that Lonsdale has been abusing his wife.

Captain Tyler returned from India to England to build a life and a family. The last person he wants or expects to see is the man who identifies himself as the Earl of Hawkworth. As the the facade starts to crumble, it will be up to Lara to decide to support the man she has come to care for or to expose the impostor.

Ms. Kleypas has always had the ability to draw the reader into her world and develop empathy for her characters. This story is no exception. You will agonize with Lara and feel compassion for a man who has always had to fight for everything in his life. This is an emotional read as the author deals with spousal abuse, both mental and physical, and the uncertainties that face the characters.

Book Summary

"Lady Hawksworth, your husband is not dead."

With those words, Lara's life turned upside down. Hunter, Earl of Hawksworth, had been lost at sea. Or so she'd been told. Their unhappy marriage--with its cold caresses and passionless kisses––was over. But now a powerful, virile man stood before her, telling secrets only a husband could know, and vowing she would once again be his wife in every way. While Lara couldn't deny that this man with smoldering dark eyes resembled Hunter, he was attentive and loving in ways he never was before. Soon she desperately wanted to believe, with every beat of her heart, that this stranger was truly her husband. But had this rake reformed––or was Lara being seduced by a cunning stranger?