He vowed never to risk his heart again. She has loved him in silence for years. A marriage of convenience was never meant to become something more.Overlooked by society and under appreciated by her family, Ellen Bringhurst has resigned herself to a quiet life of books and solitude. But when her well-meaning friends contrive to reunite her with the man she has secretly loved since childhood, Ellen finds her carefully ordered world suddenly upended.Marcus Calvert, the younger brother of an earl, must marry in order to inherit his estate. Still nursing the wounds of a broken heart, he has no desire to risk himself on romantic love again. A sensible marriage is all he seeks and Ellen, steady and kind, seems the perfect choice.Ellen accepts his proposal knowing he does not love her, determined to be a good wife rather than risk his rejection. Yet as the days of their marriage unfold, Marcus begins to see his childhood friend in an entirely new light.What began as a practical arrangement soon grows into something deeper. But when love was never meant to be part of the bargain, will Marcus find the courage to risk his heart again?
