Independent heiress Louisa Stratton is going home to Rosemont for the holidays and, at the family's request, she's bringing her new husband Maximillian Norwich, art connoisseur and artful lover, the man she's written of so glowingly. There's one hitch--he doesn't exist. Louisa needs a fake husband, and fast, to make the proper impression.

Charles Cooper, captain of the Boer War and with a background far from silver spoons or gilded cages, is so hard up that even Louisa's crazy scheme appeals to him. It's only thirty days, not till death do them part. What's so difficult about impersonating a husband, even if he doesn't know a Rembrandt from a Rousseau?

The real difficulty is keeping his hands off Louisa once there's nobody around to see through their ruse. And then there's the small problem of someone at Rosemont trying to kill him. Keeping his wits about him and defending Louisa brings out the honor he thought he'd left on the battlefield. But when Louisa tries to protect him, Charles knows he's found a way to face his future--in the arms of his heiress.