Winnefred Blythe is the daughter of a horse-mad vicar. When the vicar died, he asked the man nearest him to look after his daughter. The Marquess of Engsley agreed, turning over responsibility to his young wife. Winnefred is sent to live on a farm with a small stipend.

The new Marquess of Engsley is straightening out the finances after his father's death and learns about his ward. His stepmother had been bilking the estate for years by claiming donations to nonexistent charities and taking much of the money for the dependents of the Marquess. Since he is in Italy, he sends his younger brother Gideon to find out what has happened to Winnefred.

Lord Gideon makes the long trip to Scotland imaging a variety of scenarios in which he rescues the young woman and is looked upon as a hero. Instead, he is greeted with a pistol in his back and then hit with a frying pan.

When Gideon wakes up, Winnefred and her friend, Lilly pretend that he was set upon by brigands. Gideon goes along with the pretense for a short while until he can learn what he needs to know. When he learns how much they lived on and offers restitution in full, Lilly asks for a season for Winnefred.

As they prepare for the season, Gideon will fall in love and restore his brother's lost love to him. Gideon is haunted by the memory of the men and boys who were lost when his ship was destroyed. He won't ever marry because of the nightmares. Winnefred is not your usual miss and she is determined to bring Gideon out of the past to face a brighter future.

I've been a fan of Ms. Johnson's from her first book and this story moves her up in my estimation. She writes wonderful characters and witty dialog. Her stories are interesting with some unique twists. So much of what I love about the regency genre and has been missing from so many of the historicals released lately can be found in her books. Highly recommended!