Graham Murray Raymond, the Seventh Duke of Warwick, has little care for his title and even less for society. Suspected of murder and known as the Black Duke, for his misdeeds and those of his father, he is intent on spending his lifetime alone, without a wife or children, to ensure he does not continue the family tradition of violence.
Unlike most young ladies her age, twenty-year-old Sophia Claybourne would rather go to university than to the altar, but furthering her education is forbidden, and she is expected to marry well. Sophie does her best to avoid the latter while seeking knowledge wherever she can, walking a constant line with her father, who is determined to use her marriage to his advantage.
When Graham receives a letter from Lady Claybourne, requesting his assistance saving Sophie from marriage to a viscount who is his nemesis and has his own reputation of ill deeds, Graham agrees to help, as it will advance his interests as well. But Sophie has made her own plans, does not care to be rescued, and has a will as strong as his. Graham may have met his match in her and found the one person who can save him from his past.
