Faced with a marriage she can't abide, Lady Penelope Wakefield takes drastic measures to preserve her freedom. Her brilliant plan is foolproof until a sexy but imperious rector "rescues" her. Rector Hugh Tarleton has no patience for the Society philanthropists who seek to bestow their pity-and not much else-on his oppressed flock in one of London's worst neighborhoods. When the daughter of a marquess is kidnapped and brought to the rookery, he vows to protect her, but the temptation to surrender to their mutual desire will certainly ruin them both.