After the disappointment of one dream after another failing to become reality, Hannah Grace is determined to avoid returning home. Her reticule nearly empty, she’s desperate enough for money that she finds employment at an inn, an action beneath her station. But to flee her problems, she believes fleeing the country is the only option. When she overhears wealthy Nathaniel Reeves say he would pay to avoid a matchmaker, Hannah seizes the opportunity.

Nathaniel Reeves has grown weary of his aunt’s matchmaking schemes. He has enough to worry him without having to fend off a woman he knows will not suit him. When a lovely young stranger suggests he could avoid his aunt’s attempts by pretending to court her, he agrees without considering the consequences.

Their scheme is off to a precarious beginning when Nathaniel soon doubts his hasty actions and Hannah is reluctant to reveal the truths of her past. Can they salvage what they might find with each other, or will they realize they are only fooling themselves?