Isabel d'Eresby knows better than to want things. Fifteen years of striving has left her with nothing - no money, no home of her own, and no control over her life. Now she's a widow dependent on the charity of her husband's loathsome family, with no hope of climbing out of the hole she's dug for herself. The only thing she has is her son - and for his sake, she'll swallow any indignity to make sure that her in-laws don't make good on their threats to take him from her. She can't afford to take risks - until the day a beautiful woman walks into her life with an offer that could finally turn her luck around. Just so long as she doesn't fall in love with her . . . Constance Rykener has never given up on anything or anyone - not the husband she married for convenience's sake, not the business that's rapidly sinking under her feet, not the rebellious niece who's begging Constance to save her from an arranged marriage. She has plenty on her plate already - but when a chance meeting brings Isabel into her life, she can't resist the urge to try and help her. Of course, it doesn't hurt that she's beautiful and prickly in a way that makes Constance want to bring her out of her shell. But the more she learns about Isabel, the more it becomes clear that her scars go far deeper than Constance realized - and that Constance's attempts to save her run the risk of making everything worse for both of them. A business partnership prolongs their connection past a chance meeting, and makes it increasingly clear that something undeniable is growing between them. Before long, the thought of separating feels as impossible as being together once did. But with their families and society all arrayed against them, they will have to decide whether to take refuge in caution or to risk following their hearts - and losing everything.