THE PRESENT Successful matchmaker Brianagh O'Rourke believes in happy-ever-afters - just not her own. Though she thrives on helping her clients find the partner of their dreams, her own dreams remain firmly in her head, not in her life. She's fine loving only her business-at least, that's what she tells herself when she agrees to her lackluster boyfriend's proposal. THE PAST Laird Nioclas MacWilliam has big problems: His power-hungry, exiled father wants him dead, his clan is pressuring him to marry to secure a strong alliance, and he's been betrothed to the mystical O'Rourke daughter for years, despite the fact that she's been missing for most of them. When she appears the day before his nuptials to another, he offers a solution for the both of them: If she marries him and convinces the clan they are a love match, he gives his vow to help her return home in three months. THE FUTURE Brianagh wants nothing more than to return home to her family and her life. But as the days turn into weeks, their bargain becomes less about convincing the clan and more about what is possible. When the time comes, she must decide: Does she return to her life of stability and success, or stay in the past for a chance at true love?