Raised in Scotland, Andrew Langston has been groomed to be the Earl of Hadley in England. When his grandfather passed away and left everything to him. He knew he needed to step up and take his place as Earl. English aristocracy thinks poorly of his lowly Scottish upbringing. He is accustomed to the English assuming the worst about Scotland. Andrew faces vehement opposition as he readies to take the reins of the earldom. When he plays the buffoon, the part they expect of him, Andrew believes he is simply fulfilling his Scotsman duty.

 Lady Jane Everard finds Andrew Langston insufferable. The unmannered Scot isa menace with his swishing kilt and endless butchering of the English language. Jane wishes Lord Hadley would behave with dignity as an earl and follow the rules of conduct and etiquette befitting his station, even though she chafes under those same rules.

Jane, on the surface, is all cool reserve and emotional restraint. To her family she is just an asset that must be used to advance their family’s standing in society by a profitable marriage.  Andrew has seen Jane’s wild side unleashed, and he likes it. He enjoys provoking her to get a glimpse of the wild and free woman she could be.

This is part of a series, and yes, at this point, I have read them all. The backstory is that five men met on a scientific voyage funded by a wealthy businessman. They faced a shipwreck, betrayal, heartbreak, and the loss of someone dear to them all. That tragedy is the thread that holds all these stories together. Each story in the series is the love story of one of those men. One thing I appreciate about this book, as part of a series, is that in the series, all the backstory is meted out bit-by-bit each time the story from the perspective of a different character. The payoff at the end is grand.