Love was never part of the mission.
Lance Wayland has a secret purpose for becoming Stanton Castle’s new smith. He and his three closest friends are the founding members of the Order of the Broken Blade, formed to blunt the power of King John, whose outrageous taxes and unjust laws have taken a toll on their country.
To succeed, they need money and men, both of which they can get from the Earl of Stanton. Lance’s mission can only be waylaid by one thing—his interest in the earl’s lovely daughter.
Idalia knows better than to think she’ll be allowed to marry a smith.
Yet Lance Wayland is the most compelling man she’s ever met—a welcome diversion from the stresses of running Stanton Castle and her mother’s illness. She knows the entanglement can go nowhere, their connection grows stronger each time they see each other.
Fate seems determined to keep them apart.
But Lance and Idalia are drawn together like moths to a flame. Can Lance pursue the woman he loves without betraying the order to which he’s pledged his troth?
