Jonathan Marksbury, the Duke of Sutcliffe, has never wanted the title or its attendant responsibilities. His wish is granted when he wakes in Chelsea Hospital after the Battle of Waterloo without even the memory of his first name. The highlights of his days and nights as he recovers are the brief visits of his beautiful nurse. Feelings grow, and they give in to the temptations of the flesh before parting ways, seemingly forever.

Anne Heatherington has never desired the attentions of a man before that night in the hospital. The daughter of a scandalous opera singer and courtesan, Anne was determined never to fall victim to false promises of love, and after her time as a nurse during the war, Anne returns home wanting nothing more than to forget her desire for the nameless man who makes her lose control. When her long-lost father, the Earl of Norwich, shows up at her door with the offer of a new life with a family she had never known, Anne seizes the opportunity for a new life.

A second chance encounter a year later marks the beginning of Anne's introduction to society. Jonathan, memories now returned, has had one taste of the woman he's been dreaming of for the past year, and he doesn't intend to let her get away again. Anne however wants nothing to do with the man who still makes her body heat and her mind lose control of her heart. Desperate to get away from his courtship, she flees to her father's house in the country.

Despite his decision to respect Anne's wishes, when a disease outbreak in the Duke's village threatens the lives of everyone in the surrounding area, the only person Jonathan can think to call is the woman who has evaded him twice. This time, Jonathan needs to convince her to stay.