Charlotte Arkendale knew all there was to know about men. After all, she'd made a career out of steering women away from untrustworthy members of the opposite sex. Yet nothing could have prepared her for Baxter St. Ives - an arresting stranger too dangerous to be her new man-of-affairs. Still, perhaps he was the perfect person to help Charlotte investigate the murder of one of her clients. So she gave him a chance, never realising that Baxter, a gifted scientist, would soon conduct a risky exploration into the alchemy of desire, with Charlotte as his subject. But even as he sets out to seduce Charlotte, a twisted killer lies in wait, ready to part the lovers...