She begged him for help...Francis Storbridge was once her best friend--though he had always wished for more.  But Charlotte de Ribard sent him away, accusing him of collaborating in her blackguard father's most terrible crime.  Now, years later, Francis is a member of Parliament and Charlotte's only hope to save her family from disgrace.  In desperation, she appealed to the man she tried to hate, prepared to risk anything--except her heart and the passion she'd buried so long ago.His price was marriage...To Francis's astonishment, Charlotte said yes--to a marriage of convenience.  She would be his wife in name only, mother to his orphaned family.  Suddenly everything he had always wanted was within his reach, yet beyond his grasp.  Now it was his turn to earn her trust by honoring their bargain, to protect her from her powerful, ruthless father.  Only then could he tempt her to the sweetest abandon of all, the kind only love can bring.  .  .  .