Julia Howard longs for the freedom her inheritance will bring her ? but with her controlling brother holding the purse strings she?s going to need a most convenient engagement? And an encounter in the woods with a dashing stranger couldn?t be more timely.Wounded, his life at sea at an end, Captain James Covington isn?t prepared for the dull ache of civilian life. He sees in Julia a fellow adventurous spirit ? willing to risk all. Could agreeing to her outrageous proposal help him recapture a reason to live as they face the biggest adventure of all ? marriage?