Lady Pearl Moreston would first sacrifice her virtue and live life as a chambermaid before she'd acquiesce to her stepmother's demands and wed overbred Lord Bellowsworth! In fact, posing as a maid is precisely what Pearl does to escape her fate -- a deception that could prove disastrous for the impetuous bluestocking. Luckily, Luke St. Clair comes to her rescue. Now here is a man worth losing one's innocence to: strong, dashing, daring, worldly...and nary a drop of noble blood in him!Luke is intrigued by this minx who seems unusually knowing for her tender years...and whose intoxicating beauty makes him light-headed in her presence. But Luke is not the adventurer the winsome Pearl believes him to be. And though her soft, succulent lips are begging to be kissed, Luke is honor-bound to never reveal to her his true identity. Yet how long can passion's flames be restrained before two delightful deceivers are forced to drop their masks and surrender to the sweet, sensual fire?