She ruined his coat. He bought her life.
Lord Benedict Sterling is bored with the gilded cage of high society until a wager takes him to the grimy Serpent's Coil tavern. There, he meets Rose Abernathy, a fiery seamstress and tavern keeper who refuses to cower before his title. When he pushes her too far, she pours a tankard of ale over his bespoke velvet coat — a calculated affront to his dignity.
Benedict's retaliation is swift and absolute. He doesn't just demand an apology; he buys the tavern and the debts attached to it. To pay him back, Rose is forced into service at Sterling Manor, stripped of her independence and placed under his strict, round-the-clock supervision.
Benedict intends to break her defiance with firm discipline, but he quickly finds that Rose's spirit is a “Sterling temptation” he cannot resist. As their battle of wills turns into a forbidden, obsessive affair, they are caught by the very society Benedict scorns.
Disinherited and facing ruin, Benedict must make the ultimate choice: his family fortune, or the “common” woman who has captured his heart.
This is a standalone historical romance featuring a possessive hero, domestic discipline, and a Happily Ever After.
