Miss Eliza Albright, the middle daughter of the Viscount Aldbrick, has vowed never to marry. After being thrown over by a suitor she thought she loved, Eliza is determined to forge her own path to independence. Richard Renthem, the newly made Marquess of Trenton, is still reeling from the death of his beloved elder brother. Seeking solace, Richard travels to the quiet Northwickshire countryside in order to enlist the help of his aunt, the sharp-tongued Dowager Lady Mayberry. The new Lord Trenton hopes to entice his aunt to renew his mother’s garden and lift her spirits. Instead, he entices the lovely Miss Eliza Albright.
Shocking everyone, most of all herself, Eliza flees from her father’s house and his marriage plans for her. She absconds to Taprington Hall with her out-spoken spinster Aunt Portia, the irascible Dowager Lady Mayberry and the imminently eligible Lord Trenton. For the first time in his life, Richard just might have a chance to grow beyond the trappings of his position. He knows his duty to his grieving mother, to his ailing sister and to the marquessate, but he soon finds he wants to be loved…for himself. As his walls come tumbling down, Eliza and Richard work together to create one perfect English garden, during one lovely English Summer. Can love bloom in the shadow of grief?