Marianne Carstairs has unexpectedly inherited a fortune from a father she has never known. In the will, her trustee — Marquess Justin Raymond — is tasked with introducing her into respectable society. But as the manager of her family’s farm, Marianne is reluctant to leave behind her life of freedom and independence. What’s more, she finds Justin high-handed and stubborn. At the insistence of her grandfather, Marianne agrees to stay with Justin and his family at their Somerset estate, Lunswick Hall. But as their relationship grows stormy, Justin sees that it might prove impossible to turn his ward into a debutante.