The position of nanny at an estate in Southern England seems too good to be true, offering Elsie Hartford the chance of escape she so desperately seeks. With only her few possessions, she flees her former life with no thought of returning. What she discovers upon her arrival at Rookhaven Hall, however, is quite different from what she anticipated.
When the enigmatic Lord Edmond Rookburne returns from his long travels in India, the handsome widower shocks the household with the addition of three young children. They are not his lordship's own blood but are Indian orphans left in his care. As their nanny, all Elsie sees is the desperate need of the traumatized little ones. She sets to work enveloping them in love and concern, and Edmond is immediately drawn in by Elsie's exceptional warmth. Working together as unlikely caretakers, they forge a genuine friendship. But when they find themselves spiraling toward a forbidden romance, both Edmond and Elsie know that a life together would be impossible. For Edmund, the constraints of Society are absolute. But for Elsie, it is the secret of her past that ensures their love can never be.