Amanda Bartlett widowed Countess of Kingston is a woman beyond reproach. Married at nineteen she dutifully provided the Earl with an heir and a spare before his death three years ago. Since then Amanda has lived a simple quiet life—a life that if she were honest has become more than a trifle dull. So when an adventure literally drops into her lap in the shape of a mysterious book she intends to make the most of it—especially if it brings her closer to a charismatic stranger... Major Langley Stanhope an intelligence officer and master mimic known as the Magpie needs to retrieve the code book that has fallen into Amanda’s hands. The mistaken delivery has put them both in grave danger and in a desperate race to unearth a traitor. But it’s also stirred an intense reckless attraction. Langley believes the life he leads is not suitable for a delicate widow but it seems he may have underestimated the lady’s daring—and the depths of their mutual desire.