Governess Samantha Pendregast arrives at the grand estate of Silvermere to take charge of six rebellious girls, and at once sees that the children must be tamed and that her new employer, the dashing Colonel William Gregory, should spend more time with his daughters. The children she manages with intelligence, guile and bribery. She finds William is not so easy to charm and far too easy to fall in love with.

William wants nothing more than to live a life of military order, but his daughters constantly challenge him and now the captivating new governess distracts him with her clever wit and remarkable beauty. However, she fights the attraction between them, and before he can woo her, he must fulfill his perilous duty to the Crown.

But Samantha hides a secret, one she dares never reveal.