The Earl's Enigma — Rachel McNeely

Government spy Franklin Gates returns home to claim his estate and send his step-mother, the person who knows his terrible secret, to one of his other properties. Mary Ann Steeples, the one woman he can't forget, is determined to win Franklin's heart. She has passed up many proposals waiting for him. Now that Franklin has returned, he still resists the attraction that flared between them when her twin sister and his best friend courted. Franklin must discover the truth about his past before contemplating any marriage. Unfortunately, the person who knows the truth is a woman he never wanted to see again. Even as his desire for Mary Ann increases, Franklin is certain she is not the wife he needs. He fears she is too much like the step-mother he hates. But Mary Ann will go to any length to show him he's wrong. Even if she endangers her life.