Book excerpt: Not since Kathleen E. Woodiwiss's masterful The Flame and the Flower has a romance dared to delve so deeply into a woman's vulnerability--and the healing power of love. . . Dashing Irish sea captain Patrick Mullen knows women like he knows the sea, but he is completely unprepared for the sight of lovely Camille Bradburn, the only daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Eton. Cultured, wealthy, innocent, and impossibly beautiful, she is nothing he could ever hope to have, and everything he has ever desired. . . Raised with unimaginable wealth and a servant for every task, Camille seems to live a fairy tale life that is the envy of every girl in England. But her privilege comes with a terrible, secret price. And when she spies Patrick beneath her balcony, she understands for the first time that freedom and passion may be possible after all. . . Their love is swift and soul-deep but also exceedingly dangerous, for others would do anything to keep them apart. But Camille won't be taken without a fight, not when she stands to lose a love worth more than all her family's riches. . .