1820, Boston. Captain William Foremaster has faced death in battle, earned his captain's commission, and ended up a wealthy man. Despite his good fortune, he has been spurned by a former fiancée and now mourns the death of his beloved sister. Deciding to reinvent himself, he returns to Boston and his friends Joshua and Margaret Beaton Wynn. But future plans seem hollow without a wife. A simpering society lady will not do. Neither will the beautiful but exasperating Patience Pelham, who denounced his godless ways two years ago. Where can he find a woman strong enough to move to Barcelona and willing to put up with him?

Patience Pelham has never ridden a horse, walked on a sailing ship, or journeyed to a foreign shore. She has survived a difficult marriage, the death of her husband, and the disapproval of her family when she moves from Maine to Boston, seeking social and economic freedoms. She wants to make her own choices. The pain of her first marriage and a secret fear make avoiding Captain Foremaster imperative.

If only he were not so charming and handsome.