Lord Jarret Sharpe has spent a lifetime trying to make Fate pay, wielding cards like a weapon at anyone who dares to mention the scandal surrounding his parents' deaths. But Jarret can only seem to win when he doesn't care about the outcome, so he's learned to be indifferent to everything. The only thing he's passionate about is running the Sharpe family brewery. Annabel Lake is determined to remain a spinster--running her family's brewery is enough of a challenge. And when the brewery is in danger of going out of business, she needs help from her stubborn competitor, Lord Jarret. Knowing Jarret's reputation as a gambler, she proposes a bet: a game of cards wagering her mother's ring--and a night in his bed--against his help with the business. When Annabel wins the bet, Jarret reluctantly travels to Burton to help her. There, he finds more than just a struggling female brewer--he finds his heart. And Annabel, who has nothing but contempt for inveterate gamblers, discovers that some men are worth gambling to gain.