To save her barony from ruin, Madeleine de la Haute Vironge must wed one of a trio of lords offered by King William. A shocking twist of fate impels the convent-bred beauty into the arms of the most dangerous of the three--a magnificent, exciting stranger Madeleine desires...but also fears.

Torn between familial loyalties and devotion to his king, handsome Aimery de Gaillard prowls the forest as the Goldern Heart, devoted to helping the common English folk. But the beautiful young heiress he is honor bound to marry suspects his secret, threatening his cause and his life. Yet his noble heart, hardened my mistrust, aches with passion for Madeleine's sensuous innocence--entreating the daring outlaw to surrender to the glory, the rapture...and the peril of love.