With her oldest brother away in the British navy and her magistrate father engaged in a difficult court case, Bel Shaw finds herself responsible for her younger siblings and cousins, who want only to fish their favorite spot on the Ashe River. That spot now belongs to the new Earl of Haverford. Haughty, aloof Nicholas Seymour has no family, and the rundown manor he’s purchased with its stretch of river is the first thing in his life that truly belongs to him. When Bel’s youngest brother conflicts with the earl over the river, Bel agrees to an exchange of kisses for stolen fish. With a passionate kiss in a garden on Midsummer’s Eve, Nick compromises Bel. They find themselves married, but before Nick can truly claim his bride, they must come to understand one another in spite of her family.