A bankrupt Earl. A brilliant wallflower. One wicked wager that changes all the rules.Julian Thorne, the "e;Devil of Mayfair,"e; is a man of many secrets and even more debts. After a decade of scandal and exile, the ton's most notorious rake has returned to London to find his family estate in ruins. His only hope? A marriage of convenience to a woman with a fortune large enough to bury his past.Elara Vance is a wallflower who prefers mathematical equations to the mindless chatter of the ballroom. She knows exactly how much the Earl owes—because she's the one who bought his debt. Trapped by a predatory cousin and a social clock that's ticking toward spinsterhood, Elara proposes a business arrangement: a fake engagement to secure her freedom and restore his name.