With his facility for languages and gift for diplomacy, Thomas Pearce is perfectly suited for his recent position in the Foreign Office. Or so he imagines until he receives his first assignment. Instead of a safe consular post in a friendly country, Thomas is going to France to rescue Sabine Rousseau, the illegitimate daughter of Britain's premiere. Sabine and Thomas must make their escape, and it won't be easy. Her uncle considers her a ticket to curry favor with Napoleon and won't let her disappear without a fight. To avoid detection, the couple must pretend to be amorous newlyweds and this proves the most difficult task of all. Because it isn't long before neither of them is pretending and every night, there's only one bed.