Once upon a time and far away, Joanna Vernon found herself as the ultimate prize in a dangerously high-stakes card game. When the last hand had been revealed, the knowing curl of Vassos Gordanis's lip told her he had every intention of claiming his winnings….

Though no setting could be more beautiful than Vassos's private island, to Joanna the Aegean Sea was merely a turquoise-hued prison wall. In the Gordanis house, a woman was expected to know her place, and this gorgeous Greek knew this was exactly how he planned to settle the score….