From the moment young Annabelle met her sister Minerva's intended, Lord Sylvester, she developed a secret passion for him that obsessed her. Now she was determined to take him away from Minerva no matter what.

Twenty-five and penniless, Harriet Metcalf is intrusted with the management of Sir Hayner's estates and fortune until his twin daughters reach the age of twenty-one.

Eliza Budley is a beautiful widow whose husband gambled away his fortune. Lady Fortescue reminds the others that to be fair, Mrs. Budley has no relatives on whom she can call. Gentle Mrs. Budley thinks she has escaped her fate until Sir Philip comes up with a plan: He has heard that the elderly Marquess of Peterhouse is senile, a widower, extremely rich, and unlikely to remember whether Mrs. Budley is a relative or not. So off Mrs. Budley goes to...