Yorkshire 1813 Numb after the pain of an intolerable betrayal, 19 year old Alexandra Broughton turns to her only source of hope - an arranged marriage. Resolutely accepting this as her last chance to make a future for herself, she journeys to Scotland to face the unknown. Although Alex makes every effort to settle into her new life, she struggles to suppress the memories of her lost lover's passionate yet faithless embrace, and remains haunted by a fleeting and impossible love affair. For Alex, this is a time of growing; a coming of age where she turns to her husband in a desperate effort to carve out a life with him, and just as it seems that contentment is within her grasp, disaster strikes. As the war against Napoleon reaches a crescendo, Alex discovers a web of deceit that slowly unravels long-held secrets to reveal the true meaning of treachery. Trapped in a loveless, violent marriage, and with nothing left to lose, Alex embarks on a fight for survival. Battling the irresistible forces ranging against her, she remains bound to the one man she can never forgive - the one man above all others she can never forget.