New York. 1887. In the heat of summer's darkness they met, engulfed by a love so deep, so searing, it could not be denied. JAMES EDWARD CLINTON--He had everything: wealth, power, privilege--everything except the woman and the son he loved more than life itself. From the moment he first saw Alaina on that moonlit highway, he longed to possess her with an enduring passion time could not destroy. ALAINA GRANGER--Proud, courageous, with an inherent grace that would become her only shield in a life rocked by scandal, she gave her heart and soul to one man who was forever tied to another woman ... a woman who would become Alaina's greatest enemy in a battle where no weapon was too small, no victory too great.