«Lady Wharton complained of a headache, as she always did after her first few days in London. The hustle and bustle, all the noise and impromptu events caused a nagging pain in the back of her neck. Still, she liked lying on the sofa while her daughters chattered away around the morning room.»

Emma is the eldest of the Wharton sisters and has grown up hiding from prying eyes with tight-collared, long-sleeved dresses. She loves to write and has used her literary skills to take revenge on Edward Wilmot, the Earl of Kenford’s bastard son. However, the young Wharton girl did not consider who she was up against, and her actions will have unexpected consequences for her and everyone around her.

«‘Thank you, Mr Wilmot; it was very kind of you to bring me home and to stop me from making a terrible fool of myself. Good night.’

‘You can call me Edward,’ he said without erasing the terrible smile she would like to punch off him so much.

‘Thank you, Mr Wilmot,’ she repeated cynically. ‘I hope we don’t see each other again during the summer, and once it’s over, never.’»

Emma is deeply haunted by a painful memory of the past every time she faces Edward Wilmot. The bastard earl is not one to take kindly to being told what not to do or whom to stay away from.

«‘You hate balls.’

‘I hate these kinds of situations much more. At least, at the ball, I could easily dispose of unwanted people.’

‘Emma is not an unwanted person. She’s a cultured and pleasant woman.’

‘When you say cultured, you mean smug, and as for pleasant, let’s just forget about it.’»