London, 1847.
Honest and hardworking, Rachel Wicks had spent virtually all her life in Pot’s Landing Workhouse. But now her life was about to radically change. She made a deal with a gentleman, Mr. Emerson Blackburn, that she would marry him in order that he might come into his inheritance; in exchange, she would have a chance to liberate herself and those she loved from the miseries of the workhouse.

Her life above stairs was grim, however, for Blackburn’s staff would not let her forget her origins. She must face the ordeal of being presented in public. She must face the expected wrath of Mr. Francis Blackburn, Emerson’s father. And then there was the exposure of Emerson’s true nature.

Determined to stick to her bargain, Rachel seemed confounded at every turn by betrayal, spite and jealousy. Until she met Emerson’s best friend, the handsome Thomas Archer…