After her mother’s death, Alexandra Bolton’s hopes for happiness collapsed: for the sake of her family’s interests, the girl refused the wedding and for long nine years sacrificed herself, caring for two younger sisters and for her father, who drowned his grief in gin. For the impoverished aristocrat—forced to make a living by sewing—there was an unpromising fate of an old maid, but one chance meeting changed everything… Before meeting Alexandra, England’s most enviable bachelor, the Duke of Clervud, had never been denied in love. But to win mutual feelings from the virtuous, proud Miss Bolton is not easy even for such a handsome and rich man. Still, when an irresistible attraction flares between Alexandra and Stephen, the outcome of this story seems predetermined. Alas, the duke’s hot-tempered nature can spoil even the most beautiful fairy tale.