The situation in which the object of love is, for one reason or another, inaccessible is far more common in real life than in literature. This novel is precisely about such love—strong, beautiful, passionate, but devoid of any future. As everyone knows, the forbidden fruit is sweet. To love a priest who granted a vow of celibacy means condemning yourself to either an unhappy love lasting a lifetime or destroying the fate of the one you love. That is exactly where the main heroine, Maggie, finds herself. But over time, the priest Ralph becomes a cardinal, even though his heart is not free from feelings for the wonderful Maggie.
The conflict of the work intensifies because neither side can completely overcome their attraction to each other and neither can honestly step aside. Maggie, though she marries someone else, finds that family life does not work out for her. And the cardinal, instead of serving God, at some point still ends up in the arms of the woman he loves. This does not pass without consequences… But after suffering through their whole lives, the lovers will still not be happy.