A letter summons young Megan Kincaid to the house on Washington Square. In a startling interview the master of the house, Brandon Reid, informs her that he wishes her to devote herself to moody, unbalanced Jeremy, Mrs. Reid's son by her previous husband, Brandon's younger brother Dwight. Dwight Reid's brilliant career as New York District Attorney had been ended by a shocking and tragic accident with a gun--or so the newspapers had claimed--at the hands of this same guilt-ridden child, then aged seven. Against her better judgment, Megan accepts the challenge.From the beginning Megan feels uneasy in the house; she senses the presence of lurking evil, of mysterious emotional undercurrents, of relationships that are not what they appear to be. She does not know whom to trust--the haughty yet strangely sad beauty, Leslie Reid, or the somber, fascinating master of the house, whose warm voice belies his cold, grave manner. She finds herself irresistibly drawn toward him, and their growing mutual attraction is duly noted by interested members of the household. When Megan realizes fully the extent of her own feelings, she knows she cannot honorably remain in the Reid home. Yet she also knows that if she goes, Jeremy will be left alone in world, irretrievably lost.

    Her mother, alluring, aristocratic, and spirited, had dared to love a man without rank or title, and from their reckless desires, Belinda Lemaitre was born - a child never told of her heritage, and brought up in France.WOMAN OF PASSIONThen, in the dizzying events of chance and revelation, she discovered her past and secretly came into the employ of her now invalid mother. One moment, embittered rage ruled Belinda; the next, tenderness and mercy brought her near the mother she had never known.PAWN OF DESTINYSuddenly, as Belinda was readying to reveal her true identity, she was entrapped in a terrifying web of masquerade, lust, and murderous longing, as a beautiful imposter sought to take her place, a handsome gentleman courted her love, and a killer waited... until they were alone.