The widowed Marquis of Brookhaven urgently needs a new wife to help raise his rapidly growing daughter. However, the lady, who seemed to be an almost ideal bride, chose to run away and marry the groom's half-brother. And then, in complete despair, the Marquis... accepted a marriage proposal from the cousin of the runaway bride, the daring Deirdre Cantor. But what made the beautiful Deirdre, always surrounded by admirers, take such an eccentric step and offer herself to a man who was nicknamed the Beast in the world? Cold calculation? Pity for Brookhaven? Or a secret love that she doesn’t dare admit even to herself?