Sir Piers Tregarron, handsome, ambitious and a man of fair estate, should be the ideal husband for any girl. At Queen Elizabeth's Court he is important, intent on rising even higher, but Catherine Benton is not impressed by this man selected as her bridegroom. She is even less impressed when his gallantry to the Queen prevents him attending his own wedding! Yet what do Sir Piers's heartless aspirations matter when the man Catherine truly loves is dead? How can she be other than indifferent to her husband's attentions? Can their marriage by proxy be anything but doomed, especially when Catherine learns that her beloved Will may still be alive?