Malvina is young, beautiful – but most of all very rich. She dreams of marrying a man that loves her, and whom she in turn can love forever. Unfortunately her father has other ideas. Only too aware of the fortune hunters that prey on vulnerable young heiresses, he is determined she should marry the boy next door, Charles Arram, the son of the Marquis of Arramford.
But Malvina has other ideas. Feisty and independent, she is horrified at the idea of marriage to a stranger, even a stranger that will unite their great families and ensure that their family estate becomes one of the most prestigious in England.
Learning that the man her father intends for her is living a life of gaiety amongst the most beautiful women of the Beau Monde in Paris, Malvina becomes even more disillusioned. How can she possibly compete with the famous courtesans and actresses? More importantly does she want to even try?
As her father leaves for Scotland, Malvina decides she will snatch the chance to travel incognito to Paris, where she will be able to see Charles Arram without him knowing he is being spied on. Taking her old Nanny along as a chaperone, she is sure that this will give her the opportunity to find out if this is a man she can love.
Astounded at the decadence of Paris Society, a million miles away from her austere French Convent School, Malvina is soon learning a different kind of education amongst the wealthy men and famous cocottes. Are the salons of Paris really the place for an innocent abroad?
Risking her fathers certain disapproval, and befriended by the Duc de Lavissé, the brother of her old school friend, Malvina will stop at nothing to discover the secrets of true love as she plunges headlong into the steamy world of the Beau Monde.