

Annie never knew her mother's love. Carole despised her, reserving all her doting affection for Fiona, the daughter of a past romance. Carole believed her marriage to Ben was a drunken mistake, and Annie was simply the regrettable result. Unable to bear the abuse Annie suffered, Ben resolved to take Annie and leave Carole for good. Despite this, on her own birthday, Annie chose to give her mother one final chance.

For three years, Cecilia Nixon had been in a loveless marriage with Nat Gold, untouched by him, and her mother-in-law insisted she leave empty-handed. In a sudden act of defiance, Cecilia managed to force Nat to sleep with her and then vanished, pregnant. Six years later, upon her return to her homeland, the first person she bumped into was Nat. As they engaged in a chase, her rage got the better of her, and she confronted him, demanding a proper distance between them.