Elena Landon hailed from a family of immense wealth and privilege. Her father was the world's richest man, and her three brothers had achieved extraordinary success in their respective fields. From a young age, Elena had been in love with her childhood sweetheart, Regan Judd. She had once been severely injured while saving him but had recovered fully thanks to her father's extensive resources. To test Regan's loyalty, she had feigned paralysis. But on the eve of their wedding, she caught him with her best friend, Kelly Lucas, who treated her with great disdain. Heartbroken, Elena decided to turn the wedding into a dismissal feast. In her moment of despair, Ian Burke came to her aid, retrieving her stolen bag. Upon learning of her betrayal, he offered to marry her. At the wedding, facing Regan's mockery, Elena publicly dismissed him as her husband and announced that the groom was someone else entirely. In a desperate bid to save face, Regan proposed to Kelly on the spot, and thus began a dramatic showdown at the wedding.
Marie, the daughter of the wealthy Salvin family, mistakenly believed scoundrel Bowen was her savior. She agreed to hide her identity as her father requested, pretended to be an ordinary person, and dated Bowen, who used her money and cheated on her with Yadira. On the day Marie returned home after academic success, Bowen and his family conspired to steal her house and then broke up with her. Realizing the truth, Marie revealed her identity, confronted Bowen and Yadira, and demanded restitution. Just then, the head of the Smith family, who had been betrothed to Marie since childhood, appeared to help her reclaim her dignity and future.