Handsome, dashing and a close friend of the Prince of Wales, Lord 'Buck' Melburne has London's Society ladies permanently swooning at his feet and so his nickname stuck with him. So, when Lord Melburne goes to his magnificent country seat at the urgent request of a young lady called 'Clarinda Vernon', a nearby neighbour of his, it turns out that she despises and hates him and so he is shocked and perplexed as this has never happened to him before. What could he possibly have done to offend her? He is even more shocked at Clarinda's request – that he agrees to marry her, purely to indulge the last wish of her dying uncle. Once Sir Roderick Vernon has passed away Clarinda will, she assures him, release him from his promise. Despite himself Lord Melburne is really fascinated by this innocent yet feisty red-headed beauty and he is deeply concerned for her safety when he hears of sinister Satanic goings-on in the nearby caves orchestrated by someone who means Clarinda harm and even worse. When she finds herself prone on the sacrificial Altar amid a terrifyingly depraved Black Mass, it is for his Lordship to save her that she prays to God. And when at last her prayers are answered, she realises that her hatred has turned to love and that for her too, Buck Melburne really is irresistible!