Aurora and her adopted sister Pia have grown up at Mission San Carolos de Borromeo. When Aurora is unexpectedly pressured into giving up her teaching position there to become governess at Rancho de Montaraz, the ranch her parents abruptly departed years before, she goes with trepidation. At the ranch, Aurora is immediately embroiled in conflict with four aristocratic brothers. The eldest, Iv n, a man accustomed to unquestioning obedience,...