All Francesca Channing had to do in order to keep her marriage alive, her children safe, her life intact, was to tell a lie. One simple, straightforward lie. But it wasn't that simple or straightforward after all. Her life, as Bard Channing's third wife, was very far from easy. He was charismatic, powerful and rich and he adored her. He was also manipulative and scheming, with a family as large and complex as his business. But it was an emotional crisis of her own which finally put Francesca's dilemma into perspective: did she love Bard enough to lie for him?