Two stories are interwoven in the plot. The first is of Nick Dormer, who is an attractive and talented young man who wants to be an artist. His family wants him to follow in the family footsteps of politics, securing a seat in Parliament. Nick's late father had made many connections that would help him in a political career. His mother supports this ambition as the family is only of modest fortune and she feels a successful political career would help Nick's two sisters find suitable husbands.