Lianne Blakely, the illegitimate daughter of a powerful Hong Kong trader and his American mistress, has spent years studying the art of ancient jade, hoping to win the approval of her Chinese family. A brilliant gemologist, she has gained employment in the Tang family business, if not acceptance in the family. Now the Jade Emperor, one of China's legendary cultural treasures, has been stolen and Lianne is accused of the theft.

At first suspicious of the bright, ambitious family outcast, Kyle finds himself reluctantly believing her fierce claim of innocence and irresistably drawn to her exotic beauty. Soon they have joined forces to find the real thief--a venture that draws them into the perils of spiraling international power plays, and the discovery that their mutual love for an exquisite gemstone has linked them in an alliance as enduring as the beauty of the ancient jade.