Gloria Wickersham, a patrician and wife of a state governor has been appointed Secretary of Health and Human Services by the new president, who is at political odds with the senate that must confirm his appointment. When a young man claims to be her illegitimate son the senate has a heyday touting this as a disqualifier for holding the job. But the young man is himself the center of controversy over his sexual exploits which have precipitated lawsuits and charges of rape. But Gloria has a past. Years ago she found another man to provide a son for her sterile but macho husband. This secret prevents Gloria from providing genetic proof of her innocence. When the pretender is proven to be not only AIDS resistent, but also a possible source of an AIDS cure, the scandal sheets and the media explode with intrigue. But the intrigue is only the surface of a deeper problem that reaches into the futures of all Gloria's family. Can she survive this crisis?