Valerie was the divorced woman who became the third wife of widower Peter Ames. Although her daughter, Janet Hill Porter (Bibi Besch) disapproved of her mother remarrying, she eventually was forced to accept him. However, Janet still caused a lot of problems for the family. Valerie married Peter and for several years, was the shelter for the Ames family. She and Peter were happy for several years until a heart attack while on a business trip, killed Peter. Valerie grieved for a respectful amount of time, until she met a psychiatrist who was treating her stepdaughter, Amy Ames. His name was Dr. Ian Northcote (who was first played by Gordon Rigsby, and then by Lori March's real-life husband, Alexander Scourby).