Mercy Oakes' mother is stricken to discover that her artistic daughter is besotted with a man she considers a 'country lout'. Her high-society aspirations demand a man of culture and fame, so she finances Mercy's trip to Paris to study under a great painter. Mercy's own ambition agrees to the trip. Little does Mercy realize that the designs of a charming French suitor are not what they first appear to be. When circumstance forces her hand she returns...