When her father —Major Angus Fairham — returns home from the Napoleonic wars, Prudence is excited to welcome him home to Fairham Manor. However, tragedy strikes when Angus loses his estate to his close friend and comrade — young Captain Jack Staveley — in a drunken game of cards. Unable to face his loss, Angus takes his own life.
Distraught, Jack tries to restore Fairham Manor to Prudence, but she is too proud to accept his offer. Overcome with grief and anger, she retreats to her aunt’s house in Bath and distances herself from her once close friendship with Jack. But as the initial shock of her sorrow begins to dull, Prudence is soon missing the support of her most trusted confidant. And when they once more find themselves in each other’s orbit, she must decide whether she can put aside her pride and open her heart…