Following the sensuous Eva, a woman who breaks all the rules after her heart is broken. Eva lusts after the adventurous and worldly Jospeh Lees, whom she has known all her life. On an excursion in Italy, Joseph is badly wounded in an accident, leaving Eva even more drawn to him. As Joseph retreats from society, Eva withdraws into her own charged memories of Joseph. But now as the romantically inclined yet simple Harry Flyte begins to court her, Eva is about to give into her deepest and darkest desires. Though she's not in love with Harry, Eva does something utterly provocative for her times: she moves in with Harry, unwed. Yet, the closer she gets to Harry, the more her private fantasies of Joseph surface. Unable to deny the electricity between them, Eva's feelings for Joseph become as fierce and fervent as anything she has fantasized. But the love triangle is shattered when Eva's loyalties shift. The desperate and unstable Harry careens out of control with drastic and irreparable results.