When Phil, an undergraduate at Cambridge University, performs in cabaret at a party, he meets and falls in love with Melanie.
Twenty-five years later, both now married, they meet again by chance and resume their relationsh.
But the influence of former boyfriend Simon is Still strong, and she and Phil part.
As she in turn appears to have fallen in love with him, he cannot understand why she then plays hard-to-get, even after he learns of the traumatic events that shaped her teenage years.
When Phil, an undergraduate at Cambridge University, performs in cabaret at a party, he meets and falls in love with Melanie