Cautious, sensible Caroline Abbott journeys to Italy as a chaperone for her irrepressible friend Lilia, but everything goes wrong when Lilia suddenly becomes engaged to a dentist's son.
The troops arrive in the form of Lilia's brother-in-law Philip, who has come to try and break the engagement. Philip's mission fails, however, and a hotly contested baby results.
Sweeping melodrama and a sardonic humor meet in Tuscany as Philip and Caroline's ideals are challenged in the subsequent family battle over the fate of the unfortunate infant.
