Born in a quiet English village shortly before the onset of the Second World War, Simon Brand’s life is quickly and inextricably interwoven with the Clare-Thompson family and their country Estate which borders the village. His mother moves them away from the village after the war, and an honors degree in economics at Cambridge sees him opting for what proves to be a brilliant career as a business/financial consultant in the City. At the end of a day of goodbyes, in Cambridge, his eyes meet those of an extraordinarily beautiful young woman through the window of a bus. They smile at each other as their buses depart, and having failed to find her in the days and weeks that follow, he begins to fear that their paths may never cross again. He dreams about her, until Emily Lorenzo de Pasquale becomes an absent but essential part of his life. Later, finding himself called upon to lead a bid to save the Clare-Thompson family company, they eventually meet. This heralds a series of tragic events, which prompt his subsequent actions and color his attitudes for the remainder of his life.