Florence Ashleigh, the daughter of an aristocratic southern family, immensely proud, but greatly impoverished, is urged by her family to marry George Neill, a very wealthy stockbroker. From conversation overheard in her home she is given to understand that George wants to marry her to attain social position and not because he is in love with her, and her pride is naturally hurt. However, to aid her financially embarrassed family, she agrees to marry him, but stipulates with him that he must never violate her privacy, and insists that she must be allowed a key to her private apartments, and that he must promise never to ask for that key or cross the threshold of her door. He reluctantly agrees. After marriage he tries to show her, by every means in his power, that he loves her, but she will not lower the barrier between them. He makes a big monetary sacrifice to her, whereby her father is raised to affluence, and he almost ruins himself financially by doing so, but she merely attributes it to the varying luck of business ventures, and still holds him at arms' length. George Neill is now financially embarrassed. Florence does not know of his affairs, as he keeps all things from her that may be likely to distress her, and he suffers alone. He has to start afresh to make his fortune. Things are coming his way again when he discovers that if he swings a certain deal that will make him wealthy again. It will ruin the man who is engaged to his wife's sister, so he lets the chance slip by and, seeing no prospect of winning his wife's love, decides to leave for good and take the management of a mine in which he has an interest. Florence learns of his self-sacrifice and love at last dawns in her heart. He prepares to leave and she then realizes that she loves him and wants him. She places the key to her apartment in his jewel case. He leaves. On arrival at the hotel in the western town, he finds the key. Hoping, ardently, yet still in doubt, he returns and wins his long-wished-for reward.