The beginning and the end of an affair has a certain aura-largely of desperation- as Wilson Young Renley and Joan Beauchamp hope, through each other, to arrest the derelict course of their lives. For Ren, one time Southern gentleman, ex-Navy, and now a public relations man, it's the realization that his work may bring success- but no satisfaction; for Joan, after the failure of one marriage, it's the attempt to find in Ren the one answer to her need for many men. Instating on a ceremony in the church which is postponed- first by the Bishop, then by a financially important campaign- for Ren, Joan drifts away. And Ren, knowing that her wanton nature can only destroy them both, drives her toward her last escape.... New Orleans, fine food and bourbon and sex all contribute to the prodigal atmosphere- but it's a superficial form of stimulus at best.