Independent young Kate Porter envisions a future far greater than the middle-class existence she's always lived, and her work as a governess is simply a means to an end. The glittering world of a society wife calls, and her new position as a private tutor for the children of Mr. Alonzo Colaco is a step in the right direction. She merrily imagines the grand house awaiting her—but when her new employer meets her at the train station driving a gaily painted gypsy wagon, Kate suspects her new job as a children's tutor will not be all she dreamed. Instead of the mansion she anticipated, Kate finds herself living in the woods in a refitted train car as she teaches the charming children of Alonzo, a tinker by trade.

After trying in vain to secure another job, Kate is left with little choice. She must simply bide her time until a better position presents itself. Before long, however, she abandons her petticoats and preconceptions in favor of the joys of a simple life—and the possibility of true love. But when opportunity knocks, will Kate really be ready to walk away from all she's come to care for to pursue her high-society dreams?