Chris Hunter returns from a party one night while her husband Bob is out of town, and is accosted by Michael Tanner. During the ensuing struggle, Chris kills Tanner. Bob, a builder who has been away on business, arrives home the following morning to discover his house surrounded by police. Later, Chris tells homicide detective Reynolds that Tanner, whom she did not know, demanded her jewelry, and she stabbed him in self-defense. While Chris, Bob and their lawyer, Larry Hannaford, have lunch, Larry receives a telephone call from his office regarding Chris. The call leads him to a shabby art dealer's shop, where the dealer, Martin Barrow, shows him a bust of Chris sculpted by Tanner. He offers to sell it to Chris for $10,000. Larry angrily turns down the offer and then confronts Chris. At first Chris denies everything, but later admits that she met Tanner while Bob was overseas during the war. She allowed him to sculpt the bust, but ended the relationship when Tanner tried to make it more personal. Tanner then continued to harass her. Chris tells Larry that she did not reveal the truth to the police because she was afraid that the scandal would hurt Bob's business. Larry advises Chris to tell Bob and Reynolds the truth, but instead she tries to buy the sculpture from Barrow. Barrow, however, has given the sculpture to Tanner's wife. When Larry learns what Chris has done, he realizes that she had an affair with Tanner. Chris admits it, but insists that Tanner was trying to kill her the night of the murder and begs Larry to help her buy back the sculpture. Determined to make Chris suffer as she has, Tanner's wife shows the sculpture to Bob, who is deeply wounded. Later, Mrs. Tanner goes to the police and implicates Chris. Bob then confronts Chris, who admits that his accusations are true. She explains that they had only known each other two weeks before he left for the war and because she was lonely, she became involved with Tanner. Bob is unmoved by her defense and asks for a divorce. Moments later, Chris is arrested for murder. After a scandalous trial, Chris is acquitted, due in part of Larry's impassioned defense, but Bob still refuses to forgive her. Larry encourages the couple to talk to each other and try to make a go of their marriage and, when they agree, leaves them alone to reconcile.