Emily Benoit gave up over half her life to care for her ailing parents. When they were gone, she decided, after twenty years, to go back and finish her degree.

When most people are at the mid-point of their lives, Emily is just beginning to discover herself. She begins an, at first, antagonistic relationship with Thomas Langely: an abrasive, but very sexy, much younger professor.

Emily slowly begins to learn about a side of herself she didn't know existed. He relationship with Thomas changes when she learns a secret about him that draws her closer.

But Emily has a lot of emotional baggage to deal with. Her roomate (an irrepressible free spirit named Kurt, who just happens to be a Dom and a porn star), tries to help her find her way in the world of Bondage and Discipline, and maybe find something Emily didn't even know she was looking for:
a future with someone.