Sag Harbor, NY 1845: Having already spurned a marriage proposal from Patrick Lynch on her passage from Ireland, Catherine McGuirk is confident she will find work as a governess, or at least a teacher. The local schoolmaster dismisses her with a smirk. Settling for hotel work has its upside when Cath meets a handsome seaman, Michael Heffernan. Just as she falls in love, he is off on a world voyage hunting whales.

Spending her romance alone spurs Cath to resume her correspondence with Patrick. His ascent as a successful businessman in New York is swift, while Michael promises to give up the sea for marriage to Cath. When the gold rush calls, he cannot resist. A brokenhearted Cath moves to New York to revive her dream of becoming a governess.

Once in Manhattan, she continues to be torn between her own ambition, the missing seaman she married, and the wealthy speculator she didn't.