Kate van Marlen is blissfully happy with her partner, Count Alfred van der Loo. However, he has no serious plans for her and says he will never marry her. The young, spirited cavalry lieutenant Count Ruprecht van Halden thinks differently: for him, Lady Kate is the ideal woman. He courts the young girl and asks for her hand in marriage. Kate makes one last attempt to win Alfred over. During a garden party, she confesses her love to him once again, but Alfred refuses.