In a small Massachusetts town, two bumbling criminals mistakenly kidnap a maid, thinking her to be the wife of a prominent businessman. D.C., short for Darn Cat, is an alley cat who, while looking for his nightly snack, stumbles upon the kidnap victim, bound and gagged in a shed. The kidnap victim scratches a plea for help on the back of her wristwatch and puts it around the cat's neck. Patti finds the watch and links it to the missing maid. Playing amateur detective, she enlists the aid of an FBI agent, Zeke, who has been assigned to the case. Patti and Zeke follow D.C. through tight openings to track down the captive.

A study of a relationship that starts quickly, burns bright, and then gets rocky, not from any one thing, but from an accumulation of civilization and its discontents. Stuart is glib and generous, Nicole is shy and forthright. He doesn't like her best friend; she tires of his brother's antics. She wants children sooner. He's a poor listener, she broods. Both have divorced parents, and their families complicate their lives. Is love enough to see them through?