As children, George Dashwood and Amelia Dennison loved to roam the Sussex Downs in company with their dogs, and just as their two very different families were friends, so too were they, until they are caught in a thunderstorm. Sheltering from the elements, the now mature George realizes that what he feels for Amelia is more than friendship. But it is 1914 and the declaration of war cuts across any romantic plans that the two might have.
George is away at the Front for four years, and when the miracle happens and he returns home safely, it seems to Amelia and to both of their families that all they have to do is to marry. But Amelia quickly realizes that the George she loved as a child has gone.
Amelia knows nothing about marriage. She loves George but she cannot get George to love her. It isn't until they are touring the West Country and they come across an old ruined priory with a magical atmosphere which they decide to buy that their chance for happiness becomes a reality. It is here, finally, in a part of the grounds which comes to be known as the Kissing Garden, that they finally find love together.