Working for the Utah state government as a report writer, Charles Richardson reminisces about his past love affair with Laura Connolly, with who he was immediately attracted upon first sight when she worked in the file section of his office. Their relationship was despite Laura then being married to ex-football player Jim, nicknamed Ox, he bringing an adolescent daughter, Rebecca, into their blended family. When she and Charlie met, Laura was already on a trial separation from Ox, which always tainted Laura and Charlie's relationship in her sense of guilt as Ox never did anything bad to precipitate that separation. Charlie can't help but think about Laura as he is still in love with her and wants to get back together with her, their relationship which ended when she returned to Ox, who never knew about Charlie in her life. Charlie's thoughts about Laura are only one complication in his life, those other complicating people being: his perpetually "glass-half-full" sister Susan, who shares the house he inherited from their grandmother; his longtime best friend Sam Maguire, a men's garment salesman who is even less motivated with work than Charlie; his mother Clara, whose eccentricities and suicidal tendencies may solely be a cry for attention; Clara's current husband Pete, who wants a bromance with Charlie despite knowing Charlie doesn't much like him; his boss, Mr. Patterson, who continually uses him as a guidance counselor in issues related to his teenage son; and his typist Betty, who is attracted to Charlie herself not knowing about his and Laura's past relationship, and who Charlie consciously and unconsciously uses in knowing she still is in touch with Laura.