What a Woman

Henry Pepper, Knickerbocker magazine's top writer, is assigned to profile Carol Ainsley. Carol is presented as the outstanding career woman who has just secured the movie rights to the romance novel Whirlwind and is spending a fortune to cast the perfect male lead. The assignment sets the stage for a clash of ambition and charm.

Carol learns that the book's author, Anthony Street, may be the man to play his own hero. She tracks him down and discovers that Anthony Street is actually Professor Michael Cobb of Buxton College. The revelation pulls Michael into the industry spotlight and under Carol's influence.

Michael Cobb is an intellectual snob, devoted to Elizabethan literature, and he is horrified when Carol exposes him as the writer of a romance novel. The clash between his academic persona and the romance world creates immediate friction.

While at Buxton, Carol gets Michael in trouble with the faculty and then convinces him to accompany her to New York. The trip marks a turning point as he steps into a world far from his scholarly routine.

In New York, Carol takes over his life, coaching him in comportment and charm. Michael struggles to utter the romantic lines he wrote, and his screen test proves a dismal failure, prompting him to consider returning to Buxton.

Henry Pepper decides to test Carol by making Michael think he is in love with her. He contacts Michael and convinces the professor of his own feelings, triggering a staged romance that could expose Carol's hard-edged scheming.

Michael begins courting Carol, radiating the charm she taught him, and their romance becomes headline news. Although Carol isn't in love with him, she fears admitting the truth could jeopardize his contract.

Henry's kiss on Carol marks a turning point as Henry himself begins to fall for her. The triangle intensifies as genuine feelings start to blur their professional arrangement.

To avoid Hollywood pressure, Carol retreats to her father's house in Washington, D.C., hoping to escape Michael's advances. Michael follows her home, and their pursuit culminates with his engagement announcement.

Michael follows her home and publicly announces their engagement, tying Carol to a marriage she had tried to avoid. The bold move forces Carol to confront her feelings and the consequences of her schemes.

With her business plans and social image at stake, Carol agrees to the marriage to Michael. The decision resolves the immediate tension, even as questions about love and ambition linger.

On the eve of the wedding, guests mingle in the Ainsley house as tensions rise. Carol goes to Henry's room to confront him after a crude insult, she slaps him, and proclaims she is calling off the wedding because she is not in love with Michael and won't marry for business. The moment marks a turning point that reawakens her own feelings.

Henry, moved by her speech, declares his own love and rushes to her side. The scene ends with a warm embrace, signaling a new partnership based on mutual affection rather than business.