A girl’s wealthy parents oppose her marrying a kind young man they perceive as poor, so his millionaire father pretends to be broke to teach them a lesson.

Sam Sutton made his fortune inventing a sealant but faced tragedy when his wife fell ill and passed away, leaving him a single dad to his son, Will. To shield Will from fake friendships, they decided to make it look like they were struggling financially when Will went to Yale.

When Will proposed to Eddy, her parents disapproved of him, preferring someone wealthy. For Christmas, Will and Sam dressed poorly and took a bus to Eddy’s family beach house. Eddy defended Will and Sam against her parents’ snobbery.

On Christmas Eve, while Eddy’s parents flaunted a new Porsche as a gift for Will, Sam surprised them with the deed to a brownstone in Tribeca for the couple. This revelation shifted Eddy’s parents’ attitude, and they became supportive of the wedding.

Ultimately, Sam wanted Will to be loved for who he was, not for his future inheritance, and the experience taught everyone not to judge by appearances.