Mary Ann Simpson (AMY IRVING) is a former flight attendant who's been living and teaching English in Rio de Janeiro for the past two years since her husband's death. Not looking for love, she enjoys the youthful exuberance of her friend and private student, Nadine (DRICA MORAES), who's fallen in love with a man she's never physically met and knows only by the name of Gary.
Pedro Paulo (ANTONIO FAGUNDES) is a middle-aged attorney in the same city whose marriage has fallen apart since his travel agent wife, Tania (DEBORA BLOCH), left him for a Chinese Tai Chi teacher. Such marital problems seem to run in the family as Pedro is representing his tailor father, Juan (ALBERTO DE MENDOZA), in a divorce settlement, and his half-brother, Roberto (PEDRO CARDOSO) who works for their father at the tailor shop, doesn't have a significant other.
Unbeknownst to either Mary Ann or Pedro, her English class is located in the same building as Juan's tailor shop. Immediately taken with her, Pedro signs up for her English class and the two eventually hit it off. Yet, Pedro must compete with Acacio (ALEXANDRE BORGES), a famous Brazilian soccer star who's taking English lessons from Mary Ann - to better his saucy verbal comebacks on the field - and is known for being quite the Romeo.
The two suitors eventually meet, with Pedro agreeing to look over the star's contract, much to the joy of Acacio's burly manager/bodyguard, Gordo (SERGIO LOROZA), and the lawyer's new intern, Sharon (GIOVANNA ANTONELLI), who's a big soccer fan, a knowledgeable attorney in the making, and the girl with whom Roberto is smitten. With Pedro going to pick up "Gary" -- who really turns out to be Trevor (STEPHEN TOBOLOWSKY) -- at the airport where Nadine earlier met Tania, the lives of these disparate people soon become rather intertwined as they all try to find love and happiness.