A fifteen-year-old boy is living in Paris with his mother, his younger brother Gordon, and his older cousin Corinne while his father gives lectures at a hospital in London. While there, a friend of the family, the opera singer Edward Sciarrha, writes to them with an invitation to his upcoming performance in Milan.

The family attends the performance. Afterwards, they join Edward for a grand dinner party. After their meal, Edward makes a speech thanking his guests. He talks about his childhood and his father's death, then praises the other singers for that night's performance. At the end of his speech, Edward speaks fondly of the boy's late grandmother. Though the boy is unaware at the time, he later learns that his grandmother became Edward's lover after she was widowed. Edward was married at the time but was soon divorced, and he then spent a considerable amount of time at the grandmother's estate, which is how he came to be so close to the family.

When the boy grows up and becomes a writer with a wife and children of his own, he begins to vividly picture a scene in Milan with Edward as if it were a memory–though he knows that, in reality, it can not be. The image seems to be set in a time before his family had gone to visit Edward in Milan for the opera.

Some years later, the man is asked by his Uncle Tom to visit Edward in Mexico City to check in on him. Tom is worried about Edward's wellbeing, afraid he may be sick or lonely. When the man arrives, Edward seems to be in good spirits, and the two spend several days talking and catching up. During the day, Edward coaches his vocal students in their lessons, and the man tries to work on his writing, although he struggles to form any coherent narratives and instead ends up with disjointed notes and ideas. Later, the man visits his cousin Corinne and the two go to the estate of their late grandmother, which is about to be demolished. While reminiscing about their childhoods, the man and his cousin almost share an intimate moment, though they are interrupted by two other visitors. After an awkward exchange, the man and his cousin leave the estate for the last time.

When Corinne visits the man and his family for a party five years later, they receive a phone call informing them that Edward has died from a stroke. It is the man's father who delivers the news, and afterward, Corinne's tone and expression seem strange. The man comments on this change and soon learns that Corinne lost her virginity to Edward. They were lovers for a month, when the rest of the family went to Greece and Corrine stayed in Milan after Edward's performance. Corrine became pregnant, though the only person she told was the man's father, who helped her get an abortion.

Soon, the man's children approach, stopping the conversation. The man sits stroking his daughter's hair and thinking of her conception years ago. When the man speaks, he recalls the tenor's voice and imagines it is Edward who he is addressing and to whom he tells these stories.