Successful and beautiful advertising director, Kate (Jennifer Aniston) wants a promotion, but her boss (Kevin Dunn) won’t advance her because she’s unattached and – he fears – without commitment, likely to leave at any time.

To prove to her boss that she’s “grounded”, Kate reluctantly goes along with a plan hatched by her friend, Darcy (Illeana Douglas), to invent a fictional fiance, Nick (Jay Mohr), for Kate. With pictures and stories to support the ruse, Kate gets her promotion. When circumstances force Kate to produce her fiance for a dinner with her boss, Kate hunts down Nick and convinces him to play along.

The couple rehearse their “history” and plan a convenient break-up for the dinner. But as Nick gets to know Kate, he falls in love. After a series of misunderstandings and mixed signals, Nick heads home.

Now, with Nick preparing to leave her life just as fast as he entered it, Kate is about to learn what truly makes the perfect mate … and that a picture is worth much more than a thousand words.