Their families are unaware that Linette is pregnant, and Gérard's mother, a destitute widow, disapproves of their union and worries that her son's already precarious financial situation will only become worse as a result.
Through an acquaintance, he gets a poorly-paid job at The League of Patriotic Frenchman, ostensibly as the private secretary to the head of the association, but in reality he is little more than an office boy who stuffs envelopes.
He soon becomes bored with his situation, and to make matters worse, Linette falls seriously ill. Gérard struggles, alone at first, to provide for them, before accepting help from Pilar, a well-heeled woman he meets in a bar.
Pilar, whom he begins an affair with, asks Gérard to sell a valuable emerald ring she has acquired from a wealthy older patron.
[6][7] Kirkus Reviews describes The Couple from Poiters as "a small, mild cautionary tale," with an "unconvincing conclusion--but a low-key, grimly effective slice-of-life in the flat, unsentimental Simenon manner.