When former U.S. Marine photojournalist Gabriel St. James arrives in Shelter Bay to help out a fellow Marine, the last thing he expects is to meet a woman like Charity. A veterinarian with a past that would have defeated a less resilient woman, Charity still possesses a heart as generous as her name. She's known men like Gabe before-but with a shared attraction impossible to deny, Charity and Gabe agree to a simple affair with no expectations. But as summer unfolds, and Gabe finds reasons to extend his stay in Shelter Bay, he and Charity realize that there's nothing simple about falling in love, and nothing easy about the choices of the heart.