In this modern retelling of The Little Mermaid, a fisherman's daughter from an Outer Banks island untouched by time, meets the son of the North Carolina governor at a fancy party where she is working. Laire, who wants more from life than her little island can offer, is swept away by wealthy, sophisticated Erik, who is, in turn, entranced by her naivete and charm. The two spend a whirlwind summer together that ends on the knife-point of heartbreak and forces them to go their separate ways. Years later, when fate finds them together once again, they will discover the terrifying depth of the secrets they kept from each other, and learn that shattered hearts can only be healed by a love that willfully refuses to die.