Eighteen-year-old Sadie Stark, raised by the governor of Pennsylvania, has the world on a string. She doesn't need the mother who left her any more than she needs the fiance who promises to change. What she needs is to finish college, and keep her wits about her. When war-bound James Pasko returns her stolen clutch, and shows her what's missing in her life, she gains the courage to search for the truth about her past. What Sadie uncovers rattles her to the core. But James' steadfast love gives her hope for the future—for the first time—even as the war tears them apart. When James disappears over enemy lines and Sadie makes a startling discovery, she must decide to follow in the footsteps of the mother who gave her away, or face a life of hardship like she's never known.