Vivian Peyton and Theodore Weatherby could not be more different: she is a penniless orphan, raised in humble circumstances by her grandfather, and he is the cold-hearted nephew of a wealthy widow. One common thread connects these strangers—the same shipwreck took their parents' lives. But the commonality has left Theo with a simmering hatred for the Peyton family. Or what's left of it.

As Vivian's grandfather's health begins to decline, he takes to telling her stories of his life. So when Vivian learns of her grandfather's first love, she vows to find the woman and reunite the star-crossed couple. There is, however, a complication: the woman is none other than the aunt of Theo Weatherby, whose disdain for Vivian is palpable. Even as their elderly relatives rekindle the ill-fated romance of their youth, Theo and Vivian are thrown into a complicated association as hostilities battle with a growing attraction that catches them both off guard. But not all is as it seems, and just as the tentative new couple begins to accept their feelings for each other, an unexpected arrival threatens to tear them apart.