Carly Linton finds that her plans for the future keep getting tangled up in past troubles as she tries to make a new start by returning to her hometown of Benton, Georgia. It's hard enough dealing with both the emotional and financial baggage left over from her failed marriage. But she certainly hadn't bargained on having her homecoming complicated by a reunion with Matt Converse, the local hell-raiser who stole her heart a dozen years ago…and broke it. Matt is now the local sheriff, more handsome than ever, and he still makes her yearn for his touch. To make matters worse, Carly's ex is the one who comes to her rescue when a prowler breaks into the Victorian mansion she plans to turn into an upscale bed-and-breakfast for tourists on the "antebellum trail." Carly's new business partner is frightened, her cat is in a snit about the stray dog she's taken in…and her life is in danger. Suddenly, everything seems out of control -- and her only hope for the future is to reach out for the thing she loves, and hang on tight.