Emma Hendricks is a strong, independent journalist known for getting at the truth. She has everything she's ever wanted until her fiancé leaves her alone and devastated a few days before the wedding. She's the "go to" girl for finding answers to unsolved mysteries, but even she can't figure out what happened. Everything she believed in was a lie. Needing to get away, she heads to Beacon Bay—a small coastal town in Maine—for the summer. After finding an antique bottle wedged between two rocks in the ocean, she frees it only to discover there's something inside. Breaking the bottle to retrieve her treasure, she cuts her hand.

Kathleen Connor is the daughter of an artist mother and fisherman father, living in Beacon Bay during the 1940's in a time of war. She should be happy with her lot as a school teacher, but she's always felt she was meant for something more. After pressure from her parents, she finally marries with hope for a brighter future....