Deacon Taylor stepped up for a friend and got himself thrown in jail, and when he’s given a choice of felony charges or leaving town with his police chief brother Blaine, he chooses the latter, consigning himself to a summer under his annoying older brother’s supervision. Julia Lawry used the last of her resources to come to Gansett for her sister Katie’s wedding and has no idea how she’s going to get back to Texas to clean up the mess she left behind.

Maggie Harrington is in way, way over her head, running Matthews House, the shelter her famous sister Kate and brother-in-law Reid have opened, using Reid’s family estate to provide support to women and children in crisis. This job is just what Maggie needed after a disastrous episode in New York — or so she thought. The constant life-or-death challenges she encounters have her emotions on a roller coaster of soaring highs and crushing lows.

It's the dead of winter on Gansett Island, and Riley McCarthy's mood matches the lousy weather as he and his family work to bring their new business, McCarthy's Wayfarer, back to life. He can't deny that he's been in a funk since Nikki Stokes and her twin sister, Jordan, left the island last fall without saying good-bye. 

A year after his 31-year marriage imploded, Dr. Kevin McCarthy is enjoying life on Gansett Island. He's opened a small practice, goes fishing with his older brothers any time he wants, and has his sons, nieces, and nephews close by. Best of all is his all-consuming relationship with sexy bartender, Chelsea Rose. What started as a one-night stand a year ago, has turned into something much more significant for Kevin and for Chelsea. The 16-year age difference between them has never mattered, until they realize they may have differing plans for the future.

Gansett Island midwife Victoria Stevens loves taking care of people, in her job and in her personal life, especially when it comes to her boyfriend of one year, sexy Irishman Shannon O'Grady. Fueled by combustible chemistry, her relationship with Shannon has been H-O-T from the first night they met. But she's begun to wonder whether theirs is destined to be a short-term fling or possibly the love of a lifetime.

I knew on the day of the attack that our lives were changed forever. What I didn’t know then was that I’d never see John again after he deployed. One day he was living with me, sleeping next to me, making plans with me. The next day he was gone. That was five years ago. The world has moved on from that awful day, but I’m stuck in my own personal hell, waiting for a man who may be dead for all I know. At my sister’s wedding, I meet Eric, the brother of the groom, and my heart comes alive once again. 

Love is the last thing on Jack Harrington's mind when he sets out to meet Andi Walsh's flight. Recently back to work after spending more than a year tending to his comatose wife, Jack is focused on getting through each day and caring for his three daughters. However, the moment he sets eyes on Andrea Walsh, the interior designer who has come to decorate the hotel his company is building in Newport, Rhode Island, Jack begins to wonder if Andi might be his second chance.

Adele and Justine have never been close. Born 20 years apart, Justine was already an adult when Addie was born. The sisters love each other, but they don’t really know each other. When Addie dropped out of university to care for their ailing parents, Justine, a successful lawyer, covered the expenses. It was the best arrangement at the time, but now that their parents are gone, the future has changed dramatically for both women.

Mallory Vaughn is at a crossroads in her life. A year after learning that Big Mac McCarthy is her father, she's spending more and more time on Gansett Island, surrounded by the large and boisterous McCarthy family. When she's laid off from her longtime job, Mallory goes to visit her family on Gansett and tries to figure out the next chapter. An unexpected job offer will have her packing up her home in Providence to move to the island for at least the summer, if not longer.

The story left unfinished at the end of Marking Time picks up 10 years later when Kate Harrington goes after the man she left behind when she set out to chase her dream of music superstardom. Now she has everything she ever wanted, except for the man she can't live without. What will Reid say when she shows up unannounced in St. Kitts, looking to reclaim their lost love? And what will Jack, Kate's father, have to say when he hears she's gone back to her first love, a man Jack once considered a friend?

I’ve planned this night for weeks, down to the last detail. I want it to be perfect. Bringing someone new into my private life is not something I do lightly, having learned the hard way over the years that celebrity has a dark downside that I go out of my way to avoid whenever possible. But he is different. We’ve been together for months and the time is right to take this next step with him. It doesn’t take long for me to realize I’ve made a huge mistake trusting this man.

In a drunken stupor, Brandon O'Malley frightens his brother Aidan's girlfriend, enraging his brother and the rest of his family. Aidan offers Brandon the choice of rehab or jail, and Brandon reluctantly enters treatment. While in rehab, he confronts the lifetime of secrets and resentments that fueled his spiral into alcoholism, and these revelations have a major effect on his entire family.

Clare Harrington is considered a miracle, but everything that's happened since she recovered from a three-year coma has been something less than miraculous. Her 18-year-old daughter, Kate, a talented singer and songwriter, sets out to pursue her musical dreams in Nashville. Her parents have agreed to allow Kate to spend a year there, but they couldn't have anticipated Kate falling in love with a much older man. Her newly divorced parents are forced back together to confront their wayward daughter.

A peaceful morning is shattered when Washington Metro Police Lieutenant Sam Holland’s beloved father succumbs to injuries from an unsolved shooting while on duty four years ago. As the community rallies around Sam and her family, one thing becomes crystal clear: Her father’s death has turned the unsolved case into a homicide - and it’s on her to bring her father’s killer to justice. But the case has been cold for years...until an anonymous tip that’s too shocking to believe leads Sam down a dark and dangerous path.

Paul Martinez is run ragged by the demands of managing his family's landscaping business and his mother's battle with dementia, and it's been so long since he had sex - he can't remember the last time. The arrival of nurse Hope Russell brings some much needed help to Paul and his brother, Alex, in taking care of their ill mother, but Hope's presence sparks a whole new problem for Paul - lusting after one of his employees, something his late father would never condone.