After the Battle of Shiloh, Lottie Jackson's twelve-year-old brother, Bo, is all the family she has left. Determined that the Civil War won't claim his life too, she keeps him occupied helping her run her Smoky Mountain boardinghouse—and a secret moonshine operation. With two businesses and a boy to look after, falling in love doesn't figure in Lottie's plans— until a mysterious stranger asks for a room for the night, and threatens to claim much more.
Union Major Nick Washington has seen enough of war to last a lifetime. Assigned to ferret out moonshiners, he is on the lookout for secrets and lies—until a certain spirited redhead forces him to discover the hidden depths of his own heart and offers him a love that crosses all battle lines.