Nova De Cruz has spent her entire life in the Outer Banks, but the past year has been different, she's living in a modest house directly across from TannyHill, with a perfect view of Rafe Cameron's bedroom windows, and his of hers. Neither rich nor poor, Nova struggles to find her place among the island's social divides, feeling too ordinary for the wealthy "kooks" and too polished for the rebellious "pogues." By day, she works at The Wreck, the bustling beachfront hangout, where she serves Rafe and his friends almost every week, unaware that the cocky, egotistical boy she despises in person is the same Rafe who lives right across the street. Known for his charm and recklessness with girls, Rafe is exactly the kind of person Nova would avoid...if she even had a choice. But when proximity and fate keep throwing them together, sparks fly between their endless bickering and undeniable chemistry, turning their rivalry into a slow-burning, irresistible romance.

Every summer, Catalina "Cat" Alvarez trades the sun-soaked streets of California for the salty air of the Outer Banks, where her family visits the Camerons - old friends from her mother's college days. The beach house on Figure Eight has always felt like a second home, a place of laughter, long tides, and barefoot memories shared with Rafe Cameron, the boy who knew her best. But this summer is different. Cat isn't just visiting - she's moving to the Outer Banks to attend the prestigious Coastal Arts Academy, where she's been accepted to pursue dance. Ballet, lyrical, hip-hop, modern jazz - movement is her language, her escape, the one place she can control the chaos inside her. Except now, even that feels uncertain. Rafe, once her anchor and partner in mischief, is colder than the Atlantic waves that crash against the shore. His laugh is sharper, his words sting harder, and his gaze - once warm - now hides something darker. He's changed, and Cat can't tell if he's pushing her away or daring her to stay. As summer heat builds, old feelings resurface - tangled between unspoken heartbreak, jealousy, and the fragile line between friendship and something more. But beneath the golden sunsets and perfect coastal days, secrets churn like undertow: Rafe's spiraling life, the Camerons' fractured family, and Cat's struggle to belong in a world split between two cultures, two homes, and two hearts. In a place where the tides pull hard and the past won't stay buried, Cat must decide whether to let go - or fight for the boy who's become a stranger under the Carolina sun. 2ND BOOK OF THIS SERIES IS OUT - The Summer He Changed: Three Years Later