"I wish I'd known love in this life." Captain Madison Brown strained to hear the dying soldier's last words in the makeshift hospital on the fields of war-torn Iraq. The lieutenant's final comment haunted Madison for the remainder of her tour in Iraq and then followed her home to Massachusetts. Ironically, Madison wanted no part of love for herself-or so she thought until she crossed paths with Isabella Parisi, an idealistic young social worker who challenged her to love again. Isabella, a dedicated professional from a tightly knit Catholic family in Boston's North End, has a seemingly perfect life: a satisfying job, a family she adores, and a devoted boyfriend. A chance encounter with Captain Madison Brown causes Isabella to question everything she thought she believed in. And the emotionally guarded Captain Brown gives Isabella even more reason to doubt the feelings swirling within her. Isabella's family, Madison's commitment to the Army, and their fears about what it means to love each other conspire to keep them apart. Just when it seems they've finally dodged all of the landmines between them, Madison is deployed to Afghanistan. As an officer in the Army, Madison swore herself to be a guardian of freedom and the American way of life. Can Isabella accept Madison for the person-the soldier-she is? What price duty? What cost honor? How much must one sacrifice in exchange for the promise of love? Not all of the ravages of war happen on the battlefield. What happens to Isabella and the relationship between the two women when Isabella must confront the fact that Madison is not just her lover, but her soldier too?