Jarrod McCallister finds himself at an impasse in his life as he and his friends begin watching the people in their lives die one by one. In order to find some sort of a joy and connect with his past, Jarrod makes a trip to the only place he ever felt that he and his family were truly happy and were something resembling what a family should be. His pilgrimage to Carolina Beach, North Carolina and more specifically to the remnants of Playland, where he and his brother Christopher had roamed its boardwalk summer vacation upon summer vacation, is where the journey begins.
Quite by accident he has an encounter with the bartender of a local watering hole and finds that he has stumbled upon the last thing he came to Carolina Beach to find - and that was a souvenir boyfriend.
Hunter Long is a former marine who, like Jarrod, had a family life that hadn't exactly nurtured his soul. The two find a commonality in that regard and in matters of the heart but otherwise the pair are complete opposites. Hunter is a strapping outdoors kinda guy and Jarrod is an urban dweller with a fear of water and a host of others. Yet somehow they are both inexplicably drawn to one another.
On the second to the last day of his retreat, Jarrod has to abruptly leave North Carolina and doesn't have a chance to have any sort of last meaningful moment with Hunter. He assumes they'll likely never see one another once he returns to his life but Hunter proves himself to be much more than Jarrod could ever have imagined. After seeing Jarrod through a tough situation the two decide to try to make a go of it as a couple - which involves Hunter relocating to the West Village and joining Jarrod in his cozy fourth floor walk-up.
Jarrod's somewhat estranged brother, Chris - who is all the family Jarrod can lay claim to - resurfaces at the same time. Circumstances force the two brothers to face the chasm that lies between them. Jarrod had needed his brother at a crucial time in his young life and Chris wasn't there for him. Once they reconnected, Jarrod learns that it's now his big brother who needs him.
During the healing of hearts and mending of wounds, lives are intertwined with other lives. Jarrod's circle of friends widens just enough to allow Hunter in and Jarrod's world reaches heights he never could have dreamed he'd know. Until one day. One fateful day when his world comes crashing down around him and he flees. He packs up his life in a van and leaves. If he were to remain he knew he would lose himself entirely so he returns, once more, to the haven of his boyhood joy. Carolina Beach.
Jarrod slowly rebuilds his life and, save for Chris and his family, he tucks everyone else neatly away in his past. But his past finds its way back to him - as it had before - and he's forced to face truths he wasn't prepared to deal with and make a decision, yet again, that involves his heart. A heart he was certain he'd locked safely away for good.
